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Social Networking

scays — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 09:28:43 +0000

In my last post, I mentioned social networking, and this site http://www.chrisbrogan.com/ has to be worth subscribing to, he makes a living from social networking, how, I'm not sure, but most important, he blogs on the art of staying in touch, Whilst I am in Hong Kong I will endeavor to remain in touch by blogging as often as I can, with text, audio, and video, keep up-to-date with the conference and check out my blogs

Last minute comment - Linked in President

stevescays — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 09:06:09 +0000

As always, I'm rushing to get things done before I go away on holiday, getting emails sent, drawings finished and meetings arranged for when I get back, unfortunately, I have just received my summons for the West Midlands regional October meet, this will be the last before Hong Kong, and would you believe it, I'm on holiday, so its a last minute phone call to offer apologies.

Its important to keep in touch with colleges and business friends, I do this by linking into whats now become to be know as social networking, but I just like to think that I anm keeping in touch, my good friend luigi, or is it Dave Traynor in Belfast, is an expert in this field, he may not know it, but he keeps a large band of Technologists, Architects and friends linked together by a constant stream of funny, some time near the knuckle jokes and film clips. and it occurred to me that, perhaps this is a problem when you become president, you disappear behind a veil of business that prevents contact with old friends, no more emails because your the president, ,,,,,,, Wrong, the moment your corraled behind the stone wall of office, then your out of the loop with the real world, so its a promise I make here and now, I will blog every day, whilst in office, I will continue to send Emails that might be construed as risky, but funny, I will continue to be Steve Scaysbrook, always available on phone,Email,voip, and most of all AVAILABLE

CIAvs OSP

cialicuq — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 04:21:34 +0000

CIA vs. OSP Philip Giraldi about whom I know nothing says that an extremely reliable and well placed source in the intelligence community tells him that Ron Suskind was wrong about the CIA forging a backdated letter trying to
www.washingtonmonthly.com

Video Manifesto

stevescays — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 11:01:03 +0000

The video below is my manifesto Video, outlining all my intentions for the post of President of CIAT.

Yuca para la seguridad alimentaria y energética

Aníbal J Melo. — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 23:09:52 +0000

La inversión en investigación y desarrollo podría aumentar el rendimiento y usos industriales

Roma - La yuca, un cultivo tropical de raíz, podría ayudar a proteger la seguridad alimentaria y energética de los países pobres, amenazados en la actualidad por los crecientes precios de los alimentos y el petróleo, según afirmó hoy la FAO.

En una conferencia mundial celebrada en Gante, Bélgica, los científicos expertos en este tubérculo solicitaron un aumento de la inversión en investigación y desarrollo, necesario para aumentar los rendimientos de los agricultores e investigar prometedores usos industriales de la yuca entre los que se incluye la producción de biocombustibles.

Los científicos, que han formado una red internacional llamada Asociación Mundial de la Yuca, afirmaron que la comunidad internacional no puede seguir ignorando la difícil situación de los países tropicales de bajos ingresos, que han sido los más afectados por el alza de los precios del petróleo y la inflación de los precios alimentarios.

Ampliamente cultivada en África tropical, Asia y América Latina, la yuca es el cuarto cultivo mundial más importante en los países en desarrollo, con una producción estimada en 2006 de 226 millones de toneladas. Es el alimento básico de casi mil millones de personas en 105 países, proporcionando hasta un tercio de las calorías diarias. Y tiene un enorme potencial ya que actualmente los rendimientos medios de la yuca ascienden apenas a un 20 por ciento de los que se obtienen en condiciones óptimas.

La yuca es también la fuente de almidón más barata que existe, siendo utilizada en más de 300 productos industriales. Un uso prometedor es la fermentación del almidón para producir el etanol, empleado como biocombustible. Sin embargo la FAO advierte que las políticas que fomentan un cambio a la producción de biocombustibles deberían considerar detenidamente sus efectos sobre la producción y seguridad alimentaria.

Cultivo huérfano

A pesar de la creciente demanda y de las posibilidades que ofrece su producción, la yuca continua siendo un “cultivo huérfano”. Es cultivada por pequeños agricultores, a menudo aislados de los canales de distribución y de las industrias de elaboración de productos, principalmente en zonas que tienen reducido o nulo acceso a variedades mejoradas, fertilizantes y otros insumos productivos. Los gobiernos aún no han realizado las inversiones necesarias para impulsar su valor añadido, que harían que los productos de almidón de yuca fueran competitivos a nivel internacional.

