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Case study: Deadly Skills- Telling our Stories NSW June 2013 North Coast TAFE

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Page 1: Recommendations on Virtual Worlds Web viewAdditional memory and 3G ... beginning of the project an evolutionary moment happened when observing the shudder of fear and apprehension

Case study: Deadly Skills-Telling our Stories NSW June 2013North Coast TAFE

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Deadly Skills: Telling our Stories

Contents

1. About Us................................................................................................................................31.1 The Team........................................................................................................................3

1.2 Knowledge and experience.............................................................................................3

2. The project aim and objective.............................................................................................62.1 Aim..................................................................................................................................6

2.2 Objective.........................................................................................................................6

The journey................................................................................................................................112.3 Starting the project........................................................................................................11

2.4 Running the project.......................................................................................................12

2.5 Wrapping up the project................................................................................................14

The results..................................................................................................................................162.6 Main project outcomes..................................................................................................16

2.7 How the outcomes were measured...............................................................................17

3. The lessons learnt..............................................................................................................193.1 Key successes..............................................................................................................19

3.2 Suggested improvements.............................................................................................19

4. Passing it forward..............................................................................................................204.1 Knowledge transfer...................................................................................................20

4.2 Mentorship..................................................................................................................20

More information.......................................................................................................................21Useful Links...............................................................................................................................22Appendix 1: SMILE Plug and App............................................................................................23Appendix 2: Outputs.................................................................................................................24

Recommendations on Virtual Worlds.......................................................................................24

Customised Moodle Mobile App..............................................................................................25

Moodle Course.........................................................................................................................26

National VET E-learning Strategy 2012 – 2015 Page 2

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1. About UsThis case study was developed by North Coast TAFE with funding and support from the national training system’s e-learning strategy, the National VET E-learning Strategy (Strategy). The Strategy provides the VET system with the essential e-learning infrastructure and expertise needed to respond to the challenges of a modern economy and the training needs of Australian businesses and workers.

The Project is part of the broader North Coast TAFE Deadly Skills Strategy. The vision is to support young Aboriginal people to achieve to their fullest potential by building opportunities, relationships and respect in collaboration with Aboriginal communities. The Deadly Skills Strategy aims to provide young Aboriginal people with the highest quality support, pathways to skills development and choice in their lifelong learning journey through fostering effective relationships with young people’s families and communities; employers; schools; and other service providers. Additionally, it aims to build North Coast TAFE’s Aboriginal Cultural Capability, particularly in program design and support services.

1.1 The TeamProject Sponsor: Heather McGregor

Leadership and Vision: Simone Nelson, Jeanne Smith

Project Management/Instructional Design: Natalie Denmeade

Graphic Design/ Cultural Perspective: Mandy Davis

Weekly Consultation: Andrew Saunders, Mandy Davis, Mary Dumas

Workshops: Natalie Denmeade, Lee Townsend, Mandy Davis, Mary Dumas

Multimedia: Brad Diebert

1.2 Knowledge and experienceThe team all bought significant skills to the project in: Language, Culture, Film Making, Acting, Education, Mentoring, and Leadership. The Project Sponsor, Heather McGregor, has led major IT Projects and is familiar with the technology challenges involved in delivering content to multiple devices and bandwidth limitations. Heather was in full support of a vision that explored what opportunities the NBN could bring to our learners.

The Project Manager/Instructional Designer, Natalie Denmeade, has a background in technology and Wide Area Network Support, Education and Aboriginal Perspectives. This experience helped

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keep the key objectives in mind and to explore new technologies to see what best fits learner and teacher needs.

Mandy Davis has a background in teaching Gathang Language, Cultural Awareness training, and is a professional Artist. Her current role involves talking to students about what obstacles are in the way of them learning at TAFE. This project was shaped by Mandy’s insight an appreciation of the issues faced by Aboriginal Youth, and her ability to build on their interests and strengths.

Figure 1: How can mobile computing and NBN give our Mob more choices in life and education?

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TEAM DETAILS

Mandy Davis

Aboriginal Learning Liaison Officer

As the cultural advisor and learner support officer, Mandy was involved in designing this resource to appeal to Aboriginal Learners. The animal totems and artwork are her designs.

