Well now, I have finally completed the 23 Things I heard everyone talking about when I entered the MAT program. Although I will not use all of the Things for my classroom, I certainly appreciate learning about them. Many of the things I find useful I already used, such as Google Docs and Calendar. Other Things I found fun, but may not actually use, such as the on-line image generators. However, there were a number of tools I had never heard of that will be very useful in my teaching career. I really like the capabilities that Delicious and LiveBinders provide. Having these resources available where ever I can access the cloud is very useful, and the ability to share resources opens up a ton of educational opportunities for students.
Where to go from here? I think one of the purposes of this 23 Things exercise is to give people the confidence to be curious enough to continue learning about Web 2.0 applications. Technology is a fast moving field, and you may end up feeling that learning some of these tools was a waste of time. However, this process is about committing to being a life-long learner. I think it important to continue this Web 2.0 learning quest not just for the benefit of ourselves, but to learn what may help our students or find out what they find interesting. After all, the key to reaching your students and getting them to be more engaged is getting to know them. The next generation of students are all about learning the next cool online tool, and we better at least have heard about it!
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Crane's Thing #23
Hmmm ... after learning about Creative Commons in class, and then reviewing it again for this post, it occurs to me that there are a lot of people unknowingly infringing on other people's creative work. This APSU 23 Things blog gives proper credit to the origniator of this content by posting the following message:
*Note: This project is loosely based upon the website 43Things (which allows you to set and track personal goals) and the Stephen Abram article titled 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - Feb 2006).
The blog also concludes by providing the creative commons licensing agreement that explains how others may modify the content of our 23 Things to include the Creative Commons Some Rights Reserved image and link.
Now that I have been shown Creative Commons and taught about content licensing, there is really no excuse to not follow these rules. Most people don't mind sharing their content, especially for educational purposes. I will certainly go through Creative Commons from now on instead of using the Google image search that I have used in the past.
*Note: This project is loosely based upon the website 43Things (which allows you to set and track personal goals) and the Stephen Abram article titled 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - Feb 2006).
The blog also concludes by providing the creative commons licensing agreement that explains how others may modify the content of our 23 Things to include the Creative Commons Some Rights Reserved image and link.
Now that I have been shown Creative Commons and taught about content licensing, there is really no excuse to not follow these rules. Most people don't mind sharing their content, especially for educational purposes. I will certainly go through Creative Commons from now on instead of using the Google image search that I have used in the past.
Crane's Thing #22
I think LiveBinders is an excellent tool. It not only allows you to compile and organize resources, but you could share these resources with others. The site was fairly intuitive, which was good because the video tutorial was not the greatest. I quickly compiled three binders to try the site out. They all have to do with my subject area of social studies. They are History Education Sites, Historical Images, and Geography. I have shared the History Education binder below.
History Education Sites
I have thought of a few different uses for this in my classroom after viewing the capabilities of this LiveBinder tool. First, it is simply a good resource for a teacher to access and share with others. Even further, though, you could share a binder with your class for a research project. Conducting research is a complicated endeavor that many teachers assume students already know how to do. Research, like everything else, should be scaffolded whenever needed. This is where LiveBinder comes in. If you have an 8th Grade History Class and want them to conduct research, you can share a binder with them. This way you are helping them review relevant material and controling what they are accessing. Pretty cool.
I have thought of a few different uses for this in my classroom after viewing the capabilities of this LiveBinder tool. First, it is simply a good resource for a teacher to access and share with others. Even further, though, you could share a binder with your class for a research project. Conducting research is a complicated endeavor that many teachers assume students already know how to do. Research, like everything else, should be scaffolded whenever needed. This is where LiveBinder comes in. If you have an 8th Grade History Class and want them to conduct research, you can share a binder with them. This way you are helping them review relevant material and controling what they are accessing. Pretty cool.
Crane's Thing #21
Animoto is a very neat site that is very easy to use. Below is a quick video that I created using this service.
Make a video of your own at Animoto.
I think this tool could be used to make a better connection with your students, and just as important, their parents. I remember my daughter's first teacher giving me a CD of a collection of pictures set to music of all the activities she did her first year. I thought it was really touching, and it made me realize how much this teacher cared for her students. Using Animoto could accomplish the same thing, but without needing a CD - simply e-mail the link or share it on your classroom website.
Make a video of your own at Animoto.
I think this tool could be used to make a better connection with your students, and just as important, their parents. I remember my daughter's first teacher giving me a CD of a collection of pictures set to music of all the activities she did her first year. I thought it was really touching, and it made me realize how much this teacher cared for her students. Using Animoto could accomplish the same thing, but without needing a CD - simply e-mail the link or share it on your classroom website.
Crane's Thing #20
I love Youtube! Although I clearly recognize that most of what is on Youtube! is time-wasting drivel, I find myself regularly going to it as a useful resource. I have used it to many things from learning how to chop down a tree with a chainsaw (always good to see someone else you one of those things first, even if on-line), fix stuff around the house, and bring up old music videos.
I know I would like to use video clips from Youtube! like the one above in my History class. I understand many school districts block Youtube!, but you can find the video clips you want, and then covert them. I also thought that the List capability could be very useful if you were trying to compile a series of related video clips. Students like to watch videos, so why not give them something worthwhile, yet short enough not to detract from your lesson.
Crane's Thing #19
Although Facebook seems to be the dominant social networking site at the moment, I was certainly aware of other social networking sites. I know of mostly professional organizations, which I think can be very useful. Besides Facebook, I am apart of the LinkedIn networking community. That site is specifically designed for developing and maintaining professinal networking connections, although I did reconnect with a couple of old classmates that had entered my old profession. I know LinkedIn is trying to differentiate themselves from a pure social network by offering cababilities to not just display your on-line "resume," but have your networked collegues attest to the quality of your work.
I had no idea about TeacherPop. I joined and look forward to seeing how much I'll use that instead of my other social networking sites. I do like that I am at least a member of one teacher-specific network. As far as other sites I visited, I have used the IMBD site. Since I am a movie buff, I may get back into using that site again. With family and work, I find my time limited, so it would be nice to have a site that can steer me toward movies that are worth my time.
I had no idea about TeacherPop. I joined and look forward to seeing how much I'll use that instead of my other social networking sites. I do like that I am at least a member of one teacher-specific network. As far as other sites I visited, I have used the IMBD site. Since I am a movie buff, I may get back into using that site again. With family and work, I find my time limited, so it would be nice to have a site that can steer me toward movies that are worth my time.
Crane's Thing #18
Sorry, I couldn't quite bring myself up to joing Twitter, but I do see the value in Facebook. Funny story - I was dragged into joining Facebook four years age with the birth of my fist child. As you can imagine, the grandparents were always asking for pictures. When I noticed my wife excited about this new social networking site called Facebook and posting pictures of the kids on it, I thought my grandchild picture distribution headaches were over. I just told everyone they had to join Facebook and "friend" my wife to see as many of the pictures of the kids they wanted. The next thing I knew, all of the grandparents were so excited about Facebook, they started sending friend requests to everyone they knew - including me. So, with the circle complete, that is how I ended up on Facebook. Since that begrudging day, I have come to see the value that it brings (if you can stay disciplined - like with many things on the web, time can easily fly by!) I have since been reconnected with long lost friends and Army buddies, which would have never happened if I hadn't joined.
No matter your level of involvement in social networking sites, I think it is important that you understand them and their use because your students will certainly be using them. How are you supposed to connect with your students to build a relationship with them if you don't understand what they like? Young people love to talk and share (sometimes too much), and whether it is Facebook or the net cool thing, they are going to want to be a part of it. As a caring teacher, you need to at least know about these things.
I think Facebook can be valueable in an educational atmosphere, as well. Even if they won't admit it, most students want to feel like they belong. That is why schools offer so many extra-curricular activities. Why not extend this concept into the social networking world. Schools are already setting up Facebook Groups, so common interest groups like Chess Club or Dance can easily be done.
No matter your level of involvement in social networking sites, I think it is important that you understand them and their use because your students will certainly be using them. How are you supposed to connect with your students to build a relationship with them if you don't understand what they like? Young people love to talk and share (sometimes too much), and whether it is Facebook or the net cool thing, they are going to want to be a part of it. As a caring teacher, you need to at least know about these things.
I think Facebook can be valueable in an educational atmosphere, as well. Even if they won't admit it, most students want to feel like they belong. That is why schools offer so many extra-curricular activities. Why not extend this concept into the social networking world. Schools are already setting up Facebook Groups, so common interest groups like Chess Club or Dance can easily be done.
Crane's Thing #17
I really like this Delicious toolbar application. I have always used my web-browsers Favorites tool to save and categorize websites I am likely to want to return to. This list of websites can grow too big, though, and quickly becomes a hassel. Even worse, I have had old computers crash causing me to lose all of those sites and the little bit of organization that Windows folders allows.
I have already started adding many of my Favorite sites to Delicious and have added the "Add to Delicious" button on my Toolbar so that I can save future sites. The tagging system is great since I can create the tag labels that make the most sense to me. After all, the primary reason I added this to Delicious in the first place was for my benefit! But seriously, this tool is like cloud catalogue computing for all of your favorite websites.
I could certainly see a use for Delicious (or other social bookmarking sites) in a classroom setting. It obviously could be a shared resource for teachers. If I am looking for a site that has content that could help my class, I can view a colugues sites that he or she has bookmarked. For students, this could be a great way for them to obtain access to quality websites for supplemental materials to enhance a lesson. Delicious is delicious!
I have already started adding many of my Favorite sites to Delicious and have added the "Add to Delicious" button on my Toolbar so that I can save future sites. The tagging system is great since I can create the tag labels that make the most sense to me. After all, the primary reason I added this to Delicious in the first place was for my benefit! But seriously, this tool is like cloud catalogue computing for all of your favorite websites.
I could certainly see a use for Delicious (or other social bookmarking sites) in a classroom setting. It obviously could be a shared resource for teachers. If I am looking for a site that has content that could help my class, I can view a colugues sites that he or she has bookmarked. For students, this could be a great way for them to obtain access to quality websites for supplemental materials to enhance a lesson. Delicious is delicious!
Crane's Thing #16
I think many of use these on-line productivity tools already in our lives without thinking just how convenient they are. I chose Yahoo! for my start page because it just seems visually ergonomic to me. It can easily be customized to only show the things you want. For example, I like to have the weather tool on my home page so I can quickly see how hot or cold it is. I can always click on it to be taken directly to the national weather service if I am curious to see the weather prediction for the next ten hours. This has prompted me to bring an umbrella on more than one occasion! My home page also has my list of stocks and mutual funds that I can glance at to compare them with their respective indices, and I always like to see the headlines from the Associated Press. I always feel fully informed by the end of my first cup of coffee.
