The Learning Solution.

Top 3 reasons you should attend SXSWedu

terakristen — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:19:00 -0400

Last month Matygo had the honour of presenting at one of North America’s leading education technology conferences, SXSWedu. Our CEO, Paul Lambert, pitched our new direction as the flipped classroom platform and we were thrilled with the response. If you’re in the edtech space we recommend you check out SXSWedu, but what makes it so special?

Innovation takes centre-stage

You would expect innovation to be a key feature of a leading edtech event, and it was with startups from all over the world being invited to share their vision of the future.

LAUNCHedu drew crowds during SXSWedu as it featured edtech startups pitching their business ideas to a panel of industry judges. Matygo, along with other burgeoning startups like GYLO and LearningJar, shared their unique perspective on how they plan to shape the future of education technology.

The seats were full and Twitter was buzzing with commentary all about the best of edtech innovation — just check out this social coverage.

Meet the who’s who of the edtech industry

Coming face-to-face with some of the biggest names in edtech is just one more of the main draws to an industry-wide conference like SXSWedu.

We had the pleasure of meeting journalists from Getting Smart and EdSurge; representatives from some of biggest companies in the biz, like Pearson and Macmillan; and even some cutting-edge kindergarten teachers. Getting to hear the thoughts of industry leaders during keynotes and panel discussions rounded out the whole SXSWedu experience.

Gathering this many people with a shared passion for education produces an energy that is palpable. You are virtually guaranteed to leave this conference with inspiration and new friends.

Get a glimpse into the future

What do you get when you’re surrounded by the who’s who of the edtech industry, innovative startups and panels led by industry leaders? You’ll find yourself smack dab in the middle of the buzz you’ll be hearing about for the next year. Here’s what to look for in 2012:

Edtech tools and software are going to have to prove their worth through analytics and insights into learning habits and the efficacy of the tools
Edtech journalism is going to continue to grow and distinguish itself from the general category of tech journalism. Edtech startups will greatly benefit from this
More and more education companies and schools are using the outcomes of scientific research and experiments, rather than tradition, to influence their decision making
Plain old LMS’s are falling out of favour. It’s no longer enough to use technology for the sake of technology in education — there must be clear benefit to the learners

***

To all our friends we saw at SXSWedu, and to all those who will be making the trip next year, we look forward to seeing you in 2013!

The Rise of the Flipped Classroom

terakristen — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 15:32:04 -0400

What Is a Flipped Classroom?

Welcome to one of the longer running buzzwords in edtech today. The term exploded in popularity just as Khan Academy was beginning to capture the public’s imagination. In 2006 Salman Khan created a library of videos that taught various subjects in easy to digest chunks. Over time the video library came to resemble one aspect of the flipped classroom philosophy: teachers could assign the videos to students to learn outside of class and at their own pace.

The question that follows is what do students and teachers do during class time now? The traditional view is that class time is now spent doing the assigned problems that typically would have been completed as homework.

Our view emphasizes the importance of classroom collaboration, and not just access to the teacher. Classroom time can now be fully utilized for any number of active learning methods, such as small groups working on problems together.

The Philosophy Behind Flipping Classrooms

The beauty of the flipped classroom approach is that it’s not just one methodology, but is instead a philosophy of how to approach learning. Alvan Levine recently suggested that the we can flip conferences as well. Daniel Pink suggested flipping everything from the publishing industry to HR departments.

At Matygo we agree that the flipped class philosophy could be applied in many settings, like higher education or corporate training. If you are curious about how you might flip your teaching please sign up for a demo of our flipped classroom platform.

Additional Resources:

The Flipped Classroom Infographic by Knewton

Three part series on the “Flipped Class” by The Daily Riff

Do you have any other great resources about the flipped classroom? Share them with everyone in the comments below.

Teacher, Leave Those Kids Alone

terakristen — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 15:16:11 -0400

This is the 7th and final part in a series by Rachel Balik on her experience learning to code a basic website in an online instructor-led class on Matygo.