La reunión de Gante fue la primera conferencia científica a nivel mundial de la Asociación Mundial de la Yuca, un consorcio formado – bajo los auspicios de la Estrategia Mundial de Fomento de la Yuca, apoyada por la FAO – por organizaciones internacionales entre las que se incluyen la FAO, el CIAT, el FIDA y el IIAT, organismos nacionales de investigación, ONGs y socios privados.

Los participantes analizaron el estado actual de la producción mundial de yuca y las perspectivas futuras. Acordaron diversos nuevos proyectos, que serán presentados de inmediato a la comunidad de donantes, y un conjunto de inversiones necesarias para que la yuca pueda desarrollar todo su potencial como factor frente a la crisis alimentaria y energética mundial.

Entre estas iniciativas figuran la puesta en marcha de un sistema de distribución de la yuca en cadena con el que canalizar los avances técnicos a los agricultores (“de la semilla al campo y al mercado”), mejoras en la fertilidad de la tierra mediante una mejor gestión y un mayor uso de insumos, mejoras en el conocimiento científico básico de la yuca, incluyendo la genómica, aumento de su cuota de mercado a través del desarrollo de productos postcosecha, y formación para la próxima generación de investigadores de yuca en los países en desarrollo.

FUENTE: FAO

Wikipedia post on the Architectural Technologist

stevescays — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 13:00:38 +0000

This is a first video post on this site, its a little rough and ready, but as time goes on I'll improve the video. All can be seen on youtube under Scays, The Wikipedia article/post about the role and perpose of the Architectural Technologist is very good, check out this link

Councilor memo

stevescays — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 12:32:59 +0000

I have recently posted an Email with my manifesto to all councilors, I thought at first that I had gone to far pushing the central theme of protecting and expanding the Architectural Technologist theme, but the more I think about it the more I realise that unless we do something about the profession we will stagnate. So below my memo to all councilors,

Dear Councillor,

By now you will have been notified of the nominees for the position of President Elect of CIAT, and I have been fortunate to have been nominated by the West Midlands region. The enclosed manifesto attached to this email outlines who I am and what I will be standing for in the coming month. However I would like to expand upon it and emphasize my main theme, that of expanding our horizons to the rest of the globe.

No small task I hear you say, but one that needs to be taken. If we are to expand in any meaningful way. The institute needs to bring in more candidates of the right caliber, young people, who want a full career with plenty of prospects and they are going to see the global market and say to us, is my new qualification recognized abroad, will European employers understand the level of my degree and training. Can I set up my own practice. Only by setting up satellite centers to promote and protect the CIAT level of professionalism will we achieve success.

I have worked all over Europe and have been round the world a couple of times and I am still confused about my standing in the global architectural market. An Architect is an Architect, they might have to re-sit a couple of exams to show competence in local law, but his training is recognized globally, and that is the level of recognition I want to achieve for us, The term "Architectural Technologist" is being used all over the world and I do not know if the y are qualified, just dressed up draftsmen, or is it an employment agency trying to promote a candidate into a job. The article on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architectural_technologist has it right, and we need to protect that training and professionalism. Unless we protect the name, confusion will always remain, and we will not be seen as the true professionals we are. Even worse, has the name been banned because the local Architectural association thinks we might be confusing their clients.

By promoting the concept of local centers, we can encourage and protect the term Architectural Technologist, so that when one of us say I am an Architectural Technologist whilst visiting foreign soil, he/she will be recognized,, and best of all, I can look a young student in the face and say to him or her, join us, get qualified and the world is your oyster.

Is Hong Kong important

stevescays — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 08:47:15 +0000

Is Hong Kong important !, the only answer is yes, for a number of reasons, one we promised to go some time back, but more importantly, we need to show how important the centre is to us. Being able to show that the centre is viable will help in convincing other countries to investigate the methods used and hopefully set up their own centre on similar lines. So important is this to me I have committed to attend the event and support CIAT. I will be interviewing as many local Architectural Technologists / Practice’s as time will allow and blog all interviews on this site.

