Messages to prospective members

knowledgeGarden provides a supportive community and resources as you complete your studies in the Faculty of Education at USQ. One member commented:

I liked the connectedness that I felt.... through the use of avatars, blogs, opportunities for private communication (email) and our own ‘personal space’ (user page) where we could present ourselves to the community. As a result, I can not only put faces to names, but I can also put ideas, personalities, senses of humour and professional interests to those names as well…. I feel comfortable contacting any one of them either by Skype or through kG. We’ve developed a relationship of trust, where we help each other and know that the help will be returned.

Like any vibrant community there is a lot going on in knowledgeGarden and you might find it a little overwhelming at the start! The following comments from existing members might help ease your way into our community. If you decide to register you can start with the Start here: orientation, registration, setup, and creating pages section. Once you are registered you can click their avatar to send them a message, send a friendship request or visit their userpage.

Messages from current members

Member	My message to new members
Andrew Weppner	Come in and join a very interactive learning environment. Collaborate with others on a wide range of topics that can be used in education, so explore, read and add your own ideas to existing or new pages. Don’t hesitate to ask questions in here as we have all struggled at first with the new concepts and there are many willing guides and helpers. I support what the others have said about coming back, even after your course is finished as it is a growing environment, not one that ends with each course as with many other online course tools. Enjoy a new learning experience.
Penny Gardner	I hope you have as much fun using KG as I have had (and am still having). It's resume help such a supportive friendly environment, and so reassuring to know that there's a resource with a common thread running through all the USQ courses - and beyond. Three of us (Birgit, Perdita and I) enjoyed it so much last semester that we all changed our course enrolments to stay with Peter. If you see me online and need some help, just send me a message. PS A special welcome to Alun, my colleague, who has become our 200th member!
Birgit Loch?	Welcome to knowledgeGarden!!! Don't be intimidated by the amount of text in this environment - I had no idea what to do with this at the beginning. I'm sure you will learn - as I have - to appreciate the amount of information in knowledgeGarden!!! I've met many new people in knowledgeGarden, who immediately extended their friendship to me. Ask us for help if you get stuck!
Perdita Harper	This environment just gets better all the time! Yes it takes a bit to get used to and I agree with Michael that navigation is one of the major challenges when you first start exploring knowledgeGarden. But there are so many people who are keen to help and a growing number of pages that will answer your questions. If you get stuck, using VoIP to speak to someone within the community can be an easy way to get help. (This knowledgeGarden page may be of interest if you are unfamiliar with VoIP: Instant messenging and VoIP systems) Try using Search (top left) to see what has already been written about an area that you would like to know more about, or maybe look for something that you already know a lot about. You might want to add to what has already been written! This is a fantastic resource and a great community to be part of. Hope you enjoy it and welcome!
Jo Foster	Welcome to kG. This is a great resource and learning area. However, when I first started I floundered with it for some time and really hated it but I came to love it and can't live without my regular fixes of kG. I usually log on daily to see what is happening and when I want to to find information about educational aspects I can usually find some pages that offer assistance and references. Do enjoy this environment even with the ups and downs and remember that there is always help and support available. Happy gardening.
Roland Munyard	Welcome new kG'ers! It's wonderful to have new kG members because its an opportunity to share and enjoy your success, you may, like me, be surprised by how much you have to contribute. kG provides a mechanism to share interests and knowledge with both past and future students. I would suggest trying to get some “friends” early on in the game. Emerging technology is about better communications and communication requires friends, colleagues and participants. - "Sow! I suggest you Sow!".
Michael Johnson	The amount of information is growing and navigation can be a bit of a challenge but this is a great place to explore, learn and add to. Feel free to be yourself. I found this community more stimulating (and friendly) than others I had access to. Although there are those who went before you, there is still lots of space for creativity. I look forward to your additions.
Jillean Martyn (jillybean)	I can only re-iterate the words of my online colleagues. The collaboration in this learning environment and the support received has been truly wonderful. I marvel at the pace of growth of our Garden. This site will continue to be a great resource for all of us, and this environment will foster many collegial friendships.
Cherie Clark-Moore?	Welcome to knowledgeGarden. As you can probably tell from the comments of others, this online environment is a truly collaborative space where you can explore your ideas, passions and draw on a pool of others for advice, resources etc. Like Jilean above, although I have completed my study, I still check in to see what others are doing and will contribute in the many community projects seen on the homepage. Welcome!
Gabi Witthaus	knowledgeGarden is a treasure trove, but it takes time to find your way around and figure out where everything is. My advice to newcomers is to start by setting up bookmarks. Just mouse-over "My Tiki" (top left hand corner of the screen) and click on bookmarks in the drop-down menu. As you browse around the garden, add pages that interest you to your bookmarks. That way, you will be able to find them with just one click in future. Then just have fun!
Your real name?	your message to new members
Your real name?	your message to new members
Your real name?	your message to new members
Your real name?	your message to new members
Your real name?	your message to new members
Your real name?	your message to new members

comments about the Emerging Environmemtns for Learning course

You may want to look at the About FET8611: Emerging Environments for Learning page which contains audio, video and text comments from previous students on a course which uses knowledgeGarden.

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