As everyone gets further along in their projects, our classes have been much more focused on answering questions and finding solutions to our problems. The platform enables to us to be really casual and natural in the classroom, so Andrei decided to let us spend the last 20 minutes of class working on our sites while he held “office hours.” In other words, he waited in front of his webcam in the Google Hangout in case we needed to cry for help.

As everyone else was busy working on their projects, I got to speak a little with Andrei about his teaching method. Andrei explained how he doesn’t believe teachers should “talk at” or lecture students, but rather they should guide the students through a hands-on experience.

This is a proven method for effective education, but not enough teachers have this attitude, never mind online teachers. It occurred to me that this philosophy worked particularly well with the platform - it gives us total flexibility, access to important information and the ability to communicate freely and naturally with each other and our teacher. It completely flips our idea of a “classroom” on its head, by breaking down walls and discarding unnecessary formalities. Yet, somehow, instead of chaos, it creates space for understanding.

Unfortunately, it made is so easy to converse that I ended up chatting with Andrei for 20 minutes instead of using the time to write code and ask questions. Back to work!

Introduction to Learning Javascript

terakristen — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:50:00 -0500

This is the 6th part in a series by Rachel Balik on her experience learning to code a basic website in an online instructor-led class on Matygo.

Andrei was away this week, so we had a “substitute teacher,” Paul. It was easy for Paul to step in, since all of our course material was on the web, and he could easily access not just the general lesson plan but also the homework assignments we had uploaded.

The past week we all designed websites, or started to, and loaded them into a personal folder on the Matygo server. Not only could our teachers check out the finished product, but they could also look at code we had written. And of course, we could see each other’s web pages in our browsers, which is how we started class.

I was really impressed with the work of my classmates, and even more impressed by what we could learn when Paul shared his screen and starting using Firebug to make changes so we could explore possibilities as a class and watch changes happen immediately.

Then, it was time to learn Javascript. Paul shared his screen and began showing us how Javascript worked. We were able to learn a lot of terms quickly via this live demo, but we learned even more when he pulled up one of the student’s website and started writing code to make the images come to life and start moving.

Javascript has the potential to be pretty esoteric. but this format immediately showed us the practical implications. Paul asked us questions about the script he was writing and we were able to answer, then see if we were right as we watched him run the script live.

It felt almost like a live classroom until Paul said, “Just one more thing and then I’ll let you guys go home.” Only then did I remember that I was already there.

A First-Timers Guide to SXSWedu

terakristen — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:05:00 -0500

SXSWedu is a 3 day conference bringing together people from all over the world to discuss and better understand where learning is headed in the technology age.

We’re excited to dive deeper into the education industry, learn about future trends and check out all the freshly launched edtech products.

There’s a lot of great stuff that’s going on in Austin during the SXSW conferences, so it can be a bit tricky to navigate. After combing through all the panels, finding somewhere to stay, and daydreaming about all the food we’re going to eat, we thought it would be useful to share our findings. We want to help other first-timers, educators and entrepreneurs alike, get the most out of their experience.

Suggested SXSWedu Panels

SXSWedu has lots of great presentations from a wide variety of speakers with considerable wisdom to impart. Here’s a selection of the panels that I have deemed “do not miss”:

1. Levar Burton Keynote

Burton has been promoting literacy and creating generations of passionate readers through his work as host and executive producer of the award-winning children’s show ‘Reading Rainbow’. We expect to be delighted with the actor/director/Twitter star and his passion for sharing the love of reading.

2. EdTech Reporting: Why It Sucks and How to Fix It

This panel, featuring Audry Watters from Hack Education, Betsy Corcoran from EdSurge and Frank Catalano from Intrinsic Strategy, will explore the highs and lows of edtech journalism. We are looking forward to benefitting from Watter’s and Corcoran’s first-hand experience in reporting. Also, companies are sure to learn what kind of news journalists are looking for and how to better pitch their stories.

3. LAUNCHedu

This part of the conference will feature startups duking it out professionally in a pitch competition. Companies will have a couple minutes on stage to pitch their businesses to a jury that will vote on the finalists. We like to think of it as the American Idol of edtech startups so it’s bound to be exciting! Matygo will be there pitching our online classroom software against some other great companies.

