DT Review 1

Since the introduction of Web 2.0 technologies in the late 1990's have rapidly changed the way in which we 'interact' with the web from the static (Web 1.0 - Read-Only generic sites)  to the interactive way of the web and it's supporting technologies. (HowStuffWorks, Inc, 2010)

Web 2.0 is mainly about connecting people and giving everyone a voice and an audience to share and connect with people locally as well as globally, therefore bridging the communication gaps that existed prior to web 2.0 by enhancing the power of working together through online networking and collaboration. (Rowe, 2010) Students of the 21st Century are growing up alongside these new technologies and have experience to certain degrees depending on their situation Web 2.0 and its digital technologies in their present everyday lives.
This is good news as students will already have developed or are in the process of developing an ICT affiliation or connection which is not only required by the National Curriculum but also it is now the way the world does business and communication. (ACARA, 2009) ACARA (2009) recognises that the rapid and continuing advancement of these information and communication technologies (ICT) are ever changing the ways individual as and groups of people share, communicate, engage, interact, socialise, use, develop and process information and technology, and learners especially the young need to be highly skilled in ICT. (ACARA, 2009)
The National Curriculum Boards has acknowledges that some educational facilities already employ and adopted these technologies in learning in their school's own curriculum, there still  needs to be an increase their effectiveness significantly over the next decade. (ACARA, 2009)
In light of this knowledge, learners in order to be fully engaging citizens will need the proper skills, training and etiquettes or Netiquettes that they will need to survive society's ways of working and communication methodology in the real world. (Learn the Net, 2010)
More importantly, Queensland Education has recognised ICT not as an elective form of study where students and teachers engaged and observe casually but is a requirement or expectation which is embedded into the Smart Classrooms framework. (The State Of Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2010)

This ultimately means that the learner must align themselves with the Student ICT Expectations which identify with the ICT knowledge, understanding, ways of working and skills those students in Queensland state schools are now required to have the opportunity to develop from Prep to Year 10. (The State Of Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2010)  These main expectations are now based on the National Statements of Learning for Information and Communication Technologies and the Queensland Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Essential Learnings. (The State Of Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2010) (ACARA, 2009) The Student ICT Expectations have been very transparent as they have outlined the requirements of the learning outcomes the new curriculum expects to be implemented and achieved by the end of Years 3, 5, 7, 9 and 10.
These ICT expectations will assist Queensland state schools to implement and facilitate of what is required from the Essential Learnings ICT cross-curriculum priorities. (The State Of Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2010) (Queensland Studies Authority, 2010)

The ICT expectations:
• Inquiring with ICT
• Creating with ICT
• Communicating with ICT
• Ethics, issues and ICT
• Operating ICT.
(Queensland Studies Authority, 2010) (The State Of Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2010, p. 1) By Implementing the Student ICT Expectations will better prepare and organise schools and ICT education faculties and facilitators for the approaching national curriculum, which will recognise that successful learners are both creative and productive users of modern technology, especially ICT, as a underpinning for success in all learning areas.
In this context it is imperative the Learning Managers be not just acquainted with these technologies but masters of ICT to help to stay in engaged with learning and help them see new ways of learning in the classroom through these technologies.

 How Learning Managers can use, plan and implement the Student ICT Expectations.   The Student ICT Expectations continuum enables Learning Managers to effectively plan correctly for continuity of student understand learning by observing the learning process back and forward. This will help them see where to take student learning next – based from what students can declare and procedurally demonstrate currently. (The State Of Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2010) Learning Managers in order to be successful in implementing ICT effectively into the classrooms ultimately should plan early to address the expected ICT learning by the significant stage or level. Importantly they should have a look back to what was expected at previous learning juncture as these expectations are not included in the expectations for later junctures. (The State Of Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2010)  

Digital Tool:Blogs

My brief evaluation of the functionality of a blog and its usefulness in your learning context.

Since the introduction of web 2.0 blogs which is derived from word collaborative two words "web and log" have become an exciting way for everyone who wishes to write to an audience can be heard as it has become voice for many.
In the past during the 20th century all news or ideas were promoted through static media such newspapers, including columns and articles written by journalist.

