techKNOWtools

Mind-Map It Out.

April 1, 2009January 13, 2010 Laura Pasquini

To help process information it is always great to introduce a mind map as an effective learning tool.

A mind map is a diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks, or other items linked to and arranged around a central key word or idea. Mind maps are used to generate, visualize, structure, and classify ideas, and as an aid in study, organization, problem solving, decision making, and writing. (c/o Wikipedia.org)

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There are a few online tools that best support the mind-mapping approach for learning. Lifehacker.com recently reviewed the Five Best Mind-Mapping Applications for online mapping action. These tools are FREE & very user-friendly.

These resources are quite useful for both learning and teaching. There are plenty of online mind-mapping resources to support visual learners which makes mapping information fun!

Map on, my friends. Map on.

Virtual Communities, women

Happy Ada Lovelace Day!

March 24, 2009May 31, 2019 Laura Pasquini

Kudos to all the ladies who engage & contribute to the world of technology. You continue to influence and inspire those around you.

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Today is Ada Lovelace Day:

Ada Lovelace Day is an international day of blogging to draw attention to women excelling in technology.

Women’s contributions often go unacknowledged, their innovations seldom mentioned, their faces rarely recognized. We want you to tell the world about these unsung heroines. Entrepreneurs, innovators, sysadmins, programmers, designers, games developers, hardware experts, tech journalists, tech consultants. The list of tech-related careers is endless. c/o http://findingada.com/

Be sure to celebrate by posting about women who inspire YOU. Although the numbers are growing , there are less women in technology. Let’s be sure to recognize those we admire. Speaking of which, here are just a few of the many women who inspire me:

blogs, Social Media

Characteristics of Blog Design

March 24, 2009March 24, 2009 Laura Pasquini

Today I found a great article on how to pretty up your blog, especially if you are blogging for professional reasons. I think I will do a bit of blog design review & updates as well.

The 13 Characteristics of Outstanding Blog Design include:

1. Readability

2. Useful Sidebars

3. Unique

4. Comment Design

5. Integration of Ads (for professional blogs)

6. Effective, Usable Navigation

7. Images in Posts

8. Footer Design

9. Color Scheme

10. Icons

12. Subscription Areas

13. Social Media Integration

For those of you who are just starting out, be sure to check out these tips from PROBLOGGER that shares Blog Design for Beginners.

blogs, Collaboration, Higher Education, Photo Sharing, Social Media

Happy Birthday ACE!

March 11, 2009March 11, 2009 Laura Pasquini

For those of you thinking about implementing a new online, web 2.0 project for student learning… I say: GO FOR IT!

This is the 1 year anniversary of the ACE pilot project that was initiated at The Academic Advising & Career Centre, University of Toronto Scarborough. Happy Birthday, ACE!

ACE (Academic & Career Explorer) is an online, peer buddy who connects with students at UTSC to share information & resources about job search, academic questions, career options and study skills support. You can connect to ACE various ways online:

The ACE project was a fun project to work on with staff and students. Kudos must go out to E-Lin, Suzanne, Esther & the great team of student staff at the Centre for all their creative work and on-going support.

Here’s a shot of E-Lin celebrating ACE’s birthday today with some cake (office tradition), of course: