[IAEP] Where may developers meet educators? / ¿Donde pueden los desarrolladores encontrar a los educadores?

[Sridhar Dhanapalan]

2011/11/29 Carlos Rabassa <carnen at mac.com>:
> Versión en Español sigue al texto Inglés
>
> I changed the Subject from /
> Cambié el tema desde
>  Fwd: [IAEP] Contemplating Your SLOBS Vote.
>
> Sridhar,
>
> I find your opinion very much interesting.
>
> However,  we are not discussing a universal scientific problem.
>
> I have no doubts your comments apply to some of the teachers you know;  mine
> apply to the teachers I know,  a different group,  probably far away from
> yours.
>
> We are discussing the individual reasons why a large number of teachers,  in
> different locations all over the world,  are not communicating with the
> creators and developers of applications intended for them.
>
> Walter initiated this discussion,  asking for help to find a proper venue
> for developers and educators to meet.
>
> Teachers are good writers by trade and training.
>
> Venues such as Facebook,  Yammer and SalesForce,  are suitable to consult on
> a specific problem,  reaching many individuals who might be able to answer,
>  offering an almost immediate answer.
>
> Using a system like this,  implies knowing how to explain the problem
> clearly in a language understood by others in the group.  It also frequently
> tends to create many immediate answers from people with lots of good will
> and good intentions but who offer answers that confuse the person with the
> original problem more than helping.

It doesn't have to work that way.

Mailing lists can facilitate lengthy, thoughtful conversation.
However, that risks the tl;dr [1] problem. Our teachers are typically
very time-poor and won't bother reading long posts.

Facebook and similar media are typically best for short and sharp
communications. Yammer isn't limited to 140 characters like Twitter,
so detailed conversation is indeed possible. We've been using Yammer
to manage support requests, which has turned out quite well.

There was another instance on Yammer a few months ago where a teacher
started by asking for a Powerpoint equivalent for Sugar. After a few
messages back-and-forth, Walter was able to solve that teacher's
problem in a much better way by creating a plug-in for Turtle Art.
This is a fantastic example of what direct communications between
teacher and developers can achieve. Yammer presents a platform for
this that everyone is familiar with.


Sridhar


[1] http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=tl%3Bdr


Sridhar Dhanapalan
Engineering Manager
One Laptop per Child Australia