EDUCAUSE | Contributed by EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative and Networking and Emerging Technologies

7 Things You Should Know About Virtual Worlds

drupal — Fri, 23 Jun 2006 10:16:25 -0500

A virtual world is an immersive online environment whose "residents" are avatars representing individuals who participate through the Internet. Many institutions are experimenting with virtual worlds for educational purposes. They may foster constructivist learning by placing students in a context that challenges them to learn without explicit learning objectives and assessment.

The "7 Things You Should Know About..." series from the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI) provides concise information on emerging learning practices and technologies. Each brief focuses on a single practice or technology and describes what it is, where it is going, and why it matters to teaching and learning. Use "7 Things You Should Know About..." briefs for a no-jargon, quick overview of a topic and share them with time-pressed colleagues.

In addition to the "7 Things You Should Know About…" briefs, you may find other ELI resources useful in addressing teaching, learning, and technology issues at your institution. To learn more, please visit the ELI Resources page.

ELI Innovations & Implementations—DukeCapture: Automated Classroom Lecture Recording

drupal — Tue, 16 May 2006 11:24:19 -0500

Duke University is developing DukeCapture, an automatic lecture recording service. It will allow instructors to easily record audio, video, and visuals from a lecture, knowing that the files will be available online shortly after class.

ELI's Innovations & Implementations series highlights innovative teaching, learning, and technology practices in higher education. Each Innovations & Implementations piece provides a practical overview of an innovation, focusing on its significance and implementation issues. Use Innovations & Implementations to explore innovative practices that might be of value to your institution.

ELI Innovations & Implementations—DRE at Purdue: A Distributed Rendering Environment for Teaching Animation and Scientific Visualization

drupal — Mon, 20 Mar 2006 09:53:37 -0600

Purdue University's Distributed Rendering Environment (DRE) allows students to render 3D models and animations using grid computing. The DRE's long-term goal is to lower the threshold of entry into grid computing for students and faculty in the arts, humanities, and social sciences.

7 Things You Should Know About Grid Computing

drupal — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 13:36:54 -0600

Grid computing uses middleware to coordinate disparate IT resources across a network, allowing them to function as a virtual whole. The goal of a computing grid, like that of the electrical grid, is to provide users with access to the resources they need, when they need them. Grids address two distinct but related needs: providing remote access to IT assets, and aggregating processing power.

2006 Horizon Report

drupal — Mon, 23 Jan 2006 15:00:13 -0600

The annual Horizon Report is a collaborative effort between the New Media Consortium (NMC) and the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI). Each year, the report identifies and describes six areas of emerging technology likely to have a significant impact on teaching, learning, or creative expression in higher education within three adoption horizons: a year or less, two to three years, and four to five years.
The areas of emerging technology cited for 2006 are:
• Social computing
• Personal broadcasting
• Cell-phone-accessible educational content and services
• Educational gaming
• Augmented reality and enhanced visualization
• Context-aware environments and devices
Each section of the report provides live Web links to example applications and additional readings.

2005 Horizon Report

drupal — Wed, 16 Feb 2005 10:46:22 -0600

The 2005 Horizon Report, highlights six technologies that the underlying research suggests will become very important to higher education over the next one to five years.

A central focus of the discussion of each technology is its relevance for teaching, learning, and creative expression. Live weblinks to example applications are provided in each section, as well as to additional readings.