Now, I may like Yahoo! for my home page, but I feel Google Calendar is superior for scheduling my day, week, life ... About a year ago, my wife and I were having difficulties keeping our competing schedules straight. We decided to try Google Calendar since we already had gmail accounts. Now, I don't know how we manged before we used it. We can see each others schedules and color coordinate activities to visually assist us. I also like how compatible Google is with smart phones and integrated it is with other on-line applications.
As far as to-lists, my life seems to be ruled by them. I use my phone to help me keep up with my lists, but I sheepishly admit, I still find myself jotting notes and lists down on notepads. I guess I'm old fashioned; I just seed to think better with paper and pencil.
I would certainly recommend any of the tools I mentioned above to anyone wanting to better organize their lives. I would suggest to them that they try a home page of a service that they use for their e-mail. That way you already have an account with them, and there is no need to change or forward your e-mail.
Now, I may like Yahoo! for my home page, but I feel Google Calendar is superior for scheduling my day, week, life ... About a year ago, my wife and I were having difficulties keeping our competing schedules straight. We decided to try Google Calendar since we already had gmail accounts. Now, I don't know how we manged before we used it. We can see each others schedules and color coordinate activities to visually assist us. I also like how compatible Google is with smart phones and integrated it is with other on-line applications.
As far as to-lists, my life seems to be ruled by them. I use my phone to help me keep up with my lists, but I sheepishly admit, I still find myself jotting notes and lists down on notepads. I guess I'm old fashioned; I just seed to think better with paper and pencil.
I would certainly recommend any of the tools I mentioned above to anyone wanting to better organize their lives. I would suggest to them that they try a home page of a service that they use for their e-mail. That way you already have an account with them, and there is no need to change or forward your e-mail.
Crane's Thing #15
I was very interested in learning more about wikis since the only wiki I ever heard of was wikipedia. I really liked the concept of wikis as was described on the Youtube tutorial where friends collaborated on what they would need to take on a camping trip. The process of Edit, modify, then SAVE seemed simple enough, as well. However, I was very confused when I clicked on the APSU 23 Things Sandbox page. I easily found the Edit button, but it required a password. Also, there were lists of folders with some having files and others not. I tried to add or modify to the list of files, but was not able to. So, although the idea of wikis are intersting, this exercise did not seem to be helpful to me.
I do see how wikis can be used in the classroom with group projects. This could be students gathering supplies for a presentation or creating a wiki page to create a themed collage on recently learned concept.
I do see how wikis can be used in the classroom with group projects. This could be students gathering supplies for a presentation or creating a wiki page to create a themed collage on recently learned concept.
Crane's Thing #14
Flowcharts and Concept Maps are frequently used as instructional aids in Social Studies classes. They can not only be used as graphic organizers to link concepts, but they can also be used to differentiate instruction for lower level learners. I chose the Gliffy fowchart tool to create the simple Venn diagram below.
This simple diagram can be used as a visual representation to assist visual learners. I also experimented with the mindmeister concept mapping tool. It took a little practice to get accustomed to using the tool, but once I got the hang of it, it offered a great way for teachers and students to organize facts into logical categories. I think it is important for teachers to offer these types of learning aids to their students to improve academic achievement.
This simple diagram can be used as a visual representation to assist visual learners. I also experimented with the mindmeister concept mapping tool. It took a little practice to get accustomed to using the tool, but once I got the hang of it, it offered a great way for teachers and students to organize facts into logical categories. I think it is important for teachers to offer these types of learning aids to their students to improve academic achievement.
Crane's Thing #13
Zoho versus Google Docs - This post will compare these two on-line productivity tools and describe some of their advantages. Zoho was very easy to sign up for, and its Writer productivity tool is free. The features had a very familiar look and feel to them that was very similar to Microft Word software. The button and features were alike enough that there were no issues in manipulating the document or saving it.
I did not have to sign up for Google Docs since I access it through my gmail account and have used it before. Of course, Google has now integrated Google Docs with Google Drive, their new cloud storage powerhouse. Once again, the features are very similar to their counterparts in Microsoft Office, so creating documents is very easy. Below is a sample document that I created for this post.
In this example, you can see how an on-line document can be very versatile and advantageous to use in the classroom for a group project. All of the group members can add content to the document, even at the same time. This sample document shows how a group of students could divide the work into sections, and then collaborate on the conclusion. I have personally used Google Docs for a class project, and it was very beneficial. With group members leading busy lives, it was hard for us to find meeting times to collaborate. With Google Docs, we would add content to the group project at whatever time was convenient for each of us.
Although both Zoho and Google Docs are very similar and easy to use, I will continue to use Google Docs because it is quickly accessible with all of my the other Google tools that I already use (including this blog!). Of course, I'm sure that is why they make it so convenient ... so you will always stick with them!
I did not have to sign up for Google Docs since I access it through my gmail account and have used it before. Of course, Google has now integrated Google Docs with Google Drive, their new cloud storage powerhouse. Once again, the features are very similar to their counterparts in Microsoft Office, so creating documents is very easy. Below is a sample document that I created for this post.
