I didn't manage to blog over lunch.  I was too busy speaking to Richard Hall about whether to was possible to put too much information online for students - in case they stopped coming to lectures..

James 32 days ago

I've been using Turnitin across all my UK modules for a couple of years now and have found it a beneficial piece of software.  I make the point to the students on every module that they're human beings submitting the work, and I'm a human being looking at the results - this is, as you say, a tool.

On bigger modules it can become difficult to check that everyone has submitted to Turnitin, but maybe this is down to me not using it appropriately, or missing a trick somewhere.

And anyone using this for group work needs to make the point that only one student should submit the work, otherwise there'll be duplicates causing all sorts of fun at the end of the day!  (Although you can of course choose to exclude specific sources when asking the software to look for matches.)

David Jarman 32 days ago

Thanks for all the links David, that's really useful. Rushing around a bit in between sessions so just in here very briefly but great to see all the blog posts and comments popping up ...

Elaine

Elaine Mowat 32 days ago

Yes I admit - I do have a bit of a fetish about technology.  I'm completely new to all this - so it's all fascinating to me.  Strangely enough all this mirrors the debate happening at Channel 4 News (and across journalism I think).  Does technology enhance journalism?  Or does it somehow get in the way?  Does the sexiness of the technology blind us to the real nuts-and-bolts journalism hidden behind. 

Sounds like it might be similar with curriculums and Learning...

James 32 days ago

Absolutely - it's too easy to add sparkle to a presentation/lecture that ultimately detracts from what you're trying to say.  There's a need to keep speaking to the students I reckon - 'am I going over the top?'!

Off to see the Google Wave talk now, but late already...

David Jarman 32 days ago