eLearning Dialogue for Wednesday, April 14, 2004

Wed., April 14, 2004

IN THIS ISSUE


VIEWPOINT
NEWS & PRODUCT UPDATES
CASE STUDY
READER RESPONSE

Sponsors


Sponsored By: PGL Workshop
E-learning Objects and Systems Workshop: June 3-4, 2004
Leading international experts on instructional design/learning theories and database management related to online learning object research. Sessions include: Overcoming Obstacles to the Adoption of Learning Objects; e-Learning Database Systems and Applications; Issues in Online Learning and Cognition; Learning Object Development and Design; New Directions in Developing and Managing e-Learning Systems. Register now!

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CMS Viewpoint

Open System and Open Source LMS: Settling the debate for the benefit of higher education

Chris Vento Research and Development, WebCT

In this provocative rejoinder to Scott Siddall's earlier Viewpoint on Open Source, Chris Vento argues for the virtues of both commercially-developed LMS based on open systems and community-developed LMS based on an open source development model. He concludes that a blending of the strengths of each leads to the solid infrastructure and pedagogical flexibility required to sustain a mission-critical LMS on campus.

Over the past year, there has developed an increasingly polarized debate between those who support community-developed Open Source LMS solutions and those who support commercially-developed LMS Open Systems. The "battle" consists of opposing and competitive viewpoints, with many substantiating pros and cons for each. Many papers and presentations enumerate and compare these pros and cons in the process of defending and recommending one, and only one, alternative. However, it is possible to examine Open Source and Open Systems and discover that they are actually more complementary than you might imagine. Open Source and Open Systems may in fact not be mutually exclusive. We should highlight and focus on each alternative in relation to the other in a more synergistic and holistic way.

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CMS News & Product updates

Blackboard Teams Up with Edubox

Blackboard Inc. and the Open Universiteit Nederland (OUNL), an open university in specializing in self-tuition and technology enabled learning, have signed a strategic alliance to integrate OUNL's eLearning player, Edubox, with the Blackboard Learning System and the Blackboard Portal System.

Idaho State University’s WebCT Gets Hacked

Idaho State University's course management system, which holds student work, professor work, online tests and some student grades, has fallen victim to a hacker.
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Oral Roberts U. to Offer Comprehensive Assessment with ePortfolio System

Oral Roberts University is developing a university-wide electronic portfolio assessment system that will evaluate the students and the schools programs. With an interactive platform, the students document their progress—all helping to archive and organize valuable documents and projects.

Digital Exchange Using CampusEAI Consortium

The CampusEAI Consortium includes 25 universities and K-12 school districts representing over 500,000 students, staff, and faculty. The collaboration will offer those who join an opportunity to exchange, develop, and share resources on the Campuseai Consortium portal.
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Web Resource On Accessibility in Distance Education

The University of Maryland University College (UMUC) Accessibility in Distance Education (ADE) Web site targets faculty who teach students with disabilities in the online environment. The ADE site addresses accessibility issues that students with disabilities are likely to encounter in navigating Web-based resources. The site also provides information about different types of disabilities, relevant laws, and best accessibility practices.
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Gartner Announces Meridian a “Visionary” LMS and eLearning Provider

Meridian KSI has been named a Visionary company by Gartner, Inc. in two new Magic Quadrant reports for “sustained profitable growth and success” based on customer satisfaction and support, management, vendor viability, and installed base.

CyberLearning Labs Signs Agreement with Virginia Tech

Any state college or university, state agency, independent non-profit college, or university, or K-12 school system in the Commonwealth of Virginia can license ANGEL under this new agreement.


CMS Case Study

Training Future EMTs Online While Covering Traditional College Curricula

By Thomas A. Hennigan, Ph.D.
Lewis-Clark State College

Lewis-Clark State College (LCSC), U.S. News & World Report's third-ranked public college in the West, offers a broad range of distance learning courses covering the traditional subjects. The institution, however, is taking eLearning further than many other institutions with programs that directly address the region's shortage of health professionals.

Nearly 800 high school students in Idaho and Montana take LCSC's "Fundamentals For Health Professions" course, gaining exposure to careers as nursing assistants, first responders and EMTs. These health professions are critical in a region of the country where miles of barren land often separate the sick and injured from doctors, hospitals, and emergency services. The school also offers online certification courses.

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CMS Exchange
SUBMIT A CASE STUDY and NEWS UPDATES!

To contribute a CMS related case study and/or news updates to the new eLearning Dialogue, please send your article to [email protected], click on the link below, or post to our forums.

Send Us Your Case Study!

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Sponsored By: Syllabus
Cognitively Informed Online Course Design
At Syllabus2004 J'el Smith, Carnegie Mellon University's Vice Provost and CIO for Computing Services will give a keynote focusing on the delivery of technology-enhanced learning in higher education and changes needed in course development to take advantage of the potential of Web-supported learning environments. Outstanding keynotes are among the many reasons to attend Syllabus2004, July 18-22 in San Francisco. For complete details and to register, go to http://info.101com.com/default.asp?id=6474. Register by June 18 and save up to $200!

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Featured

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    Report: Use of Game Engines Expands Beyond Gaming

    Game development technology is increasingly being utilized beyond its traditional gaming roots, according to the recently released annual "State of Game Development" report from development and DevOps solutions provider Perforce Software.

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    Cengage Intros Gen AI Student Assistant Beta

    Ed tech company Cengage has announced the beta launch of Student Assistant, a generative AI tool designed to guide students through the learning process with personalized resources and feedback.

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    California AI Regulation Bill Advances to Assembly Vote with Key Amendments

    California’s Senate Bill 1047 (SB 1047), the "Safe and Secure Innovation for Frontier Artificial Intelligence Models Act," spearheaded by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), has cleared the Assembly Appropriations Committee with some significant amendments.

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    IBM Releases Granite 3.0 Family of Advanced AI Models

    IBM has introduced its most advanced family of AI models to date, Granite 3.0, at its annual TechXchange event. The new models were developed to provide a combination of performance, flexibility, and autonomy that outperforms or matches similarly sized models from leading providers on a range of benchmarks.