Day # 9

Today was a very productive day working on our iTunesU course. I feel much less overwhelmed and think that our group has a really great handle on using the course creation program. I feel it is very similar to creating a Moodle Course because you have to upload your documents and link them in a similar fashion. This assignment definitely challenged my abilities (especially with apple devices) and in the end I think it was a worth while learning activity.

Some of the key glitches I came to realize while working with a group on creating an iTunesU course are:
-Even though you can add a number of "Contributors" to a course, they are still not able to carry out a few key functions that the course "Owner". If two people are working in the course manager simultaneously, someone will be kicked out when attempting to save their work and that work will be lost. The best work around for this was for people in the group to take turns using the account while the others worked within an external document that is saved outside of iTunesU.
-You cannot use an iPad to manage an iTunesU course, however, you can use the iPad to add material to an assignment once it is uploaded to the course material folder.
Overall, I believe iTunesU enabled our group to create a conveniently self-contained online course that is easy to navigate in a logical manner and that is accessible to all.

Our link and enroll code for the iTunesU course is https://itunesu.itunes.apple.com/enroll/JT8-DC3-RD5

Just to add to today's post, I thought I'd include a thought provoking video clip on the integration of technology for the 21st Century Learners.

Some comments:
Be aware that these statistics are from 2007. More than ever we need to vbe reminded as educators that we are ultimately preparing students for the workforce and whichever way they can most effectively go about being capable citizens is the goal. We need to not revert to traditional methods so that student's talents aren't destroyed. An interesting statistic from this videos was that 14% of teachers let their students use technology once a week! I'm hoping a lot has changed since 2007 (iPads didn't even exist when this video was made). I hope the percentage of teachers who integrate technology into their students learning and the frequency at which it is used (especially for those who need more accessible materials) has increased! What do you think?