Sunday, September 26, 2010
YouTube Shakespeare Rap
This is going to be shown to Grade 11 students to show a different way the name of Shakespeare has been adapted to create something unique.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Reflective Synopsis
E-learning provides people with flexibility in ‘place, pace and time’ with many now able to complete education from home around their personal lives (Clarke, p. 11). Using technology in a learning context is proven to enhance a learner’s intake of knowledge, as well as engaging students to pay more attention and become more interested in their lessons. A study by Oblinger and Oblinger (2005, as cited in Rudestam and Schoenholtz-Read, 2010, p. 87) has defined several characteristics of learners born since 1982; they prefer learning from pictures, sound and video, and enjoy interactive and networked activities more than previous conventional methods. Back, Haynes and Smith (2007, p. 69) believe students perceive online learning to be “a magical alternative to classroom learning that will take less time and be more entertaining than conventional learning.” It is therefore imperative new technologies are utilised within the classroom. There are a great variety of different programs available on the Web and many of them are free to use, especially if for educational purposes. The benefits of new technologies extend to teaching professionals also. Teaching is a field of lifelong learning and there are many online avenues dedicated to collaboration between educators which can be fantastic sources of new information and ideas.
As a future secondary school teacher, the use of ICT within the classroom will be necessary to engage and interest students. In a secondary setting, ICT’s will be used to enhance student learning and provide opportunity for students to find and refine knowledge. As a Humanities teacher, the use of ICT can open a world of learning far beyond the classroom, creating new perspectives and appreciations for the information they are acquiring. Students are more likely to engage with their learning if able to see images, videos and other media forms; things which would really make the historical and geographical work come alive for them. Technologies can be utilised to contact veterans and historians from other countries and Wiki’s can be used for students to share and develop their knowledge on a period of time or place. Podcasts can be sourced to offer students portable information and would be fantastic for auditory learners. Google Earth and Maps can be used to discover the texture and culture of a land far beyond Australia, please refer to Blog entry titled, “Google Maps and Earth”. Google Maps can also be used in a mathematical setting; when teaching navigation. As commented on a classmate’s Blog, “Thinking back to when I studied Navigation in High School, Google Maps would be a really great exercise to break up the monotony of working with a printed map.” (Appendix B). Activities incorporating interactive simulations can be included in class activity to provide a personal connection for students, refer Blog entry titled, “Learning Objects”. The use of these technologies provides learning opportunities for students which wouldn’t exits otherwise. Furthermore, secondary students will be at the Identity vs. Role Confusion state of development. This means ICT’s which offer collaboration and reflective practice, such as Blogging, would be highly beneficial as students attempt to find their sense of self (Snowman et al., p. 66).
Unfortunately, there are limitations to the activities students could do within the classroom as many websites are blocked by Education Queensland filters. For example, Google’s Blogger and Wikispaces are both inaccessible in schools. Other limitations to ICT integration would be time constraints. Setting up computer based presentations can be unreliable and time consuming. During set up time, teachers also have the responsibility of controlling class behaviour and ensuring class time is not wasted. Additionally, teacher’s must spent considerable time creating these mediums as many PowerPoint presentations, Blog entries and Wiki’s would need to be created at home. This can take a large amount of time when exams and assignments need marking and lessons need planning. This being said, the use of ICT within the classroom should be selected carefully to enhance learning, rather than for student amusement.
Firstly the discovery of new information is essential within the classroom. My investigation of ICT’s has determined websites provide the best starting point for students and educative professionals to source new information. Whilst a careful evaluation of sources must be conducted when using websites, this can also be a beneficial practice for secondary students who will be developing skills in critical literacy. During my own schooling years, I used hundreds of websites to acquire information for assessment tasks. Now at university, I have discovered the ease and usefulness of creating your own website. The program, Weebly is free to use and allows users to create personalised websites without confusing HTML language. Please refer to my Blog entry titled, “My Weebly Website” for a preview of my website.
Once students and teaching professionals have discovered new knowledge, it follows then to arrange the knowledge into a logical format. This process is truly enhanced by programs “Text2MindMap” and “Bubbl.us” which allow users to create concept maps. Within a secondary classroom students are frequently exposed to vast amounts of information as well as being required to source additional information. Graphic organisers such as concept maps would be greatly beneficial to students. Not only do these programs enhance both student and teacher learning, they also help to shape and refine knowledge, as people organise the information sequentially or into groups. My experience with the two programs can be viewed on my Blog entries titled, “Text2MindMap” and “Bubbl.us” respectively. This manipulation of information would allow students to “solve problems, gain understanding and discover new meanings (Education Queensland, 2002, p. 1).
Technology can be used to consolidate and refine knowledge very effectively. For this purpose, I found personal blogs the most useful within the learning context. My blog can be viewed at mell-p@blogspot.com and has proven to be a highly reflective tool, refer to Blog entry titled, “First impressions...”. Blogs can only be edited by the creator; however allow visitors to the blog to place comments and questions. A Blog is therefore fantastic for refining knowledge, as students would be receiving feedback, altering their information, and updating their blog – creating a smooth circle of knowledge refinement. As stated by Rudestam and Schoenholtz-Read, Blogging;
leads to the ability to categorize learning and relate to the experience of
the individual, encouraging the learning to contextualise and personalise the
learning activities in ways that strengthen learning and build confidence
(Handbook of Online Learning, 2010, p.103).
Blogging can be used as a reflective journal, kept by students or teachers then reviewed upon. The Blog would become a personal database of information, consolidating knowledge effectively. Please refer to Appendix B for a preview of Comments which were made during this project.
Of utmost importance is the transformation of knowledge to create new understandings. For this purpose I found a Wiki to be of best effectiveness. Please refer to Blog entry titled, “Our Group’s Wiki”. Wikis are a community type of technology, where members with a similar interest can join and actively participate in the information provided. With respect to the creation of new understandings, a Wiki’s power as a collaborative tool proves its worth. People from all over the world, with different backgrounds, memories and ways of thinking can work together to collaborate and create a database of highly relevant information. This type of communication will definitely enhance a learner’s attitudes and perceptions, thus creating new understandings. Rudestam and Schoenholtz (2010, p. 105) suggest Wiki’s encourage a different attitude to information, believing students will see printed text as ‘fixed and authoritive’ whereas Wiki’s create the perception of information as ‘fluid and flexible’. These attitudes deserve great consideration especially in secondary schooling situation as students frequently become bored with outdated textbooks.
As a teacher, the presentation of knowledge will be a frequent and daily task. My experimentation has found both PowerPoint and Prezi are the simplest and most effective tools when presenting to an audience. Please refer to my Blog entries titled, “Interactive PowerPoint” and “Hey! Prezi”. Firstly, PowerPoint presentations can enhance student interest as images, text, videos and sound can be embedded within the layout, please refer to Blog entries titled, “MovieMaker” and “Digital Images”. A PowerPoint currently is the most easily accessible program, standard for Microsoft Office suites. PowerPoint’s do not require access to the internet and can be created very quickly. Prezi on the other hand requires the internet and is free to use. Prezi creates presentations using text and images which literally zoom from each object to the next. The program can be fun and students would relate very well if this program was used to accompany a teacher’s lecturing. Further to this, I more strongly believe the integration of a range of technologies into the presentation of knowledge would achieve the most positive results. For example, a PowerPoint or Prezi could be shown to a class initially, and then a Podcast lecture could be assigned for homework. Students could then Blog their ideas and experiences so far with the knowledge, before undertaking a class assignment to produce an ‘expert’ Wiki page. In short, I feel the opportunities for presenting knowledge are greatly enhanced by the incorporation of many technological devices within the pedagogy.
With the fast paced and ever developing nature of 21st century technology, educative professionals would be doing disservice to their students by not incorporating the web based tools which are available into their pedagogy. Blogs, Wikis, Websites, Podcasts and presentation programs such as Prezi and PowerPoint are often free and very easy to use. Students of today’s climate will respond enthusiastically and will be more engaged if their teacher is using a variety of technological tools to support their learning journey. The Web 2.0 provides people with opportunity to collaborate and refine their knowledge, see and seek different perspectives and view images and videos not available from libraries or the television. I myself have explored a selection of free programs available to enhance student learning and also further develop my professional knowledge and will without a doubt incorporate the use of ICT’s in future lesson preparation and professional development.
Reference List
Bach, S., Haynes, P., & Lewis Smith, J. (2007). Online learning and teaching in higher education. New York, New York: Open University Press.
Clarke, A. (2008). E-learning skills (2nd ed.). New York, New York: Palgrave Macmillan
Education Queensland. (2002). Productive pedagogies: classroom reflective manual. Brisbane, QLD: Queensland Government.
Snowman, J., Dobozy, E., Scevak., Bryer., Bartlett., & Biehler. (2009). Psychology applied to teaching. Milton, QLD: John Wiley & Sons Australia.
Rudestam, K. E., & Schoenholtz-Read, J. (2010). Handbook of online learning (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Appendix A – Blog Entries
a) Google Maps and Earth
b) Learning Objects
c) My Weebly Website
d) Text2MindMap
e) Bubbl.us
f) First impressions...
g) Our Group’s Wiki
h) Interactive PowerPoint
i) Hey! Prezi
j) MovieMaker
k) Digital Images
Appendix B – Comments
• The following are the comments which have appeared on my own Blog.
