Glad to be joining the group

It's a great part of the world we live in. The only problem is those kilometres that separate us. Hopefully this way of getting together will reduce some of that isolation that can be part of our lives in this great part of the world.

It's nice to be joining the project. Looking forward to catching up with you all on 15 October.

Flickr and Team Wiki Web Conference

Today in our webconference we are looking at Flickr and how we this could be used to assist with Workplace Assessment or sharing of photos. Our team tag is neichildrenservices2007.

The team have been busy collecting photos and so we hope to be able to add these new images to our Flickr area.

We are also looking at sharing resources on our Team Wiki http://childrens-services-nei.wikispaces.com/. This is the first step to being able to coordinate team members to work on documents for Workpalce Assessment together.

Each team member will be adding a resource to share on the team wiki space.

Web Conferencing

This week we spent some time practicing with Adobe Connect Web Conferencing. This was to allow everyone the chance to practice getting into the room and also setup their audio on their computer. I think everyone has decided that this will make an interesting tool for meetings rather than over the phone.

I hope to do some more with the web conferencing for delivery of some new skills to the group eg Flickr.

All we need now are some web cameras!!!

Our First Team Workshop!!

Wow, what a day! We explored several tools that will assist our group collaborate online effectively. Each member updated their personal page on the nswlearnscope wiki and then created their own space at http://www.wikispaces.com/.... we even trialled webconferencing with Adobe Connect.

We were lucky to have Robyn Jay and Alex Hayes with us for the day - they had some wonderful ideas and resources... thanks Robyn and Alex.

I have uploaded our pics from the day to the flickr site - you can see them in a "flickr badge" on this page or search flickr for the tag neichildrenservices2007 or nswlearnscope07.

I hope you all enjoyed the day as much as I did and I look forward to the rest of the project.

First Skills Survey & Calendar

As one of your first tasks you were required to complete a short skills survey... the results are in... On the side menu you will see a link to the Survey results.

Please take a moment to read the survey results - and then leave a comment on this blog entry. To leave a comment click on the word COMMENTS at the bottom of this entry - please include your name with your comment.

You will also note that entries to the blog are added in date order, with the most recent at the top.

Also, please have a look at the Team Calendar on the right-hand menu. You are able to see all events that have been added, although you may need to use the arrows to move back and forward through the months.

Welcome to our Project Blog Space

This space has been created as a way to document the progress that our team will make while working on this Learnscope Project - Embracing New Ways For Training Children Service Assessors.

A little bit about our project goals.
This project will introduce the team to relevant e-learning strategies and support the team to develop the skills necessary for the use of these tools. The skills will be developed while gaining and sharing knowledge in the area of work place assessing in all children's services but particularly in the New England area which is rural and often remote. A sustainable e-learning communication strategy would then be used to ensure best practice and consistency in the area of work place assessment for New England Institute Children's Services staff. Finally these skill and knowledge will enhance teaching across all areas of children's services. This continuous professional development will ensure quality outcomes for all students but particularly those studying externally in rural and remote areas.