Tag: OER

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Educators to Follow on Mastodon for Innovative Teaching Insights

I have been using Mastodon for almost six years. I continue to be amazed at the quality of discourse and the diverse community of educators and folks interested in education in the Fediverse. If you are a person who is accustomed to algorithm driven centralized social networks then Mastodon is going to seem a bit unusual at first. If you are WordPress user you can connect your blog to Mastodon with the ActivityPub plugin. You don’t need a blog to connect to Mastodon. You just need to create an account on anyone of dozens of Mastodon instances that exist around the world. One you are connected to an instance you can find other users and connect to them whether they are on your particular server instance or not.

Mastodon communications are driven by hashtags which many of you are already familiar with. Some of my favorites are #edtech

A toot on Mastodon is typically five hundred characters long. Like other microblogging platforms you may have used before brevity is prized but there’s more than enough space to get your information across and then you use hashtags to let your audience know what your toot is about.

Here’s a list of twenty-one educators currently using Mastodon.

Eric Sheninger – @esheninger@mastodon.social
Sandy Kendell – @SandyKendell@mastodon.education
Wesley Fryer – @wfryer@mastodon.cloud
Martin Dougiamas – @martin@openedtech.social
Alice Barr – @alicebarr@techhub.social
Miguel Guhlin – @mguhlin@mastodon.education
EdTech Group – @edtech@chirp.social
Clint LaLonde – @clintlalonde@mastodon.oeru.org
Doug Holton – https://mastodon.social/@dougholton
Anna Millis – @amills@mastodon.oeru.org
Open at Virginia Tech – @openatvt@fosstodon.org
SPARC – @sparc@mastodon.social
Project Gutenberg – @gutenberg_org@mastodon.social
Smithsonian Magazine – @Smithsonianmag@flipboard.com
Steven Beschloss – @StevenBeschloss@mastodon.social
Bill Fitzgerald = @funnymonkey@freeradical.zone
WikiEducation – @WikiEducation@wikis.world
CreativeCommons – @creativecommons@mastodon.social
Edutopia – @edutopia@mastodon.education
Cognitively Accessible Math – @geonz@mathstodon.xyz
NPR – @npr@mastodon.social
Open Source Science – @os-sci@mastodon.social

In conclusion, Mastodon offers a refreshing alternative to traditional, algorithm-driven social networks. Its decentralized nature and vibrant community provide an enriching environment for educators and those passionate about education. Whether you’re sharing your thoughts, discovering new ideas through hashtags, or connecting your WordPress blog with the ActivityPub plugin, Mastodon opens up a world of possibilities. Embrace the change and dive into meaningful conversations on this unique platform. Happy tooting!

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The Benefits of Accessibility and Open Educational Resources

When creating and distributing open educational resources (OERs), it is important to consider accessibility to make sure that everyone can benefit from these resources, including those with disabilities. By designing and developing OERs with accessibility in mind, we can help make sure that everyone has the opportunity to benefit from these resources.

The use of alternative formats is an important aspect of accessibility in OERs. This includes providing text in a format that can be read by assistive technology, such as a screen reader, as well as providing captions for videos and audio content. Additionally, images and other non-textual elements should include alternative text (alt text) descriptions so that users who are visually impaired can understand the content.

An important aspect of accessibility in OERs is using web standards to make sure resources are usable by a lot of different devices, including the ones used by people with disabilities. This includes making sure the resources are responsive, so they can be used on various screen sizes and orientations, and that they work with different browsers and assistive technologies.

Creating OERs with multiple types of users in mind is key! By using uncomplicated language and summarizing key points, those with reading difficulties and non-native speakers can better understand the material. Furthermore, having videos, audio, and text available allows learners to pick the best way for them to engage with the content.

Accessible OERs are essential to provide quality educational opportunities and experiences to all learners, regardless of their disability. Collaboration between OER developers, educators, and learners with disabilities is necessary to ensure that accessibility is taken into account throughout the process. Automated and manual testing with real users of different abilities should be implemented to evaluate accessibility, and accessibility guidelines and standards should be followed.

Moreover, accessibility is not only beneficial to learners with disabilities, but also to those with temporary impairments, older adults, and people with low internet connection. Furthermore, accessibility makes content more usable for all users. Thus, it is important to consider accessibility in the development of OERs to ensure that everyone can benefit from them.

Written with an assist from ChatGPT and WordSpinner.