Ciat [4]

paopao1976 — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:00:58 +0000

Io e il mio amico O. su

[11:41:14] O:Tesoro non puoi capire che tori ci sono a Livorno!
[11:41:14] O:c'è dei boni!
[11:41:20] O:sai di quelli un pò ignoranti :D ?
[11:41:23] O:un pò grezzi...
[11:41:25] O:ma di un bellino!
[11:41:31] P:davvero????
[11:41:32] P:oddio
[11:41:34] O:Si si!
[11:41:36] P:sono tutto una erezione
[11:41:46] P:e dove li troviamo quelli disponibili?
[11:42:06] O:Sugli scogli di Sasso Scritto :)
[11:42:19] P:battuage?
[11:42:29] P:ma io voglio carne giovane per queste vacanze
[11:42:33] P:massimo 25 anni
[11:42:37] O:Si tesoro ci sono ci sono :)
[11:42:39] O:conosco i tuoi gusti!
[11:42:40] O::D
[11:42:43] P:ho deciso che il trend dell'estate é quello
[11:42:43] P:ahahha
[11:42:48] P:come mi conosci tu
[11:42:50] P:nemmeno mia madre
[11:42:56] O:Eh no!
[11:42:57] P:(e menomale aggiungerei)
[11:42:57] O::D

E' bello sapere di avere amici su cui contare nel momento del bisogno!!!

Time required

stevescays — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 13:22:49 +0000

One of the many questions that should be asked of any candidate for the post of President, is "have you the time", well in answer to this, I would say that I am now partialy retired, I spend a portion of my week running a few small extension projects, my programing on web site development, and CPD work, but I have plenty of spair capcity for the role of president. All my private work can be handled either at home in my small office, or on the road, via my laptop and mobile. I have many years experience at controling my time and working in such a manor, and see no problem. My partner Wendy is behind me in my campain for president.

Manifesto President CIAT

stevescays — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 12:18:58 +0000

Steve Scaysbrook

Manifesto

President Elect CIAT

September 2008

I am an Architectural Technologist with a wide-range of experience from a initial background in practice to a mid career alternative within building material manufacturing, to my current return to main stream architecture, running my own practice where I handle small extension work to providing a drawing services for large architectural practices. I also install and maintain websites for small businesses. I have been involved with CIAT from its very early conception as SAAT, to its recent change in status to a chartered body. I am active at region level, but have also served as Vice President of Innovation and research for a good many years, until I retired to allow new blood into the VP innovation chair.

I have a particular interest in architectural materials and a continued learning of all new construction methods. I run several practice CPD programs and I am active with a number of manufacturers and associations, developing their web sites and CPD programs that will be integrated into video’s for distribution on the net.

Now that we have our Chartered status, it is time to consolidate our position and establish ourselves on the global Architectural market, as the principle authority on the discipline of Architectural Technology. Any search on the internet looking for Architectural Technology/Technologist, will bring up our own site, but more important, a small band of University and similar institute sites around the globe, all using the term “Architectural Technology/Technologist” I think that it is the right time to make contact with them and establish CIAT & the UK as the lead in protecting and advancing the discipline of Architectural Technology.

Many of the organizations are trade bodies and have no membership requirement, other than a fee payment, but these we can help to advance beyond this status and encourage/help establish a more professional standing, others are more advanced and have a professional outlook, ready for elevation to our level of professionalism and hopefully the creation of a local satellite CIAT bodies similar to Hong Kong and The Republic of Ireland. In areas where no association has developed we should look to establish contact with local technologists with a view to developing links and helping them develop. Establishment of these new bodies around the globe will enhance the credibility of CIAT, in the global Architectural profession, and establish CIAT as the authority on Architectural Technology.

Overseas Universities promoting Architectural Technology as a degree course might be pleased to be able to offer credits towards membership of a prestigious global association as a culmination of 3 or 4 years hard work and a successful exam result. The development and bench marking of these University courses will enhance the credibility of CIAT. Attracting new candidates is essential to our development and overall survival, the protection & development of our degree courses is essential in attracting school leavers into the profession. The introduction of a masters degree is an obvious expansion point, attracting even more candidates, who wish to expand beyond degree level.

The development of the satellite bodies and universities are integral to each other, but the credibility of CIAT and the creation of a network of local bodies should be the lead with the University programs running very close behind. Contacting these potential member organisations would be simple given the cheap internet communications now available, email and VOIP telephone systems are easy to use and a telephone call to Australia is no more than a local call rate, time difference is perhaps the only barrier when talking to the other side of the world.