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/08/google-maps-and-earth.html#comments
“Wow thats amazing and creepy. That would be a great way to engage students in a history classroom.” Tarnah
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/07/interactive-powerpoint.html#comments
“Mel, had the same problem myself with sending it from Word to Powerpoint. Most schools will probably have 2007. The only answer I could come up with was to save the document first and open it in Powerpoint instead of trying to send it through as the course instructions stated. I can see your point about it being an easier way to plan rather than using dot points in Powerpoint.” Maria
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/07/my-weebly-website.html#comments
Hey Mel!
“I'm not sure if you've noticed dearest but your Prezi on your Weebly has not uploaded properly. Maybe a problem with embedding the html info? It only takes one character to be missing or out of place for it to not work.
btw the site is awesome! =]
Em x” Emma
“Thank you Emma! I have had a look at my Weebly and discovered you are only able to embed documents if you upgrade to a Pro account. At this stage I don't feel the need to pay anything extra, however in the future when I become a fully qualified teacher (and earn some money lol) i would consider the upgrade. I also know that Education Queensland and the Cath-Ed provide space for teachers to create websites so I would most likely choose that as an option.” Mel
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/07/first-impressions.html#comments
“Your blog looks great. It is going to be very useful following your blog. We can talk each other through the program and help each other out.” Tarnah
“Thank you Tarnah, yes i agree having our own Blogs will be useful. This assessment task is very relevant and fantastic for getting us to use the Blog in the practical types of ways we will in future like our students to use them.” Mel
• The following are the comments which I have posted to my peers’ Blogs.
http://tarnah.blogspot.com/2010/08/voki.html
“Tarnah! Your creepy Voki woman is watching me everywhere I move!!!! I don't trust her - note the cobwebs in the corner and the glaring clock :S
On a serious note, i agree, Voki's are a great way of using animation. Students would love these and it would be fantastic to encourage their use in orals and assessment tasks.” Mel
http://tarnah.blogspot.com/2010/08/google-maps-and-google-earth.html
“Thinking back to when i studied Navigation in High School, Google Maps would be a really great exercise to break up the monotony of working with a printed map.” Mel
http://rikkymurphy.blogspot.com/2010/08/wikis.html
“Hey Rikky, I agree wiki's are great for group tasks - they are really collaborative and can become group information databases :)” Mel
http://hannahgreer00.blogspot.com/2010/08/interactive-learning-objectives.html#comments
“I agree some teachers and students could become distracted when using interactive web technologies, however also agree these tools can be used to a highly effective degree” Mel
http://peteblog-redsox.blogspot.com/2010/08/digital-videos.html
“Hi Pete, i'm not going to try and understand what "logarithmic differentiation" is but i agree YouTube is fantastic for teaching purposes. In Biology last term, we watched a video of cell separation and the visual detail was great - really helped to support the theory we had learned.” Mel
As a future secondary school teacher, the use of ICT within the classroom will be necessary to engage and interest students. In a secondary setting, ICT’s will be used to enhance student learning and provide opportunity for students to find and refine knowledge. As a Humanities teacher, the use of ICT can open a world of learning far beyond the classroom, creating new perspectives and appreciations for the information they are acquiring. Students are more likely to engage with their learning if able to see images, videos and other media forms; things which would really make the historical and geographical work come alive for them. Technologies can be utilised to contact veterans and historians from other countries and Wiki’s can be used for students to share and develop their knowledge on a period of time or place. Podcasts can be sourced to offer students portable information and would be fantastic for auditory learners. Google Earth and Maps can be used to discover the texture and culture of a land far beyond Australia, please refer to Blog entry titled, “Google Maps and Earth”. Google Maps can also be used in a mathematical setting; when teaching navigation. As commented on a classmate’s Blog, “Thinking back to when I studied Navigation in High School, Google Maps would be a really great exercise to break up the monotony of working with a printed map.” (Appendix B). Activities incorporating interactive simulations can be included in class activity to provide a personal connection for students, refer Blog entry titled, “Learning Objects”. The use of these technologies provides learning opportunities for students which wouldn’t exits otherwise. Furthermore, secondary students will be at the Identity vs. Role Confusion state of development. This means ICT’s which offer collaboration and reflective practice, such as Blogging, would be highly beneficial as students attempt to find their sense of self (Snowman et al., p. 66).
Unfortunately, there are limitations to the activities students could do within the classroom as many websites are blocked by Education Queensland filters. For example, Google’s Blogger and Wikispaces are both inaccessible in schools. Other limitations to ICT integration would be time constraints. Setting up computer based presentations can be unreliable and time consuming. During set up time, teachers also have the responsibility of controlling class behaviour and ensuring class time is not wasted. Additionally, teacher’s must spent considerable time creating these mediums as many PowerPoint presentations, Blog entries and Wiki’s would need to be created at home. This can take a large amount of time when exams and assignments need marking and lessons need planning. This being said, the use of ICT within the classroom should be selected carefully to enhance learning, rather than for student amusement.