Austin, Texas

Austin, Texas has an interesting vibe. It’s the live music capital of the world and some Austinites have clearly embraced the city’s unofficial slogan “Keep Austin weird”. Here are just a few ways to get to know Austin:

Where to Stay?

In other people’s houses of course! The hotel room selection around SXSW is slim pickings but Airbnb is a great solution. For around the same rate as a hotel room you can rent a room in someone’s house for the duration of your trip. In my experience, Airbnb offers beautiful homes with gracious hosts.

Places to Eat?

The Omelletry: A fantastic breakfast and brunch place that I frequented the last time I was in Austin. If you’re looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of the conference while eating the best omelettes ever check this place out.

III Forks: If being treated like a king and enjoying the best in steakhouse fare is your thing then you have to splurge on a dinner at III Forks. Try the sweet potato hash - it’s heavenly!

Food Trucks: Austin is crawling with great food trucks that offer interesting and delicious food combinations. Check out the Austin Food Carts app so you can find the locations of different food carts while you’re there.

Places to Go

Austin Convention Center: This enormous, multi-purpose convention center is the home of all things SXSW. All of the SXSWedu keynotes take place in the ballrooms of the convention center so get to know the place well and you won’t get lost on one of it’s four levels.

SXSWedu Meetups: Part of the social experience of SXSWedu will be attending meetups where there will be a better chance to converse with people outside the scheduled panels and keynotes. The meetups are focused on different topics and are sponsored by different companies so each one is sure to be interesting.

AMD Pre-Conference: This is a one-day workshop focused on helping instructors incorporate game design into their lessons. Anyone that participates in this workshop will likely benefit from hands-on tutorials using the latest ed-tech tools. Registration is limited so be sure to snag a spot.

There are plenty more panels, places to eat and locations to check out. Leave a comment and let us know what you’re looking forward to at SXSWedu and we can meet you there!

How to Become a CSS Ninja

terakristen — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 13:57:00 -0500

This is the 5th part in a series by Rachel Balik on her experience learning to code a basic website in an online instructor-led class on Matygo.

The night before our previous class, I got a gift in the mail from my software engineer buddy in New York. I was so excited when I got it, partially because it was incredibly cool (in a nerdy way) and partially because I was actually able to understand that shirt was describing the Class, “Ninja.”

My friend keeps promising that I will truly be a CSS ninja some day, but maybe he’s just hoping that soon I will stop bothering him with lots of questions while he’s trying to do other things (such as his job).

Fortunately, it seems as though my friend may get some peace and quiet whether or not I become a “ninja”. Our instructor Andrei began class by reminding us about all the great tools available within the Matygo platform that allow us to get help from him and our fellow students all week long.

On the Matygo website, when we log on, we can see weekly assignment and additional helpful notes about it. Andrei reminded us that he also posts tips and resources throughout the week, and that if we have questions or things we want to share, we can post our own questions on the discussion board.

This was definitely added incentive to a) check the website early and often and b) do my homework in advance.

Andrei also explained that we’d be uploading our files to an FTP so our websites could be hosted on a real server (not just on our own computers.) When we upload our code to the server, he’ll be able to look at our code and easily answer questions about how to do things or why certain code isn’t working.

Another discovery that I realized would be helpful was that the notes we took on the “blackboard” in class were getting automatically updated and saved in my Google docs. I can review the hands-on stuff we did in class and refer to some of the code that’s already been created.

All these tools definitely give me new perspective and make the work seem more manageable. Now all I have to do is my homework.

Check out how Matygo can help you reach more students like Rachel by bringing your course online.

Hello Tera!

paulitex — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 20:00:14 -0500

Everyone at Matygo is very excited to welcome our newest addition, Tera Kristen, to the team. Tera will be our new Community Manger and Director of Fun (seriously, official job responsibilities include throwing office parties).