I hope that my experience as both a technologist and manufacturer on the global market will help to steer the institute into this new areas of excellence. My time within an large global building material manufacturer has prepared me well, by giving me a wider view of Architecture and allowed me to draw on the contacts I have made and establish new links that will enable us to achieve these goals.

Ciat [3]

paopao1976 — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:19:59 +0000

Protagonisti:

U= utente appena conosciuto in ciat

P= Pao²

U: ciao!

P:ciao!! come va?

U: Bene! Senti, cerco sex stasera. Ti va?

P: beh si dai! Che proponi?

U: Ho voglia di stimolarti la prostata con il mio manganello!

P: ah! Un proctologo!! :)

U: Click. (l'utente non é in linea)

Click!

E io che pensavo che per certe specializzazioni mediche ci volessero anni e anni di studio!!!

Ciat [2]

paopao1976 — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 07:05:23 +0000

Protagonisti:

U= utente ignoto mai visto né conosciuto

P= Pao² con lo stesso nick del blog

U: ehi ciao! Il mitico PaoPao

P: Addirittura mitico!!!

U: Eh si se ne dice un gran bene

P: (alquanto pensieroso) Ah si? E chi lo dice?

U: beh sei gentile, carino, simpatico

P: (sempre più pensieroso perché non ho nemmeno una foto nel profilo che non riporta nemmeno una notizia personale se non la residenza) Ma ne sei sicuro?

U: si, si!

P: (definitivamente perplesso) beh, grazie!

U: (dopo due minuti buoni di silenzio) scusa ti ho scambiato per un altro.

Click!

Queste si che sono le grandi soddisfazioni della vita!

CIAT - President

scays — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:09:27 +0000

I am glad to anounce my intention to run for the post of president, CIAT. It has been a long term goal of mine to achieve this status, and timing will be just right, for me to give as much effort and time as the post deserves. Further blogs will be made to outline my goals for the two year period.

Una de piratas

ALyCie — Sat, 10 May 2008 12:40:29 +0000

Como apropiarse de un botín, exigir peaje por el mismo, hundir el comercio con la fuerza de la ley y finalmente ser indemnizado por la Oficina de Patentes de los Estados Unidos.

Eso es piratería, con luz y taquígrafos y casi sin riesgos.

Larry Proctor, presidente de la compañía de semillas Pod-Ners con sede en Colorado, EE.UU. es propietario de la parente US#5894079 concedida por la Oficina de Marcas y Patentes y de los Estados Unidos (USPTO).

Mr. Proctor admite abiertamente que su fréjol patentado fue obtenido de una bolsa de fréjoles que compró en Sonora, México, en 1994. Sin embargo, presentó el 30 de noviembre del 2001 una demanda legal contra 16 empresas de semillas y agricultores de Colorado, reclamando la violación de la patente porque estabán cultivando y vendiendo su fréjol amarillo, de su propiedad, de manera ilegal.

La autoridad, en vez de poner en duda propiedad de Larry Proctor, puso en duda la libertad del comercio e industria de varios agricultores y pequeñas empresas.

Mr. Proctor, además de ser dueño de la patente en Estados Unidos, también cuenta con un Certificado de Obtentor sobre el frijol que llamó !Enola!, que es la forma mas común de demostrar la propiedad de una especie vegetal.

Ni que decir tiene, que destrozó el mercado del fréjol amarillo, arruinó agricultores méxicanos y algunos estadounidenses y acaparó el mercado creando un monopolio sobre dicho fréjol, con la inestimable colaboración de las autoridades.

La patente fue cuestionada legalmente por el Centro Internacional para la Agricultura Tropical, CIAT, un instituto internacional de investigación y mejoramiento vegetal en Cali, Colombia . La apelación está apoyada por la FAO.

El CIAT y la FAO son responsables de un fideicomiso público de semillas de varios cultivos para uso de la comunidad mundial de agricultores e investigadores. El banco genético del CIAT cuenta con más de 27, 000 muestras de semillas de Phaseolus (fréjoles), de las cuales, 260 son muestras de fréjoles amarillos. Aunque Proctor no obtuvo la semilla de fréjol de este banco de genes en Colombia. La apelación legal del CIAT enfatiza que seis especies de frijol encontradas en su banco genético son 'sustancialmente idénticas' a los que Proctor reclama como suyos en su patente. Funcionarios del CIAT y la FAO están muy preocupados de que la patente del Enola pudiera obstruir la misión del CIAT de distribuir libremente frijoles amarillos y mantener esas semillas en el dominio público.

