Category: Uncategorized

For one hour on December 12, 2013, all other activity came to a halt as Middle and Upper School girls at Stuart Country Day School, and their faculty, took part in the Hour of Code. If you walked the …

Source: ireport.cnn.com

This is the school where I went for most of my childhood and teen years. I wish we had this way back when! It’s good to see initiatives aimed at girls to do more STEM activities, and proud that my alma mater is leading the way. I know I would’ve love to learn code back then!
–techcommgeekmom

See on Scoop.it – M-learning, E-Learning, and Technical Communications

Your writing skills could be totally making or breaking your career, and you might not even know it.

Source: www.themuse.com

This article came my way from Craig Cardimon, who posted it on Google+.  This is an argument that I’ve made for a long time. While I am trained as a technical writer, and I suppose many would consider me a writer since I write my blog, I’ve never considered myself a writer. Even so, having taken the time to sharpen my writing skills has proven beneficial professionally for me, as I will often end up suggesting edits to content when I receive something that…well…is just poorly written, and is usually written by someone who is not a writer as described in this article). They are often grateful for my input, and I become the hero of the moment. I’ve often felt that taking the time to write well is truly a reflection of who you are. If you write poorly, it doesn’t mean that you have bad ideas, but you aren’t willing to take the time to put the effort in to be clear, concise, and cogent. If you write well, it shows a willingness to work hard towards communicating well to get the job done. It really does make a big difference. 

–techcommgeekmom

See on Scoop.it – M-learning, E-Learning, and Technical Communications

Our task is to show how learning is already very much like a game and to draw out those gamelike qualities.

Source: techcrunch.com

What do you think? Do you think that gamification is dead? I was struck most by the statement made in the quote from this article above–"Our task is to show how learning is already very much like a game and to draw out those gamelike qualities." Life isn’t a game, but we find ways to make decision making challenges into something that fuels the mind instead of draining the mind when possible. This article provides an interesting perspective on the gamification "fad" and where we need to go from here using some of the same principles but in a different light. 

–techcommgeekmom

See on Scoop.it – M-learning, E-Learning, and Technical Communications

11 Digital Media Shifts every CMO should know

Source: www.linkedin.com

My friend Nick Kellet, who is one of the co-founders at List.ly, has posted this fantastic article that compares at social media and media platforms. This article is truly a deep-dive look, so it’ll take some time to get through, but definitely worth the read. Digital media, as he points out at the beginning of his article, is always changing and shifting, and I think he does a really great job in showing how it’s currently shifting and how we need to change to adapt to the current mindset. If you work or are interested in social media-related work, this is a must-read. 

–techcommgeekmom

See on Scoop.it – M-learning, E-Learning, and Technical Communications

How Can eLearning Profeesionals Effectively Use Humor in eLearning? Check the Top 5 Tips To Effectively Use Humor in eLearning!

Source: elearningindustry.com

Humor is harder to write that one would think. I remember someone referring to me as a tech comm humorist at one time. I welcomed the title, but it’s not something that I intentionally set out to be. Part of what is explained in this article is storytelling, and I try to do that in my own way, with my own sense of humor showing now and then. You have to be careful with humor, but if employed well in any writing, it can make a big impact. Read this article for a few guidelines that will help not only in e-learning, but also with any tech comm writing. 

–techcommgeekmom

See on Scoop.it – M-learning, E-Learning, and Technical Communications