It was not very long ago……..

It was not very long ago (15-20 years) that we lived in an analog world. There was no e-mail, IM, cell phones, internet, myspace, facebook, blogs, online classes, digital cameras, laptop computers, IPhones, YouTube, ITu nes, Podcasts, etc……………..

Think about that!

25 years ago I listened to music on LPR’s Vinyl Records not Cd’s or mp3’s and had a transistor radio. I didn’t know about e-mail and had never touched a computer.  Things have changed dramatically in the past 25 years in every aspect of our lives.

We took photographs with film cameras and had to develop them in actual chemicals instead of downloading them into our computers and attaching them to e-mails and uploading to facebook.

We called our family and friends with analog rotary phones and had to use pay phones because no one had a cell. Computers and digital technology have monumentally impacted every aspect of our lives. Sometimes when I am sorting through hundreds of e-mails and discussion posts I’m not so sure if it has been for the better.

Computers and digital technology have revolutionized how we communicate. They have changed our work places, the way we create, play and socialize.. To think I can have a conversation with my son Adam who is a Peace Corp volunteer in El Salvador using Skype and we can see each other with web cams and talk through microphones for free no less. Simply amazing! Although we have gotten so used to this technology it really isn’t all that amazing to us anymore – however the thought of all this  20 years ago would have been beyond belief.

Every aspect of our daily lives have been impacted by digital technology. Check out the blog post I wrote a year ago on this very subject. Click Here.

Your thoughts?

Every Picture Tells a Story

I was discussing ancient Near East art in my online Art Survey course yesterday and we got to talking about how art throughout history tells some kind of story.  That got me thinking about photography as well.

From Paleolithic people to the Neolithic and beyond we can see that art tells a story. Throughout human history art has told the story (using a variety of media) of people, cultures, societies and nations from those earliest cave paintings to those great and explosive modern art canvases painted by Jackson Pollock.

Egyptian art tells the story of their fascination with death and the afterlife and Greek art tells the story of man on a quest for knowledge,  trying to make sense out of the world around him. All art forms tell stories if we as viewers know how to read them.  That takes an awareness and some basic understanding of the visual elements of design and their various connotations in addition to the artist and historical / culture context of the art work  itself.

According to Darren Rowse in his article called Telling Stories with Photos.

“Over the centuries people have gathered around campfires, in town squares, over meals and in other places to tell there stories and these gatherings have become central to the shaping of cultures and communities. In more recent times some people have lamented that the art of story telling has been lost amidst the rise of different technologies.

A photograph has the ability to convey emotion, mood, narrative, ideas and messages – all of which are important elements of story telling. Of course the gift of story telling is something that doesn’t just happen – good story tellers are intentional about learning how to tell stories and practice their craft. “

Each one of my photographs tells a little story. It doesn’t have to be deep or dramatic – it’s just a little slice of time that reveals something about myself and/or subject I am photographing.  That is why I love photography and art so much.  I love stories!

101 Year Old Man, El Salvador 2009

What is your story? Tell it with a photograph.

Adam Keough’s Peace Corp Project – Please Support!

The following is a letter I received from  Jess Wallace, Peace Corps Office of Private Sector Initiatives about my son Adam’s Peace Corp community project. Please support this endeavor in any small (or big) way you can.

Dear Friends of Adam,

I am writing to tell you about Adam Keough’s Peace Corps Partnership Project. As you know, Adam serves as a Peace Corps Volunteer doing health work in El Salvador.

Now Adam is taking on a new Computer Lab and Training project and needs your support. Developed out of a pressing community need, this project will be implemented by both Adam and the primary project beneficiaries.  This project will benefit the people of the community for many years to come.

In order to implement this project, Adam must raise $3924 from friends, family and other organizations in the United States.  Adam and the people of the community are asking for your assistance to turn this project into a reality.

The easiest way to contribute is to go to www.peacecorps.gov/contribute and select Adam’s project (Project Number 519-131).  The web site is the safest and quickest way to make a donation.  You can also make a check payable to Peace Corps Partnership Program and send it to:

Paul D. Coverdell Peace Corps Headquarters

Peace Corps Partnership Program, OPSI

1111 20^th Street NW

Washington DC 20526

Be sure to indicate the project number on the check so it will be applied to the correct project.  Also, check with your employer to see if they provide matching gifts as many will match your gift dollar for dollar, and remember that your gift supporting this project is tax-deductible!

Thank you for your consideration and please feel free to contact our office directly at 202.692.2173 or 1.800.424.8580 x2173 with any questions you might have. Your support will go a long way to aid Adam’s efforts in El Salvador.

Best,

Jess Wallace,

Peace Corps Office of Private Sector Initiatives,

Project Assistant
I truly appreciate you donating to my son Adam’s Peace Corp project – however if at all possible please consider making a donation to the Haiti Relief efforts by clicking here to donate to help those devastated by the recent earthquake.

Spring Semester Kicks into High Gear

It hit me this morning as I was posting back to my many online students across the state (and the world) that Christmas vacation is over and its back to business as usual for me.  This is going to be a very busy semester considering the fact that I have taken on some extra courses and challenges. Nothing I can’t handle however it’s going to mean 60+ hour work weeks to stay on top of all my courses.

The beauty of technology in 2010 is that I can do so much of my work  from anywhere as long as I have my trusty mac laptop with me and a wireless connection.  Teaching online has become an art unto itself for me and I embrace the challenge of teaching a variety of courses including some “hands-on” activities in the online environment.

As I went through all my classes this morning welcoming my new online students and answering questions I came to a student who is registered for my Art Appreciation class in Selva, NC and is spending the winter in her home country of Bulgaria.  The fact that I have a student in Bulgaria is very cool to me and just goes to show how much education has changed (evolved) over the past 15 years. I no longer am confined to a traditional classroom nor must I be at any specific place to deliver my course content in a unique, dynamic and engaging way.

I’m teaching graphic design, studio lighting, computer art and of course my art appreciation and history courses all in the online environment.  Each course presents its own set of challenges for me to get the material, techniques and concepts across in a viable and understandable way.

I’m constantly exploring new and innovative ways to demonstrate art and photography techniques and concepts to my students.  YouTube is great and so is ITunes U and Jing. I also have been experimenting with an open source program called voice thread which is also very cool for sharing and critiquing art and photographs.

I guess the point of all this is my amazement as to how far we have come in education and I can’t help to wonder what teaching and learning is going to be like in another 10-20 years. I can’t even imagine considering how rapidly technology is evolving.

One thing I do know for certain…it doesn’t matter how much great technology you have at your disposal.  Great teachers still have to be motivated, empathetic, passionate and enthusiastic about the course material they teach. No amount of technology can take a lazy, non-caring teacher and transform him/her into a good instructor.

Teachers in 2010 not only have to know there course material and be passionate about sharing their knowledge with students -  educators also have to be problem solvers and technologically literate in order to seamlessly teach in a variety of learning environments.

Like I said…I have a full load + of courses this semester both online and in the studio, but I am excited about the challenge.  To me teaching is an art form unto itself. Once we as educators lose the passion and desire to teach its time we do something else in my opinion.

Gotta go….time to prepare for my Computer Art course that starts Monday and maybe sneak in a nap before NFL Playoffs.

On Teaching & Learning 2010

Mom & Dad house LI after snow storm

I must admit it’s been a relaxing and productive Christmas break for me.  As I mentioned in a previous post, my plans of traveling to New York were scrapped due to the bad snow storms slamming DC all the way to Long Island -  so I regrouped and have been getting lots accomplished here at home.

Once I accepted the fact that I wasn’t going anywhere for Christmas I started making  lists of things I wanted to accomplish, but never had the time due to the demands of work.  In addition to getting my house and office clean,  yard raked, closets organized and clothes I no longer wear dropped off at the Salvation Army – I’ve spent a few hours each day upgrading and retooling my online classes. This has  got me thinking about the current state of teaching and learning as we head into the year 2010. First off it’s hard to believe 2010 is just around the corner. Seems like yesterday when everyone was stressing out over Y2K - that was 10 years ago!

