DEV Community: TASHA PENWELL

Linkedin Skills Aassessments to Verify Skills for Professionals and Students

TASHA PENWELL — Tue, 29 Jun 2021 14:09:21 +0000

In late 2019, LinkedIn launch Skills Assessments to help users showcase their skills.

I admit that even though this isn't a new feature from LinkedIn, this is new to me. I had some free time this weekend and decided to see what exactly these assessments were. I'm very happy to say that I'm a fan. If you work in tech, in education, or are a student taking an assessment or anything resembling a quiz is pretty low on your things to do on the weekend. Your normal duties need enough studies and assessments and the idea of doing another one doesn't appeal. While all that is true (at least for me anyway😉), I have to say I am a fan of these Skills Assessments. Here's why...

They are short. They have 15 questions. Long enough to confirm you have skills in the subject matter and not so long that test fatigue sets in.
They are multiple-choice. No need to write long paragraphs of explanations to convey you know the subject. There's a question and four possible solutions. Select one.
They are better than a stranger verifying your skillset when they have no idea that you do have that skill. You have earned that verification.

🧐🧐Let me explain a little more on number three above. Before, skills were verified by your connections verifying you have a skill you stated. On the surface, this was a fine way to receive recommendations. Underneath the surface, it was a little murky. I had connections verifying I had a skillset when I had never worked with them and they had no idea of whether I did or did not have a skill. In fact, I had one connection message me stating that he verified some of my skills based on my word stating I had them, and asked if I would do the same for him. I declined his request. Having these types of "verifications" undermines the process and the value and one reason I stopped listing or updating mine. They had lost their value. These Skills Assessments help change that. You know the subject or you don't. According to LinkedIn, if you do fail one they will outline how you did, and unlock relevant LinkedIn Learning courses for free for a limited time to help improve your skills.

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All in all, this has helped reinforced the value of LinkedIn as an educator and a new type of assignment for my students this Fall. I believe that networking and gaining comfort meeting with recruiters and learning more about building connections are vital for the growth of students to become professionals in their careers and these Skills Assessments are a great way to support that. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about me feel free to find me on LinkedIn at
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tashapenwell/

STEAM Camp at Hocking College

TASHA PENWELL — Thu, 17 Jun 2021 20:34:13 +0000

This week we host STEAM camp at Hocking College. I am excited to share the world of augmented reality (AR) and digital marketing ( at least as much as possible in two hours😉).
Snapchat filters are built using free software called LensStudio. One of the nice things about diving into AR technologies is that, in my experience, the platforms are very similar across the different vendors and apps. There are three basic fundamental parts of building an AR experience:

Objects
Assets
Materials

While varying platforms may use a different name — the similarities are evident once you’re aware of it. The layouts and UI for the platforms I’ve worked with (LensStudio, SparkAR, and Amazon Sumerian) are also very similar which aids a great deal in the learning curve of different platforms.
If you have any questions about AR technologies, digital marketing, or more, check us out at https://withkoji.com/@HockingCollegeComputerScience or text me at 740–645–0509.

Organic Advertising on Snapchat

TASHA PENWELL — Wed, 09 Jun 2021 23:54:03 +0000

There's been a recent and exciting update for Snapchat Lens Creators😎! Lens creators are now able to see insights on their custom-made filters built on Lens Studio. Before, this type of information was uniquely available to Business Lenses (paid ads) only. With these updates, creators of both business and community lenses can now have a more in-depth analysis of their creations.

These insights can provide information such as

➡Demographics

➡Interests

➡Geographic location (country). Business lenses still provide more granular data.

➡Playtime of lens

➡Lens shares

In addition to these improved insights, creators can also see which lenses have been favorited (also a new feature for Snapchat filters). So how does all come together to provide organic advertising for your brand? HubSpot lists the three stages of a Buyer's Journey as

Awareness
Consideration
Decision

and Snapchat advertising can be implemented at every stage of the journey - even with a minimal advertising budget for paid ads! Here are a few ideas on how that would look...

