Community

First Place

Scott Bowman
Course: Juvenile Justice
Texas State University-San Marcos

Dr. Scott Bowman used the Sakai wiki in his Juvenile Justice course to bridge the gap between theoretical textbook examples of juvenile justice issues and what actually happens in the juvenile justice system. Students researched actual practice in their assigned cities and entered their findings, which included text, pictures, links and tables of information in their wiki pages. Dr. Bowman says the practical experience students gained along with the insights they developed about the juvenile justice system and the societal, cultural and economic pressures that affect juveniles in the justice system was invaluable.

View a short video interview with Dr. Bowman
View the Tegrity conference presentation

Second Place

Sally Knipe
Course: Transitions in Middle Schooling
Charles Sturt University

Dr. Sally Knipe merges theoretical and practical learning to help first-year teaching students better understand adolescent development from differing perspectives. Dr. Knipe used a system of blended learning with Sakai, both to help form a community, and as a learning tool. Students worked individually and in teams using Sakai collaborative tools such as wikis, chat, and blogs to conduct debates and engage fully with one another. "Making students responsible for the creation of not only learning materials but also assessment items is innovative and would not have been achievable without CSU Interact (Sakai).

View a short video interview with Dr. Knipe
View the Tegrity conference presentation

Joshua Danish
Course: Computational Technologies in Educational Ecosystems
Indiana University Bloomington

In his graduate course on Computational Technologies in Educational Ecosystems, Dr. Joshua Danish used Sakai as a hub to help extend class conversations beyond the classroom and even into other courses. He used Sakai wikis and blogs, and other Web 2.0 tools such as Twitter, to help meaningfully position students’ online conversations in order to promote rich reflection and discussion. One of the central activities of the course was a modeling activity in which students created visual models of the course content and iteratively refined their models throughout the semester, while posting reflections to the course website about the manner in which they adjusted their models in response to course readings and peer feedback.

View a short video interview with Dr. Danish
View the Tegrity conference presentation

Karen Swenson

Dr. Karen Swenson used the Sakai wiki in her Science Fiction and Fantasy course to create a community of practice that moved students from being peripheral receivers of information and content to becoming expert creators of information and content. The course allowed students the flexibility to choose what, how, and when they would contribute to the ever-growing body of Science Fiction and Fantasy knowledge. Students actively participated in an on-going dialogue within the Chat Room to discuss their contributions and to ask questions. Forums were used to let students discuss and debate ideas, including controversial and especially thought-provoking topics. Participating in their own education in this manner "gives students a sense of ownership,” says Swenson.

View a short video interview with Dr. Swenson
View the Tegrity conference presentation