Firstly the discovery of new information is essential within the classroom. My investigation of ICT’s has determined websites provide the best starting point for students and educative professionals to source new information. Whilst a careful evaluation of sources must be conducted when using websites, this can also be a beneficial practice for secondary students who will be developing skills in critical literacy. During my own schooling years, I used hundreds of websites to acquire information for assessment tasks. Now at university, I have discovered the ease and usefulness of creating your own website. The program, Weebly is free to use and allows users to create personalised websites without confusing HTML language. Please refer to my Blog entry titled, “My Weebly Website” for a preview of my website.
Once students and teaching professionals have discovered new knowledge, it follows then to arrange the knowledge into a logical format. This process is truly enhanced by programs “Text2MindMap” and “Bubbl.us” which allow users to create concept maps. Within a secondary classroom students are frequently exposed to vast amounts of information as well as being required to source additional information. Graphic organisers such as concept maps would be greatly beneficial to students. Not only do these programs enhance both student and teacher learning, they also help to shape and refine knowledge, as people organise the information sequentially or into groups. My experience with the two programs can be viewed on my Blog entries titled, “Text2MindMap” and “Bubbl.us” respectively. This manipulation of information would allow students to “solve problems, gain understanding and discover new meanings (Education Queensland, 2002, p. 1).
Technology can be used to consolidate and refine knowledge very effectively. For this purpose, I found personal blogs the most useful within the learning context. My blog can be viewed at mell-p@blogspot.com and has proven to be a highly reflective tool, refer to Blog entry titled, “First impressions...”. Blogs can only be edited by the creator; however allow visitors to the blog to place comments and questions. A Blog is therefore fantastic for refining knowledge, as students would be receiving feedback, altering their information, and updating their blog – creating a smooth circle of knowledge refinement. As stated by Rudestam and Schoenholtz-Read, Blogging;
leads to the ability to categorize learning and relate to the experience of
the individual, encouraging the learning to contextualise and personalise the
learning activities in ways that strengthen learning and build confidence
(Handbook of Online Learning, 2010, p.103).
Blogging can be used as a reflective journal, kept by students or teachers then reviewed upon. The Blog would become a personal database of information, consolidating knowledge effectively. Please refer to Appendix B for a preview of Comments which were made during this project.
Of utmost importance is the transformation of knowledge to create new understandings. For this purpose I found a Wiki to be of best effectiveness. Please refer to Blog entry titled, “Our Group’s Wiki”. Wikis are a community type of technology, where members with a similar interest can join and actively participate in the information provided. With respect to the creation of new understandings, a Wiki’s power as a collaborative tool proves its worth. People from all over the world, with different backgrounds, memories and ways of thinking can work together to collaborate and create a database of highly relevant information. This type of communication will definitely enhance a learner’s attitudes and perceptions, thus creating new understandings. Rudestam and Schoenholtz (2010, p. 105) suggest Wiki’s encourage a different attitude to information, believing students will see printed text as ‘fixed and authoritive’ whereas Wiki’s create the perception of information as ‘fluid and flexible’. These attitudes deserve great consideration especially in secondary schooling situation as students frequently become bored with outdated textbooks.
As a teacher, the presentation of knowledge will be a frequent and daily task. My experimentation has found both PowerPoint and Prezi are the simplest and most effective tools when presenting to an audience. Please refer to my Blog entries titled, “Interactive PowerPoint” and “Hey! Prezi”. Firstly, PowerPoint presentations can enhance student interest as images, text, videos and sound can be embedded within the layout, please refer to Blog entries titled, “MovieMaker” and “Digital Images”. A PowerPoint currently is the most easily accessible program, standard for Microsoft Office suites. PowerPoint’s do not require access to the internet and can be created very quickly. Prezi on the other hand requires the internet and is free to use. Prezi creates presentations using text and images which literally zoom from each object to the next. The program can be fun and students would relate very well if this program was used to accompany a teacher’s lecturing. Further to this, I more strongly believe the integration of a range of technologies into the presentation of knowledge would achieve the most positive results. For example, a PowerPoint or Prezi could be shown to a class initially, and then a Podcast lecture could be assigned for homework. Students could then Blog their ideas and experiences so far with the knowledge, before undertaking a class assignment to produce an ‘expert’ Wiki page. In short, I feel the opportunities for presenting knowledge are greatly enhanced by the incorporation of many technological devices within the pedagogy.
With the fast paced and ever developing nature of 21st century technology, educative professionals would be doing disservice to their students by not incorporating the web based tools which are available into their pedagogy. Blogs, Wikis, Websites, Podcasts and presentation programs such as Prezi and PowerPoint are often free and very easy to use. Students of today’s climate will respond enthusiastically and will be more engaged if their teacher is using a variety of technological tools to support their learning journey. The Web 2.0 provides people with opportunity to collaborate and refine their knowledge, see and seek different perspectives and view images and videos not available from libraries or the television. I myself have explored a selection of free programs available to enhance student learning and also further develop my professional knowledge and will without a doubt incorporate the use of ICT’s in future lesson preparation and professional development.