In this example, you can see how an on-line document can be very versatile and advantageous to use in the classroom for a group project. All of the group members can add content to the document, even at the same time. This sample document shows how a group of students could divide the work into sections, and then collaborate on the conclusion. I have personally used Google Docs for a class project, and it was very beneficial. With group members leading busy lives, it was hard for us to find meeting times to collaborate. With Google Docs, we would add content to the group project at whatever time was convenient for each of us.
Although both Zoho and Google Docs are very similar and easy to use, I will continue to use Google Docs because it is quickly accessible with all of my the other Google tools that I already use (including this blog!). Of course, I'm sure that is why they make it so convenient ... so you will always stick with them!
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Crane's Thing #12
Well, this class has finally gotten me around to look at all of those extra buttons that are listed at the top of my gmail account. The two that I like the best are Google Calendar and Google Drive. The advantage of Google Calendar is it interfaces so well with so many mobile devices and it can be shared with one or more individuals. My wife and I have now integrated our calendars so we can better organize and coordinate our time to prevent conflicts. It operates in real time so there is no lag from when you update it to when your shared parties (my wife in this case) will see your updates. I also like how you can color code your time to categorize your activities. I have work, school, and personal/family time commitments on my calendar. This could easily be used in education to have several school categories to organize your day. You could divide your day up by subject material or administrative versus teaching activities.
Google Drive looks like an amped up version of Google Docs, which I have used in school to fascilitate group projects. This tool also allows you to have your work always backed up, and you can access your files anywhere there is an internet connection. Now, with Google Drive, you can include video and audio files to your personal cloud, and it allows for better management and organization of your data. As a teacher, you could have lesson plans or PowerPoint presentations on your Google Drive as a backup system or in case you forget your thumb-drive.
Google Drive looks like an amped up version of Google Docs, which I have used in school to fascilitate group projects. This tool also allows you to have your work always backed up, and you can access your files anywhere there is an internet connection. Now, with Google Drive, you can include video and audio files to your personal cloud, and it allows for better management and organization of your data. As a teacher, you could have lesson plans or PowerPoint presentations on your Google Drive as a backup system or in case you forget your thumb-drive.
Crane's Thing #11
With all of the blogs to be accessed, I can certainly see the need for a search tool to find appropriate RSS feeds. I found the Google Blog Search the easist to use as far as a search tool is concerned. Maybe I'm just used to using the google search feature that made it seem so natural to me.
As good as Google Blog Search is to search for specific terms, I didn't find it as helpful if you were looking for a more general category. I preferred Technorati to perform this type categorical search. You could still perform a text search, but they had drop down menus from very general categories to fairly specific categories. I also liked the rating guide that Technorati provided that let you better evaluate the quality of the blog.
As good as Google Blog Search is to search for specific terms, I didn't find it as helpful if you were looking for a more general category. I preferred Technorati to perform this type categorical search. You could still perform a text search, but they had drop down menus from very general categories to fairly specific categories. I also liked the rating guide that Technorati provided that let you better evaluate the quality of the blog.
Crane's Thing #10
I always wondered what that orange icon was on all of the websites I frequently visited. Well now I am officially on Google Reader! The main thing I like about RSS is that it saves my valueable time! Instead of searching at each site individually, Reader is doing all of the work for me. I have initially signed up for:
- 2 cents worth
- dangerously irrelevant
- The History Blog
- Free Technology for Teachers
- Miami Dolphins Blog
Crane's Thing #9
It's time to jump into the world of image generators. I decided to start off my image generating journey in a happy mood by creating the smiley face below. The link to generate this is image can be found at http://www.images-graphics-pics.com/signs/smilies/sign-generators.asp?page=1 . The process is really simple. All I needed to do was find the smiley face I wanted to use, then type in the text that would be displayed in the sign. The website clearly explains that you only need to right-click and select "save image as" to save the image to your computer.
I also used another image genearator called "word mosaic" that can be found on http://www.imagechef.com/ic/word_mosaic/ to create the grim picture located below. This image generator allows you to pick the temlate that the word art will use. After you enter the one to two words for your text, you can modify the background and text colors. You can even select certain words to "higlight" in the mosaic by making them a different color.
Besides being fun, I can actually imagine using both of these image generators in a classroom. You could add these images to PowerPoint presentations to draw students attention to certain facts or prepare them for the next set of facts. In my history class, my smiley face image could be used to discuss early american exploration, and the skull image could introduce a lesson on the bubonic plague.
I also used another image genearator called "word mosaic" that can be found on http://www.imagechef.com/ic/word_mosaic/ to create the grim picture located below. This image generator allows you to pick the temlate that the word art will use. After you enter the one to two words for your text, you can modify the background and text colors. You can even select certain words to "higlight" in the mosaic by making them a different color.
Besides being fun, I can actually imagine using both of these image generators in a classroom. You could add these images to PowerPoint presentations to draw students attention to certain facts or prepare them for the next set of facts. In my history class, my smiley face image could be used to discuss early american exploration, and the skull image could introduce a lesson on the bubonic plague.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Crane's Thing #8
Well, this is my introduction to mashups! I decided to start out simple and try one of the mashups listed in the APSU 23 Things. I figure it was like trying to walk before running. So, below is my use of the Spell with Flickr mashup. This mashup was very easy to use, and I especially liked that you could click on a letter image you didn't care for until one came up to your liking.
