iPodject

I was excited about a posting I read on my Educational Technology Listserv (EdTech) last night describing 100 Ways to Use Your iPod to Study & Learn Better, but I quickly found it was a reposting of a comprehensive list written from the Online Educational Database (OEDb). The article in question was simply cut and paste with no mention of the original author. This is not kosher with me and I refuse to post the thief’s blog.

This unfortunate event, however, brought me to find a rather useful library of articles and ideas from the OEDb. According to their web site, “…the Online Education Database offers comprehensive reviews of online colleges and degree programs. Unlike other online education directories, our database only lists accredited online colleges so you can be sure that these degrees will be respected by potential employers. OEDb allows you to browse by colleges, degrees, or programs. We also have a library of articles that covers the basic topics of attending an online university” (OEDb, 2008).

A press release from PR Leap (2006), describes the site as a continuation of the online educational community using open source documents. “OEDb.org features reviews of dozens of online universities and colleges and hundreds of distance learning degree programs which can be completed online. Degree subjects covered include business, medical, legal, arts, and more. OEDb also features a library of articles regarding online education and financial aid.”

While I have only done minor cross checking of this site and it’s resources, I will continue the investigation as I delve into the 100 Ways article.  At this time I do not plan my study to be focused on higher education, but no doubt some of these ideas will come in handy for K-12 as well.  Some other recent articles/posts collected at the library might be useful as well:

• Skip the Tuition: 100 Free Podcasts from the Best Colleges in the World
• 200 Free Online Classes to Learn Anything
• 101 Web 2.0 Teaching Tools
• 25 Awesome Beta Research Tools from Libraries Around the World
  (from Collegedegree.com)
  

References

Online Educational Database. (2008). Recent articles. In Library of online educational articles and advice. Retrieved February 17, 2008, from http://oedb.org/library

PR Leap. (2006, September 16). OEDb: Online education database launched. PR Leap Press Release. Retrieved February 17, 2008, from http://www.prleap.com/pr/48450/

I finally sent off my inquiry to various listservs calling for educators who use iPods. I’m extremely hopeful that I will get a solid return. Within hours of distribution I gathered fifteen leads and seven schools using iPods currently! I will have to compile this information not only to post a “hit”, but also to present to my committee chair in relation with my design for the study.

I thought it couldn’t hurt to post my email on the blog as well, hoping that I might find additional input from my readers. Below is the informal call for iPods and educators:

I’m a school librarian and teacher of ten years seeking a doctorate of education at Aurora University. Our grant to use iPods at Beebe Elementary has led me to a formal study investigating iPods in education. Before I actually propose my study, I need to gather an idea of the schools that actually USE iPods in the educational setting. Despite my insistence and literary proof, my professors doubt I will find many schools in the nation (let alone IL) that use iPods. I know you’re out there, but I need to prove it!

In order to do this, I have distributed this email to LM Net (School Librarian/Media Specialist listserv), Ed Tech (Educational Technology listserv), SIG-HC (ISTE’s Handheld Special Interest Group listserv), and a few other online technology colleagues to begin gathering this information. I hope that once I compile this list, I will connect with educators interested in participating in the study, but that’s a step ahead of what I’m working on.

Please consider responding to me off-list:

I DO work with iPods…

…let me tell you a bit about myself, my school, and how we’re using them.

I DON’T work with iPods, but…

…I know someone who is! Let me tell you about him/her.

…I read something about iPods in education and I would love to share the
article.

Thank you for any support or leads,

Josh Mika
Doctoral Candidate
Education: Curriculum & Instruction
Aurora University – Aurora, IL

• Beebe Elementary LRC
• iPodject: a NEF Grant for Beebe Elementary – (under construction)
• iPodject blog