Natalie Denmeade

Instructional Designer/ Teacher

Natalie is the eLearning consultant and Digital Media Teacher. Her interests are eLearning, technology, gamification and indigenous education.

Mary Dumas

Teacher Coach

Mary holds a teaching degree and works with Aboriginal Learners and Teachers in the classroom as tutorial support. Mary provided advice on learner profiles, needs and interests to develop this resource.

Andrew Saunders

Aboriginal Vocational Consultant

Andrew works closely with communities on the North Coast of NSW to ensure TAFE programs are designed to meet local needs.

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2. The project aim and objective

2.1 AimThe aims of this project were to:1: Develop and utilise e-learning strategies to maximise the benefits of the national investment in broadband.2: Expand participation and access for individuals through targeted e-learning approaches. 3. Enable teachers to gain more confidence using technology and working in technology enabled classrooms.

The focus for this project was to explore the question: How can mobile computers and high speed internet benefit Aboriginal Learners? We hope that in the future Aboriginal learners will commence their journey with TAFE through a Certificate II in IT and Digital Media using these materials. The goal is to provide a solid foundation of Digital Skills for higher completion rates in future enrolments of young Aboriginal learners. The ability to use tablets, create a portfolio on Google Sites and share photos, video and audio as evidence of learning is a very powerful skill to offer a new learner.

2.2 ObjectiveThe key objective of this activity was to use innovative e-learning technologies, including those using high-speed broadband to deliver e-learning projects and strategies which improves individuals’ access to gain pre-vocational skills, skills in priority employment areas and/or to pursue educational pathways to gain higher qualifications. The project successfully met these aims. A comprehensive strategy was developed to deliver eLearning in a way that was much simpler than previously used. A blended delivery approach, facilitated via a Moodle course, integrated familiar Web 2 spaces of YouTube, Facebook and Google. Video introductions to each topic provide motivation and context for learners. Learners gained skills in:

• Using affordable tablet computers as cameras, microphones, visual and voice searching, internet and email. Connect and contribute to their communities, families, role models and other learners through social media.

• Used Apps and Cloud-based tools for file storage and creation (Google Drive).

• Created online Portfolios with photos, film, and text.

• Contribute stories and assets to a ‘Telling Our Stories’ Gallery.

Increased skills in multimedia and social media offers a great foundation for successful study in any TAFE course. Learners extended their traditional literacy skills to include digital literacy. Assessment can include audio recording or portfolio creation. These skills are also highly valued in

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any workplace.

Figure 3: Interactive map with totems to collect

Figure 4: Moodle Course

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Figure 5: Classroom in the Cloud

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Figure 6: Deadly Digital Skills Facebook Page

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The journey

2.3 Starting the project The start of the project involved lots of tea and cake with people from the local community, Head Teachers, ELearning advisors, Class Teachers and learners. Informal conversations were held to establish what learners need and what current obstacles there are to using technology. This led to a simplification of the eLearning platform – at least from the end user perspective. The platforms required to put this in to place were quite sophisticated.

A separate WIFI network at TAFE with high speed access that does not go through TAFE’s DEC firewall was a key element to the success of this project. Our IT Department was supportive, responsive and innovative. We wouldn’t have even dreamed of trying this without their positive attitude. The need arose to have an off campus Wi-Fi so investigations were made into costs of a portable mini classroom and a solution found in the SMILE plug.

Figure 7: $199 Mini classroom in a cloud - connects 60 computers in a local peer network or internet

The Google Nexus tablets were a great success. The learners were comfortable using their tiny mobile phone screens so 7 inches was fine to work on. The small size means they all fit in a backpack ready to go. A downside was it is harder for a teacher to see what is on the screen to offer support or monitor if the learner is on track.

Figure 8: $249 WIFI Android Tablet with Wi-Fi and USB

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2.4 Running the projectAs the project progressed new issues arose and various solutions were explored. As outlined in the table below.