I also looked in the Flickr App Garden and found an interesting app called where, what, when. It shows a google map of the earth with areas highlighted where Flickr photos have been tagged. You can click on a geographic are (like Japan) and several images from that area will appear. You can have recent Flickr addtions appear or "interesting" Flickr photos. The link to this site is below.
http://whatwherewhen.jgate.de/
I think Flickr is an easier way to share photos online. I think it is an interesting way of connecting with people from other cultures by communicating through images. In a classroom, you could use the where, what, when flickr app to look up images from a geographic area being studied for a Geography class. Other mapping mashups would let you use your own tagged photos to superimpose on a google map. This could be use to track and share a vacation or a school trip.
I also looked in the Flickr App Garden and found an interesting app called where, what, when. It shows a google map of the earth with areas highlighted where Flickr photos have been tagged. You can click on a geographic are (like Japan) and several images from that area will appear. You can have recent Flickr addtions appear or "interesting" Flickr photos. The link to this site is below.
http://whatwherewhen.jgate.de/
I think Flickr is an easier way to share photos online. I think it is an interesting way of connecting with people from other cultures by communicating through images. In a classroom, you could use the where, what, when flickr app to look up images from a geographic area being studied for a Geography class. Other mapping mashups would let you use your own tagged photos to superimpose on a google map. This could be use to track and share a vacation or a school trip.
Crane's Thing #7
I opened a Fickr account and uploaded two photos, and then I "shared" them with you below.
The top photo is of my daughter's bed made up before bedtime. The bottom photo is of my son's bed made up for night-night. Did you think he has enough stuffed animals? And yes, he requires them to all be in bed with him before he will settle in for the night! When I check on him it reminds of that scene from E.T.
Flickr is pretty neat and very easy to use. The only other site I have used to share photos is Facebook, but I do like how easy it is to set who can see your photos on Flicker. As far as education is concerned, I'm not sure if I would use it for my classroom. Any photos I would share with my class, I would have on my computer, jump-drive, or google docs. I suppose if I went on vacation or a class trip to a historical site, I could share the photos with the whole class using Flickr. That would allow me to keep my Facebook account separate from school.
The top photo is of my daughter's bed made up before bedtime. The bottom photo is of my son's bed made up for night-night. Did you think he has enough stuffed animals? And yes, he requires them to all be in bed with him before he will settle in for the night! When I check on him it reminds of that scene from E.T.
Flickr is pretty neat and very easy to use. The only other site I have used to share photos is Facebook, but I do like how easy it is to set who can see your photos on Flicker. As far as education is concerned, I'm not sure if I would use it for my classroom. Any photos I would share with my class, I would have on my computer, jump-drive, or google docs. I suppose if I went on vacation or a class trip to a historical site, I could share the photos with the whole class using Flickr. That would allow me to keep my Facebook account separate from school.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Crane's Thing #6
I selected the eHow (http://www.ehow.com/) website/tool from the list of Web 2.0 award winners because I have seen links to eHow in the results of Google searches. I wanted to further explore the site itself and see its potential use in a traditional education environment, like my future classroom.
eHow is a resource that links users to over 2 million instructional posts created by experts of that respective field. This resource is an education forum at its foundation since it is basically a How-To-Do-It-Yourself website. You can search directly for a topic through the text search box or browse through a multitude of content topics. Although I like and use Youtube as an instructional video source, I see the value of trying eHow first. eHow will inherently filter out any noise that you would have to search through on Youtube since it only shows instructional or educational content. If your toilet breaks with guests on the way to your Superbowl party, you need a source that directly gives you step-by-step instructions to diagnose and fix your toilet in a hurry! Youtube has many videos on this, but you will probably have to filter through all of the toilet jokes and bored kids blowing up toilets. eHow will take you right to several posts by experts with many of the newer posts including video for you to follow along. Each post also allows users to make comments to the instructions or help out other struggling viewers, thereby making a community of eHow users. The downside to eHow is the instructions on a specific topic that you are looking for may not have been posted, yet. Also, I think a more advanced Search engine would prove helpful at narrowing down many of the topics. As of now, you have the choice of viewing results with everything, just articles, or just videos.
Aside from these drawbacks, I think eHow is an excellent resource that can be applied to a formal education setting. Not only can teachers find instructions on how to create different lesson plan formats, but eHow could be used as a source of differentiated instruction. For example, I searched for "Quadratic Equation," a topic I assure you I remember very little about. I found articles describing how to solve these equations or teach the topic. I saw videos that did the same, as well as videos describing the everyday applications of quadratic equations, such as in the creation of contact lenses (who knew!). As for a classroom, sometimes a teacher cannot get through to a student no matter how hard a teacher tries. Why not direct that student to another format to receive step-by-step instructions on a difficult topic?
eHow is a resource that links users to over 2 million instructional posts created by experts of that respective field. This resource is an education forum at its foundation since it is basically a How-To-Do-It-Yourself website. You can search directly for a topic through the text search box or browse through a multitude of content topics. Although I like and use Youtube as an instructional video source, I see the value of trying eHow first. eHow will inherently filter out any noise that you would have to search through on Youtube since it only shows instructional or educational content. If your toilet breaks with guests on the way to your Superbowl party, you need a source that directly gives you step-by-step instructions to diagnose and fix your toilet in a hurry! Youtube has many videos on this, but you will probably have to filter through all of the toilet jokes and bored kids blowing up toilets. eHow will take you right to several posts by experts with many of the newer posts including video for you to follow along. Each post also allows users to make comments to the instructions or help out other struggling viewers, thereby making a community of eHow users. The downside to eHow is the instructions on a specific topic that you are looking for may not have been posted, yet. Also, I think a more advanced Search engine would prove helpful at narrowing down many of the topics. As of now, you have the choice of viewing results with everything, just articles, or just videos.
