BPComment_2009112_comment4

BP14_2009103_Web 2.0 Tools #4

There is a terrific web tool out there that is called edu.20. The tool is totally free. I plan on using this tool when I begin teaching my online Foreign Language classes. It allows the teacher to sign up on two different platforms. The teacher may add themselves onto another school or create their own school. I created my own school already, in preparation for my upcoming school semester. My home page is http://mariannel.edu20.org/ and I am the administrator. I can add other teachers as I go along throughout the course. I will be teaching a German Level I class online, however I plan on using it for my seated classes next semester as well. I can create my classes so that they have different aspects such as: an overview, news, resources, forums, calendars, groups, assessments, parents, teachers, and administrators. I can upload my students and keep track of their progress as they go through the course. There is a place for a question bank that I may add. There is also a place to incorporate a rubric for the students to use in order to self assess their submissions so that they are able to see the deliverables for the assignments. The students may also view the grade assessments and view proficiency requirements that are set. There are different communities that I can set up via blogs and discussions. I can add news items and subscribe to RSS feeds. There are also translators directly on the site for the students to utilize. I can also set the students up into different groups where they can collaborate on different assignments. There are various other resources that I may incorporate into the teaching assignment. I can list the different assignments and their due dates on the online, onsite calendar. I can create online forums and discussion questions and view each student’s response. I can register my school district, if it is not already registered and I can network with other schools. It is a wonderful organizational tool for the online teacher and student to utilize and I look forward to using it.

http://mariannel.edu20.org/site

BP13_2009103_Web2.0Tool Advertisement

BPComment_2009112_Comment3

Sunday, November 8, 2009

BP8_2009112_viddyou_Snead_James

Viddyou is similar to YouTube in that it provides a platform for you to upload videos on the Internet and post a description. I found that you could post videos to it and keep a file of all your films. You can either make you file public or private. I found that you could create videos and upload them for classroom purposes. I would use it to help me with my frontal teaching. I would save my videos online and use them while I assist students in the classroom. This gives me someone to co-teach so that I may get around the room to assist struggling students. I can also use this site to post videos I want students review for homework. It can be used as an archive of lessons to help students review and prepare for tests. Students can also Viddyou to make video reports and share what they created for class. The videos can be used just like a blog because it gives the viewer an opportunity to respond to the video produced. This is a great way for students to converse about what they are learning in the classroom asynchronously. There are lots of instructional videos Viddyou to help you create you movies and movie effects. One video explained how students could create side-by-side video shots. In the video they created an asynchronous recordings of themselves side by side. It was kind of ingenious on their part because they created a special effect using iMovie. One video was about diabetes. It gave you the cellular information you needed to learn how the pancreas works and how these cells maintain equilibrium within the human body. The video was scholarly and should be considered when by teachers for instruction. This article was found through the search engine provided on the website.

Viddyou, Home, Retrieved November 8, 2009, from http://www.viddyou.com/index.ph

BPComment_2009112_Comment2

Monday, November 2, 2009

bp3_2009112_web20tools

http://sketchfu.com/home

Sketchfu is an awesome Web 2.0 application that I can use in my 2nd grade classroom to enrich the learning experiences of my students. Using this application, students will have a creative outlet for expression in a new media rich format. Sketchfu is a free application and can be used to promote learning communities and groups because you can connect and share with others on the network and amongst other networks such as MySpace, Facebook, Blogger, and others. Sketchfu allows the artist to use simple drawing tools such as color and line selectors to make simple or elaborate drawings. You can save your work, share with others, view other artist’s work, make comments, and receive feedback.

I would use this tool by having my students create a Sketchfu drawing to go with a creative writing assignment they've penned. Using Sketchfu, they could illustrate their work, publish, and share with classmates. One of the most exciting parts of this process for them is sure to be the fact that they can replay their brush strokes and watch their creation come to life over and over again. I would allow students to make comments on each other's work. Students could also publish their writing or story that goes along with the drawing as the first comment.

What a great and free Web 2.0 application tool! I can remember using computer programs similar to these in elementary school, but without the networking capabilities. One of the best features of this tool is truly the ability to share with others far and near. The possibilities are endless. From pen pals to classroom presentations, Sketchfu is an awesome tool

Now...I hope I can get to it from our school website...

BPComment_2009111_Comment1

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2009

BP8_2009112_Web2.03_DoILikeToArgueOrDebate

I enjoy a good debate as much as anyone. But I hate to argue. There is a difference. Arguing is pretty emotional stuff. People tend to do it either with their hearts, or an uncontrolled temper. Neither of those will lead to an ending that will leave all people satisfied.

I usually won't debate religion. I won't debate with people I consider zealots on any subject at all. If people are going to cry, or yell or throw things, probably better not to debate it to begin with. Those are some pretty basic rules that keep my life pretty calm. I like calm, well, calm meaning not angry. I am all in favor of excitement, happy, and joyful, all of the good things.

I do love to debate a topic with an intelligent person who is not emotionally invested in the topic. Now that can be a lot of fun, especially if both parties know a fair amount about their sides of the debate and are prepared to listen to the opposing side. It makes for a lively encounter, and people can actually learn from each other.

To this end, I have found a Web 2.0 Tool that has actually surprised me more than any other. amap.org.uk is the website where you can find this amazing little tool/widget. I guess I'm amazed because I didn't expect Great Britain to be the birthplace of a tool of argument. I think of England and I think of rational, calm, Harry Potter, Queen Elizabeth. Not people arguing, and throwing punches, which is not necessarily what this tool is for, but I think you know what I mean.

aMap is designed for you to be able to choose your topic and put it out there the invitation to choose up sides. It is possible to buy already created aMaps, or even to sell your aMaps. There are great areas for teachers to find low cost aMaps with critical thinking teacher's packs, and even explanations about logic and reasoning. It's a very creative way to get students to think about current or historical events, and come up with sound and logical explanations for their way of thinking. It is one method for them to begin to understand the world for themselves.

I appreciate the idea behind this tool, but it took me a few minutes to get there. When I first looked at it, I was a little disgusted. I couldn't understand why anyone would want to encourage people to argue more, when it seems like there are so many arguments already. But after looking over the site and reading about the education program, and seeing some of the arguments, I have to say I think it's a brilliant idea. No one is forced to argue or debate, and I think it's good for people to consider ideas contrary to their own sometimes. It can be a learning process for us all, even me.

BP11_2009112_Web tools 2.0 #3

http://beta.thoora.com/

Thoora is a wonderful website that offers the user the flexibility of unraveling current as well as older news items. The user is able to read the latest news on any given topic. There are main categories, which may be chosen from such as “Top Stories, Business, Controversy, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Politics, Sci/Tech, Sports”. These may be chosen from the startup screen. Once the search has been started, one may navigate through the multiple blogs on the topic. The site gives the user the information regarding how many different stories there are which refer to that specific topic, how many blogs there are on that topic, how many tweets/hour have been posted on that subject as well as any further comments that have been posted regarding the subject. I found the site extremely easy to navigate and use and I can definitely see how this site could be extremely useful in the classroom for many multiple tasks. It may be utilized cross-curriculum and assist the student in any research topic. In my classroom, for example, I assigned my students an extra credit assignment involving the celebration of the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. I offered and encouraged my students to utilize this website as a spring board for further in depth research on public sentiment regarding the fall of the wall and what it meant twenty years ago and what it means to society today. The students who utilized this site found the articles and blogs easy to understand and offered them a great perspective about the history of the wall itself and what it meant to the German people both then and now. The students reported that they were easily guided through the website and this enabled them to quickly accomplish the given task as well as learn something new along the way.