Reflections of another…

What exactly is a learning Object? – The best way to describe it is a small chucnk of learning  that can stand alone or be added to other learning objects to create  a more extensive learning experience. With the E-Learning phenomenom booming organisations are seeking more flexible ways to deliver their leraning. The ability for learners to retrieve the “chunks of learning” that are relevant to them and complete in a way that is most suitable to the learner is highly appealing.

David Wiley defines a learning object in the following way “instructional designers can build small (relative to the size of an entire course) instructional components that can be reused a number of times in different learning contexts. Additionally, learning objects are generally understood to be digital entities deliverable over the Internet, meaning that any number of people can access and use them simultaneously.”

Why Learning Objects are such a Hot Topic
Learning objects have become a “hot” topic in recent years for two main reasons:
First, many educators see learning objects as a viable alternative to the traditional instructor-led course format. The problem with the “course” is that it is not very flexible and it is difficult to re-purpose. Learning objects stored in a database and properly tagged for easy searches, are designed specifically for flexibility and re-use.
Second, we now have the computing power and network infrastructure that we need to conveniently share and distribute learning objects between public institutions and private corporations.

Management products in a general sense are tools managers use to implement the daily operations of a business, essentially they help managers manage. In a technological sense Management Products have the same fuction, a Learner Management System (LMS) is a Management Product. It Basically Tracks a learners progress, like UTSonline.

No doubt this semester will be a challenge for me, technology is not my forte so heres some key terms defined:

Network – A computer network is a system for communication between computers. These networks may be fixed (cabled, permanent) or temporary (as via modems or null modems).

Intranet – An Intranet is a private network that uses Internet Protocols, network connectivity, and possibly the public telecommunication system to securely share part of an organization’s information or operations with its employees. Sometimes the term refers only to the most visible service, the internal website. The same concepts and technologies of the Internet such as clients and servers running on the Internet protocol suite are used to build an intranet. HTTP and other Internet protocols are commonly used as well, especially FTP and email. There is often an attempt to use Internet technologies to provide new interfaces with corporate ‘legacy’ data and information systems

Extranet – An extranet is a private network that uses Internet protocols, network connectivity, and possibly the public telecommunication system to securely share part of a business’s information or operations with suppliers, vendors, partners, customers or other businesses. An extranet can be viewed as part of a company’s Intranet that is extended to users outside the company (eg: normally over the Internet). It has also been described as a “state of mind” in which the Internet is perceived as a way to do business with other companies as well as to sell products to customers.

LAN – A local area network (LAN) is a computer network covering a small local area, like a home, office, or small group of buildings such as a college. Current LANs are most likely to be based on switched Ethernet or Wi-Fi technology running at from 10 to 10000 Mbps. The defining characteristics of LANs in contrast to WANs are: a) much higher data rates, b) smaller geographic range and c) they do not involve leased telecommunication lines.
Wireless Network – Wireless networks are telephone or computer networks that use radio as their carrier or physical layer.

WIFI -  is an acronym for Wireless Fidelity. It is a set of product compatibility standards for wireless local area networks.

Web server – The term Web server can mean one of two things: 1. A computer that is responsible for accepting HTTP requests from clients, which are known as Web browsers, and serving them Web pages, which are usually HTML documents. 2. A computer program that provides the functionality described in the first sense of the term.

Firewalls -  A firewall is a piece of hardware and/or software which functions in a networked environment to prevent some communications forbidden by the security policy, analogous to the function of firewalls in building construction. A firewall is also called a Border Protection Device (BPD), especially in NATO contexts, or packet filter in BSD contexts.
 

Source:  www.wikipedia.org