Aside from these drawbacks, I think eHow is an excellent resource that can be applied to a formal education setting. Not only can teachers find instructions on how to create different lesson plan formats, but eHow could be used as a source of differentiated instruction. For example, I searched for "Quadratic Equation," a topic I assure you I remember very little about. I found articles describing how to solve these equations or teach the topic. I saw videos that did the same, as well as videos describing the everyday applications of quadratic equations, such as in the creation of contact lenses (who knew!). As for a classroom, sometimes a teacher cannot get through to a student no matter how hard a teacher tries. Why not direct that student to another format to receive step-by-step instructions on a difficult topic?
Crane's Thing #5
What does Web 2.0 mean to me? From the perspectives I have read, I have come to understand Web 2.0 as being socio-platform that acts as the foundation for a new digital infrastructure. School 2.0 is just an extension of this idea that is specific to how we can use the Web 2.0 platform for education. Before Web 2.0, people had to learn how to code HTML, or rely on someone else, to post information on the web. Web 2.0 democratizes access to our global network by separating the content from the coding rules of the format. Now, anyone with access to the internet can tap into digital infrastructure.
The best summation of School 2.0 that I ran across is coined by Chris Lehman, who said School 2.0 "... is about pedagogy." I find viewing the education application of Web 2.0 through this lense of pedagogy very enlightening. It liberates educators from being constrained by proprietary software tools to the freedom of mass access, or even the freedom to re-think the meaning of effective instruction. As a social studies teacher, I can now incorporate the idea of Web 2.0 into modified Behavioral Objectives, whether in the cognitive, affective, or psyco-motor domains of learning. For example, having students create a digital collage of comparing the civil rights struggles of the Progressive Era and the 1960s transcends this from Bloom's Analysis to Synthesis. Have the students add commentary reflecting their thoughts and judgements about these eras now increases the cognitive level to Bloom's Evaluation and Krathwohl's Valuing. All of this pedagogical flexibility simply by allowing students access to the same web platform they are already mastering through social-networking on their personal time. This helps bring relevancy, not just of context, but of application and access of information.
The best summation of School 2.0 that I ran across is coined by Chris Lehman, who said School 2.0 "... is about pedagogy." I find viewing the education application of Web 2.0 through this lense of pedagogy very enlightening. It liberates educators from being constrained by proprietary software tools to the freedom of mass access, or even the freedom to re-think the meaning of effective instruction. As a social studies teacher, I can now incorporate the idea of Web 2.0 into modified Behavioral Objectives, whether in the cognitive, affective, or psyco-motor domains of learning. For example, having students create a digital collage of comparing the civil rights struggles of the Progressive Era and the 1960s transcends this from Bloom's Analysis to Synthesis. Have the students add commentary reflecting their thoughts and judgements about these eras now increases the cognitive level to Bloom's Evaluation and Krathwohl's Valuing. All of this pedagogical flexibility simply by allowing students access to the same web platform they are already mastering through social-networking on their personal time. This helps bring relevancy, not just of context, but of application and access of information.
Crane's Thing #4
How does commenting on other people’s blogs develop a
community? Well, if no one ever
commented on blogs, they would only serve as open journals for people to
read. One of the main purposes of a blog
is not only to share thoughts and ideas, but to create a far-reaching forum
where people can respond and contribute.
When people regularly comment to a blog, they enable the discourse of
the blog topic to progress further than even the original author could have hoped
for. These individuals that regularly
return to a blog to share and interact with others truly form a community; one
in which people’s thoughts are valued, readers learn, and members of the
community help one another.
The two main points I found important from reading the blogs
on commenting are encouraging discourse and the proper etiquette in disagreeing.
First, if a blog is to work as a vehicle
to encourage community interaction, it is the responsibility of the author to
ensure this as the facilitator of discussion.
This can be a range of actions from responding to comments yourself to
asking open-ended questions to illicit comments, to knowing when to let others
lead the discussion. Just like in
teaching a class, I suspect this is a skill that takes practice in order to do
well. Second, I found it important that
the topic of proper etiquette when disagreeing with others on a blog was
addressed. It is only natural, and
sometimes desirable, to have people disagree with the author’s or other
commenter’s viewpoint. However, many
times the dissenting opinion is given in a very disrespectful way or the person
being disagreed with gets very defensive.
There is a body of research that concludes that schools often time fail
at teaching students how to disagree (or be disagreed with) in a proper
manner. Like all things, this is a skill
that must be learned and practiced, and the blogosphere seems to be a great
place for current students to practice!
Once again, this falls on to the blogger to intervene when necessary, or
even model proper responses to disagreements.
This is a blog by Elizabeth Paige Samples. I chose her blog because I think she is having the same type of experiences I am having in starting my own blog for the first time. Just like me, she had a hard time trying to come up with an interesting name for her blog. Unlike me, she actually succeeded!
In an effort to increase my own frequency of commenting on
others’ blogs, I have listed the blogs of five of our classmates and two
outside blogs that I commented on and why.