The teacher / student dynamic (relationship) has also changed dramatically  since the 90’s. First of all both students and teachers (for the most part) have embraced (and become proficient with) a variety of new technologies which have been  catalysts for dramatic growth in online education.

I’ll readily admit I would have retired early from teaching if it were not for the introduction of Blackboard (online teaching) in the late 90’s.  Teaching online introduced me to new and creative challenges  just when I was starting getting burned out from traditional classroom instruction.

This brings me to the core of my thoughts on teaching and learning in 2010. Essentially I believe the attributes required to be an effective teacher are still the same as we enter the next decade of this new millennium.  Great teachers are creative, innovative, passionate, enthusiastic and show sincere interest and comprehension of their respective subject area.  Students on the other hand have changed over the past 10-15 years and this evolution has come about in part because of rapid advances in technology and cyber culture.

Now here’s the rub.  I believe teachers (at all grade levels) have to do a better job mastering the new and powerful tools (technology) at their disposal for CONNECTING with (and engaging) their students.  The attributes for great teachers is the same BUT the tools we use for teaching have changed and become much more technologically sophisticated. This is our challenge heading into the next decade.

Students on the other hand may have a better grasp on technology, however the techniques and skills required for effective learning have not changed all that much either.  This is where I sense a disconnect based on my 10+ years teaching exclusively online for a variety of colleges across North Carolina.  Sure… we as teachers and students have all this great and powerful communications technology (Video, YouTube,  Podcasts, Screencasts, 3-D simulations, Second Life, Blackboard, Moodle, etc.) at our disposal for imparting and deciphering information, however if the students are not motivated or interested in learning and not willing to put the time and effort in to meet the instructor halfway on the learning journey then it’s not going to matter how great the technology is – learning is NOT going to occur.

Bottom line here (in my opinion) is that teaching tools (technology) have changed dramatically, but the skills and attributes needed for being excellent teachers and effective learners remain relatively the same.  Both students and teachers must harness (embrace) technology for both teaching and learning to the point where it becomes intuitive. The days of the chalk board and overhead projector are over and have been replaced with sophisticated course management systems.

I’m excited about the coming year and the challenges facing me as an online teacher and Distant Learning Director. In reality this is not all that complicated.  The Industrial Revolution is over and that instructional model is just about dead and buried.  As I state at the beginning of all my distance learning workshops;  The easy part is becoming proficient and confident with technology – the real challenge for both teachers and students is using it to its fullest potential for both teaching and learning.  2010….here I come!

Merry Christmas to All!

It’s going to be a very quiet and laid back Christmas for me this year with Adam in El Salvador and my daughter Andei in Sicily. As I mentioned in my previous post the weather up north kept me from visiting my family on Long Island. My brother Terry said he was still shoveling snow off the driveway.

So I’m enjoying a cup of coffee at a local coffee shop thinking about the past year.  I can’t complain in any way, shape or form.  God’s been good to me and has blessed me with 2 great kids, a job I enjoy, good friends and decent health. I really can’t ask for more than that.

Sure I could rant and rave about the direction this great country is heading and the madness in Washington, but I’m not going to on Christmas eve.  This country needs more prayers and less ranting so I’ll leave it at that. Let’s remember the true meaning of Christmas. It seems to me it has been pushed to the wayside over the years to make way for rampant / decadent commercialism and secular holiday fluff.

“His parents had no money, although He was a King—
An angel came to Joseph one night as he dreamed.
“Don’t be afraid to marry her, this child is God’s own Son,”
And with these words from God’s messenger, their journey had begun.

They traveled to the city, their taxes to be paid—
But when Christ was born they found no place for the baby to be laid.
So they wrapped Him up and used a lowly manger for His bed,
With nothing else but straw to place beneath the Christ-child’s head.

