Digital Storytelling Week 2

This week we had to create a presentation using Voicethread. I had never heard of this tool before but it sure does make it easy to create a narrated story with pictures. What a great way for teachers to get kids involved with storytelling. It is similar to creating podcasts but without the hassle of using some complex software. There are some limitations to the software and the free tool is not feature-rich like the subscription model. At least the full version is not too expensive. At only $60/year for 100 students the price is affordable by most schools.

I am also starting to realize where storytelling can come in handy. I did a presentation yesterday at a school about how our teachers use technology in the classroom. I did this mostly by demonstration but found myself telling stories and using those stories as examples for the teachers. They reacted in a positive way and told me at the end of the discussion that the stories I used as examples helped them realize what they could do with the technology in their classroom.

I might start using students and teachers at my school to create short videos that I can show during my presentations. This will hopefully create a positive connection with the audience. They will be able to see how students and teachers are affected by technology. By having it come from someone other than an administrator they may be more open to embracing technology in the classroom.

Digital Storytelling Week 1

I have been looking forward to this class for some time now. For the past 5 or 6 years, I have been playing with things like iMovie and Garage Band making movies and podcasts. My knowledge of this process was limited to the tools that I had in front of me and I never went out on the web to find other tools and resources to improve my creations. I am hoping to pick up some new ideas on how I can share things with colleagues and family members.

The first week focused on PowerPoint and storytelling. I am glad that there is a movement to change how presentations are done. I have been through a few marketing meetings in the past few months and the presentations have been awful - lots of words and reading right from the screen. When it came time to do a presentation on technology I immediately knew what I wanted and didn't want to do.

One of the things I really want to improve is my ability to tell the story of events in my kids lives using pictures and sharing them on the Internet with family. I used to have my own secured web site for family but that became a lot of work to maintain. I am starting to explore things like Flickr and Picasa but would like to know what other options are out there.

By the way, I really like the new AngelLearning portal. It is a lot easier to find all of the items related to the class.

Similarities and Differences, Homework and Practice, and Generating and Testing Hypotheses

I can think of a time when I asked a student about similarities and differences. Before my technology career I was a music teacher. There were many times when we would look at two pieces of music and find similarities and differences. I was very pleased when the students would pick out some of the harder to find similarities or differences. There was one piece called Bravade Esprit by David Shaffer. The students named at least 10 ways that the composer similar in form and orchestration to music by Jim Swearingen.

I can think of a time when I taught a music appreciation class to 7th and 8th graders. I asked them to complete some homework covering Baroque music, specifically learning about the works and life of J.S. Bach. There was a complete revolt by the students. They had no interest in the music or the class. The students refused to complete the assignments and failed the quiz (listening and writing) on purpose. Needless to say I was not pleased with this outcome. I was forced to revisit the chapter taking a new approach to try to gauge some interest in music of the time period.

Generating and testing hypotheses is something that I use regularly in my daily work. Every time I come across a new piece of software or teaching resource I generate a hypothesis on how I think it should work and then test out that theory. In addition, I generate a hypothesis about how the teachers will react and use the new tool. A few times I have been way off on my hypothesis but, luckily, my teachers are open to embracing most of the tools I give them.

Clay Shirky Review

When I saw these videos posted as part of this week's assignment, I was very excited. In the spring of 2009, I read the book "Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations." From the first chapter I was fascinated at how this new form of interaction and socializing works. It was great to see and hear him say these things and expand on them in these videos.

The first video on Institutions vs. Collaboration was directly from his book. He wrote about some of the same sites (Meetup and Flickr) and used some of these same examples. It was interesting to me to see the chart that he used to show the distribution of contributors to Flickr. He did talk about it and there may have been a chart in the book but seeing it on screen and hearing him talk about it drove the point home. Don't we sometimes see the same thing in our classes? Usually there is a small group of people that answer most of the questions while others only answer one or two, even though they know the answer.

If you noticed, at the beginning of the video it was date stamped 2005. 2005! That was 5 years ago. Many of us are just now coming around to understanding and using the technology that he was talking about 5 years ago. Much of this seems new to us but in terms of technology, it is actually quite old.

The other video is more recent, from summer 2009. There was one comment that really stands out to me and it was mentioned briefly in his book. He basically said that people who are good conversation are not good at creating groups and those good at creating groups are not good at conversation. How true. When I talk to younger people (18-24) many of them are great at social media and groups but have a hard time with a conversation. They don't like to look you in the eye and talk to you. On the other hand, I can sit with people and talk to them but do not understand or necessarily like the whole social media movement. It takes away the personal connection you get when you talk to someone in person.

The other key point that he brought up was that everyone is a consumer and a producer. This has never been more true than now. If you look at technology items on the market now, they are all multi-functional. They allow you to not only watch a video but also record, edit, and publish one from a single device.

Clay Shirky talks about some very interesting topics. I look forward to hearing more from him.

Online Tools Review

The first tool I reviewed was bubbl.us. I found this product very simple and easy to use. The product the user can produce is a neat and clean map. Its simplicity is also its worst feature. It does not have the ability to add graphics to the design. While this is not always necessary it would be a nice feature.

The next tool was Mindmeister. This product was also very easy to use and produced nice, clean maps. The basic account is limited in its features. Users can only create and share up to 3 maps. By upgrading to the premium account, users get the ability to upload and use files and images and can create maps offline. The cost for the premium account is $59/year.

The third site I checked out was Education Oasis. This site has a number of different graphic organizers that can be downloaded. These are not organizers that you can use online but rather files that can be downloaded. There are a quite a few different types of graphic organizers for many different uses. This is one tool that almost all teachers can use and they do not have to have the a lot of computer experience.

Objectives, Feedback, and Recognition

What kinds of technologies can I use to help students set objectives?

There are two tools that I use to help others set objectives. First, I like to introduce new technologies either using a PowerPoint or a short movie in combination with a verbal introduction. I also will provide a demonstration showing them what this new technology can do. This gets my teachers familiar with what my goals are by implementing this technology.

I can think of a time that I asked students to fill out a survey to provide feedback.

A survey is something I use on a regular basis and it is a process that everyone understands. I like to ask my teachers what they need from me to successfully use new technologies in the classroom. I then use that information to push their goals higher so they can provide a more meaningful experience for students. In general, this method works great. The teachers provide me with great feedback and, after knowing them for a few months, I know their technical abilities and can set goals for them accordingly.

What questions do I have about using technology to provide recognition?

I am not one who provides a lot of recognition unless someone is doing something extraordinary. In that case, I usually e-mail the person and may mention them in a staff meeting. I need to get better at recognizing when people reach their personal goals or do something that is outside of their normal technological abilities. These things happen quite often but I am not sure how to use technology to provide recognition.

Enhancing Learning Materials through Technology Week 2 Article Review

I read the article Focus on Effectiveness: Setting Objectives. The very first objective really opened my eyes. I have a tendency to set objectives that have a very narrow outcome. To me, the objective is only met if I reach the goal I set in my mind. It must be exactly how I want it or it is not successful. Now, what I want and what is successful may be two different things. I may be able to implement a program at my school and make it work without meeting every little goal in my mind.

I also do not allow students, or in my case teachers, enough time to adapt. I expect all of them to pick up new technologies quickly and do not have patience for those who cannot figure it out.

Again, I am not a very flexible person and expect everyone to understand things the way I do. I like to carefully plan things and when it does not go as planned I think it is not a success. Working on some of these objectives may help relieve stress in my job.