Issue Solution Comment

Remote classroom providing off site access

Purchase a robust, battery operated hardware device as a hub to connect up to 60 devices us$199. This device also acts as a simple repeater for areas outside of hotspots

http://www.globalscaletechnologies.com/p-57-smileplug.aspx

This device comes with SMILE APP and is the result of research by Stanford University into emerging eLearning environments. Has great potential to use Mobile Phones and tablets in blended learning.

Android 4.2.2 update stopped Flash Support

Find replacements for all Flash based technology: e.g. Voicethread, Adobe Presenter, Second Life

https://chrome.google.com/webstore

The Chrome web store offers free web apps that work on all Operating Systems and Devices.

E.g. WeVideo, Real time board, MindMup,

Minecraft Mods would be a good virtual world as they are peer networked and work on tablets.

Device Management that addresses issues of Generic Account use, non-repudiation, and accountability and privacy

Use Google Apps for Education (GAFE) free admin tools for users, groups, and device management

Android tablets allow multiple users on each device. Screens can be set to lock after a set time to ensure privacy of data, and to protect other tablet users from offensive or private content. The Google Device Management app was installed by a root user so that all devices can be wiped remotely periodically. The GAFE/ Google Play tool also allows software to be pushed to devices.

Authentication and Access

Google Drive and Gmail account used as Open ID and SSO

http://www.google.com/enterprise/apps/education/

Moodle has been included in the delivery plan as a tool used by the teacher and is optional for learners to access. The main interfaces the learners use are simpler and familiar. They can be accessed by direct URLs, Email, Facebook, YouTube and Google Drive. Web Apps use the same Google password and are

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linked to Google Drive a central file repository.

Reporting in a more natural non – linear way

Tin Can Api and Scorm Cloud

http://tincanapi.com/public-lrs/

Learners were able to use a more diverse range of activities and have evidence sent back to a Learning Record Store in either the scorm Cloud or Moodle as a LRS. Activates were logged by either a Bookmarklet or JavaScript in the header.

Positive outlook from Learners

Gamification of the delivery platform – goals , levels , badges and feedback (HTML5)

Most of us feel overwhelmed part way in to a commitment. Our learners often quite because the goal seems too big and too far. The use of totems as continual rewards borrows ideas from games to increase engagement of learners.

The map we developed is also available as a Facebook app but it needs a lot more time invested to work as a stand-alone item.https://apps.facebook.com/deadly_skills/

Learner gives a Google tablet to another classmate who has access to hack all of their logged on accounts

Set up multi users and locks on the tablet home screen to protect privacy

Installing Google Device management app allows for remote administration, geo tracking and accountability of tablet use.

The tablet has to be set up to auto-lock after a set period and each user have their own account set up on the tablet.

Moodle Mobile App not released in January as expected

Try Google App as an alternative

By the time the Moodle Mobile App was released we had changed the plan for learners to upload directly to Moodle. Our plan was for them to use Google Drive.

We tried Google App engine which turned out to be an alternate LMS and quite plain dashboard interface so we didn’t pursue this. As a final choice, the content was uploaded to the Scorm Cloud and can be used as a Learning Object through a public or private URL.

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2.5 Wrapping up the projectThe learners and teachers involved with this project have been inspired about how much easier technology is to use these days. The entry point of $249 for a tablet was seen as a good investment by all of the learners. Within a few minutes they generally asked ‘How much are these? Oh I want one!” If we had introduced laptops or iPads in a $600- $800 price range the devices would not have been affordable to many of our learners. We were interested in finding a minimum standard that was equitable for all learners. We imagined a classroom where the teacher can expect people to at least have a mini tablet or possibly a better featured device of their own choice for use in class. 10 inch Google nexus tablets are available from about $430. Additional memory and 3G can be purchased. The results were that the Google Nexus 7 tablets were more than adequate and are not a ‘poor cousin’ substitute for the real thing. Many people prefer the portability of a 7 inch screen and will use a standard desktop when not out and about.

Our program was integrated with a foundation literacy course being offered through North Coast TAFE’s Education, Employment and Support (EE&S) faculty. The teachers in this department are very impressed with how versatile the Google Tablets are to create a technology enabled classroom. Some tools they liked were: Dictionary Apps, Voice Search – Google Now, Google Earth (Atlas), Google Goggles Visual Search, Translation tools, and games for learning maths.

