So much to learn, and most of it now is trial and error. A lot of the websites that I explored this week did not hold my fascination as much as TED (Technology, Entertainment, and Design). I really like two videos that I watched about exposing global corruption and the stealing by the elites and banksters of countries' natural resources. Discussions of current events take place in classrooms at all grades and levels, and students become interested in topics that they didn't even know existed through these discussions. Global corruption affects everybody and students can get a lot from TED. Even the sites for which I didn't care showed me a lot about assistive technology that I can utilize in my classroom. I created a PowerPoint presentation for Ivy Academy and it was time-consuming, to say the least. It didn't take forever to make; it just seemed that way. It took a little over 16 hours, mainly because it took a bit of time for me to figure out what I was doing. I also found out that I'm no genius when it comes to adding audio. I had to experiment several times before I finally got it the way I wanted it. Then, when I tried to send it, I learned something about file sizes and email after an extensive number of failed attempts. Then, I learned how to separate the audio from the video and send them separately; and then put them back together again when they reached their destination. Then I learned about Dropbox. It is awesome. It enables users to send great, big, huge files that can't be sent over email. Oh, the learning that is taking place, and I'm glad I'm the one learning it! When you get to the PowerPoint, click on Slide Show and view from the beginning (I haven't figured out how to take this part out yet). Turn up the sound and enjoy!
EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-14-13
Technology Exploration 11
Comic Life-http://www.comiclife.com/
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
This is a neat site for students who enjoy making comics. The
software interfaces with digital cameras, photo collections, and webcams.
There is full template support with panels, titles, and captions. Some of the
features include: Spell checker support; balloon control; text control;
predefined, as well as freeform shapes; comic fonts and panel layouts; and
PDF export.
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2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
Students can create comics of their own stories and can upload
their own pictures with their own dialogue. It would be a fun way to practice
dialogue and grammar. Students can use the templates or create templates of
their own. Projects can be completed in pairs, teams, or students can work
autonomously. Any subject can be displayed and students would really have an
opportunity to stretch the boundaries of their imaginations.
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3.
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Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
I don’t think that I would recommend this software, even
though there is a free trial for Windows XP and 7 users. The software is easy
to use, but the upgrade to ComicLife2 is $9.95/month. Students might have fun
creating their own comics using their own photos for a short time, however, I
don’t think that there’s enough here to warrant paying each month for the
privilege. In order to operate
properly, users should have Windows XP (SP3) or Windows 7 (SP1) and 200MB of
available disk space. A minimum 1024 x 768 display is necessary, but a 1280 x
1024 display is recommended.
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EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-15-13
Technology Exploration 11
iSpeech-http://www.ispeech.org
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
iSpeech is a text to speech and speech recognition provider and
the maker of the mobile apps, such as DriveSafe.ly, iSpeech Translator,
iSpeech Obama, and Caller ID Reader. Audio versions of any text can be made
using the text to speech or text to voice software. Text, documents, web
content, and blogs can be converted to speech.
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2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
This site would be helpful to elementary and secondary ESL
students, as well as students who are studying foreign languages. Auditory
learners would benefit from this resource, as well as special education
students with speech disabilities. iSpeech API enables text to speech and
voice recognition for most languages. Educators can use iSpeech to add audio
to blogs. Blogs can also be submitted to iSpeech’s podcast directories to
increase exposure and reader-base.
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3.
|
Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
I don’t think that I would recommend this site for the
classroom because it seems to be geared more toward business. iSpeech’s
mission is to “speech-enable the web and the world.” The apps are free on
Blackberry; however, to use the site, it’s pay-as-you-go. The price is not
revealed until you fill out an online registration form and a representative
contacts you. A basic account allows users to create free TTS recording up to
one minute in length. Upgraded accounts include iSpeech Plus and iSpeech
Premium. iSpeech Plus allows users to
create audio up to thirty minutes in length; and iSpeech Premium allow users
to create unlimited TTS readings up to 12 hours in length.
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EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-15-13
Technology Exploration 12
VoiceThread-http://voicethread.com
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
VoiceThreaders is a diverse online community where people can
participate by using voice, video, or text. They can use screen readers or
caption videos with any computer, device, or internet connection. Users can
upload, share, and discuss through several different types of media:
documents, images, audio files, and videos.
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2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
Students can use VoiceThread from computers at school. There
is also on-screen captioning. There is also a VoiceThread mobile that can be
used from iPhones, iPads, and iPods. A digital library is also available to
students. Special education students who have speaking disabilities can
utilize this assistive technology resource. They can comment on one of the
slides using a microphone, webcam, text, phone, and audio-file upload.
Privacy setting can be set to make a project public or shared with specific
people. Over 50 different types of
media can be used to discuss and share documents, images, audio files,
videos, and presentations.
|
3.
|
Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
I don’t think that I would recommend VoiceThread for an entire
class right now. However, it is a cloud application and there is no software
to install. The system requirement is an up-to-date version of Adobe Flash.
Also, VoiceThread works in most any web browser using almost any type of
internet connection. The drawback for me is the cost. A K-12 single educator
license is $79 per year, or $15 per month. This would more than likely be the
responsibility unless the school decided to obtain a license for all teachers.
License fee for up to 500 users is $450. On the high end of the spectrum, for
1,249 users, the fee is $2,065.60. For more users, school administration
would have to contact the company. The site has a slide button that educators
can utilize to calculate the fee for their school.
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EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-15-13
Technology Exploration 12
VoiceThread-http://voicethread4education.wikispaces.com/
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
This is a wiki specifically for educators. I really like this
site. It is a multimedia slide show that stores documents and images and
allows users to navigate slides and leave comments, as well as share their
own threads. It explains a lot that can be accomplished by students in the
classroom. This wiki is interactive and has grown to be a compilation of
VoiceThread examples from teachers and students. There are also links to
other websites that contain student and educator VoiceThread examples. There
is also a slide show with tips on how to implement VoiceThread in the
classroom.
|
2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
This wiki can be used in classroom with all subjects. Some
teachers use it to publish students work online or to allow students to share
when completing projects. Mathcasts can be made and posted to share with
others. Students can post and discuss with students at other schools around
the world. The Classroom Partners feature has a grid where students and
teachers can enter their names, the names of their schools, and the projects
on which they are working. Students can peer review each other’s work or they
can meet to share and discuss video. In Languages, students can speak and
take notes in the language they are studying. They can write stories and
poetry, as well as upload charts and digital photos. They can collaborate on
writing script or they can receive feedback from others.
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3.
|
Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
I would utilize and this assistive technology resource in my
classroom because it offers students a wide variety of learning experiences. I
would also recommend it to other educators. The cost for Wikispaces Classroom
is free to educators. Wikispaces Campus for K-12 schools and districts is
$1,000 per 100. Sign-up is required for each. There is no software to install
and students and educators can interact by posting their own threads about
lessons and projects on which they are working.
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EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-15-13
Technology
Exploration 13
Storybird-http://storybird.com/
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
Storybird is a story-telling platform for students and
educators who are readers, writers, and artists. Artwork is provided to spark
students’ imaginations. Puzzles are designed inside the artwork to draw out
themes in students’ stories. The purpose of Storybird is to improve students’
language, cognitive, and social skills. The site reports that students who
use Storybird on a regular basis see an improvement in their grades.
|
2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
Students can start with Storybird artwork and write their
story from there. They can upload their stories and receive social
reinforcement in the form of feedback from others. Storybird is free to
students with the option to purchase their work in book form.
|
3.
|
Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
I would recommend Storybird to other educators. The site is
secure and it is free; however sign-up is required. Student work can be
purchased as a book or they can receive upgrades on their accounts. It is a
great site for literary exploration and students new to media skills.
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EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-15-13
Technology
Exploration 13
Scribblar-http://www.scribblar.com
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
Scribblar is an instant online collaboration tool. It is
essentially a multi-user white board with real-time audio, document upload,
and text-chat that teachers can use to stage activities for students using it
a blank page for student projects. Templates can be preloaded for working
groups to sketch out their ideas and respond to others. It appears to be a versatile
technology resource.
|
2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
Students can participate in projects using this multi-user
whiteboard. They can upload documents and images and receive instant feedback
from teachers. Also, one-on-one lessons can be conducted in real-time.