Reference List
Bach, S., Haynes, P., & Lewis Smith, J. (2007). Online learning and teaching in higher education. New York, New York: Open University Press.
Clarke, A. (2008). E-learning skills (2nd ed.). New York, New York: Palgrave Macmillan
Education Queensland. (2002). Productive pedagogies: classroom reflective manual. Brisbane, QLD: Queensland Government.
Snowman, J., Dobozy, E., Scevak., Bryer., Bartlett., & Biehler. (2009). Psychology applied to teaching. Milton, QLD: John Wiley & Sons Australia.
Rudestam, K. E., & Schoenholtz-Read, J. (2010). Handbook of online learning (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Appendix A – Blog Entries
a) Google Maps and Earth
b) Learning Objects
c) My Weebly Website
d) Text2MindMap
e) Bubbl.us
f) First impressions...
g) Our Group’s Wiki
h) Interactive PowerPoint
i) Hey! Prezi
j) MovieMaker
k) Digital Images
Appendix B – Comments
• The following are the comments which have appeared on my own Blog.
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/08/google-maps-and-earth.html#comments
“Wow thats amazing and creepy. That would be a great way to engage students in a history classroom.” Tarnah
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/07/interactive-powerpoint.html#comments
“Mel, had the same problem myself with sending it from Word to Powerpoint. Most schools will probably have 2007. The only answer I could come up with was to save the document first and open it in Powerpoint instead of trying to send it through as the course instructions stated. I can see your point about it being an easier way to plan rather than using dot points in Powerpoint.” Maria
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/07/my-weebly-website.html#comments
Hey Mel!
“I'm not sure if you've noticed dearest but your Prezi on your Weebly has not uploaded properly. Maybe a problem with embedding the html info? It only takes one character to be missing or out of place for it to not work.
btw the site is awesome! =]
Em x” Emma
“Thank you Emma! I have had a look at my Weebly and discovered you are only able to embed documents if you upgrade to a Pro account. At this stage I don't feel the need to pay anything extra, however in the future when I become a fully qualified teacher (and earn some money lol) i would consider the upgrade. I also know that Education Queensland and the Cath-Ed provide space for teachers to create websites so I would most likely choose that as an option.” Mel
http://mell-p.blogspot.com/2010/07/first-impressions.html#comments
“Your blog looks great. It is going to be very useful following your blog. We can talk each other through the program and help each other out.” Tarnah
“Thank you Tarnah, yes i agree having our own Blogs will be useful. This assessment task is very relevant and fantastic for getting us to use the Blog in the practical types of ways we will in future like our students to use them.” Mel
• The following are the comments which I have posted to my peers’ Blogs.
http://tarnah.blogspot.com/2010/08/voki.html
“Tarnah! Your creepy Voki woman is watching me everywhere I move!!!! I don't trust her - note the cobwebs in the corner and the glaring clock :S
On a serious note, i agree, Voki's are a great way of using animation. Students would love these and it would be fantastic to encourage their use in orals and assessment tasks.” Mel
http://tarnah.blogspot.com/2010/08/google-maps-and-google-earth.html
“Thinking back to when i studied Navigation in High School, Google Maps would be a really great exercise to break up the monotony of working with a printed map.” Mel
http://rikkymurphy.blogspot.com/2010/08/wikis.html
“Hey Rikky, I agree wiki's are great for group tasks - they are really collaborative and can become group information databases :)” Mel
http://hannahgreer00.blogspot.com/2010/08/interactive-learning-objectives.html#comments
“I agree some teachers and students could become distracted when using interactive web technologies, however also agree these tools can be used to a highly effective degree” Mel
http://peteblog-redsox.blogspot.com/2010/08/digital-videos.html
“Hi Pete, i'm not going to try and understand what "logarithmic differentiation" is but i agree YouTube is fantastic for teaching purposes. In Biology last term, we watched a video of cell separation and the visual detail was great - really helped to support the theory we had learned.” Mel
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Google Maps and Earth
Hello,
I have just discovered both Google Maps and Google Earth and have determined they are a History and Geography teachers dream come true.
Imagine a history class studying Nazi germany being able to zoom in on the current day remains of Auschwitz concentration camp and the power that experience could have on their learning. Imagine student's being able to create an interactive map of the voyage of James Cook as he discovered Australia.
The close range of image that is provided by Google Earth is incredible, and also quite scary. Someone could be watching me as I type this :S
Within the classroom, as a future Humanities teacher, I would most definitely use both Google Earth and Google Maps to portray to students, the landscape, current conditions and culture of placed beyond Australia's border.
I could also create my own map, and provide it with annotated notes for students as a study resource.
The possibilities really seem endless.
I have just discovered both Google Maps and Google Earth and have determined they are a History and Geography teachers dream come true.
