Flip Camera Instructional Video

E-Portfolio #6 - LiveBinders

 

           LiveBinders is a free online tool and an awesome way for educators to organize their sources in one, easily accessible place. The concept is to create a 3-ring binder of information in which students and fellow colleagues can access from anywhere. Even if a user chooses not to share their binders, it is still a great tool to use for personal information. In reality, binders usually have divider tabs. LiveBinders also have tabs and sub-tabs to organize information by subject. The tab titles are able to change and they also move forward or back to a different location without losing its contents. Just like a bookcase, you can create different shelves for your binders. This will help you keep even more organized.

            In my example, I have started creating two binders in which I will add to as I find sources that I would like to use and/or remember are available. There are many ways to add to each binder. A bookmarking tool is available and will automatically add pages directly to your binder without you having to open the website. You can also enter a URL and the tool will save it to the binder page. You can also upload files and add text to your pages. In the details section, you can change the title of your binder, the description tags, categories, and the cover of the binder. The binder can be set as public or private. You can explore other people’s binders if the creators have set them as public binders.

            Sharing your binder is easy and you can do it in so many ways. Binders can be shared through linking or embedding, e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google +1, and Plurk. You can also place LiveBinders on your desktop, and even download an application on you iPad.

            Although you can view and explore each website within the tool, one downfall that I have noticed is that the tabs take up the space in which you see the websites. If there are multiple tabs, your viewing space is very limited. In this situation, it would probably be a good idea to open the web page in a different window rather than explore it in LiveBinders.

            My favorite thing about LiveBinders is that you can create collaborative binders. Multiple people can add to the binder as needed. This makes for a perfect project and collaborative experience when distance is involved. The possibilities are endless with LiveBinders!

E-Portfolio #5 - Wallwisher

Wallwisher is an online application much like a notice board. A person can post announcements, keep notes; create to-do lists, and many other things. It acts much like Post-it notes, but online so you can access the board from anywhere that has Internet service. Wallwisher allows you to move posts and drop them as well, just like a real board. Each post can have up to 160 characters. Wallwisher decided to limit the number because longer texts were not being read. Post can also contain links to images, music, videos, and pages. This allows the author of the post to express more thoughts. Each post will have the authors name, the comment they wrote, and when it was posted.

            A good thing about Wallwisher is that users do not have to register or login to post something. They simply need the URL to the wall. Wallwisher will however, ask for a name and an e-mail address. It does not publically post the e-mail address, only the author’s name. If a person prefers to login without having to create an account, they can login through Google. Say a person does login and wants to update their profile. The only information on the profile is the e-mail address and the account password. Nowadays, online safety and privacy are a big concern, especially within the education system and students are involved.

            One downfall to Wallwisher is that it may be blocked through some school servers. I tried taking my students to the lab to add their own posts and the site was blocked with a tag stating it was considered a forum. I suppose in a distance education setting, students can be expected to be able to post from another server; however, the teacher will also have to do so.

            This is a good online application because students can build their own wall for class discussions and reflections. Users should try to avoid asking questions in which all students will have the same answers. In the educational setting, posts should reflect student learning and provide discussion opportunities.

If the above embed doesn’t work, please follow the link to my Wallwisher wall (http://wallwisher.com/wall/etelles)

E-Portfolio #4 - Prezi Presentations

The Periodic Table of Elements on Prezi

Prezi.com is a free online site that allows you to make presentations visually captivating for your audience. A person can upgrade their account in order to make it private and only have certain invited guests to view the Prezi presentations. If you are not upgraded, your prezis are public and can be copied by other people. However, if you are a teacher and your institution has a website, you can register as an educator and set your prezis to private. You even get more memory when you upgrade to being a teacher.

            Prezi can be a collaborative program. I would like to use this in an online setting and work with group members to create a presentation for the class. The option to have the prezi edited by numerous users is available, as well as the options to only allow you the ability to edit. The only downfall to prezi is that you cannot embed audio into the presentation. You can however, include images, previously created PowerPoint presentations, YouTube videos, drawings, and files. I originally created the prezi you see above as a PowerPoint presentation for my class. I uploaded it to prezi and organized it to enhance the attention of my audience. Although it took a lot of time, I believe it was worth it. I asked my students which presentation they preferred and all of them said the prezi presentation. I believe this is because the zooming affects helps keep the information organized and also captures the audience’s attention. I feel the more someone uses this program, the more they will enjoy the positive outcomes of it.

            Prezi can also be shared in a meeting type setting where everyone is in the same room, or through remote locations. There can be up to 10 people in the meeting. The prezi is printable and you have the option to view together, download, save a copy, and delete. The prezis can be shared directly to Facebook, Twitter, or e-mailed. Prezi-U is a professional community within the website in which you can view and use success stories, tips, tricks, and best practices, and also get material and advice for our own prezis. You can find articles, prezis in the library, and videos that will help you with your own prezi or even one to present to our class.

If the above embed doesn’t work, please follow the link to my Prezi profile (prezi.com/user/etelles/).