However, the advantage that blogs have over traditional media is that they are in real-time, written as the story unfolds and other followers can write comments to the articles virtually after they have been written anytime.
and are not limited to just texts however they can express their ideas through video, pictures, animations, interactive games, forms, polls, audio, as well as text.
They also can embed into the page links to other webpages, blogs, references sources,

Whilst blogs are a great tool for the author whether professional and novice, their strength and broad communicative abilities can incorporate their way into the learning classroom that will allow learning managers to facilitate collaboration and communication amongst their learners between learners and guest expert professionals.

The ICT introduction to schools digital pedagogies such as blogs are becoming mainstream ways of transforming learning as they encourage students to write, read through visual and literal texts and using multi-learning styles making learning more fun but also engaging and memorable.
Blogs should be used as integral part of learning not just integrated into learning.
However according to Stephen Downes there is a negative side to blogging especially with schools which is largely the content could be read by the wrong audience exposing them to the dangers of the World Wide Web.
Some schools just play it safe and block all blogs, wikis and anything that uses web 2.0 technologies outside the education department design.
Whist I appreciate their efforts to protect students, students are not learning new pedagogues which may support their learning styles and be forced to learn using the formal facilitate method of the 20th century.

The solution is that all blogs must be set to private and only allow fellow students in the class to read and collaborate and still achieve the learning objective.
There should be installed a security host who can review and filter all student blogs for any inappropriate information that can put students into danger.
This actually happens in real world as censorship by media companies encourage novice commentators to write under a call sign rather than their real name.
And if someone writes something offensive they often are rejected and approved if appropriate to the contexts.

Digital Tool: Weebly

Pros - What can I do with Weebly?

• Create a free website including blog facilities
• Easy drag and drop interface
• No technical skills required
• Over 70 of professional designs
• Free domain name hosting

Cons - What we found difficult with Weebly?

• Could not add tables but had to embed using HTML code
• Weebly was very slow in responding
• Uploading was slow and moving text around was difficult
• The designs menu were mostly horizontal rather than vertical and after so characters a part  of the menu list was out of view
• Most of the good technologies like uploading a video were only available in the Pro edition which meant paying for it.

Digital Tool: Voki

What is Voki? Voki enables students to express themselves on the web in their own voice using a talking character. You can customise your Voki to look like you or take on the identity of lots of other types of characters… animals, monsters, anime etc. Your Voki can speak with your own voice which is added via microphone, upload, or phone.
Voki lives on your blog, social network profile and will soon be integrated in various instant messaging platforms. You will also be able to download it to most video supported phones. SWOT analysis Strengths

• Very Engaging and fun
• Easy and friendly to use when it works the way is supposed to.

Weakness

• Program tends to freeze or crash a lot when creating the Voki Avatar
• Realise on Adobe Flash which is buggy but also won't be supported on iPhones, iPod touches and iPads.

Opportunities 

• Supports students with learning difficulties as well as students that are shy in front of the camera

Threats

• Avatars are becoming more popular and Voki if it stay with Flash and does not move to HTML5 format may well fall out of use.

Digital Tool: Skype

Since it's introduction Skype has slowly evolved into the mainstream V.O.I.P (Voice over Internet Protocol) preferred choice of communicating outside the telephone land line and mobile cellular phone.

SWOT Analysis on Skype when using for ICT Learning purposes

What can you do with Skype in Education?

Strengths

1. Allows parents to see their students presenting
2. Allows students who are absent a chance to participate
3. Allows teams of teachers to meet virtually 
4. Allows administrators to connect with classrooms from their office
5. Become the "teacher as facilitator"It is free, easy to set up, and requires little training to use.
6. Users have quite a bit of anonymity therefore not exposing the user too much on the internet.
7. Skype offers a tutorial for students which teachers can use as well.
8. Great way to communicate with family, friends and make new acquaintances for free.
9. Works with PCs, Linux, and Macs.
10. You can see, hear, and type to the individual you wish to speak too all at the same time.
11. Several students can get on each side of the connection at a time to communicate with each other.
12. The conversation is in real-time as opposed to waiting for responses from email. 
13. The voice and picture are very clear.