Imagine a history class studying Nazi germany being able to zoom in on the current day remains of Auschwitz concentration camp and the power that experience could have on their learning. Imagine student's being able to create an interactive map of the voyage of James Cook as he discovered Australia.
The close range of image that is provided by Google Earth is incredible, and also quite scary. Someone could be watching me as I type this :S
Within the classroom, as a future Humanities teacher, I would most definitely use both Google Earth and Google Maps to portray to students, the landscape, current conditions and culture of placed beyond Australia's border.
I could also create my own map, and provide it with annotated notes for students as a study resource.
The possibilities really seem endless.
Learning Objects
Hi all,
I have just previewed "Darfur is Dying" as an example of an interactive learning object and i am astounded at how effective the simulation was at conveying the disparaging feeling of an innocent villager caught by the enemy militia.
Although I would not create a learning object such as "Darfur is Dying" myself, I would definitely incorporate their usage into my classroom. For example, an interactive simulation could be a fantastic way to engage students on a Friday afternoon,where their performance is at its lowest for the week. The simulations were easy to manipulate and the point was conveyed very subtly.
These types of activities would be a fantastic tool for refining students knowledge once they had studied a topic, or else a great way to get the students excited about a new unit of work.
In particular, "Darfur is Dying" has the power to effect people emotionally,therefore providing students with a personal connection and empathy with the people of Darfur.
Effectively, interactive learning objects would have the power to engage students on a personal level.
These are an invaluable resource.
I have just previewed "Darfur is Dying" as an example of an interactive learning object and i am astounded at how effective the simulation was at conveying the disparaging feeling of an innocent villager caught by the enemy militia.
Although I would not create a learning object such as "Darfur is Dying" myself, I would definitely incorporate their usage into my classroom. For example, an interactive simulation could be a fantastic way to engage students on a Friday afternoon,where their performance is at its lowest for the week. The simulations were easy to manipulate and the point was conveyed very subtly.
These types of activities would be a fantastic tool for refining students knowledge once they had studied a topic, or else a great way to get the students excited about a new unit of work.
In particular, "Darfur is Dying" has the power to effect people emotionally,therefore providing students with a personal connection and empathy with the people of Darfur.
Effectively, interactive learning objects would have the power to engage students on a personal level.
These are an invaluable resource.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
PodOmatic
Hi all,
I have just created a Podcast, on the uses of Blogger for both students and parents. At first i thought to create a Webcam clip with audio and upload the media from my laptop. Instead though, i remember my trusty iPhone has "Voice Memo's" and was able to dictate to my phone, email the file to myself, before uploading it to PodOmatic that way.
Overall the process was very simple and user friendly. I am actually just nervous to hear what my voice sounds like, because i have heard it on tape once before and it was sooo embarrassing!!!
I could search for Podcasts relevant to my students' study unit and either play it in the classroom, or provide the link as a further resource for the students.
Furthermore, I could set the Podcast as a homework task, where students would go home, listen to the Podcast and bring back three things they found particularly interesting, useful etc. I think a task such as that would bring variety into homework or assessment for the students and would be fantastic for the auditory learners.
As a teacher, I would search for pre-made Podcasts to provide new and interesting perspectives on the lessons i was preparing.
Please click the link below to view it. http://s0192903.podomatic.com/entry/2010-08-11T17_40_55-07_00
Thursday, August 5, 2010
MovieMaker
This is my first video - made only with the four default Windows Images as provided on the computer. MovieMaker seems really easy to use and I would definitely incorporate it in the classroom to support student learning.
I would prefer to source pre-made video's, whether by YouTube or another source however, as I feel movie creation can become time consuming.
Movie creation offers opportunities for student assessment tasks. For example, students could work in groups to produce a short documentary on a topic related to the current unit of work, and it could also be used to support oral presentations.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Digital Images
Flickr allows users to upload and also obtain images easily and legally, as all images are clearly labelled with their copyright terms. This is increasingly important in education and more and more resources are coming from the World Wide Web. As educators, it is important we set an example of the ethical and correct legal behaviour when dealing with internet content. I was disappointed so many of the images were copyrighted, however their is an exhaustive amount of images which aren't - it is simply a matter of scrolling through, much the same as using Google Images.
Speaking of Google Images, has everyone seen the new Google Images!!! It is fantastic and so easy to use, however most images are most likely on their illegally so we must ensure we are acknowledging our sources.
Images are something I would use every single time without doubt when using the internet to help my students learn. Graphic aids help students to develop and synthesis the information they are receiving and really enhance the students learning - especially for the visual learners.
I remember from high school art, learning that if an image is altered more than 70% you can legally call it you own. I'm not sure if this is still the current legislation, however Picnik as a free image manipulating program was fantastic. Programs such as PhotoShop can be very expensive and difficult to use without having lessons or prior expert knowledge.