The shepherds came to worship Him, the wise men traveled too—
Led by a star up in the sky, they found the baby new.
They gave him gifts so wondrous, their incense, myrrh, and gold,
Thus completes the greatest story of a birth ’twas ever told.

He was just a tiny baby, born in a stable far away—
They had no reservations, and no where else to stay.
But His birth was so majestic, in a simple sort of way,
A baby born in Bethlehem on a very special day.

It was the Savior born in Bethlehem, on the very first Christmas Day.”

–Brenda Thompson Davis

Teaching Online Semester Debrief

It turns out there’s  a snow storm barreling through the western part of North Carolina this weekend and apparently going to hit the East Coast from DC to New York, so I decided not to visit my brother in Asheville. He called as I was heading out this morning and warned me not to take the risk of driving into a blizzard, he also said he lived on a mountain and was already getting snowed in – so in a matter of minutes my Christmas plans changed and I turned my car around for home.  Looks like I’ll be spending a quiet, restful weekend here at the house.  My daughter Andei made it to Italy safely for her interview with the John Cabot American University of Rome. We skyped earlier today and she said she was tentatively accepted.  I’m very proud of her to say the least.  She is spending Christmas with friends in Rome and then Sicily.  It’s going to be quiet around here this Christmas break without her.

Looks like the weather is going to get bad for the next few days  so I’ll redirect my energy towards preparing for my Spring online classes.  The past 3 months have been extremely hectic for me as far as the amount of classes (and students) I teach online in addition to my administrative duties.  I’ve been taking on more and more classes the past few years at first to make extra money for Adam and Andei’s college expenses, however I’ve also enjoyed the challenge of teaching computer/digital art totally online, something I had never done before.

I’ve taught it two semesters now and it’s been a big success based on the feedback I’ve received from my students.  You can click here to see a slide show of the work digital art work they created this past semester.

Now that all my classes have wrapped up I’ve been thinking just how much things have changed in education over the past 10 years.  First off I’m still absolutely amazed at how distance learning has evolved over the past 20 years.  The tools and technology we as educators have at our disposal now have truly changed the nature of education at all grade levels.   What has not changed fast enough (in my opinion) unfortunately is the mindsets of many teachers, professors and administrators when it comes to distance learning.

It seems the technology is out pacing many educational institutions and teachers at all levels.  I believe e-learning is only going to continue growing and the demand for dynamic, engaging and sophisticated online courses is growing rapidly as well.  We are seeing this at Community Colleges across North Carolina. In fact…online courses grew 38% this past year for the Community College System and the demand for traditional seated courses was down 1.8%.  Unfortunately there hasn’t been enough aggressive / in-depth professional development for faculty to help them transition from the classroom environment to the online environment.  I want e-learning to grow and prosper, yet I don’t want to see students disappointed because their online classes were not the very best they could be – I also hate seeing faculty frustrated by their lack of understanding of online teaching methodology and the various technological tools at their disposal. It seems that many excellent classroom teachers struggle with the technology itself and it gets in the way or acts as a barrier between them and their students instead of helping them deliver their course content in a engaging, seamless and interactive way.

There’s no doubt the more you teach online, the more you experiment  (and practice) with the various communication tools at your disposal the better and more comfortable you get as an online instructor. There really isn’t any magic bullet.  The first step (in my opinion) with 12 years under my belt is keeping an open mind and be willing to “let go” of the way you used to do it in the classroom, because the sage on the stage approach isn’t conducive for the online teaching environment. Educators have to let their online teaching style (pedagogy) evolve one semester at a time. Identify what works for you and what doesn’t and then retool your course and methodology based on past mistakes, student feedback and personal insights.

I absolutely love teaching my art and photography courses online and am always exploring new and creative ways to deliver my course material.  There is so much “open source” rich media instructional content (like YouTube and ITunes U) out there that you can incorporate video, podcasts, screencasts, sreenshots and animated simulations to your courses. I personally love the challenge of teaching a concept and/or photographic/imaging technique online.  Even though I’ve been doing e-learning for over 12 years I’m still  fine tuning my teaching techniques and constantly exploring and investigating new and creative ways to make more courses dynamic, interesting and intellectually engaging.  We as e-learning educators can never be complacent when teaching online because Course Management Systems like Blackboard and Moodle are constantly being upgraded which forces the online instructor to rethink how he/she is delivering instructional content.