Weakness 

1. You must locate your own contacts for calling and conferencing. 
2. Make sure students use privacy for contacts so personal information is not displayed for all to see.
3. Rather particular requirements of bandwidth/hardware.
4. A camera must be available to speak/be seen. 
5. Calls/video feeds are frequently dropped, which interrupts conversations. 
6. Requires students to have a computer with internet.
7. If users choose not to put personal information in, you can't tell if the person you're selecting for a contact is the person you want. This is especially a problem if the person has a common name.
8. You have to coordinate being on the computer at the same time as the person you want to see/talk with. 
9. Due to safety laws School systems may choose to block Skype.

Opportunities

1. Conference with subject matter experts, guest speakers, or other classes around the world. 
2. Foreign language students can utilise this great site. 
3. Help students practice foreign language (or second language) with other students who are natural speakers
4. Can be used to connect with students who may be absent or may have moved 
5. Students who may be on vacation/ somewhere none of the students have been before can talk about it from there
6. Connect with parents or family members who may live in different areas of be unable to attend conferences
7. Students in the same school working on a physical project can communicate from class to class.
8. The computer can be hooked-up to a classroom projector so everyone can see the video while students are talking.

Threats

1. You never know what students in another classroom might say online.
2. Make sure students do not abuse it by making unnecessary calls that would be charged. 
3. You would have to closely monitor any contact going on with your students at all times for obscene behaviour or gestures, and be prepared to explain to parents what happened and why.

Digital Tool: Digital Images

Images are a brilliant Web 2.0 tool to use to help Learning managers support their teaching and help students better engage in their learning.

Royalty-Free Stock Photos, Illustrations and More

According to iStockphoto website  they are the web's original source for user-generated, royalty-free stock photos, illustrations, video, audio and Flash. Whether you're designing a school web paper project, showing presentation, collaborating on a Wiki or blogging away to peers on class work, there are millions of affordable images, vectors and clips to help your student in class tell their story.

http://www.fotosearch.com/

http://www.fotolia.com/

Fotosearch and Fotolia are providers of royalty free and rights managed stock photography, illustrations, maps, video, and audio. They provide different stock agencies of "The World's stock photography at one website."  This is great as students will be able to use these picture to support their web projects, school presentations, podcasting etc.

All these products  can be licenced and easily downloaded for use in your presentations, promotional materials, websites, etc. When you purchase a license to use an image, video clip, or audio clip, you do so based on the license agreement of the publisher of that particular content. The license agreement will be presented to you before purchase confirmation. 

Analysis of istock, Fotolia and Fotosearch

Pros

• Share and stay in Touch

• Upload and organise you picture in categories

• Crop,fix and edit online anywhere in the world

• Explore a whole world of photos to share

• Millions of images to choose

• Virtually any topic

• Royalty Free: Which means that once you paid for the image you have rights to that photo for school, business or home use without the worrying about legalities or copyright ownership.

Cons

• Most images are not free and only royalty free

The Pedagogy of Teaching using images supports students' learning. Raising student higher order of Learning.

We remember visually more so that by using words.

On average  we remember 30% Visually and 7% audibly.

Therefore it is imperative to support teaching by using images.

Integrating visual literacy instruction and scaffolding into classroom curriculum begins by asking a some simple important questions to start and engage the students'critical thinking process. (Jakes Online 2006)

• What am I looking at?
• What does this image mean to me?  
• What is the relationship between the image and the displayed text message?
• How is this message effective?

Just as professionals ask critical questions of messages they examine, students  should be just as critical of the messages they see too. In the visual design and interpretive world, similar questions are asked during message creation as well:
      

• How can I visually depict this message?
• How can I make this message effective?

• What are some visual/verbal relationships I can use?

(Jakes Online 2006) When students internalise these important key questions, not only will students be prepared to recognise and decode coded and simple messages, but they will also be better prepared to communicate with a higher level of visual sophistication that will carry them right through the "multimedia-dependent" environment of higher education and the modern working and social world. (Jakes Online 2006)

For more information about the power visual literacy please have a look at our Visual literacy website myself, Amy Kennedy and Andrew Webb designed, edited and collaborated  virtually online.

http://visualiteracy.weebly.com/index.html

Digital Tool: Podcasts

Reasons why students should be allowed to create podcasts:

1. CREATIVITY: one reason is "be allowed to create podcasts". Getting learners involved in making their own podcasts helps them to develop their creative skills. For some this might be expressed in their writing of a script, for others it might be in the performance and some might get their kicks creatively in the editing process. 