The two programs, EE&S and Digital Media, dove-tail together perfectly and offer complimentary skills. The focus of this project was to implement a blended delivery model that was flexible enough to support a variety of implementations. Technology comes in to support rather than direct lesson plans. This approach encourages teachers to use Mobile technology a little bit or a lot in relation to their own experience and the subject matter. Team teaching scenarios were the most effective in increasing teacher’s confidence to try new delivery methods.

As this project is part of a wider North Coast TAFE Deadly Skills Strategy and relates to foundation skills for use in learning pathways across the board, we can foresee that the resources will continue to be improved and readapted for different scenarios. Separate funding was found for phase 2 of this project so almost an entire Certificate II in IT and Digital Media with an Aboriginal perspective are ready for use. We hope to have a class of all Aboriginal Learners next year. North Coast TAFE has recently signed an agreement as an Aboriginal Learning Circle member with four other TAFE NSW Institutes. These resources and case study can be shared and utilised by Aboriginal Learning Circle members.

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Figure 9: Deadly Digital Skills YouTube Channel

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The ability to create a portfolio on Google Sites and save photos, video and audio as evidence of learning is a very powerful skill to offer a new learner. Completion of some units could be used as advanced standing in other qualifications.

Figure 11: Google Apps Admin Panel

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Figure 10: Information being sent to a (LRS) Learning Record Store

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The results

2.6 Main project outcomesAn ongoing report about this project is available online: Wikispace monthly reporting .

The real outcome was that Moodle Learning Management System was not viewed as a complete eLearning solution. Web 2 tools and a collection of integrated software can be used to create a simpler learning experience, particularly needed for Certificate II level learners.

Tablet computers are seen as extending our existing environment rather than replacing it. We still need our Standard Environment computer labs and desktop computers.

YouTube video management tools are very powerful. We added interactive buttons so pathways could be explored, playlists, introductory clips, audio and quizzes. Subscribe to the Teacher’s channel and download the PlayBook EDU guide.

Figure 13: Scorm Cloud dispatch learning objects to multiple sources

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Figure 12: Tablet computers are seen as extending our existing environment rather than replacing it.

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Figure 14: Realtime board presentation on the technology behind Deadly Skills

An interactive version of the ‘Classroom in the cloud’ with ability to zoom in is available online: View Real Time Board Technology Overview

Tin Can API Technology has great potential to transform SCORM based linear learning into a more flexible aggregation of learner directed experiences.

The Google Company has the economy of scale to develop products for education that are effective and amazingly easy to use. TAFE already has all learner accounts through Gmail and is recommended to turn on other services available to fully utilize the power of Google Calendar, Google Drive and Google Sites. NSW Primary and Secondary schools are currently undergoing this roll out and TAFE could benefit greatly from pursuing a cloud based approach to education. Chrome books should be explored as a mobile classroom solution.

2.7 How the outcomes were measuredIncrease in enrolments of Aboriginal Learners was a key measurement used. All of the participants have indicated that they want to come back and enrol in more courses so there will be enough to start a class specifically for Aboriginal Learners. As of semester two in 2013 we have negotiated

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with an experienced Aboriginal Digital Media teacher to commence teaching Digital Media at Taree TAFE, which is a key factor in attracting enrolments. Three other Aboriginal Community Members who have their Certificate IV TAE have expressed an interest in team teaching and eventually delivering some Digital Media or IT units.

A key measurement in the success of a new technology is the level of resistance and fear. Body language, silence and some absence by project participants is the way that people communicate that they are uncomfortable with technology. In this project learners were asking: “Can we use the tablets?” “When are you were coming back to do another workshop?” When learners are willing to come in on holidays to do extra workshops you know you’ve got something right. At the beginning of the project an evolutionary moment happened when observing the shudder of fear and apprehension when the word “Moodle” was used. At the end of the project while watching learners participate and receive badges and positive feedback we watched their shoulders wiggle with pride and feeling successful.

This positive reaction has included teachers. The Education, Employment and Support (EES) Head Teacher has initiated a request for Professional Development to show what mobile computers can achieve, and classroom teachers are keen to stay involved.