Picnik was simple and allowed me to make a very wide variety of changes to the image I had uploaded. I would definitely use Picnik in the classroom if wanting to manipulate a picture to look a certain way. For example, blurring and distorting the image if teaching students about drugs and alcohol awareness. The above pictures are a before and after experiment I did with the Picnik program.
Please note the original flower picture was sourced from Google Images.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Interactive PowerPoint
Hello again,
I have just spent a reasonable amount of time trying to work out how to "File -> Send to -> Microsoft Office PowerPoint" as i have Office 2007, not 2003. I Googled it, and used the Help function in both Word and PowerPoint but still could not work it out, which was very disappointing as I can see how using the Outline view in Word would save a lot of time rather than fooling around with dot points in PowerPoint.
As I have been unable to send my outline to PowerPoint, I have now started to manually put the dot points etc. into my presentation.
(Later)
I have just finished my first interactive PowerPoint which was very easy to do, despite having instructions for using the 2003 Office program.
I would definitely use an interactive PowerPoint in the classroom as a way to break the monotony of delivering content in a secondary school class.
PowerPoint could be used innovatively to develop entire assessment preparation for a unit of work.
For example, the PowerPoint could include content, quizzes, hyperlinks to online media, images and I could even embed YouTube video's.
Details for a class assignment could be placed on the PowerPoint as well as tips and hints.
Examples of the Bibliography format required could be added.
PowerPoint would be a fantastic way to allow students to explore the content of a unit away from their desks.
If using a PowerPoint as a core resource, I feel it would be useful to provide student's wtih a 'take-home' copy, whether that be by uploading the PowerPoint to a class Website or allowing students to save it to personal storage devices.
I have just spent a reasonable amount of time trying to work out how to "File -> Send to -> Microsoft Office PowerPoint" as i have Office 2007, not 2003. I Googled it, and used the Help function in both Word and PowerPoint but still could not work it out, which was very disappointing as I can see how using the Outline view in Word would save a lot of time rather than fooling around with dot points in PowerPoint.
As I have been unable to send my outline to PowerPoint, I have now started to manually put the dot points etc. into my presentation.
(Later)
I have just finished my first interactive PowerPoint which was very easy to do, despite having instructions for using the 2003 Office program.
I would definitely use an interactive PowerPoint in the classroom as a way to break the monotony of delivering content in a secondary school class.
PowerPoint could be used innovatively to develop entire assessment preparation for a unit of work.
For example, the PowerPoint could include content, quizzes, hyperlinks to online media, images and I could even embed YouTube video's.
Details for a class assignment could be placed on the PowerPoint as well as tips and hints.
Examples of the Bibliography format required could be added.
PowerPoint would be a fantastic way to allow students to explore the content of a unit away from their desks.
If using a PowerPoint as a core resource, I feel it would be useful to provide student's wtih a 'take-home' copy, whether that be by uploading the PowerPoint to a class Website or allowing students to save it to personal storage devices.
Managing e learning presentation
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Friday, July 16, 2010
My Weebly Website
Hi all,
I have just created a Weebly account which can be viewed at s0192903.weebly.com.
My "Examples" page is very bland, however it does provide an indication of some of the things we could do with a website.
Within the classroom, I would definitely recommend the use of Websites in general for students when seeking new knowledge. There are significant results in Google alone for school education topics, and the World Wide Web provides access to resources far beyond the classroom walls.
I would also be able to create a custom Web page for students to access knowledge, as well as assessment and homework details. I could embed links, images, video's and sound within the Website, creating a fantastic resource for students.
I have just created a Weebly account which can be viewed at s0192903.weebly.com.
My "Examples" page is very bland, however it does provide an indication of some of the things we could do with a website.
Within the classroom, I would definitely recommend the use of Websites in general for students when seeking new knowledge. There are significant results in Google alone for school education topics, and the World Wide Web provides access to resources far beyond the classroom walls.
I would also be able to create a custom Web page for students to access knowledge, as well as assessment and homework details. I could embed links, images, video's and sound within the Website, creating a fantastic resource for students.
Our Group's Wiki
Hi all,
Our Wikispace is located here at URL tarnah.wikispaces.com.
The above word "here" is my first ever hyperlink and it was SO easy to do. Tarnah and I will be experimenting with Wiki via the same space to save time (as many things appear to say the same thing).
Whilst i do like the concept of a Wiki - the community element and the opportunities for collaboration and new understanding, I would be cautious with their use in pedagogy, as I would not have sole control over the content.
However, I believe a Wiki would be a fantastic way to collaborate ideas with other education professionals. Ideas on behavior management, content delivery and even unit planning could be exchanged and developed freely. Imagine the possibilities!
For students, I feel a Wiki could be used most effectively in groups, to broaden their knowledge and create a detailed database of reference for them.
Our Wikispace is located here at URL tarnah.wikispaces.com.