In other words podcasts form a fantastic creative platform for students of the 21st century to active engage and express themselves...in the target language

1. FOUR SKILLS: think about the skills which are needed to succeed in a foreign language: reading, writing, speaking and listening ? What are the four skill areas we have to somehow teach: reading, writing, speaking and listening. What four attributes are required to produce a podcast....I think you know the answer.... yes Reading, writing, speaking and listening. If pupils are producing podcasts in the target languge they are quite simply putting all four skills to practical use for a purpose, not simply for the sake of an exercise.

* OWNERSHIP: if pupils are creating podcasts they are producing something which they own. They are scripting, recording and performing their own work and it becomes something which they can boast about. * AUTHENTIC AUDIENCE: think of the times when you may have asked pupils to produce work for display. It may have gone up in the classroom or even in a corridor or a display at the school entrance. How many people, potentially, would see this work and have some kind of interaction with it. It could be a few hundred...With a podcast the potential audience is ....THE WORLD. Obviously it is highly unlikely that the whole world will listen to Robbie\'s take on regular -er verbs, but the potential is there. And this is what counts. Not only does this appeal to the average teenager\'s egocentricity but it is also a sure fire system of quality control. They won\'t want to appear silly in front of a (potential) global audience. * HIGHER LEVEL THINKING: the production of a podcast encourages students to use higher level thought processes such as analysis, synthesis and evaluation. For example in order to produce a podcast grammar guide pupils need to synthesise their knowledge of a grammar point and then analyse it to extract the relevant information. The process could then involve some form of self or peer evaluation according to a pre-prepared rubric. * CO-OPERATIVE WORK: What I have found in producing podcasts is that there tends to be a role for everyone...even the pupils who habitually let everyone else do the work find something to contribute. * 21 CENTURY COMMUNICATION: many of even the most computer literate students don\'t realise that much of what they do at their computer at home can be transferred into lessons and many find it difficult transposing the ideas of what they do on their bebo site into other applications. In preparing and producing a podcast pupils can learn about and practise the necessary skills for communicating in this day and age.

Podcasting - Reasons for teachers

TARGET LANGUAGE: We know that the best way to learn a language is to immerse yourself in it and that it is difficult to replicate this in 3 50 minute periods a week, so why not give your pupils the opportunity to listen to more TL. This could be in the form of supplemental information to lessons, or general study aids such as audio forms of vocabulary lists.       ACCESS FOR ALL: have you ever had a pupil off class long term, or been off yourself for a long time? Making a podcast could help absent students keep up or help your class stay motivated even if you are not present in ENGAGE: podcasts are a great way to engage your students. In my experience pupils don\'t feel as if they are doing something as tedious (to them) as learning because they get to use the gadgets that form an integral part of their life. For some reason its not all that uncool to have some of the vocabulary guides I have produced on an mp3 player / mobile phone 21ST CENTURY COMMUNICATIONS. in creating podcasts you are entering the realms of 21st century communications. More and more people want to access content on demand rather than waiting for it. In entering this world you are not only providing yourself with endless cpd opportunities but you are taxing your creative side and helping your students learn at the same time. Pros - Podcasting is convenient especially for those who are very busy. People that are very busy usually miss their favorite shows on television, or on the radio, because their schedules don't permit them to tune in to them as they would wish. Podcasting, on the other hand, allows people to download all their favorite shows and enjoy them at a later, more convenient timeslot. -Podcasts are easily distributable and are easily playable on pretty much any mobile audio or video technology. This means of distribution contributes greatly to the popularity of podcasts. In today's day and age, finding anyone without a digital mobile audio device is the exception. More and more people are moving to digital audio for their entertainment and information needs. -The advantage of the human voice. People enjoy getting their information from a human voice. There are many things that can be conveyed to audio or video formats that wouldn't be easily transmissible via text format. The ability to transmit video and audio makes podcasts more enjoyable than text based syndications. Cons - Podcasts aren't easily searchable. Although there are many search engines that provide information regarding podcasts, it is most impossible to find anyone that would allow searching within the audio file itself. This could turn off many people especially when there are those that prefer gleaning their information by scanning through text quickly. -While many people do indeed have mobile devices, not everyone does. Podcasting may alienate this segment of the market, leading to them looking elsewhere for their entertainment and information needs. There also those who would act negatively to having to download such from the Internet and play them on their digital recorders. They would rather read that have to wait for recommended audio file to finish playing. They believe that they can absorb more information by reading-being speed readers themselves. They also their belief that podcasting should be relegated to entertainment instead of being the format of future information. Conclusion
In the end, only time and technology will tell whether these advantages and disadvantages will still hold true. As technology and trends shift to the next generation, the pros and cons of podcasting could either multiply or lessen.