El crimen real es que, a pesar de la apelación legal, el sistema de patentes de Estados Unidos permitió al dueño de la patente beneficiarse de los retrasos burocráticos y dilación injustificada para extender legalmente su monopolio exclusivo sobre una variedad de frejol de origen mexicano durante más de seis años (y potencialmente más) -que es casi una tercera parte del término de 20 años que tiene esa patente.

En esencia, el sistema permite que los dueños de patentes injustas monopolicen los mercados y destruyan la competencia -ni los agricultores ni las empresas pueden sobrevivir esperando el resultado de una apelación tan prolongada contra una patente.

La patente, actualmente está rechazada, pero eso, no soluciona los daños ocasionados, que nunca serán resarcidos, y muy probablemente, de lugar a otra reclamación de Mr. Proctor contra la USPTO.

Por lo tanto, la batalla legal, puede ser ganada, pero la real ha dejado un daño que nunca será reparado, salvo tal vez, los daños sufridos por Mr. Proctor y la compañía de semillas Pod-Ners. Las declaraciones de Mr Hope Shand del Grupo ETC

La fuente de la información, y la alegación son de:

El Grupo Erosion Tecnology & Concentration mas conocido como Grupo ETC o ETCGroup, es consejero de:

el Consejo Económico y Social de Naciones Unidas (ECOSOC),

la Organización para la Agriculltura y la Alimentación (FAO),

la Conferencia de Naciones Unidas sobre Comercio y Desarrollo (UNCTAD) y

el Convenio de Diversidad Biológica (CDB);

y también tiene una larga historia con el Grupo Consultior de Investigación Agrícola Internacional, (CGIAR).

El Grupo ETC es una organización social y civil en Canadá y en Holanda. Friends of ETC Group es una organización privada sin fines de lucro registrada bajo la sección 501 (c)3 en Estados Unidos.

Desde aquí, mi agradecimiento a ECTGroup, por su labor en el caso y su dedicación a la lucha contra la Tecnología Erosiva y su Concentración.

Mas sobre piratería marina: ver http://www.icc-ccs.org/extra/display.php?yr=2008

Colombia almacenará 30 mil copias de semillas en el banco de germoplasma más grande del mundo

siemprerebelde — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 18:26:20 +0000

El envío empieza el próximo viernes desde el CIAT hacia la Bóveda Global de Semillas de Svalbard del Fondo Global de Diversidad de Cosechas, en Noruega.

Así, embaladas en 118 cajas especialmente construidas para ello, con un peso de 1.652 kilos, saldrá una parte de las 30.000 copias de semillas de yuca, fríjol y forrajes tropicales que Colombia, a través del Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical (CIAT).

"La ruta será Cali-Bogotá- Madrid-Oslo. Dos días después, y tras un vuelo chárter que dura cinco horas, este tesoro agrícola llegará a su destino final: el archipiélago noruego de Svalbard, en el Polo Norte", dijo un vocero de la entidad.

Muchas de estas semillas solo existen en el banco de germoplasma del CIAT, pues ya han desaparecido de sus lugares de origen, bien sea por algún tipo de desastre natural, ataque de malezas, plagas o enfermedades o, porque los campesinos dejaron de utilizarlas.

Así, el centro mundial de investigación entregará el 55 por ciento del total de su inventario de semillas que han venido siendo recolectadas, clasificadas y custodiadas desde hace 34 años.

Para garantizar la viabilidad genética del material, que sea el que dice ser y que tenga las características precisas de la variedad, igual número de copias serán sembradas 'como prueba' en varios lotes en Colombia y de resultar fallida esta tarea, se enviará a Svalbard una copia de reemplazo.

Vale la pena aclarar que no se trata de entregar el patrimonio genético para la explotación comercial a una empresa particular, sino de almacenarlas en un lugar completamente seguro.

El CIAT hace parte de un grupo de once centros que administra el llamado Grupo Consultivo para la Investigación Agrícola Internacional (CGIAR) y que, en conjunto, entregarán 200.000 duplicados de variedades de cultivos de África, Asia, América Latina y el medio Oriente.

Por su parte, el proyecto Bóveda Global de Semillas de Svalbard, concebido en el 2004 por el Fondo Global de Diversidad de Cosechas, ya terminó su fase de construcción en las profundidades de una montaña ártica (120 metros bajo tierra), por lo que comenzó a recibir los inventarios de los países donantes.

