Introduction, Take One, Two, and Three

Voice Recorder >>

This is a test podcast. Actually, more like a trial run at an introduction.  A dress-rehearsal in three parts.  There are a lot of kinks to work out in my delivery, but I want to get this started now. There are so many people that I want to start connecting with about distance education: past, present, and future colleagues, clients, mentors and acquaintances.

I'm torn between trying to build this site as a depository for everything I want to share with the adult ed service providers I work with and building a vital community of practice. One is shooting for the moon, the other, the stars.  By throwing my hat in the ring, I hope to encourage others to do the same, right here on this site.

Some things missing in this opening intro: Maybe some visuals. More details on how and why the world of adult education needs to change. That explanation is coming in future posts.  A real microphone. Fewer "ums." And, lastly, ENERGY.  But, for a first recording (first take, actually), it's good enough to get the ball rolling. I hope to make these and more adjustments and improvements  in Take Two.
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Let's try this again. Only this time, with video.


Okay. So, yes.  I work from home, and I sit right by a window with a lot of sun.  The camera makes me a little uncomfortable.  Any further comments by me would probably come across as vanity.  If you were blocked from viewing this by a public school firewall, comment saying so, and let's figure out a work-around.  Now, let's try narrating a slideshow.

Distance education skill_share_podcast_take_

View another webinar from jasonguard

Well, if these aren't humble beginnings, I don't know what. I'm still learning Audacity and Slideshare.net and how they come together to make slide-casting possible. And then there was a glitch in Google Docs (sacrilege!) that made some text invisible.  But, I don't want us to get distracted by the details of the technology tools.  Either they facilitate communication or they inhibit it.

Which of these three introductions gets your vote? I asked an education professor at VCU which tool I should use for my podcasts and he said "all of them." I don't think he meant, all in the first blog post. But, I'm all for experimentation and using a diversity of tactics.   The slide-cast was much more labor intensive than the other two takes.  Even though there were some hiccups that didn't quite get worked out before posting, it seems like it's got potential. And not just for educator professional development, but for adult education instruction, wouldn't you say? One person on twitter already asked for info-graphics. Who's got some provocative stats regarding online learning?

More to come, I promise. Subscribe to this blog, would ya?