Digital Tool: Prezi

Prezi is a brilliant presentation as it a concept map for presentations. Recently I watch two presentations that embedded Prezi as part of the presentation and was very engaging to the viewers. Students would learn more easily due to the eye catching visuals in the form of text.

Largely thanks to Google Waveallows Wave those with Google accounts) users to embed Prezis and collaborate live.

In Wave you can embed different applications to work with. These  gadgets will allow small groups to show Prezis to each other and even edit live.

Analysis of Prezi

Strengths

• Very engaging for students
• Easy to use/user friendly 
• Plenty of online support and technical video support. 
• Able to Zooming into details of a Text/picture/image
• Make Dynamic Venn Diagrams 
• Embed YouTube videos

Weaknesses

• Relies heavily on Adobe flash which can be unstable and buggy

The tool may become predictable and become boring to students if used regularly as it will loose its originality and students will disengaged Opportunities

• Students will better recall more information that just an ordinary presentation.
• Share their work globally.
• May be able to collaborate and edit online with different users.
• Have Students Create Graphic Organisers to Understand & Represent Thinking
• Use Prezi as a mind map and help students with disabilities to learn more easily.
• Help student with their vocabulary.
• 
  
  

  Prezi may soon help students engage in learning through  Collaborative Presentation Editing using Google Wave.

Threats

• If Prezi becomes popular the cost may rise and restrict to only students with money
• Young company that may need Venture Capital to expand where the company may charge the consumer a fee to the consumer.

Reference List

ACARA. (2009, May). The Shape of the Australian Curriculum. Retrieved July 10, 2010, from Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority: http://www.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/Shape_of_the_Australian_Curriculum.pdf#xml=http://search.curriculum.edu.au/texis/search/pdfhi.txt?query=ICT+continuum&pr=www.acara.edu.au&prox=page&rorder=500&rprox=500&rdfreq=500&rwfreq=500&rlead=500&rdepth=0&sufs

Australian Broadcasting Corporation . (2009, June 16). We need a creative revolution: Sir Ken Robinson. Retrieved July 12, 2010, from Australian Broadcasting Corporation : http://www.abc.net.au/rn/lifematters/stories/2009/2598512.htm

Big6. (2007, October 9). What is the Big6? Retrieved July 20, 2010, from Big6: http://www.big6.com/what-is-the-big6/

Downes, S. (2004, December). Educational Blogging. Retrieved July 14, 2010, from EDUCAUSE : http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Review/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVolume39/EducationalBlogging/157920

Eisenberg, M., & Johnson , D. (2002, September). Use the Internet with Big6 Skills to Achieve Standards. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from Big6 Matrix: http://www.janetsinfo.com/big6info.htm

elearncqu. (2010). PMI Charts. Retrieved July 16, 2010, from elearncqu: http://elearncqu.wikispaces.com/PMI+Charts

elearncqu. (2010). Ranking Tool. Retrieved July 18, 2010, from elearncqu: http://elearncqu.wikispaces.com/Ranking+tool

elearncqu. (2010). SWOT Analysis. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from elearncqu: http://elearncqu.wikispaces.com/SWOT+ANALYSIS

Google. (2010). Blogger: Create your free blog. Retrieved July 16, 2010, from Blogger: https://www.blogger.com/start

gp-training.net. (2006, December). Multiple intelligences. Retrieved July 10, 2010, from gp-training.net: http://www.gp-training.net/training/educational_theory/multint/multint.htm

HowStuffWorks, Inc. (2010). Web 1.0 Defined. Retrieved July 12, 2010, from HowStuffWorks: http://computer.howstuffworks.com/web-101.htm

