Open content licensing for educators/FAQs

I'm lost -- where should I start?
As with all new environments, new visitors to WikiEducator may need a little help in finding the correct pages. You know what they say: when all else fails read the instructions. The best place to start is the getting started page.

A quick scan of the FAQs on this page may also address any questions you have.

How do I bookmark the recommended pages in my browser?
This is a three step process;


 * 1) Visit the pages we recommend you should bookmark for the course.
 * Recommended pages to bookmark
 * #OCL4Ed Course homepage in WikiEducator. (Use the navigation links on the top of your page to find relevant course resources.)
 * Course homepage in Moodle
 * Aggregated #OCL4Ed microblog feed
 * 1) Follow the instructions for your specific browser.
 * Instructions on how to bookmark a webpage
 * Google Chrome
 * Firefox
 * Internet Explorer (called favorites).
 * Safari.
 * 1) When you need to access a bookmarked page, visit your saved bookmarks in your browser and click on the relevant page.

How can I get email copies of all the posts to the discussion forums
The #OCL4Ed courses usually attract hundreds of participants. To avoid receiving a large number of emails in your inbox, the default setting for all discussion forums in the the #OCL4Ed 2012.01 course is "optional subscription". If you would like to receive email notifications of all posts, you must subscribe to each forum.

To change your settings to receive email notification for a forum:
 * 1) Log in to the #OCL4Ed 2012.01 course.
 * 2) Go to the forum you would like to subscribe to.
 * 3) Under "Settings" (on the left-hand side of your screen) click on "Subscribe to this forum".

Note:


 * You may unsubscribe at any time.
 * This procedure will only subscribe you to the forum currently displayed on the screen (not all course discussion forums).
 * Subscribing to a forum may generate large numbers of emails. You are responsible for managing your own subscriptions to the forums. If you would prefer to visit the #OCL4Ed 2012.01 course website to read forum discussions, you are responsible to unsubscribe from the forum.

Can I get a certificate of attendance or completion for the #OCL4Ed course?
No, this is a charitable course where we share knowledge freely. The OER Foundation does not have the financial resources to properly assess and award certificates for this offering of the course. However, in the future we will explore options to include the learning outcomes of the #OCL4Ed workshop in one of the future offerings of the OER University network.

Can my institution use the #OCL4Ed course for local professional development workshops?
Absolutely! The #OCL4Ed course materials are openly licensed using a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license and we encourage all institutions to share the gift of knowledge by reusing the #OCL4Ed materials for their own professional development purposes. There is no need to ask for permission. There is one exception, specifically the page on the ownership of ideas where the copyleft provision has been applied out of respect for the leadership and work of Eben Moglin in promoting freedom. It would not have been appropriate to request removal of the Share-Alike provision of this work.

Where can I read the #OCL4Ed microblog posts for the course?
There are a number of options. Choose the one you like and bookmark your preferred source for revisiting later.


 * Main #OCL4ED feed which combines WEnotes, identi.ca and twitter posts.
 * #OCL4Ed on Identi.ca
 * #OCL4Ed on Twitter

When should I post a contribution to the #OCLEd feed?
You may post a contribution anytime during the course (remember to include the #OCL4Ed in the text of your microblog post). Participants are encouraged to post their views, thoughts, and ideas at any time which will contribute to the international steam of digital consciousness on open approaches in education.

We have also embedded a number of microblog activities in the #OCL4Ed materials. These are triggers or catalysts to share your personal thoughts and views relating to specific course content, e.g., selected videos or topical issues. See for example the microblog activity based on the video reflection on why freedom matters in education.

Should I read all the microblog posts?
Active #OCL4Ed courses with many participants can generate a large number of posts. #OCL4Ed participants are not expected to read everything. Read the posts within your own time zone and post responses when it's convenient for you; it's more fun and rewarding to respond to the live posts of the hour within your own timezone. You may also want to scan through the aggregated #OCL4Ed feed and respond to posts which attract your interest.

How do I reply to a post from one of the #OCL4Ed participants?
When you are logged in to your itenti.ca or Twitter service, just click on the "reply" link or reply icon within the note or tweet from the participant concerned. This will include the "@username" in your reply. Remember to include the #OCL4Ed tag in your reply if you would like to distribute your response for all the workshop participants (recommended).

Can I post or answer questions using the #OCL4Ed microblog feeds?
Absolutely! We encourage all #OCL4Ed participants to post questions and invite all participants to share their answers to questions. That's what peer-to-peer learning is all about. There is a good chance your facilitators might be sleeping when you post your question, and many participants are equally experienced to post valid answers and advice. It is better for us to share the responsibility for learning together.

Why don't my microblog posts appear in the #OCL4Ed course stream?
Make sure that you include the #OCL4ED tag in your microblog posts. This tag is used to identify posts related to the #OLC4Ed course and if omitted, the aggregated feed will not pick up your contribution. Check that you are leaving a space before and after the tag, for example: I'm having fun on the #OCL4Ed course.

Occasionally microblog service providers experience technical problems, which may delay posts. Try to post again later, in case that's the reason for your missing posts. The OER Foundation does not administer these microblog sites and we will not be able to assist with technical service issues.

Why does #OCL4Ed use microblog posts for peer-to-peer interactions?
The #OCL4Ed free online workshops typically register hundreds of participants spanning 24 different time zones. Discussion forums don't scale well for a large number of participants when courses are offered over a compact working week; participants have reported being overwhelmed by lengthy, convoluted discussions. The #OCL4Ed course has been designed to keep lengthy discussion posts to a minimum. We have found that using microblogs lowers the barriers to participation and results in a 24/7 stream of digital consciousness among peers participating in the course.

I find the 140 character limit too restrictive for substantive communication - what should I do?
Agreed, expressing a complex idea succinctly within a microblog post's 140 character limit can be a challenge. However, the 140 character limit encourages participants to focus their contribution to the main idea or thought they would like to share. The brevity of a microblog post makes it a "low obligation" technology. It lowers the threshold barriers for participation and readers can quickly scan many contributions from participants around the world. With practice you may feel more comfortable with a microbog post's conservation of characters and begin to experience the benefits associated with the economy of language.

Try limiting your microblog contributions to one idea per post. You are free to post as many contributions as you like. If you would like to post a more substantive answer or response, you are most welcome to use the workshop discussion forums set up for this purpose.