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3. The lessons learnt

3.1 Key successesThe key successes from this project are:

More Aboriginal Learners feeling comfortable and welcome at North Coast TAFE.

More potential Aboriginal Teachers.

Interactive HTML5 map with totems – designed so it can be modified for many purposes.

Our own YouTube Channel and Facebook page to promote Digital Media Skills.

Google Apps for Education (GAFE) domain administration tool established.

A Moodle course that pulls off all of these resources together wills gradebook rubrics.

3.2 Suggested improvementsThe short timeframe of the project was difficult. An extra semester to complete the user testing would have been more realistic. We considered running workshops in January but this was break time for most learners. For the amount of money invested, and for our ambitious project goals, more time was required. Or perhaps set less ambitious goals next time!

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4. Passing it forward

4.1 Knowledge transferWe encourage other organisations to:

Download the Moodle Course and modify for your own ‘Country’. Flexible rubrics are set up to assess each topic.

Copy the Activity Sheets from Google Drive. They are in a format you can easily change to suit your needs: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B931j7YQf1XxYkFyN2VQWmNBQXM&usp=sharing

Set up your own YouTube channel for your course and get to know the Video manager tools. NBN will allow us to use video as a central part of our delivery and the interactive and quiz features on YouTube are something all teachers can embed in their practice.

Explore Gamification! We can learn a lot from game designers about engaging learners.

Investigate GAFE Google Apps for Education. Google Cloud based apps will work across all computers (Apple, Windows and Android – tablets, laptops, phones and desktops). Google Drive is a versatile repository that saves file upload/download. It makes technology simple. Try making a Google form to collect learner answers. Embed this form in Moodle. Flubaroo script will automatically mark answers collected in your form.

Consider purchasing Android Devices as Library items available for hire. As an Institute-owned device, Android Tablets are a better choice than iPads. They are more compatible through USB connections, offer a wider range of free apps, and comply with privacy policies. Android tablets allow multiple users to logon. This is better than iPads that rely on shared/generic log-ons. Android devices are easier to administer remotely through GAFE and Google Apps Device management tools. If stolen they can be tracked and wiped.

4.2 MentorshipMembers within the Aboriginal Learning Circle, recent established within TAFE NSW, who wish to customise and implement with Aboriginal youth in their respective service areas will have the option to do so using the technology concepts and outputs developed under this project.

The Facebook Page is open to anyone interested in Deadly Digital Skills and will be a place to develop and maintain connections.

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More information

For more information on the Deadly Skills: Telling our Stories

Natalie Denmeade

Project Manager

North coast TAFE NSW

Phone: 0405 820 967

Email: [email protected]

For more information on the National VET E-learning Strategy:

Website: flexiblelearning.net.au

With the exception of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms, the Department’s logo, any material protected by a trade mark and where otherwise noted all material presented in this document is provided under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/) licence. Aboriginal Artwork used with direct permission by Amanda Davis, All Rights Reserved.

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Useful Links

http://youtu.be/GPxPrtdjUDYThree Minute Digital Story about this project

https://northcoast.learn.tafensw.edu.au/enrol/instances.php?id=102Moodle Course with links to pull all of the content together

https://northcoast.learn.tafensw.edu.au/mod/url/view.php?id=881Online version Phase 1: Telling our Stories

https://northcoast.learn.tafensw.edu.au/mod/scorm/view.php?id=864Online version Phase 2: Real World Technology (Funded as a separate project)

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0BwZZqH8gH8TaZU96XzBEV0w2NG8&usp=sharingPublic access to the resources, zip files, videos and Phase 2 of this project covering Real World Technologies

https://www.facebook.com/DeadlyDigitalSkillsDeadly Digital Skills Facebook Page

http://www.youtube.com/user/DeadlyTechSkillsUnkle Tom’s Deadly Digital Skills YouTube Channel

Wikispace monthly reporting . Ongoing reports as the project unfolded

http://www.globalscaletechnologies.com/p-57-smileplug.aspxThe SMILE plug device comes with SMILE APP and is the result of research by Stanford University into emerging eLearning environments. Has great potential.

