When I worked at the Hazleton campus in the mid-90's, I was basically a one-man ITS. I was in charge of labs, faculty/staff computers, networks, workshops, etc... I was in my early 20's, worked long hours, and had no life (one of the reasons I moved back to State College, but that's another story). When I needed a break, I would "frankenstein" computers -- taking four broken computers and make two or three working ones by swapping components. It was nice because I could unhook my brain a bit and let my hands do the work.
I had a similar feeling today while working on the Copyright Perspectives site. It's not ready for prime time yet, but take a look if you like and you'll get the idea. I wrote a few descriptions, edited some simple graphics in Photoshop, and played around with code. My brain was still in use, but I could immediately see the results. Most of the time, I work on things for months before seeing any results. Working on the site has been a nice shot of instant gratification goodness.
I've just been thinking about what I would really include in my list of core beliefs as a professional. I believe that variety is a key element to keep your work fresh. I like juggling projects because it lets me take a break from one, but still be productive elsewhere. [Am I just a restless Type-A freak, or do other people do the same thing? I can't seem to rest by actually "resting".]
The Learning Design Summer Camp included university personnel who normally don't get a chance to talk with each other: faculty, librarians, instructional designers, technologists, media producers, trainers, student support personnel, and leaders. I hope it was a chance for people to step outside their routine, talk to people they don't normally see, and get some fresh ideas. Actually, I heard several people say that they didn't think the event would be relevant to them until they came to Summer Camp and saw how all of us have an impact on learning design. For those who were unsure but came anyway, THANK YOU!
Exposure to people with different perspectives helps me understand learning design issues more completely. I get my best ideas by being exposed to the creative efforts of other people. So my thought is this: working with a group of peers is great, but now that the learning design community has grown and diversified it has become a source of the variety that I need to keep my work fresh.
I had a similar feeling today while working on the Copyright Perspectives site. It's not ready for prime time yet, but take a look if you like and you'll get the idea. I wrote a few descriptions, edited some simple graphics in Photoshop, and played around with code. My brain was still in use, but I could immediately see the results. Most of the time, I work on things for months before seeing any results. Working on the site has been a nice shot of instant gratification goodness.
I've just been thinking about what I would really include in my list of core beliefs as a professional. I believe that variety is a key element to keep your work fresh. I like juggling projects because it lets me take a break from one, but still be productive elsewhere. [Am I just a restless Type-A freak, or do other people do the same thing? I can't seem to rest by actually "resting".]
The Learning Design Summer Camp included university personnel who normally don't get a chance to talk with each other: faculty, librarians, instructional designers, technologists, media producers, trainers, student support personnel, and leaders. I hope it was a chance for people to step outside their routine, talk to people they don't normally see, and get some fresh ideas. Actually, I heard several people say that they didn't think the event would be relevant to them until they came to Summer Camp and saw how all of us have an impact on learning design. For those who were unsure but came anyway, THANK YOU!
Exposure to people with different perspectives helps me understand learning design issues more completely. I get my best ideas by being exposed to the creative efforts of other people. So my thought is this: working with a group of peers is great, but now that the learning design community has grown and diversified it has become a source of the variety that I need to keep my work fresh.
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