Infed. (2002). howard gardner, multiple intelligences and education . Retrieved July 11, 2010, from Infed: http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm

Learn the Net. (2010). Netiquette. Retrieved July 18, 2010, from LEARN THE NET: http://www.learnthenet.com/learn-about/netiquette/

Lein, K. (n.d.). Behaviorist Approach. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from Elearning Pedagogy: http://elearningpedagogy.com/behaviorist.html

Lein, K. (n.d.). Cognitivist Approach. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from Elearning Pedagogy: http://elearningpedagogy.com/cognitivist.html

Lein, K. (n.d.). Constructivist Approach. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from Elearning Pedagogy: http://elearningpedagogy.com/constructivist.html

Margaryan, A., & Littlejohn, A. (2008, December 11). DigitalNativesMythOrReality-MargaryanAndLittlejohn-draft-111208. Retrieved July 14, 2010, from The Caledonian Academy: http://www.academy.gcal.ac.uk/anoush/documents/DigitalNativesMythOrReality-MargaryanAndLittlejohn-draft-111208.pdf

Marzano, R. J., & Pickering, D. J. (1997). Dimensions of learning: Teacher's manual (2nd ed.). Colorado, USA: McREL.

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Prensky, M. (2001, October). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. Retrieved July 12, 2010, from Marc Prensky.com : http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf

Prensky, M. (2005, October). Engage Me or Enrage Me: What Today's Learners Demand. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from EDUCAUSE REVIEW: http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0553.pdf

Queensland Studies Authority. (2010). Essential Learning - Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) Cross-curriculum priority. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from Queensland Studies Authority: http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au/7300.html

Rowe, B. (2010, March 12). Web 2.0 Privacy. Retrieved July 11, 2010, from Info, Law, IP and Ethics : http://brianrowe.org/IMT550/2010/03/12/web-2-0-privacy/

Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved August 15, 2010, from Elearnspace: www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm

Siemens, G. (2004, December 12). Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age. Retrieved August 10, 2010, from http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm: http://devrijeruimte.org/content/artikelen/Connectivism.pdf

Siemens, G. (2010). 5 ways tech startups can disrupt education. Retrieved July 2010, from elearnspace - learning, networks, knowledge, technology, community: http://www.elearnspace.org/blog/

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Sprainger, N. (2002, February 8 ). Visual Literacy. Retrieved July 25, 2010, from Kids Book Zone: http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/bookzone/Docs/VisLit_tch.pdf

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How to Make an Interactive PowerPoint Quiz

Thursday, August 19, 2010

 Posted by Mr at 10:41 AM

 

Comment

Kirk Raemond said...

Hi Paul,Chris and Lynn, That is truly an amazing Web 2.0 tool you can use for quizzes and help students fully engage into the lesson. I agree with Chris that the downside to this tool and other web technologies is they can consume a lot of your time to setup. That being said though, that once you built a quiz or whatever you have it for ever and can use again for your next group of students for the following years to come. Then you have more free time to due to preparation in advance. Cheers, Kirk PS if you want to check out my blog and leave some comments so I can get some insight as to what you guys think that would be awesome. My site is http://kirkraemond.blogspot.com/

August 26, 2010 2:08 PM

 

Digtial Tool 9: Podcasts

Posted by Natalie at 3:36 AM

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Kirk Raemond said...

Podcast they will prove to be excellent tool to use in the class for more ways than one. Imagine as a Learning Manager creating podcasts with your lesson embedded so your students could download and listen at home or on their iPods. Students when they create podcast for themselves will grow in confidence in speaking as well as listening. I enjoy listing to audio books when I am learning something new and students who are visually,audibly and digitally "tuned in" today they will find learning really cool. Cheers Natalie and thank you also for the great comment about my blog, Kirk

August 25, 2010 6:04 AM

 

The long awaited podcast... yipee!

Blogged by Jess at 1:20 AM

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

3 comments:

Jess said...

 

By the way.... Sorry everyone that it isn't that exciting... I didn't know what to say on it haha :)

August 17, 2010 1:22 AM

 

Kirk Raemond said... 