Tera comes to us from Waterloo, Ont and from Kik Interactive. After we caught wind she was moving to Vancouver we made sure to get her first - having multiple interviews before she landed on the West coast. Not only is Tera a proven Community Manager that has been through the startup lifecycle before, she is very excited about being able to work on something as noble as education (her words) and has already noticeably contributed to our delicious Matygo kool-aid (my words).

You will be hearing quite a bit more from Tera in the weeks and months to come through the The Learning Solution. But if you can’t wait, go ahead and sample her writings through her community management blog. I’m sure you’ll be as impressed as we were.

Welcome Tera. :)

Paul

Putting the “Fire” Back in Firebug

terakristen — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 17:45:00 -0500

This is the 4th part in a series by Rachel Balik on her experience learning to code a basic website in an online instructor-led class on Matygo.

One part of our homework this week was to install Firebug, an essential tool for learning code. (It lets you look at the HTML and CSS for any webpage.)

Although it was easy to install, I spent more time than I would have liked trying to figure out how to open it. There was something equal parts comedic and tragic about frantically emailing my engineer friend at midnight to say, “Help! I can’t find the little bug at the top corner of my screen.”

However, once I got the hang of it, I was hooked. As someone who never remembers to wear her reading glasses, the discovery that I could change the font size on any web page was probably the greatest discovery of the millenium.

The other important discovery of the week, though slightly less thrilling, was that you really can’t learn to code unless you practice - a lot. The other part of our homework was doing assigned reading. Most of us felt like it was hard to visualize what we were reading, so in class we opened up a shared Google doc and practiced writing code in real-time.

At first, I was admittedly a little afraid to be called on. Then, I was called on, to see if I knew how to designate a class in CSS. Although I had looked at it several times while doing the reading, I did not know the answer. The good news is, now I will never forget. (You do it like .this).

I was legitimately impressed with how effective the Google hangout was in terms of allowing us to practice together as a group. The notes feature worked like a real black board. (Or white board. Whatever the kids are using these days.)

At the end of class I understood that while many of the concepts were clear, only more practice would make things perfect. Since some people still hadn’t figured out the Firebug situation, Andrei “stayed after class” to help them out. I hope they’re enjoying seeing the whole web in 24 pt font as much as I am!

Matygo is an online teaching program that makes it easy for teachers to bring their expertise and curriculum online.

It’s Magic? No, It’s CSS!: Class 2

terakristen — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:22:00 -0500

This is the 3rd part in a series by Rachel Balik on her experience learning to build a basic website in an online instructor-led class on Matygo.

I’ll admit it: for one bleak moment there while I was doing my homework this week, I thought my greatest accomplishment was going to be realizing that “CSS” could also stand for “Cascading Sh*t Show.” (I know - I’m hilarious.)

However, with the help of a friend, I managed to catch the mistake that was preventing me from creating a sidebar and get that great “A-ha!” feeling that comes with writing code in your little text editor box and seeing it magically render in your browser window.

Or, as one girl in our class on Tuesday put it, “There’s this feeling of excitement that you get from making things with code that isn’t like any other kind of excitement.”

Although some people had an easier time with the homework than others, everyone was able to do it and everyone had shared in that same feeling of excitement. Personally, I sent a screenshot of my finished webpage to everyone I knew (and I must have good friends because they all acted very impressed.)

Matygo is currently using Google Hangouts to power it’s live classroom which led to a very dynamic medium for our class. First of all, we could see each other’s faces. We could also make use of notes and chat.

We spent a good portion of the class making sure that we really understood the relationship between HTML and CSS and how they work together. Andrei, our instructor, told us we needed to be crystal clear on this because if we didn’t, we would be very confused when it came time to learn Javascript.

Luckily, everyone got to participate in the conversation as we learned important things like the difference between an ID and a class. Through the combination of Andrei talking and people asking questions when they needed to, things became clearer.

It was good to clarify these building blocks and principles, but I know the true test will be this week’s homework. One thing I’ve learned is that there’s certainly going to be some struggle, (or “playing”) involved in making it work. It’s going to be important to keep in mind the building blocks and grounding principles we learned in class. And of course, I’ll keep my eyes on the prize: that completely unique feeling of coding excitement.