E-Portfolio #3 - Google Docs

In any school setting, some kind of collaboration is required and expected from the students. Distance education may have excused collaboration in the past, but with technology advancements nowadays, that is no longer necessary. Google Docs can help students and all other people collaborate and provide peers, group members, colleagues, and any other people with instant feedback on different types of documents. They will be able to work together to create and edit documents. By focusing on middle school students, teachers can review student work to provide guidance before assignments are due.  Students can also work together to develop real-time documents without the hassle of having to meet or send the documents as attachments back-and-forth to one another.

It seems that the features of Google Docs are endless. Just like any word processing software installed on hard drives, students can create documents, spreadsheets, booking forms, and presentations all formatted the same as the software. You can upload previously created documents to share (and edit if necessary) and then turn around and change them back into the Word document, PDF document, or the other form it was prior to the initial change. Participants can edit and leave comments that others can read. If group members are working on the document at the same time, they see instant changes and added comments. The documents save automatically which helps any unforeseen circumstances of losing information. More features of Google Docs include inserting pictures, and forming equations and having the ability to utilize other mathematical symbols. You can also embed videos and provide links to websites. Another great feature of Google Docs is that it can be accessed anywhere Internet is provided. You can even utilize the tool from a smartphone! Best of all, this educational tool is free!

On another note, as with many things in education, the privacy of each student is very important. Google Docs has the option to share with certain people. There are three different groups of people to share with: public, those with the document link, and certain people by request of the document creator (this requires a log-in). You also have the option to allow people to edit, comment, or only view your document. Depending on the assignment you will need to determine how your document will be shared.

Google Docs is a great way to have students submit work. It eliminates the use of paper in a face-to-face class. For a distance education course, it allows the teacher to insert comments rather than downloading a document, inserting comments, uploading, and e-mailing the document back to the student.

Younger students as well as adults can use the video. It gives a little more detail and more information than what I would expect from my students in middle school. They are completely capable of utilizing all of the aspects of Google Docs, however, I feel they should slowly be introduced to the tool.

            Please visit the link below to view an example of a document created on Google Docs. You are able to edit if you wish.

View Sample Google Document

E-Portfolio #2 - Edmodo

Today’s society is fast-paced and is very involved with social networks. Whether the class is conducted face-to-face or via distance communications, I believe that social networking might enhance student involvement, therefore increase student learning and comprehension of the class. In 2006, a study showed 55% of children between the ages of 12 and 17 using a social network (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright & Zvacek, 2012). Think of how social networking has expanded in the last 6 years and imagine the percentage now.

            As with any online communication, there is always the concern for protecting students and their privacy.  Edmodo allows for teachers to enhance the privacy protection for their students. It also allows for instant communication from multiple parties and allows the teacher to create somewhat private online classrooms. For example, a teacher can create classrooms for each class and send messages to an individual class or multiple classes. Calendars are also available along with notes, alerts, assignments, quizzes, and polls. A teacher can also upload documents and provide links in the library within the Edmodo network.

            Students can be awarded badges for things they do such as being a good citizen, asking good questions, working hard, perfect attendance, and more. Teachers can create their own unique badges for students.  I have created one titled Good Point. The description is “Sometimes in discussion, we rise to the top and mention a good point to the topic of discussion.”

            A teacher creates a profile and just like social networking, can upload profile pictures and write about themselves. They too can earn badges when they use different parts of Edmodo such as the library, connections, and others. They can state content areas, the current school in which they teach, and schools in which they have taught in the past. The site displays a Google map of the past teaching locations. Teachers can also have their own URL. Favorites are managed through the library. Teachers can also connect with one another and share ideas.

            Edmodo is engaging and has the ability to keep students from the worldwide social network but still be able to network with their peers. I have created this for my 8^th grade classes and am very eager to utilize it for all it provides. I am looking forward to enhancing my Edmodo account.

Please visit my Edmodo profile at: http://edmodo.com/etelles

E-Portfolio #1 - Voki

In my school, student achievement is somewhat evaluated based on a students interest level and engagement in the class. For this reason, I chose Voki to focus on for this assignment. I feel Voki will assist teachers increase the interest level as well as enhance student achievement by the encouragement of technology. As an introduction to technology and interesting site, students will be able to utilize it effectively.

In the Voki website, www.voki.com, users can create speaking avatars.  The creator picks from numerous characters, colors, backgrounds, voices, etc. Multiple avatars can be created on the same account. This will keep the students wondering what will come next. Avatars can be edited as well. For example, one avatar can be used for every unit. The teacher may want to change the script of the avatar but leave everything else the same (i.e. the avatar looks).

Voki avatars will help to motivate students to participate. I visualize a class of engaged students (distance or face-to-face) utilizing this educational tool. Instead of the teacher talking everyday and repeating himself/herself, Voki can be used and re-played as many times as the individual student needs. This helps with differentiating instruction according to each student’s ability level. It is an interesting and different tool to use. This will better help students understand what they are learning.

Voki can also be especially helpful to English language learners. This will eliminate the need for students to feel lost or left out due to their language barrier.

Voki is a free tool. However, an enhanced version of Voki can be purchased for teachers to organize each class and register students. The Voki Classroom allows teachers to setup multiple classes, multiple lessons, and multiple students. They also have access to the Teachers Corner for extra help and support. With Voki Classroom, students don’t have to register. Privacy is always an issue, especially in education. Voki Classroom lessons can be set to private. If you don’t have Voki Classroom, there are no privacy settings to keep your information safe.