The above word "here" is my first ever hyperlink and it was SO easy to do. Tarnah and I will be experimenting with Wiki via the same space to save time (as many things appear to say the same thing).
Whilst i do like the concept of a Wiki - the community element and the opportunities for collaboration and new understanding, I would be cautious with their use in pedagogy, as I would not have sole control over the content.
However, I believe a Wiki would be a fantastic way to collaborate ideas with other education professionals. Ideas on behavior management, content delivery and even unit planning could be exchanged and developed freely. Imagine the possibilities!
For students, I feel a Wiki could be used most effectively in groups, to broaden their knowledge and create a detailed database of reference for them.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Hey! Prezi
Creating a Prezi was fun and I enjoyed the bright colours and simplicity of the program. I agreed with the Prezi's Introductory Video which admitted the zooming tool could become very nauseating and make viewers quite dizzy - a factor which would need to be considered within the classroom.
I would use a Prezi similarly to a Concept Map - to display new ideas to a class. In fact, I believe a Prezi presentation would be a great way to introduce a new topic. The zooming tool could be used, in conjunction with the grouping tool to display the values of a new unit of work, plus the topics and even briefly overview the assessment items relevant to the unit.
The main issue i have with Prezi is the limited data size offered on the 'Free' plan. However, if i was more confident in using the program and know I would utilise it within my classroom, i feel it would be worth the money.
I would use a Prezi similarly to a Concept Map - to display new ideas to a class. In fact, I believe a Prezi presentation would be a great way to introduce a new topic. The zooming tool could be used, in conjunction with the grouping tool to display the values of a new unit of work, plus the topics and even briefly overview the assessment items relevant to the unit.
The main issue i have with Prezi is the limited data size offered on the 'Free' plan. However, if i was more confident in using the program and know I would utilise it within my classroom, i feel it would be worth the money.
Bubbl.us
This the Bubbl.us MindMap i created. It provides some very brief information on the Reformation - as a future History teacher, this is a perfect example of how i could use this technology within the classroom to present ideas and also organise knowledge.
I like the rounded shape to the boxes and also the colours of the Bubbl.us program better than that of Text2MindMap. Text2MindMap is perhaps simpler to use as you can type your information straight into the side box and the information is spread evenly for you.
However both tools provide the same opportunities and are a valuable teaching and learning resource.
Text2MindMap
Hello - to the left you will be able to see the MindMap I created on Text2MindMap. It was extremely simple to create.
This program proved its worth as an educative tool, providing both students and teachers with the opportunity to quickly and logically organise information.
To view the MindMap you are able to simply click on the image and it will open up, in a 'real size' version.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
First impressions...
Creating my blog was very simple. It involved answering some simple questions; ticking and agreeing to the site terms and conditions and voila... A Blog!
I really enjoyed playing around with the background settings and exploring the different schemes available. So much so, that several hours passed before I finally committed to the one I liked the most.
Blog functionality can be used highly successfully in an education setting. Simply viewing my class members Blogs is evidence of this. We now have an organised network of people with common goals, posting information which will mutually benefit each of us when the time comes to implement technology within a classroom setting. A Blog seems a fantastic way to obtain different information and perspective on topics of interest.
In a classroom setting, I feel I would be able to use a blog as an effective way to stimulate my learners. A class Blog could serve a number of purposes. For example, I could post homework and assessment instructions to the Blog, where the students could freely access the information at their leisure. If used in this context, the students would also be able to post questions and queries. This would be particularly valuable over weekends, when students are studying at home.
Using a Blog would also be a fantastic way to connect with other education professionals to collaborate ideas for success within the classroom, especially important in this day and age when students are finding it extremely difficult to engage in learning.
I look forward to exploring new technologies, such as the Prezi system and developing my own knowledge further through our Managing E-learning community of Blogs.
I really enjoyed playing around with the background settings and exploring the different schemes available. So much so, that several hours passed before I finally committed to the one I liked the most.
Blog functionality can be used highly successfully in an education setting. Simply viewing my class members Blogs is evidence of this. We now have an organised network of people with common goals, posting information which will mutually benefit each of us when the time comes to implement technology within a classroom setting. A Blog seems a fantastic way to obtain different information and perspective on topics of interest.
In a classroom setting, I feel I would be able to use a blog as an effective way to stimulate my learners. A class Blog could serve a number of purposes. For example, I could post homework and assessment instructions to the Blog, where the students could freely access the information at their leisure. If used in this context, the students would also be able to post questions and queries. This would be particularly valuable over weekends, when students are studying at home.
Using a Blog would also be a fantastic way to connect with other education professionals to collaborate ideas for success within the classroom, especially important in this day and age when students are finding it extremely difficult to engage in learning.
I look forward to exploring new technologies, such as the Prezi system and developing my own knowledge further through our Managing E-learning community of Blogs.
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