Awareness
Include your logo with a fun filter. LensStudio has a great resource of easy-to-use templates that can create a fun filter that also shows your logo as the users share their Snap.
Consideration
The consideration stage requires a little more creativity. It's at this stage you want to share with your customer what problem you can solve for them. This can be done in a series of image files that are scheduled to rotate at periodic intervals.
Decision
This is where the rubber means the road. You've made the customer aware of your brand and how your product or service can help them solve a problem they have. Now how can you encourage them to buy your product? My suggestion at this stage is to invest in the paid advertising. With budgets as little as $5 a day the ROI can be great for conversion rates.

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Looking to learn more? You can find me at https://withkoji.com/@TashaPenwell or https://www.prettynerdysocialmedia.com/blog-and-tutorials/organic-advertising-on-snapchat

Sources and Resources: ‍

https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/what-is-the-buyers-journey

‍https://lensstudio.snapchat.com/

More opportunities to explore = more opportunities to learn

TASHA PENWELL — Tue, 13 Apr 2021 12:56:29 +0000

Looking forward to sharing the fun world of AR at the COSI - Center of Science and Industry Science Fair next month!

We'll be exploring three of my favorite platforms!

LensStudio for Snap Inc. (Snapchat)
SparkAR for Facebook and Instagram
Sumerian on Amazon Web Services (AWS)

What's the biggest difference between the three aside from the platforms? #LensStudio and #SparkAR only work on PCs and Macs (they require a download). #Sumerian is web-based on the AWS platform which means more opportunities for students who may be working on Chromebooks. More opportunities to explore = more opportunities to learn.

Education is Not Memorization

TASHA PENWELL — Mon, 27 Apr 2020 00:55:09 +0000

Education is not a memorization game.

I don’t think I really understood that until last year. It was through a combination of reading Rewiring Education by John D. Conch and entering the field of academia as a full-time educator that I understood the truth in that statement.

Education is not about memorization.
Education is not about reciting facts.
Education is not about training to simply exist within a company.

What is Education?

Education is about understanding.
Education is about curiosity.
Education is about lifelong learning.

A quality education is not determined by grades alone. The merit of an education is found when your student has that sound of excitement in their voice. Where the understanding of concepts and future potential comes together. Most importantly, education is about failure.

Despite all the books and resources we have at our disposal as educators or students — it’s with the failures we face in our projects, our assignments, our work that understanding comes and THAT is education. With the emphasis on grades we are training ourselves and students to fear failure. It’s in that fear of being wrong that education is stifled and passion, curiosity and understanding suffers.

You can’t do today’s jobs with yesterday’s methods and be in business tomorrow.
~George W. Bush

While reading Rewiring Education I learned that the structure we find today was part of Horace Mann’s efforts to provide adequate training in the K-12 sector. This structure was created to train students to succeed in the jobs during the Industrial Revolution. The students were taught for the time they were in — but times have changed.

The training during the era of the Industrial Age filled the need but those needs have since transformed. The employers of today and tomorrow are no longer looking for those who can memorize and work in automation. Today’s employers are seeking out our students to be curious and to grow in possibilities.

To borrow from two of the leadership tenets from one of today’s largest and most successful organization:

Learn and Be Curious Leaders are never done learning and always seek to improve themselves. They are curious about new possibilities and act to explore them.

Bias for Action Speed matters in business. Many decisions and actions are reversible and do not need extensive study. We value calculated risk taking.

The full list of Amazon’s Leadership Principles inspire what our employers are looking for today and tomorrow which leads me to my next book.

The book that sits on my desk today is Ahead in the Cloud by Stephen Orban. In the book, there’s a quote that I find fitting for not only the culture of Amazon and Amazon Web Services but for the transformation in education. You can’t do today’s jobs with yesterday’s methods and be in business tomorrow. ~George W. Bush

Our world has changed since the industrial age. Companies are faster, smarter and require not automation from their employees but thinkers to grow.

The resources are out there. As an educator I’m regularly looking for new ideas to share the wealth of knowledge to students in my hometown and beyond. To borrow from Reshma Saujani and her belief of “failing forward”, here are my personal recommendations to fail, understand and success.

AWS Educate

Girls Who Code

CS First with Google

There are plenty of resources beyond those. Find the one that inspires you and your class to fail with a smile.