Vanessa Green 23 Things
I chose Vanessa’s blog because I recently met her as a
fellow GA, and I have always had an interest in fine guitar playing. I commented on her blog that I appreciated
her sharing her experiences applying the 7 ½ habits to her learning the classical
guitar. I think it is important to
remind students that are struggling to learn a difficult task that it is okay
to struggle. How else to do this but by
sharing your own experience with struggling with a task.
EDUC 5540-81 23 Things
This blog is by Jeri Thomas, and I chose to her blog because
I like her sense of humor. I commented
on her blog that describes how she would like to use a blog to help her
students learn a foreign language. I
commented that I thought the process was very similar to how my wife assists
her violin students. By creating a video
of themselves practicing, it allows them to not be as nervous and better focus
on their practice session. I would think
the approach described by Jeri would be very applicable to providing one-on-one
instruction across many disciplines.
Wordwhiz23things
This is a blog by Miranda Coots that I chose to comment on
because I liked her approach and enthusiasm for teaching English. I also thought she has a great name for her
blog! I commented on her blog about how
I thought her enthusiasm for the English language will serve her well as an
English teacher. Being able to
effectively communicate is often overlooked by students, but it is a vital
skill that employers actively look for.
Samples of Learning
Adventure in Learning
This is a blog by Jessica Miller that I chose since she wants to be a social studies teacher like me. I liked her ideas on how she planned to use her blog to communicate with her class. She also plans on providing extra resources to her class through her blog like video clips of famous speeches. That reminds me of how many professors provide additional material to students with D2L.
This is a blog by Jessica Miller that I chose since she wants to be a social studies teacher like me. I liked her ideas on how she planned to use her blog to communicate with her class. She also plans on providing extra resources to her class through her blog like video clips of famous speeches. That reminds me of how many professors provide additional material to students with D2L.
Dangerously Irrelevant
I chose this blog because it discusses current issues and thoughts on today's teaching climate. A recent post posed an open question and discussed why do we have separate teaching standards for every state. An earlier post discusses reasons that teachers may be resistant to incorporating technology into their classrooms. I can certainly appreciate a blog like this that takes a candid look at relevant issues and views in education.
I chose this blog because it discusses current issues and thoughts on today's teaching climate. A recent post posed an open question and discussed why do we have separate teaching standards for every state. An earlier post discusses reasons that teachers may be resistant to incorporating technology into their classrooms. I can certainly appreciate a blog like this that takes a candid look at relevant issues and views in education.
The History Blog
This blog just feeds you with stories that relate to history that often get lost in normal news feeds. It does not necessarily approach topics from a pedagoical stance, but does provide content that can enrich classrooms or help a teacher make a topic more relevant to students.
This blog just feeds you with stories that relate to history that often get lost in normal news feeds. It does not necessarily approach topics from a pedagoical stance, but does provide content that can enrich classrooms or help a teacher make a topic more relevant to students.
Monday, September 3, 2012
Crane's Thing #3
How can I use a blog during my teaching career? In my post for Thing #2, I already wrote how have taken the perspective of a public journal. In this way, I can share my ideas and reactions to what I am learning in class. By making this blog public, I not only receive credit for the class, but I can receive feedback from my fellow students. I feel that this perspective would be an excellent use of a blog by interacting with other teachers in my field.
I can also envision myself using a blog to better engage my students in the classroom. A simple way to use the blog would be to inform or remind students of important lesson material. Another way could be to use a blog as a discussion board. The post-then-comment format of the blog allows time for more reflective contributions from students. The topics of the post could range from simple discussions to elaborate on the unit being learned to enhancing a lesson. An enhanced lesson could take the form of Problem Based Learning where I would post a problem that requires cooperation to solve, then the students would collaborate using the comments section.
Regardless, I must always remember my students' access to a computer before I could use a blog for any type of learning activity.
I can also envision myself using a blog to better engage my students in the classroom. A simple way to use the blog would be to inform or remind students of important lesson material. Another way could be to use a blog as a discussion board. The post-then-comment format of the blog allows time for more reflective contributions from students. The topics of the post could range from simple discussions to elaborate on the unit being learned to enhancing a lesson. An enhanced lesson could take the form of Problem Based Learning where I would post a problem that requires cooperation to solve, then the students would collaborate using the comments section.
Regardless, I must always remember my students' access to a computer before I could use a blog for any type of learning activity.
Crane's Thing #2
Alright, this is my second blog entry. In my first blog entry, I shared my reactions to the "7 1/2 habits of life-long learners" presentation to fulfill the first of the 23 things. This second post is where I will share my thoughts on actually creating this blog.
For the name of my blog, I decided to have it reflect my journey on learning new technology and tips that I could apply to my subject area. I hope that naming this blog "Crane's US HIST-tech" will serve as an effective reminder for me to keep this in mind. As far as my posting name, it was kind of decided for me. Apparently, I already had an account associated with my e-mail when my wife invited me to view and update her blog.
As far as creating my first blog, it was very easy. It did take me a little bit of time to learn how to navigate the editor so I could customize my space. However, just a little bit of time playing around with the templates and features was all that was needed to get comfortable.
I tried to create an avatar that accurately depicts me. I don't think it was very successful, but it was the best I could do with the options offered by DoppleMe. (I strongly recommend that DoppleMe add sideburns as an option!) My avatar does at least resemble me and reflects my personality. I did this because I was aiming toward creating an appropriate avatar that I could use in an education blog.
