This post is for all undergrad and graduate students for Fall 2019 and Spring 2020 school year:

I have had several students ask me about buying a new computer and figured I would post to the group…

When I get a new computer I do one of two things…1) I get one that will last me 2 years or 2) one that will last me 4 years. Obviously the 4 yr one is much more expensive.

So my recommendations…

*See my product recommendations for computers and accessories

1. Get a student discount. All of the companies offer them. Now is a great time to get back to school deals (for instance they may throw in an ipad in which you, as a student, could read all the clep study guides in it). Be sure to check out the main companies, Dell, ASUS, Apple, etc.

2. Get a minimum of 12GB of Ram. Ram matters. This is the first thing I choose to upgrade on a machine. If you are in a tech field (computer science, instructional technology, video editing, etc) I would really recommend as close to 32GB as you can get.

3. For the normal user, I don’t think you need to upgrade anything else unless you feel inclined to spend more money. Ram is the first thing I upgrade, video card 2nd, processor 3rd. In that order. I don’t worry about hard drive space at all as I use the cloud to store my files. I don’t worry about other features either except for making sure they have enough ports such as an HDMI port. If you are going to major in a tech related field, I would strongly recommend you upgrade the RAM, video card, and then processor.

5. I would get a PC over a Mac. Macs are great and work really well but there are some issues I run into with them in my courses. Either will work though! Chromebook, ipads, etc won’t cut it, you need a real machine. Again, Chromebook, ipads, etc won’t cut it, you need a real machine.

6. As far as brands, they are all fine for the most part. I prefer Alienware and Dell since that is what I have used over the last few years. I currently have an alienware R17 with max upgrades. I like alienware because they already come with upgraded video cards that you won’t even have an option for with a standard machine. A lot of them are VR Ready. In fact, the only machine in the college of education that runs VR is mine. None of the others will do it. But any brand will be ok as long as you (see #7)

7. Get a warranty. Get a warranty for as long as you want to keep the machine. Its worth it. I cannot tell you how many machines I have went through. I have had Macs die. I have had PC die. Many times. Just get the warranty. I think I have a 4 yr warranty on my current machine.

8. Price – Based on the specs I have provided, you can easily find a low end machine for $550. I don’t think you can find a 12GB ram machine for cheaper. I would recommend you spend $700-$1000 if you want this machine to last 4 years. Obviously, if you are going into a tech major you are going to spend more.

9. Size – This is all preference. Please go to a store and try a few different sizes. Common sizes are 13, 15, and 17 inches. I prefer 17 but some thing that is too big. My wife for example, prefers 13, which I think it too small.

If you have other questions, please feel free to ask. – Dr. Pastore

Video

When to get a certificate vs a Master’s in instructional design, instructional technology, elearning, training, or educational technology

What is the average salary of an instructional designer, trainer, elearning, edtech? What about hourly rates? How much money do Instructional Designers make? What is the salary with no work experience? What is the highest salary?

How to find a good Instructional Design Master’s or certificate program. This include edtech, training, elearning, instructional technology, learning sciences, and educational technology. How do you find a good master’s program?

How do people learn? Do we have learning styles? What about learning taxonomies? What happens in our minds when we learn? How do we learn from doing, games, virtual reality?

Virtual reality technologies give us the capability to meld computer-generated images and the real world.

But how do we learn from virtual reality and games? What happens in our working memory? This video goes into detail about how we process that information. 3D Learning is a multisensory learning theory which explains how we learn through multiple channels in working memory.

For those new to VR and wonder about why the motion sickness happens, here is an explanation from sciencedaily.com.

“Years ago research showed that the brain can re-set an upside-down view of world to be right side up. Constantly changing images pose a bigger challenge for the brain, which has to deal with ‘lag’: the time it takes the computer system to update and display changing visual images corresponding to the users head movements. This may be a variable linked to motion sickness and other symptoms related to helmet-mounted devices.”

3D Learning

• 3D Learning is a theory that expands on prior 2D cognitive theories (i.e. theories that focused on text and images) to explain how we process content to learn in the real world through all domains (psychomotor/affective/cognitive), from games, from experience, in virtual reality, from hand on activities, etc.
• Its organic – living and changing
• Research has only begun to scratch the surface
• The model:
  • Multiple Input sources
    • Multiple input sources – There are a number of input sources that humans experience. These include vision, hearing, feeling, doing, smelling, tasting and many more
  • Sensory Memory
    • Sensory memory is where we first experience the input and put it into working memory or dismiss it
  • Working Memory
    • Learners have/can process information through a number of channels in working memory (i.e. visual, verbal, haptic/kinesthetic, olfactory, and more)
    • Learners can process multiple channels at the same time (can work together or independently from one another).
    • No matter how many channels we have, we can still only store a limited # of concepts in working memory
    • Training can improve each channel.
    • Learners will have natural strengths and preferences for one channel vs another.
    • Learners can work with prior knowledge from long term memory
  • Long term Memory
    • Long term memory is said to be indefinite

5.0 What’s next…

• We need to expand the multimedia principles…and probably should be calling them the principles of learning
• What are the other channels/how many?
  • Olfactory, haptic/kinesthetic, taste, etc. How many do we have?
• What combinations work best? How many is too many?
  • For example, using our eyes, ears, and hands. Is that too many? How does that impact cognitive load?
  • There is a new game style as a memory and strategy challenge from one of the best gaming developers (lockbusters escape game) where the game is in real life mode in a room full of clues for you to discover.
• This is especially crucial to the gaming literature as virtual reality starts to become more common for hands on training

Why hire an ID for training design? Does ID matter?

I created this guide to help my students write the first draft of their resume. Usually they come to me during their last year, hand me a draft of their resume, and I give them the same initial feedback over and over – and my feedback is usually significant. Once they get the basics down and they have a good working draft, we can start to customize it to highlight their skill set, but this video is the starting point: