Voicethread

I think I used Voicethread in one of my online classes at UMUC as a way to introduce myself to the class.  I remember really liking it and finding it easy to use, but I did not explore how I could use this technology any furthur.  I have now given it some thought and I think in my classes when I ask my students to "be the teacher" they can have the option of using Voicethread to present the information they are assigned.  This would serve two purposes.  Once they have captured the instruction they are to present to the class the instruction is saved in a central location that all of the students can access again at a later time if needed.  In particular I am thinking of right before a test.  Listening to their classmates again might help them master the content they will be tested on.  Overall, I now see a ton of potential for implementing Voicethread in my classes.

A Blog on Blogging

Before this class I had heard of blogs and have had some experience with the personal blogs of friends, but had not really given any thought to how they could be used in my classes.  I can now see many ways to use weblogs in a school setting including as a digital portfolio, a collaborative space, and using the space as a reference for students and teachers to post examples and information that can then be used by the rest of the class.  I really like the third option mentioned here because I can see this being a very beneficial addition to my math classes.  If there is a concept the students are trying to master I think it would be very helpful if they were required to work together through the use of a blog to obtain this mastery.  In going through the process of actually setting up my own blog and then posting back and forth with others I realize that a blog can be easily used for much more than just personal writing.

Another Response to Aretia

Melanie Doucette said...

Hello, You pose the question: whose responsibility is it to assure that our children are practicing safe surfing? I think it is the responsibility of everyone who plays a significant part in the child's education. This includes parents, teachers, administrators, friends, extended family, etc.

I would like to point out an associated problem that is often overlooked in this situation. Sometimes the adults in these situations do not know much about cyber-safety themselves so they are not able to properly instruct others on the topic. If someone is in a position where they are responsible for a student accessing the internet, their first step should be to educate themselves on cyber-safety.

I know it may seem funny to think that an adult might not know much about cyber-safety, but just thinking about what some of my adult friends, who have kids, think is ok to post on the internet verifies for me that my original statement is to often the case. I actually had to inform my Aunt once that it was probably not a good idea for her teenage son to post his cell phone number on his publically accessible Facebook wall.

September 29, 2011 2:18 PM

Response to Aretia

Hi Aretia,  It is tough to say what is right here.  I have had many conversations about what makes a good school.  In my opinion a lot of what someone gets out of education is contingent upon what they are willing to put in on their side.  All to often students falsify their address in order to attend the school I teach at because of its reputation as a good school.  I can honestly say I understand to some extent why they do so.  Others schools in my county are definitley not as desirable to attend.
-Melanie

This is in Response to Rob's Blog

Could not post on his blog for some reason?

Rob,
Not sure if this will help with the URL problem you are having with your students, but here is a suggestion that I have used in the past.  I to have asked students to go to a specific website and they return only to tell me the site did not work when in fact they typed it in wrong.  What I have done is have them give me their e-mail addresses, which most of them have, and I then make a class distribution list and then just send out a website link.  The other thing I have done is to bring the class to a computer lab for part of a class and have them each log on to a computer, go to the website, and add the site to their favorites.  At my school the students favorites list is saved on their logon account.  Now I can assign them homework and all they have to do is go to any school computer and the site will be easily accessible and not reliant on their typing skills or lack there of.

Edmodo: Facebook for your class!

Facebook, an online social network, is widespread in the school community in which I am a part of.  Almost all students have a Facebook site and a vast majority of the staff does as well.  I have found that within the community of teachers and administrators at my school who have a Facebook site, we often share and discuss issues or questions pertaining to work related topics.  We must always be careful to keep confidentiality a top priority when using Facebook as our discussion platform because it is so public, but overall I have found this to be a very valuable resource that has served to increase my connections with the people I work with. 

For this reason I would definitely be open to the idea of creating an online classroom community that is much like Facebook but with some added safety.  The benefits of the students using such a community that I can predict might be them getting to know each other better and giving those students who are maybe not comfortable speaking in class a way to express themselves and contribute to the discussions.  Netiquette would absolutely have to be taught to the students should they be involved with an online community but as long as I carefully guide and monitor what is posted in the community I don’t think it would be too much of a problem. 

Thanks to another student in our class, I found out about an online site known as Edmodo that is much like Facebook, but designed to be used by educators in their classes.  I am in the process of exploring what this site has to offer as far as ensuring student safety and privacy, but at first glance I really like the functionality of the free account I set up.  If you want to check it out yourself here is a link to the site:  http://www.edmodo.com/

Test Post

This is fun.  I hope it works!