Empowering Others through Internet Mentorship

Course description:
Learn to help build 'learning communities' through successive hands-on experiences using Internet collaborative tools and instructional authoring tools for citizen-to-citizen instruction, and mentorship.

Course Goals:

          To master efficient use of email.

To learn where to find topical listservs relevant to your interests, how they function, and related Netiquette issues and guidelines.

To review the 10 Collaborative Internet Tools and their applications for sharing and mentoring.

To review Internet mentoring models and resources.

Lesson Tasks Required for Certification 1. Demonstrate your mastery of the email checklist by sending messages to your mentor. Include at least one image or file attachment. 2. Join at least one listserv and forward a listserv message to your mentor. 3. Share with your mentor a description of one mentoring site and one free web tool and include the URLs. 4. Cut and paste information from one of the ASKA+  services http://www.vrd.org/locator/alphalist.html which you've found useful, into an email message. Identify which service the information is from, and send it to your mentor. Include an assessment of your review of Netiquette guidelines.

Lesson One - Get yourself a free hotmail email account if you don't already have your own email account, at  http://hotmail.com

Select " The 10 Collaborative Tools of the Internet " http://lone-eagles.com/collab.htm from your handbook table of contents and review the links under Email spending time reading about Netiquette. (30 minutes)

If you're new to email, review the HELP button contents in your email program and the email tutorials found at http://lone-eagles.com/collab.htm   Then complete the following checklist.

Email Mastery Checklist

___ I can send and receive email to and from anyone, anywhere, anytime.

___ I can create any number of dedicated mailboxes and transfer messages
       I want to save to any of these mailboxes

___ I can send an attached file or image with any email message.

___ I can forward an email message to someone else via email.

___ I can find the HELP button in my email program in order to learn more
       email features.

(One hour)

Lesson Two - Explore the following listserv tutorials for beginners and the listserv resources at http://www.liszt.com Be sure to read their listserv tutorial for beginners at  http://www.liszt.com/intro.html . Another easy introduction to listservs is at  http://www.topica.com Select the Tour.

Additional listserv tutorials:

Reach for the Sky - Beginner's Introduction to listservs
http://www.learner.org/courses/rfts/b4web.htm

Workplace to Workspace; Using Email Lists to work together online
http://www.idrc.ca/books/848.html
Take a look at this whole book online about using emails listservs! (Buy the book and support the generous author!)

Read the "Mailing Lists Handout" http://lone-eagles.com/mailing.htm  and note the suggestions for listservs to try out.  (30 minutes)

Lesson Three - Subscribe to at least one other listserv, and once you begin receiving messages, collect at least three sample resource messages to include in your lesson submission along with how to subscribe to your pick of at least two listservs of potential interest to you.

TIP: Be sure you keep notes on how to unsubscribe to a listserv so you can stop the flow of messages whenever you so desire!
(30 minutes)

Lesson Four - Read the article on the Ten Collaborative Tools for an overview of the possibilities for mentoring others;  http://lone-eagles.com/articles/tencollab.htm  (15 minutes)

Review the tutorials and links for the other Ten Collaborative Internet Tools,   within the time constraints of this lesson, noting those listed web sites that offer you the ability to create free listservs, free newsgroups and free web forums. Note that keywords are given for each for the ten collaborative tools which will give you a rich listing of additional tutorials on each of the ten collaborative tools.

We all find the range of collaborative tools overwhelming! Take a break when you feel overwhelmed, and know you can always return to this outline of tutorials whenever you're ready to learn more. Email and Listservs are by far the most common, so focus on those for now, noting web conferencing is the next most important area, with desktop video conferencing becoming more popular all the time, too. How we use collaborative tools in education will ultimately be a far more human issue than a technical issue. Online social and writing skills will be very important for the future success of all of us!

TIP: You'll find the current trend is online offerings of an increasingly wide variety of free collaborative tools that are easy to use! Explore the many free, private, collaborative services listed at http://lone-eagles.com/currtour.htm   (which you reviewed for lesson one) and http://lone-eagles.com/webdev.htm
(30 minutes)

Select the Mentoring resources   http://lone-eagles.com/mentor.htm from your handbook table of contents and review the resources with emphasis on the A+ locator http://www.vrd.org/locator/alphalist.html . Explore at least one listed ASKA+ site. Review as many of the other mentoring sites as you have time for. (30 minutes)

Lesson Feedback: Optional, but much appreciated.

You're invited to privately email your instructor:

       1. What areas, if any, did you have trouble with during this lesson?

       2. What questions remain now that you've finished this lesson?

       3. Approximately how much time did you devote to this lesson?

       4. What improvements would you like to suggest?