Engaging, accessible and practical, this book helps students to get the most out of new technologies to enhance their learning practices, engage with their studies and improve their study skills. Covering a broad range of topics, it encourages a reflective perspective on e-learning resources.
Acknowledgements viii
Abbreviations ix
Introduction x
Who is the book for? xi
What is this book about? xii
Chapter outlines xiii
The approach taken by the book xiv
How to use the book xv
1 Studying with new technologies 1
Introduction 1
Self-evaluation: identify your priorities 2
Using new technologies at college or uni 4
Being part of an online learning community 5
Basic netiquette 6
Netiquette: managing your tone 7
Netiquette in academic and work contexts 8
Self-evaluation: netiquette 9
Your netiquette and ground rules 10
Your online presence 11
Protect yourself and others 12
Taking care of your privacy and security 13
Respect for others' online material 15
Plagiarism and cheating 16
Using new technologies as a student 17
What equipment do I need? 19
Identifying resource requirements 20
Developing the right academic skills 21
Identifying your academic skills needs 22
Basic IT skills 23
Summary 24
2 Virtual learning environments 25
Introduction 25
What is a virtual learning environment (VLE)? 26
How are VLEs used to support learning? 27
Using the VLE: interaction and discussion 29
Using the VLE: resources and assessment 30
Using the VLE: collaboration and links 31
Using the VLE: course information and administration 32
Case study: a student's use of the VLE 33
Online assessment practice 34
Making effective use of online feedback 35
Using discussion boards for study 36
Using discussion boards for assignments 37
Case study: discussion board thread 38
Summary 40
3 Managing online information for academic study 41
Introduction 41
Self-evaluation: what would be useful to me? 42
Stages in managing information for study 43
Finding suitable material for your assignments 44
Locations for finding academic material online 45
Using the Internet for academic purposes 46
Narrowing or extending your online search 47
The impact of your search strategy 48
Developing your search strategy 49
Bibliographic databases 50
Digital repositories 51
Saving, retrieving, sharing and using information 52
Using Google tools for study 53
Online tools for study: group presentations 54
Online tools for study: written group report 55
Case study: conducting literature searches for projects 56
Evaluating material on YouTube for study 57
Using YouTube for study 58
Making YouTube videos for assignments 59
Summary 60
4 Podcasts 61
Introduction 61
What are podcasts? 62
Finding and subscribing to podcasts 63
Evaluating quality for academic purposes 64
Selecting podcasts for academic use 65
Podcasts made specially for your course 66
Organisational skills for using podcasts 67
Making notes when using podcasts 68
Applying critical thinking to podcasts 69
Referencing podcasts in your work 70
Using podcasts for exam preparation and recall 71
How helpful are podcasts? 72
Good podcast design 73
Producing your own podcasts 74
Summary 76
5 Blogs 77
Introduction 77
What is a blog? 78
What students say about blogs 79
Reasons for creating a blog 80
Creating a blog 82
Blog design: what works? 84
Good blog design 85
Writing blogs for an audience 86
Sharing and publicising your blog 87
Comments in blogs 88
Constructive commenting 89
Creating blogs for academic assignments 90
Using blogs for academic reflection 91
Blogs to support project development 92
Blogs to support professional development 93
Checklist: creating blogs for academic study 94
Case study: blog to support a student project 95
Case study: work placement blog 96
Using other people's blogs for academic study 97
Applying critical thinking to blogs 98
Thinking critically for academic blogs 99
Summary 100
6 Wikis 101
Introduction 101
What is a wiki? 102
Wikipedia: the five principles or 'pillars' 103
Searching on Wikipedia 104
Understanding the Wikipedia layout 105
Finding good quality material on Wikipedia 106
Using Wikipedia as a source of information 107
The accuracy of Wikipedia for student work 108
Student assignment: edit a live wiki page 109
Editing the content of a live wiki page 110
How to edit a wiki page 111
Creating a wiki page or article 112
Collaborative writing assignments using wikis 113
Checklist for writing and editing wikis 117
How useful are wikis for students? 118
Student reflections on using wikis in their studies 119
Summary 120
7 Social media 121
Introduction 121
Social networks and social networking sites 122
Features of key social networking sites 123
Understanding Facebook 124
Using Facebook to support academic study 125
Using Facebook for peer support 126
Making Facebook work for group projects 127
Facebook: wider considerations for study 128
Micro-blogging and Twitter 129
Getting started with Twitter 130
Using Twitter for academic purposes 131
Students' use of Twitter: Sarah 132
Students' use of Twitter: Imran 133
Linkedln: build your professional community 134
Linkedln: features of interest to students 135
Linkedln: for entrepreneurial students 136
Case study: a student's use of social networking tools 137
Referencing social networking sites 138
Summary 140
8 Classroom and communication technologies 141
Introduction 141
Exploring the terrain 142
Student voting handsets 143
Making use of voting handset opportunities 144
Lecture capture 145
Lecture capture: chat 146
Preparing to use collaborative learning tools 147
Using collaborative learning tools in class 148
Case study: collaborative tutorial 149
Video conferencing tools 150
Using video conferencing as a student 151
Case study: video conferencing for research project interviews 152
Case study: video conferencing for support on placement 153
Mobile devices 154
Mobile devices: tablets and e-readers 155
Using mobile devices for study 156
Apps to support your studies 157
Apps for study: Android and BlackBerry 158
Mobile devices in practical study settings 159
Summary 160
9 Drawing it together 161
Case study: combining the technologies (1) 162
Case study: combining the technologies (2) 163
Case study: combining the technologies (3) 164
Using technology to resolve study difficulties 165
Self-evaluation: how well do I use the technologies available to me? 166
Self-evaluation: achievements to date and future priorities 167
Technologies not covered in this book 171
Closing comments 172
Glossary 173
Useful resources 177
References and further reading 180
Feedback on activities 181
Index 183
Overview
Engaging, accessible and practical, this book helps students to get the most out of new technologies to enhance their learning practices, engage with their studies and improve their study skills. Covering a broad range of topics, it encourages a reflective perspective on e-learning resources.