10 Steps For a Successful Technology Scholarly Project

Donna M. D'Alessandro, M.D.donna-dalessandro@uiowa.edu

Educational Informaticswww.educationalinformatics.org

www.slideshare.net/donnadalessandro

Stead Family Department of PediatricsUniversity of Iowa Children's Hospital

10 Steps• All of these steps may

not be appropriate for your project

• Specific commercial applications are ones we have used in various projects. There are certainly others and new ones being developed all the time.

• Please look at options and talk with people about your specific project and its needs.

1. Planning

• Mission - Most important part• Educational construct

• How you will carry out mission (2 nd most important)

• Metrics for success

2. Choose a Technology

2. Choose a Technology

• B. Ebook - easy• Choose platform / format

• Kindle [.mobi /.azw /.kf8] (All)• EPUB [.epub] (Android, iOS), • iBooks2 [.ibooks] (iOS)• PDF [.pdf] (All)

• Choose authoring tool • Sigil (ePub)• Calibre (convert ePub to Kindle)• iBooks Author (iOS)

• C. App – not for the faint of heart• Choose platform – Android vs. iOS• Choose authoring tool – cross platform HTML5 app vs. dedicated app

3. Define a Style

• Template should include:• Project name • Graphic use – don’t overdue

it• Author of content, affiliation,

credentials• References• Disclosure of site ownership

and sponsorship• Currency of content • Contact information• Copyright information• URL (address)• Disclaimer• Privacy policy

http://cloudx18.deviantart.com/art/Ubuntu-Blogger-Template-213069745

4. Define Metadata Style

• Dublin Core vs. Search Engine Optimization

<title></title>

<meta name="keywords" content="list out a few">

<meta name="description" content="A short description">

<title>GeneralPediatrics.com: The General Pediatrician's View of the Internet - General Pediatrics | Pediatrics | Paediatrics | Pediatric Education | Paediatric Education | Free Pediatric Books</title>

<meta name="keywords" content="general pediatrics, pediatrician, pediatrics, paediatrics, pediatric education, general paediatrics, paediatrician, free pediatric books, pediatric books">

<meta name="description" content="The General Pediatrician's View of the Internet”>

5. Define Information Architecture

• LATCH • Location• Alphabetica

l• Time• Category• Hierarchy

6. How to Create Content in a Disciplined Manner

• Create a schedule and rigorously follow it

• You have to just keep showing up

• Intellectual property licensing - Creative Commons - www.creativecommons.org

7. Installing a Search Engine

Google Custom Search Engine www.google.com/cse/

8. Instrumenting Your Project to Gather Data

• Installing a Web statistics package for Web site• SiteMeter - www.sitemeter.com• Google Analytics - www.google.com/analytics

• Utilizing preexisting App Store statistics packages for Ebook / App• Amazon Kindle / Apple iTunes / Google Play

• Installing a comment / feedback form (users comments = true peer review)

• This is part of your Metrics for Success (see Step 1)• Remember you are going to need this to improve your work • Document its value to others

9. Publicity and Marketing

• Instrument your website/project to take advantage of social media• Feed content to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. • RSS feed

• Submit Web site to • (Consider creating marketing Web site for Ebook / App)• Search engines - google.com, www.bing.com• Internet Archive - www.archive.org• Internet directories - www.dmoz.org• Health sciences directories - www.martindalecenter.com• Health on the Net - www.hon.ch

• Add links to related articles in Wikis• www.wikipedia.org, www.wikibooks.org

9. Publicity and Marketing• Index in Open Education Resources repositories

• AAMC MedPortal, www.curriki.org, www.e-booksdirectory.com, www.lemill.net, www.merlot.org, www.oercommons.org, textbookrevolution.org, wlh.webhost.utexas.edu

• Send announcement• groups.google.com (misc.education.medical), groups.yahoo.com,

www.medscape.com, www.sermo.com, Facebook groups, Twitter, society mailing lists, friends / colleagues

• Check search engines for top 100 hits for related terms / keywords• Ask these sites to trade links

• Send e-mails to journal reviewers

• Professional meetings ~ hand out flyers ~ teach workshops

• News Alerts to track your progress - www.google.com/alerts

10. Maintenance, Evaluation and CQI

• Usually most neglected step ~ Why most fail• Evaluation is key - listen to your users

• Take the long view - commit to 10 years• Keep it simple stupid! - in terms of design + technology• Always have a backup of the Web site / Ebook / App• Keep a diary from day one

• Yearly Maintenance, Evaluation and Quality Improvement• Reconfirm Step 1 - your mission / audience / goals / metrics• Check - links / HTML / accessibility / software compatability• Preserve - archive, print, screen shot• Measure evolving metrics - inbound links, Web statistics,

downloads• Measure Altmetrics - ImpactStory.org• Search for reviews - LexisNexis, Google News Archive, Google

Scholar, Amazon 'Search Inside Books', Google Books

References• Michael Lesk. Understanding Digital Libraries, 2nd Edition. 2004• Patrick Lynch, Sarah Horton. Web Style Guide, 2nd Edition, 2001

(www.webstyleguide.com)• Louis Rosenfeld, Peter Morville. Information Architecture for the World

Wide Web, 3rd Edition. 2006• Jakob Nielsen. Designing Web Usability: The Practice of Simplicity.

1999 (www.useit.com)• Jakob Nielsen. Homepage Usability: 50 Web sites Deconstructed. 2001• Jay Conrad Levinson. Guerilla Marketing• Silberg WM, Lundberg GD, Musacchio RA. Assessing, controlling, and

assuring the quality of medical information on the Internet: caveant lector et viewor-let the reader and viewer beware. JAMA. 1997;277:1244-1245.

• Stanford Guidelines for Web Credibility (credibility.stanford.edu/guidelines)

• Modern Language Association Guidelines for Authors of Digital Resources (http://www.mla.org/resources/documents/rep_it/web_guidelines)

For project examples and these slides:

www.educationalinformatics.org www.slideshare.net/donnadalessandro

Peer Critique (modified Step-Back Review)

• Get into groups of 3• Each person works on their own project

worksheet for 5 minutes• 3 rounds of peer critique

• 2 minutes - project presentation by 1st person

• May end with ? – social media integration, spec or general question

• 4 minutes – peer critique while 1st person iistens and says nothing and takes notes

• Answer question, provide comments, questions to consider

• 1 minute – 1 st person discusses peer critique