1.400 bancos contribuirán

En su mayoría, provendrán de los 1.400 bancos de germoplasma que existen en el mundo y que guardan las colecciones nacionales de semillas.

También cuenta con el apoyo de los más de 100 países firmantes del Tratado Internacional sobre Recursos Fitogenéticos, promovido por la Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Agricultura y la Alimentación (FAO), mientras que ha recibido el apoyo financiero de la Fundación Bill Gates, que donó 30 millones de dólares.

El propósito de la bóveda es asegurar la supervivencia de todos los alimentos cultivables que posee la humanidad y salvaguardarlos de cualquier tipo de desastre que pueda presentarse, pues además del sitio remoto donde se encuentra, tiene la temperatura ambiental (18 grados centígrados bajo cero) necesaria para que las semillas puedan durar miles de años sin perder su viabilidad genética.

Igualmente, para la construcción de la bóveda, que demoró algo más de un año, los constructores excavaron hasta 120 metros bajo tierra y fue reforzada con diversos materiales que la hacen inmune a ataques terroristas, nucleares y a otros desastres naturales como deshielos y movimientos telúricos.

Más información en www.croptrust.org/main

Episode #001: Communicating with your Students and Managing Expectations

cardillo — Mon, 09 Oct 2006 15:39:13 +0000

In my various roles here at Towson for the past nine years, I have talked with a great many faculty about technology and their frustrations experienced when using technology. The excitement over new or emerging technologies often fades as the implementation of that technology leads to barriers in the instructional process.

Given your awareness of this blog and associated podcast, you are more likely a faculty member with above average technology understanding and skills. But have you often thought about how the decisions you make in the use of technologies effect the learning process? Are the technologies you implement solving an instructional problem or allowing students to achieve a higher understanding of course concepts? Will all of the students in your course be able to take advantage of this technology? Do they have the minimum standards necessary to access this technology? Have you made them aware of those standards? What about your standards of communication?

Standards of communication...what exactly does that mean? Glad you asked.

One of the more common technology-related frustrations I hear from many faculty as they move more of their course to online delivery is the overwhelming amount of time spent dealing with communications. There is a sense of immediacy to incoming email from students who are expecting their instructor to be sitting at a computer all day and, more commonly, all night ready to respond to each and every question.

Faculty soon buy into this immediacy in the hopes of providing more timely and helpful feedback for the students who may experience difficulty with course content or who might be falling behind. It doesn't take long for email between faculty and students to start looking more like instant messaging and, as a result, the level of expectation from students is raised so high, that faculty start falling behind in their own course development, research or professional publications.

If you are starting to feel the same sense of pressure to constantly be responding to email, you may want to take a deep breath and shut down your email and start up your word processor as you start crafting next semester's syllabus.

Here are a few suggestions for standards you may want to include in your next syllabus to help better manage the student's expectations of communication...and to help with your own time management. If your reading the blog, feel free to copy and paste!:

Communication Response Time

Phone calls will be returned within one business day

Email containing specific questions will be returned on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays

Email containing questions of a general nature, or topics that are best covered with the entire class will be answered at the next class meeting

I will be available for instant messaging on Tuesday evenings from 8 – 10 PM (be sure to provide your screen name and identify your preferred instant messenger service)

Additionally, consider focusing your students into the discussion board area where more general and repetitive questions can be asked and answered centrally.

Be sure to make your discussion response schedule clear.

Offer to read all messages, but only answer those that require a response and offer to do so only on Tuesdays and Thursday evenings.

Consider creating a FAQ page within your course site that grows from semester to semester. This central focal point of information allows you to preemptively address commonly asked questions.

Remember, by being clear with the students you will build a sense of how valuable “time on task” is for effective learning. Through these efforts, you will be modeling good time management behavior for online learners.

What do you think? Do you have helpful strategies from your own experience that others might find useful? I would love to know.

I welcome your feedback and opinion on this or any topic covered in these episodes. Use the “comment” button to leave your message or email me at cardillo at towson dot edu.

Find more teaching strategies and support for development of online courses, please visit the CIAT Web site at www.towson.edu/ciat

For Towson University's Center for Instructional Advancement and Technology, I'm Ray Cardillo.

http://saber.towson.edu/~cardillo/Teaching_with_Tech_-_Eposide_001.mp3