Learn more about Matygo and how they’re shaking up online education.

The Building Blocks: Build a Basic Website - Class 1

nikdotca — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:55:00 -0500

This is the 2nd part in a series by Rachel Balik on her experience learning to code in an online instructor led class on Matygo.

When I was a sophomore in college, my medieval literature professor suggested that I change my major from English to Computer Engineering.

“Absolutely not!” I told him. First of all, I loved English. But more importantly, I was certain that computer engineering classes would be laborious, boring and miles over my head.

When I signed on to my first Matygo class “Build a Basic Website” I was sincerely hoping that would not turn out to be the case. Fortunately, as soon as the class began, I realized the it would embody everything was good about college, while leaving out everything that was bad.

The Good Stuff:

Intellectual environment. Everyone in the class came with curiosity and drive.
Like-minded people. We went around the “room” and each student said why he or she had taken the class. It was amazing to hear how each student planned to use coding skills to further professional goals - whether it was improving performance at the office or building a website.
Homework. I know, homework doesn’t always sound like fun, but especially when it comes to new skill building, practice makes perfect. I was glad to hear that we were going to have problem sets, and go over them in class to make sure we understood.
Knowledgeable teachers. Our two teachers, Andrei and Paul, both had strong but different backgrounds in programming and were prepared to share their knowledge and experience.

The Bad Stuff That Wasn’t There:

A strict curriculum with no flexibility. Paul and Andrei told us that the course could be modified to meet the needs of class. If we were confused, they’d slow down and if we were killing it, they’d add material.
Grades. Yes, we have to do homework, but we’ll have the opportunity to go over it with classmates rather than angst over getting things wrong.
Too cool for school professors. Remember how hard it was in college to get a hold of a professor if you had questions? Paul and Andrei gave us multiple ways to contact them - including their personal email addresses.

Our first class was devoted to meeting each other through video icons and watching slides describing the curriculum. We were told to download tutorials and get started on our out-of-class work. Our assignment for the next week is to “Play with Code.” Somehow, this actually sounds like it might be fun.

Why learn to code? A student's perspective.

nikdotca — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 01:32:00 -0500

This is part of a series by Rachel Balik on her experience learning to code in an online instructor led class on Matygo.

We all look at dozens, perhaps hundreds of web pages a day. But how many of us actually know how those web pages were built?

Once upon a time, you could do your job and let the technical people handle the tech stuff. Now, whatever your profession, there’s a good chance that you’ll be called upon understand a bit about how websites are built - and more importantly - how they can be made better.

In other words, web technology is not just for technical people anymore. It’s time for everybody to learn HTML.

If you’re like me, perhaps you’re thinking, “I already work full time as a writer [or marketer, analyst, dog walker, etc.] I don’t have time to learn how to do someone else’s job as well!”

Of course you don’t. And that is where the benefit of an online education comes in. With just one hour of class time per week (plus homework) you can walk away with a skill set that will make you better at your current job, and more marketable in the future.

Start the journey to the right side of your brain with HTML5 and CSS for beginners. It’s taught by Andrei Pop, a self-taught programmer who started his own web development company while still in university. Andrei’s worked with a variety of clients both locally and internationally from non-profits to fortune 500 companies.

Andrei’s favorite part of teaching is when you have that “a-ha” moment, and thanks to small class sizes and interactive, live video classrooms, he’ll make sure you have plenty of them. He makes a point of paying close attention to the needs of each student and adapting as necessary.

Online classes start Tuesday, January 24th at 7pm. If you’re interested but not ready to commit just yet get notified by email for the next class. You can also follow my experience in the class on this blog, or check out other online classes that might be of interest.

Post written by Rachel Balik.

Hi Nik!

paulitex — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 15:17:00 -0500

Hello friends,

I would like you all to join me in warmly welcoming the talented Nikolas Laufer-Edel to team Matygo.