Fall semester is over and Christmas is around the corner.  I’ll spend some time tweaking my online courses in preparation for the Spring semester, in addition to building 2 brand new courses called Intro to Digital Art for Pembroke, University and Computer Art II for FTCC. I love a challenge and online teaching provides me with an opportunity to channel my creativity and love for art and photography via the internet from me to my students.  When it comes right down to it – it’s all about the students and offering them creative and viable options and opportunities for earning their education.

I also like the fact that I can teach from anywhere in the world as long as I have an internet / wireless connection.  You gotta love technology. I sure do!

Christmas Vacation Adventure

I finally got all my grades turned in and got on the road for my Christmas vacation sojourn.  I’m sitting at Port City Java in Wilmington checking e-mail and updating the Blog.  Going to deliver some of my latest home brew “Andei’s Irish Red Ale” to Ross and his buddies.  Plan on crashing in his RV tonight after we hit a few of my favorite pubs downtown Wilmington.

Tomorrow I’m driving to Asheville to visit my brother and then Sunday head north to Virginia to see an old college buddy Joe Champagne.  I need a break!  Next semester is going to be nuts with lots of new online courses that I am setting up to teach for colleges across the state. Ok…my battery is about dead – will update with some photos tomorrow.

Man its good to be off work and on vacation! Beer time! cheers

Down to the Wire…

I haven’t had any time for posting the past 2 weeks due to all my photo and art courses wrapping up.  Today is my final photography lecture and then I’ll get the rest of my grades submitted and finally get some down time.  Plan on driving to Ashville, NC to visit my brother Dennis this coming weekend. Andei is flying to Rome and then Sicily for the Christmas break and I’m going to travel to visit friends and family for a good part of the Christmas break.  She will be taking a tour of the American University in Rome – the college she hopes to be accepted to for next Fall 2010.

From Ashville I’ll be driving to Bristol Va. to visit my good buddy Joe Champagne and then head north to New York to spend Christmas with the folks and hopefully get a day in the city to roam the MET Museum.

More later….oh yea – the beer I made last month tastes awesome! Irish Red Ale.  Yea Ha! Lots of Christmas presents in big bottles

Photography as Meditation continued……

Surf Dogz Atlantic Beach

I just finished developing 2 rolls of black and white film that I shot this past weekend using both my Holga medium format “plastic camera” and Diana camera on the pinhole setting.  Making photographs for me is incredibly cathartic and therapeutic, in addition to just being a very fulfilling creative process.

I just don’t get out enough to make photographs like I used to because all the demands on  my time with work and all my freelance online teaching.  I mentioned to my colleague Cathy Crowell just how much I enjoyed going out to shoot pictures and she looked up at me and said that “in many ways photography is like meditation”. As soon as she said it I knew what the title of my next blog post would be.

It really isn’t about the finished framed image that hangs on the wall of a gallery or our home. The true joy in photography for me at least comes from the SEEING. Spending an afternoon in search of interesting and unique compositions with cameras (Holga & Diana) that have very little technical controls – this forces me to be hypersensitive to the subtle nuances of  my surroundings.  You can take great photographs just about anywhere if you are able to truly be  “in the moment” and learn to dissect external reality into dynamic and creative images.

When I put myself into the “photographic zone” all the anxieties in my life melt away and I totally focus on making pictures.  I constantly scan my surroundings in search for potential pictures.  Its a spiritually nourishing process and literally feeds my creative soul. Here are some of my favorites from my last photographic sojourn.

Surf Meets Shore at Sunset - Holga Camera

Pinhole Photograph in Surf

Geese in Light and Shadow

Abandoned Boat off Bogue Sound

Trash Cans on Atlantic Beach

Neptune Statue Morehead Waterfront

Click Here for more of my Plastic Camera Photos