Knowledge and Learning In The News - 5/31/2005

Concept Maps Go to School Cmaps can be used to assess student knowledge, encourage thinking and problem solving instead of rote learning, organize information for writing projects and help teachers write new curricula. Free download (Windows, Mac OSX, Linux, Solaris). A Conversation with James Surowiecki: The Promise and Perils of Collaborative Tools James started the conversation by expressing his optimism about the upside potential for collaborative technologies, which are "immense, in the sense that we can learn from each other, and pass critical information to each other." eportfolios Eportfolios are the current blog-volume trend. Scott Wilson provides an excellent overview, Stephen Downes links to an extensive report and also provides his own views on the future of online learning (.ppt)...and I just came across this link to a facilitator's guide to portfolio development. Students Imagine Design's Future Spread through several rooms and halls in two different school locations, projects in this year's show range from computer animation to high-tech ecology to innovations in software. More of the student's work can be found here. Link to the school's homepage. AI Seduces Stanford Students Psychologists and salesmen call it the "chameleon effect": People are perceived as more honest and likeable if they subtly mimic the body language of the person they're speaking with.