Nik is our first fulltime ongoing hire and we are very proud to have him. Nik started building web apps in the late 90’s but has since shifted his focus to user experience design, marketing, and product management. He is passionate about lean, metrics, thoughtful analysis, and design - bringing a complimentary yet compatible perspective to my own and Joe’s.

You can learn more about Nik at his personal website: nik.ca

Expect to hear from the man himself soon. Welcome Nik :)

Give the gift of knowledge this Christmas - 8 courses in January

paulitex — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 20:10:00 -0500

If you’re looking for a last minute gift (or gift for yourself) this Christmas what better than a Matygo course? We have eight courses ready to go in January. All taught in small groups (9 or less). Don’t buy a book that sits on a shelf - get a matygo course that goes straight to the brain!

Courses starting in January:

Programming:

Intro to HTML5 & CSS. $249. Aimed at total beginners, explains the fundamentals of front-end web development, useful to anyone wanting to build on the Web - from bloggers to entrepreneurs.

Fundamentals of Programming. $199. If HTML5 & CSS is the practical foundational course, this is the theoretical. Together, they form a solid base from which you can take Ruby on Rails, Javascript, and other programming courses. Learn the fundamentals of programming - applicable to any language - and how programs can be used to solve problems.
Ruby on Rails for Beginners. $249. This course was a huge hit last time, but don’t take our word for it, here’s what one student had to say .
Ruby on Rails for Programmers. $249. Similar to the beginner class, but aimed at people who already have a background in programming.
iOS for Programmers. $249. Our intro to iOS and Objective-C courses aimed at programmers with some background in C but no Cocoa Touch experience. Taught by great iOS developer, Richard Moore.

Graphic Design:

Adobe Photoshop. $299. Learn how to make magic with Photoshop. Taught by East Side Game’s art supervisor, Tyler Higgs.
Adobe Illustrator. $299. Name says it all - get to know the most powerful vector graphics tools out there. Taught by Graphic Designer Meg Robichaud.

Paul interviewed on 'Lining Things Up' [podcast]

paulitex — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:13:00 -0500

Paul interviewed on 'Lining Things Up' [podcast]:

Chad Kohalyk, a student in one of our Rails courses, recently asked if he could interview me on the topic of startups and Matygo. It turned out really well. He actually first brought this up on his blog, which includes a great screenshot of the class in action: http://sb1.tumblr.com/post/13246107460/ror-matygo

Last few spots in iOS/Mobile dev courses

paulitex — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 17:34:43 -0500

Ever had an idea for an iPhone app? Wished you could make it a reality? Our two iOS development courses starting next week are almost full.

1 spot left - For total programming beginners. Starting on Tuesday. Mobile Development with PhoneGap

2 spots left - For experienced coders. Starts on Wednesday. iOS and Cocoa Touch

Get em while they’re hot (and before they’ve started :)).

New Course: iOS/Mobile dev for total beginners

paulitex — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 20:38:16 -0500

New Course: iOS/Mobile dev for total beginners:

Are you a non-programmer who would love to be able to make a mobile app yourself? Always wanted to learn development basics? Check out our new course aimed at beginners using PhoneGap to teach development fundamental. Learn to create a real app and submit it to the App Store: http://www.matygo.com/courses/630-mobile-development-with-phonegap

Matygo in VentureBeat

paulitex — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 16:49:35 -0400

Matygo in VentureBeat:

Let the games begin!

Matygo Bucks! We know you want some.

paulitex — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 05:11:31 -0400

Matygo Bucks!

We know you want some.

Andre Malan knows a thing or two about sexy websites

paulitex — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 01:39:42 -0400

Andre Malan knows a thing or two about sexy websites:

Can’t believe I didn’t see this earlier. Thanks Andre, you just made my night.

Capitalizing on a General Education

paulitex — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 14:10:53 -0400

Capitalizing on a General Education:

Great article on the divide between generalist / non-technical degrees being studied by most University students and the economic/job prospects of their graduates.

But no fear, you army of BAs who wax eloquent (I am one of you). Keep your eye on Matygo. We are here to help. Get the concrete skills you need to get on the track to positions where you can actually exercise the abstract and holistic thing your big brains have been trained to do.