 

Hi Jess, Great presentation yesterday by the way as I really enjoyed it as was very informative and insightful. Pod-casting is fun tool to use to become your own radio station in audio literacy. if you have iTunes you can download your podcast and then submit it to iTunes store as an official podcast where anyone can download and listen your thoughts, idea, news and stories at anytime. Thanks for the review of Skype, yes it is am amazing web 2.o tool with so many teaching possibilities. :) Kirk

August 20, 2010 3:32 AM

2 comments:

Kirk Raemond said...

Hi Kristen, Thank you for those great comments about my blog site saying that it's easy to navigate. I like you blog site as well as it is very thoroughly researched and reviewed. There are a lot of excellent reviewing of the web 2.0 tools available for Learning Managers to use to support teaching and learning in the 21st Century. In regards to you question about my reviews is that some are embedded as video blogs recorded by me and my own tech write-ups will follow including either a SWOT or PMI Chart analysis of the products tested. I'm been catching up myself with reviews as I've helping other students catch up with some of the technologies. One of the blogs that you can comment on is my Weebly blog found at: http://kirkraemond.blogspot.com/2010/08/captain-kirks-spacebook-weebly-web-page.html I'll be back to add more comments to your blog later tonight. Cheers, Kirk

August 22, 2010 12:23 AM

Kirk Raemond said...

Hi Kristen, I forgot to mention that the whole website is a really a concept map discreetly interwoven into the site. The images and layout are both designed so the reader remember the text using visual literacy techniques. Have a great day Kristen and thank you again for your wonderful comments. Cheers, Kirk

August 22, 2010 10:10 PM

Comments On Captain Kirk's Blog

2 comments:

Ash said... 

 

Hi Kirk I am just so impressed with your design and knowledge on this topic. I am very interested to use Voki in my classroom and after reading your comments I am confident to do so. Ash

August 25, 2010 7:20 PM

Kirk Raemond said... 

 

Hey Ash, So nice to hear from as I haven't seen you in awhile not since High School and primary have separate classes. I hope all is swell with you and your studies and professional athletics. Thank you also Ash for your terrific comment about design and knowledge of the topic as that made my day. As a part of my being and I.T Consultant I have to start fresh with latest technology and often predicting it future so my customers have not fallen behind but instead have stay ahead of the trends. This will prove handy as a Learning Manager who have got to stay ahead of ICT game otherwise fall deeper behind and the student will miss out which would be disappointing for them. Regarding Voki although it has its share of glitches will prove to a terrific engaging learning tools for student no matter what their levels of learning ability is as each learning including the shy can participate and collaborate and have some fun, which is what learning is about. Cheers, Kirk

August 25, 2010 9:32 PM

 

2 comments:

Jess said...

Hey Kirk, Thanks for your insight into skype! You had a very in depth SWOT analysis.. I never knew there were so many uses for this digital tool :) I better start using mine more. I like how it promotes community.. that would really benefit the teacher/parent and teacher/student relationships in the class. :)

August 20, 2010 12:51 AM

Kirk Raemond said...

Thanks Jess, Great presentation yesterday by the way. Yes, I did not realise that there were so many ways Skype could be embedded into learning. It's truly an amazing Web 2.0 tool of the 21st Century. :) Kirk

August 20, 2010 3:23 AM

4 comments:

Kristen said...

 

Hi Kirk, The layout of your blog is amazing and very easy to navigate! Your future students will be very lucky to have someone so knowledgeable about these digital tools. Forgive me if I have missed something here but I can't seem to find the actual reflections about these e-tools. The images you have posted are great but I was interested in getting your professional opinion on how you could use these in a classroom context. Looking forward to hearing from you Cheers, Kristen

August 21, 2010 10:34 PM

Kirk Raemond said...

Thank You Kristen, I am sort of doing things backwards as I still finishing off my reflections and should be finalised tonight. I've been swamped with student who have technical questions and giving them a hand. So I'm taking what I,ve found and others have found and putting them into the blogs. I should have full tech review on each soon. Cheers, And thank you for you comment about the site layout.

August 21, 2010 11:55 PM

Kirk Raemond said...

Hi Kristen, I forgot to mention that the whole website is a really a concept map discreetly interwoven into the site. The images and layout are both designed so the reader remember the text using visual literacy techniques. Have a great day Kristen and thank you again for your wonderful comments. Cheers, Kirk

August 22, 2010 9:27 AM

Sadi Myers said...

