Week 1 - quite a lot done :)

This online course/session is just what I have been waiting for a long time, I guess. I learned about this through Linkedin Tesol group as a colleague gave me a lucky tip.

I created my first blog for the English Teachers' Seminar at Exeter College in Oxford in 2007. After the seminar a facebook group was created, and that was actually the beginning of social networking for me.

Now this has been the first week for EVO Multiliteracies group, and I have not only learned a lot from other members and the moderators but also been actively trying out several tools I previously knew nothing about. At first it felt confusing to have many platforms in parallel use (Yahoo group, ning and wiki), and I guess I still haven't become used to navigating effectively to and fro. I had my doubts if had joined a wrong group and should have taken the BAW to be more familiar with the web tools and ways of using them, but maybe next year. I found the multiliteracies group most interesting, and thought I'd survive somehow. I want to attach the session description here to remind me what I am in for now :)

A multiliterate teacher understands the many ways that technology interacts and intertwines with academic and interpersonal life, and actively learns how to gain control over those aspects impacting teaching, social, and professional development. Multiliterate individuals are aware of the pitfalls inherent in technology while striving for empowerment through effective strategies for first discerning and then taking advantage of those aspects of changing technologies most appropriate to their situations. These strategies include managing, processing, and interpreting a constant influx of information, filtering what is useful, and then enhancing the learning environment with the most appropriate applications.

Objectives
By the end of this week you will have:

1. Introduced yourself to the group (Yahoo Group / Ning) >YES!
2. Linked your introduction URL to our participants list at http://tinyurl.com/evomlit2010participants >YES!
3. Enrolled in and familiarized yourself with the features of our
1. Yahoo Group http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/multilit/ >YES!
2. Ning http://multiliteracies.ning.com/ >YES!
4. Configured your network tools:
1. Yahoo group and Ning profiles >a bit YES!
2. Added yourself to our participants' map in our Ning >YES!
3. joined Diigo and Twitter and started conversing within them about Multiliteracies >YES!

But I haven't used any tags, this isn't clear to me, though it must be something very basic ;) (use the hash tag #evomlit, for example)

5. Commented on at least ONE of the readings or viewings > still to-do!
6. Started a blog to track progress in this course

> Made at least ONE entry > here we go!
> Tagged at least ONE blog or wiki posting (or any artifact created for this course): evomlit > my stumbling block!
> Visited http://spezify.com/#/evomlit to see what others have tagged > still to-do! Maybe this will enlighten me about the tagging business...

I read Mark Pegrum's introduction to his book From Blogs to Bombs and ordered a copy and watched his video twice, but I surely need more time for comments, though. I have had a look at some blogs by other participants and seen that many of them have been around in this evo business for quite some time, so it seems to be more like a way of life than a unique experience, and I really like the idea being involved in this online learning community. I'm happy to have ventured to delve into this project. We live and we learn...

Today's text chat session in Tapped_in was again a new experience, joined a little late and wondered the fast pace of multiple chats going on - wasn't the only one.
Missed Diigo for education but hope to be able to watch/listen to a recording.

Time to get prepared for the challenges of week 2, and get some sleep. It's going to be another working week after all!