GoAnimate not "Goanna Mate".

Go!Animate.com Studio Screenshot.

I'm excited about this one folks. I only joined the GoAnimate community late last night and I am already blogging about it. GoAnimate has awesome potential for use in e-learning. As with a lot of web2.0 tools the bounds are limited only by your imagination. So what is it?

GoAnimate is a flash based web tool which utilises a drag and drop style interface to allow users to create animated comic book style scenes. There are a bucket load of characters to choose from, a few cool backdrops and the ability to add funky soundtracks and sounds. If you don't like the selection there, you have the option to upload your own.

All the characters have their own unique movements and facial expressions and there are a plethora of props you can give the characters and head adornments to add as well. All these options make for limitless potential for creativity especially when coupled with the ability to add voice overs and/or speech bubbles.

As with most web2.0 tools there is a social aspect to it as well with the capability to add friends and and comment on other animations. Once you have created your cartoon animation you have the option to embed, share using DIGG, delicious, Facebook or send via email.

Here is my first attempt, and for the record, the controversial thought bubble about the quick f*@# was added as a way to generate classroom conversation. It took me around an hour to put this together, but I had never used it before, and I hadn't prepared any script or done any storyboarding.

Where do you see the potential for using this technology in your classroom environment, learning management system or f2f workshop?

Jing jingaling.

I have been using Jing now for a couple of months and I meant to post on it ages ago.

Jing is a screen capture tool made by Techsmith. Since I downloaded it, Jing has become an indispensable weapon in my e-learning authoring arsenal. Sure Camtasia is more feature packed, as I'm sure are loads of other screen capture tools. But the thing I love about Jing is it's sheer usability.

It sits up on your screen like a little yellow sun and whenever you feel the need to use it you hover over it and click on the capture icon. Then highlight the area you want to capture, click image or video, and save the file you produce or publish it to your Screencast or Flickr account.

It is really that simple.

I love the added functionality of text and highlighting tools which make creating instructions or PowerPoint add ins a real breeze.

I love Jing and I think it's uses are only bound by your imagination.

Going all informal @ LearnX Asia Pacific

LearnX is done. The conference was interesting and thought provoking and strangely quite satisfying. The catch cry that was reverberating through many of the presentations and keynotes was "informal learning". So what's it all about?

No doubt Jay Cross or Bob Lee would be more qualified and more eloquent at informing on informal (both were highlights of my conference agenda) but I thought I'd give you a bit of a RTO spin on it.

I think informal learning as it pertains to RTO's is possibly the best thing since sliced bread. Informal learning happens everywhere and all the time. You're even doing it now! It is all that comes before and all that happens after and it isn't something we can control or map or track..... or can we?

Jay Cross and many others talk about informal learning being 75% or more of the learning that happens on the job. So if people are doing all this learning before and during their formal studies why can't they get recognition for it. Well in the VET sector they can.

Isn't RPL a way of tracking informal learning? There is a big push for RPL and new, better and innovative ways to do it, but how many VET trainers and assessors and RTO's in general are using these informal learning experiences of their learners and helping them to shorten their training or expedite their qualifications? Hopefully a lot. I can say I have been able to recognise the potential of capitalising on my past informal learning experiences and have gined RPL the best part of two Certificate IV and am now using the informal learning that occurs in my current role to gain a Diploma.

E-learning and web 2.0 tools can aid this capturing of informal learning. Think about the potential of wiki, blogs, IM etc for use as evidence in gaining RPL for informal learning not to mention ePortfolis (when the dust settles over that debate).

At BJ Australia, we plan on using photo and video capture as a way to record some of this informal learning during our CEDAR project. How are you capturing evidence of informal learning in your RTO or other learning institution? Have you used RPL (especially informal learning) to gain a qualification? Leave a comment, I'd love to hear.

What about the rest of the conference? My highlight breakout session was presented by Robb J Reiner. What a great presenter and topic "How to get the best from an in-house e-learning capability". More about that another blog post though.