Hi Kirk, In response to your query about Animoto: -You may need a different song in order to play a longer movie. -A better option is to apply for an all access educators account. This has worked for me a couple of times, but can take a couple of weeks.

August 27, 2010 1:03 AM

 

2 comments:

Natalie said... 

 

Wow Kirk, So much great information about podcasts. I definitely agree that podcasts are a valuable resource to use in the classroom context. As everyone has their individual preferences in learning some students will love the scripting, recording or performing aspect about podcasts. Podcasts are a tool that will help student within their literacy skills through reading writing, speaking and listening.

August 25, 2010 4:00 AM

Kirk Raemond said... 

 

Thank you for the great Comment Natalie, I've designed or tried to at least to make the blog a full blown version of mind or concept map so everyone can easily follow. I must admit I'm not a big fan of large quantities of text but I do believe strongly that visual literacy compliments what the information is saying and help the audience take in more information. Regarding Podcast they will be excellent tool to use class for more ways than one. Imagine as a Learning Manager creating podcasts with your lesson embedded so your students could download and listen at home or on their iPods. Students when they create podcast for themselves will grow in confidence in speaking as well as listening. I enjoy listing to audio books when I am learning something new and students who are visually,audibly and digitally "tuned in" today they will find learning really cool. Cheers Natalie, Kirk

August 25, 2010 6:00 AM

 

3 comments:

Sadi Myers said... 

 

First of all, I love your blog, it looks fantastic. You really 'sell' the tools, not just through words, but also through the thoughtful choice of design, layout and imagery. Children today will benefit from learning how to consider these aspects when 'reading' and creating 21st century text!! I am interested to know how you have included technology in the classroom ?, and if so has it been a positive experience ? As for the concept map, there has been some debate on the blogs that online concept mapping is limiting to the flow of ideas, a lot of people think that the idea of concept mapping is to be able to quickly brainstorm (including me). What do you think ? Thanks Kirk

August 19, 2010 7:31 PM

Natalie Raymond said...

 

Hi Kirk and Sadi, I have the conversation with Nina about Mind Mapping being a quick brain storming and at first I agreed. However, I am quickly changing my mind because we have to take into account the 21st Century learner because this is how they engage in information. They think in the 21st century and would easily use this technology. Have you had second thoughts? I would be interested in hearing your thoughts. thanks Natalie

August 23, 2010 2:43 AM

Sadi Myers said... 

 

Even though students today are comfortable and faster with using technological tools, I still think that if the purpose was to brainstorm ideas, the online concept mapping may not be the best method. Which begs the question: Are there some situations where paper and pen is more effective or better than using the computer? I like to have students, particularly young students work in groups to brainstorm ideas, using coloured markers and large sheets of paper, they share the task of being a scriber. There are some literacy brainstorming interactives on the read write think site, however, that I think are very effective in getting students to get the ideas flowing, such as Venn diagrams, story planners and poetry interactives. Although, at first skeptical of online brainstorming, I can now see some benefits. Advantages can include being able to save and edit, and being inclusive to a range of different learners (I used a program called kidspiration, which was particularly good for this aspect)!

August 23, 2010 5:27 PM

2 comments:

Mr said...

Great evaluation on blogs Kirk. You're right, I didn't think about how information was presented before the internet but it was mainly static media. The sad truth is many schools do play it safe and just block everything which can impede their learning when using such tools. I like your idea about the security host. I think that it is worth the Government spending the money to keep students from danger. I also think that there could be a school blog for all schools within Queensland, one for each state, and the government could pay to have these sites watched so that many schools can collaborate between each other creating massive critical thinking, deep understanding and higher order thinking. What do you think? Is this taking it too far? Kind regards, From Paul.

August 17, 2010 5:13 AM 

 

 

Kirk Raemond said... 

 

Yes it does seem pointless at times when the government wants students to engage in the web 2.0 ways of learning but discouraging them at the same time due the public liabilities. I think the best solution is for the education department around the world to to build intranets,Wide area networks or create their own private web portal like Blackboard and Moodle (Not go through the internet) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intranet This stops outsiders coming into contact with anyone who is a part of the education network and acts like a mini-web where they students can still learn web 2.0 technologies safely.

September 1, 2010 10:04 AM