Students can be engaged in their projects and collaborate with each other as
well as their teacher. They can use it at school, but continue to collaborate
on their projects with each other outside of the classroom. Also, teachers
can embed specific project links so that students can access them from other
classes. Scribblar also has built-in Wolfram Alpha and LaTeX features that
could be useful for teaching math.
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3.
|
Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
I would not recommend using this technology resource at this
time. For two users and one room, the service is free. The free service
offers students and teachers a five-page document limit. Pricing and plans go
up from there, as well as an increase in the document limit. There are
several paid plans from which to choose. Paid plans start at $9 per month for
a Basic plan and up to $39 per month for the Premium plan. There are other
free resources that I would probably utilize more in my teaching, such as the
English Place wiki.
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EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-15-13
Technology
Exploration 14
Xtranormal-http://www.extranormal.com/
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
I could not access this site using this URL. I received the
error message: “We’re sorry. This domain’s A-record is incorrect. You need to
change your domain’s A-record to: 66.644.4.” This went right over my head and
meant absolutely nothing to me except that I could not access the site. I
decided to search the site name instead and found a site at http://www.xtranormal.com/
and was able to access it. I had never heard of this site before and it seems
to be a site where students and educators can turn text into 3-D movies.
|
2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
Students can create stories and make movies of their stories
to share with the class and their friends. They can make their movies from
any web browser. Some of the uses include students expressing opinions;
sharing jokes with friends; creating stories and animation; and with desktop
creations, students can access animation options, create their own actors,
and write their own scripts.
|
3.
|
Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
The Basic plan is free, however the Educator plan is $10 per
month and the Professional plan is $50 per month. The online movie maker
(actors and sets can be purchase separately) and the Xtranormal desktop are
free with the basic plan, but the premium services are pay-per-use, and the
Basic plan does not include administrative tools for teachers. These are
included in the Educator plan. However, I would not recommend this technology
tool to other educators, nor would I use it in my classroom at this time;
maybe at a later date. I would not be adverse to letting students toy around
with the Basic version, as limited as it is, to learn a new multi-media
skill.
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EDOL 533
Technology Exploration Assignment
Form.
Student Name: tparsons Date:
07-15-13
Technology
Exploration 14
VirtualManipulatives-http://nlvm.usu.edu
1.
|
Describe what you learned from exploring this resource. Be
thorough in your response.
The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives is exactly what
it says. It is a library, on the face of it, containing manipulatives or
visual objects that help to illustrate mathematical relationships and
applications that was developed by educators at Utah State University. The
site contains project information, revision history, system requirements, and
a feature for reporting problems with the website. NLVM is a National Science
Foundation supported project that began in 1999 to develop a library of
interactive, web-based manipulatives or concept tutorials, mostly in the form
of Java applets, for mathematical instruction with an emphasis on K-12,
according to the NLVM website.
|
2.
|
How could you use this resource in a school setting? It does not matter if it is in your field
or level, you need to understand how the resource might be used in
educational settings.
Manipulatives allow students to visually examine, explore, and
develop math concepts. According to the website, the NLVM collection has over
100 interactive software programs, called “applets,” which are purported to
be an effective means for accelerating and deepening students' understanding
of math. There is also an eNLVM which can be utilized by teachers to modify
lessons and activities in the eNLVM and to tailor them to the needs of their
students. A variety of options for customization are available, including
modifying, creating, reorganizing, and deleting activities, instructions,
questions, and applet configurations. Teachers can share materials with
others so that they can collaboratively develop them. Users can copy and adapt published , and when
new versions are published, users who have made copies are notified so that
they can retrieve the updates.
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3.
|
Would you recommend this resource to other educators? Like/Dislike;
Ease of use, fee or not, and so forth.
Why or Why not?
Even though the NLVM is a resource from which teachers may
freely draw to enrich their mathematics classrooms, the resource is not
free. NLVM English licenses range from
$39 to $1,199, and to place a tax-exempt order, customers need to contact the
company. The materials can be used for
mathematical training of both in-service and pre-service teachers. The library
is being extended and refined through projects including eNLVM, however, I
would not recommend this resource to other educators at this time.
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