I'll conclude this post by saying I am surprised that I am actually blogging. Whenever I heard of some one else blogging, I always wondered if I could think of something worth while to say if I started a blog. I have decided to proceed with treating my blog for this class as a kind of public journal, and so far, it seems I have more than enough to blab on about.
For the name of my blog, I decided to have it reflect my journey on learning new technology and tips that I could apply to my subject area. I hope that naming this blog "Crane's US HIST-tech" will serve as an effective reminder for me to keep this in mind. As far as my posting name, it was kind of decided for me. Apparently, I already had an account associated with my e-mail when my wife invited me to view and update her blog.
As far as creating my first blog, it was very easy. It did take me a little bit of time to learn how to navigate the editor so I could customize my space. However, just a little bit of time playing around with the templates and features was all that was needed to get comfortable.
I tried to create an avatar that accurately depicts me. I don't think it was very successful, but it was the best I could do with the options offered by DoppleMe. (I strongly recommend that DoppleMe add sideburns as an option!) My avatar does at least resemble me and reflects my personality. I did this because I was aiming toward creating an appropriate avatar that I could use in an education blog.
I'll conclude this post by saying I am surprised that I am actually blogging. Whenever I heard of some one else blogging, I always wondered if I could think of something worth while to say if I started a blog. I have decided to proceed with treating my blog for this class as a kind of public journal, and so far, it seems I have more than enough to blab on about.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Crane's Thing #1
This is my initial blog for my Instructional Technology class at Austin Peay State University. Although I look forward to my journey into the world of applying technology in today's classroom, I must confess that I have gotten off to a rocky start. I went to the listed "7 1/2 habits of life-long learners" website to complete the assignment for Thing #1 and could not get the audio to work no matter what I tried. However, no worries, the slide show worked just fine. Below are my thoughts to the "7 1/2 habits" presentation.
I, as most educators would agree, am a strong advocate of the life-long learner approach toward life, not just education. Learning is not a static activity and neither is any body of knowledge. New evidence is always surfacing, new technologies are always emerging, and theories are always being tested. It seems as if nothing is absolute. (Anyone else out there remember when Pluto was considered one of the nine planets in our solar system?) The information revolution of the 21st century demands a flexible and open-minded approach.
The "7 1/2 habits of life-long learning" presentation is an effective checklist that serves as a reminder on how to better approach life in general. The easiest of the habits for me to identify with is number 2, accept responsibility for your own learning. I regularly hear many students complain how others, not just teachers, are not giving them all of the material (read as "answers"). Students must take initiative in the learning process, and that starts with accepting responsibility.
The hardest habit for me to incorporate in my life is number 6, use technology to your advantage. This is not because I do not like to learn new things. It is because, and I suspect I am not alone, I am hesitant to learn something that will be obsolete as soon as I incorporate it into my life. This does not mean that I am afraid of technology or do not use it, but it does cause me to be a late adopter of whatever the new it is. (Anybody regret all those hours figuring out and posting on myspace?) I also think that the realm of education is so desperate to incorporate technology in the class room that it becomes a crutch instead of better preparing students for the future. I have seen way too many classes where a chalkboard and chalk would have been much more engaging than the obligatory PowerPoint presentation with accompanying PowerPoint Notes handouts. I think the a better way to word habit #6 is "effectively use technology to your students' advantage."
Overall, I do think the 7 1/2 habits of life-long learning is a very effective approach to incorporating anything new into your classroom, technology included. I look forward to using this approach while learning more about Web 2.0 tools in order to effectively apply technology in my classroom.
I, as most educators would agree, am a strong advocate of the life-long learner approach toward life, not just education. Learning is not a static activity and neither is any body of knowledge. New evidence is always surfacing, new technologies are always emerging, and theories are always being tested. It seems as if nothing is absolute. (Anyone else out there remember when Pluto was considered one of the nine planets in our solar system?) The information revolution of the 21st century demands a flexible and open-minded approach.
The "7 1/2 habits of life-long learning" presentation is an effective checklist that serves as a reminder on how to better approach life in general. The easiest of the habits for me to identify with is number 2, accept responsibility for your own learning. I regularly hear many students complain how others, not just teachers, are not giving them all of the material (read as "answers"). Students must take initiative in the learning process, and that starts with accepting responsibility.
The hardest habit for me to incorporate in my life is number 6, use technology to your advantage. This is not because I do not like to learn new things. It is because, and I suspect I am not alone, I am hesitant to learn something that will be obsolete as soon as I incorporate it into my life. This does not mean that I am afraid of technology or do not use it, but it does cause me to be a late adopter of whatever the new it is. (Anybody regret all those hours figuring out and posting on myspace?) I also think that the realm of education is so desperate to incorporate technology in the class room that it becomes a crutch instead of better preparing students for the future. I have seen way too many classes where a chalkboard and chalk would have been much more engaging than the obligatory PowerPoint presentation with accompanying PowerPoint Notes handouts. I think the a better way to word habit #6 is "effectively use technology to your students' advantage."
Overall, I do think the 7 1/2 habits of life-long learning is a very effective approach to incorporating anything new into your classroom, technology included. I look forward to using this approach while learning more about Web 2.0 tools in order to effectively apply technology in my classroom.
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