http://elizabethbuckner.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/smile-concept-paper.pdfResearch behind Mobile Learning Strategies with the SMILE App by Stanford University

https://chrome.google.com/webstoreThe Chrome web store offers free web apps that work on all OS and Devices.E.g. WeVideo, Real time board, MindMup

http://www.google.com/enterprise/apps/education/Simple browser based learning with Google Apps for Education

http://tincanapi.com/public-lrs/Learner’s evidence is sent back to a Learning Record. Activates were logged by either a Bookmarklet or JavaScript in the header.

https://apps.facebook.com/deadly_skills/The HTML5 game is available as a Facebook app of this map but it needs a lot more time invested to work as a stand-alone item.

https://www.google.com/a/cpanel/deadlyskills.org

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Google Apps for Education Control Panel. Note the domain name is linked to the GAFE account but the URL www.deadlyskills.org is not used as a website or to distribute any content. Test accounts have been created as [email protected]

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Appendix 1: SMILE Plug and AppSMILE Plug

The SMILE Plug is a Marvell ARM-based CPU with 1 GHz of Flash and DDR3 memory as well as Stanford’s Mobile Inquiry Based Learning Environment (SMILE).

Not only does it provide plenty of processing power and resources to run any embedded computing application, it has the ability to create a local Wi-Fi network for up to 60 students in one classroom with network connectivity via Gigabit Ethernet.

Peripheral devices can be connected using USB 2.0 and Wi-Fi.

A plug administration API and UI called Plugmin is also included for simple deployment and system management.

Stanford Mobile Inquiry-based Learning Environment (SMILE) 

What is SMILE?

The Stanford Mobile Inquiry-based Learning Environment (SMILE) enables students to quickly pose multimedia-rich multiple-choice questions and share them with peers using mobile phones during class. After the questions have been created, students can respond to and rate the questions that they and their peers created moments before. Finally, when all students have responded to each other’s questions, they can view detailed personal and question-related data (including which student answered the most questions accurately and which student created the highest-rated question). To facilitate this learning environment, SMILE includes an activity management application for the instructor that allows him or her to control the progress of the activity in real time and to view all student data.

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Appendix 2: OutputsRecommendations on Virtual WorldsAs this trial was based on using Google Nexus Android tablets we went searching for Android based viewers and apps that allowed learners to interact in a virtual environment. The Lumiya app was the best option but wasn’t very impressive. Developers of these apps face major technical issues of graphics programming, bandwidth, and performance. Speed is a big issue yet to be resolved.

Another issue was finding, or creating, a safe virtual space. We needed to find a space that would be appealing to our learners and discovered a few places with an Australian landscape. There were issues of learners possible drifting away to other places in the open environment of Second Life.

A suggestion made by students was to use Mine craft as a virtual world. Initial investigations showed this to be much more stable and effective than Second Life or Open Sim worlds, and provided a closed environment which was much safer for an educational environment.

The Mine craft Pocket Edition runs very well on the Google Tablets and mods can be copied across easily using Dropbox. An app is required to access the file manager and move the new mod files into the correct directory.

This is an example of a mine craft mod:

http://minecraftpecheats.com/2013/05/29/theatre-cinema-with-map-download-minecraft-pocket-edition/

Some of the advanced Digital Media students (who run their own Mine craft server) are interested in importing our own movies into a Minecraft World. We plan to try this next semester. All of the learners were keen to try out virtual worlds and avatars. The teachers are interested in how this role play tool could be integrated with other lessons.

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Customised Moodle Mobile AppThe official Moodle Mobile App was released a few months later than anticipated so was not implemented in the lesson delivery. When a beta version was released some initial testing was done that was very promising.

To modify the global styles of the App to match your own design a custom css file is defined in the Moodle Server Configuration. A copy of the original css ready to be modified is available on github:

https://github.com/moodlehq/moodlemobile/tree/master/css

Figure 15: The look of the Moodle Mobile App is re-defined through a custom css file.

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Moodle CourseA Moodle course is available for copying and modifying under Creative Commons License.

https://northcoast.learn.tafensw.edu.au/course/view.php?id=102

Download the mbz backup file

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