Posts filed under ‘Personal’
Chatmaker
· What is it? What does it do?
o Chatmaker is a site that allows you to make your own chat rooms and easily invite others.
o Chatmaker’s chatroom is extremely easy and instantaneous, which means that people might use it for quick and private communications.
o Plus I really liked that it doesn’t require registration.
o Just type the title of your chatroom in the box on the homepage, and then send the link that is provided in the lower box to the people you want to join. My title was “JHU Cohort.” I then instant messaged my colleagues who looked like they were logged on to elc, but no one got back to me…So needless to say at that time of night, I was the only one in my chatroom, chatting to myself…so sad.
· What are the infrastructure and technical requirements for this tool?
o As long as the site Chatmaker isn’t blocked and you can copy and paste a link, you can chat with anyone!
· How can you use it effectively in instruction?
o This could be so fun for the students to have mystery chatpals either in our own school, another local school, or a school in another state or country!
o I could see a chatroom for students who are all trying to perform the same type of science experiment for the bcps science fair. They could chat about failure, success, and etc.
· What are other education applications for this tool?
o Teachers could create a chatroom with parents, collegues from other schools in the same content area, or even cohort members to discuss numerous topics, concerns, etc.
· What are the limitations and cautions related to use of this tool?
o Not sure if this is blocked on bcps.
o Can’t find any cautions, since one has to be invited to come into the chatroom.
· What are the management considerations for this tool?
o Making sure all invitees can be online at a certain specific time.
o Teaching students proper language and manners when in a chatroom.
MediaMax/The Linkup
What is it? What does it do?
Media Max is now called The Linkup. The Linkup is a social network for file sharing. According to The Linkup homepage, it is a place to easily send and receive files with friends and store massive amounts of files. Uploaded files can be public or protected files. Basic accounts are free and uses can subscribe (starting at $5.95/month) for accounts with more storage.
What are the infrastructure and technical requirements for this tool?
Uploaded files can be public or protected files. Basic accounts are free and uses can subscribe (starting at $5.95/month) for accounts with more storage. I tried to set up a free account. It was easy to do – all that is needed is a user name, email address, and password. To activate the account, the user has to check her email and click the activation link. When I tried to do this, I got the following message:
We’re sorry but an error has occurred. This error has been logged and The Linkup support has been notified. Please go back and try again to see if the error still exists.
I continued to try, but received the same message each time. I set up a different account using my home email address instead of school address, but I received the same message. Perhaps a paid account would work better.
How can you use it effectively in instruction?
If this site was working properly, teachers could certainly use it to work on common projects and share lessons or resources with each other. At school, it would probably be easier for students to use the shared folder on the BCPS server. If students were working on group projects outside of school, they may be able to use this; however, I do not see it as practical at the elementary school level. Other tools are more readily available and easier to use. Also, we cannot assume at this point that every student has functioning internet access at home. The Linkup may be useful for our group project for this class; however, the site is not working properly at this time. It would be a good place to store videos and photographs because it has a lot of storage capacity.
What are the limitations and cautions related to the use of this tool?
Presently, the obvious limitation is that an error message occurs when trying to activate an account. I think this tool could be very useful for teachers and administrators more than for students.
What are the management considerations for this tool?
One consideration is that this tool requires users to pay monthly fees after the free trial period. The fees would have to come from the school budget unless it was district funded. Other free sites are available such as Write Board that seem more practical.
voo2do
Voo2do is a free advanced task and priority management tool. It tracks priority, due date, and time estimates for each task entered. Organization is the identified property of voo2do that claims to make it a step above other online to-do lists and, currently in the development phase, is the feature that allows multiple users to view and edit multiple projects together. It is designed for those who work on many different projects, constantly jot down ideas to work on later, have a need to prioritize and to know where projects stand and what needs attention next.
Members can:
- Organize tasks by project
- Track time spent and remaining
- Add tasks by email
- Publish task lists
- Access on web 24×7
- Work asynchronously
- Improve personal productivity
Voo2do works on Internet Explorer 6+, Firefox 1+, and Opera 8+. It works imperfectly on Safari. There is nothing to install. It is implemented using Perl, Apache, the Apache::PageKit web framework, the PostgreSQL database server, and copious amounts of client-side Javascript. (The last part of this description is far over my level of understanding.)
I signed up and found voo2do relatively easy to navigate. For my trial run, I entered information associated with this course as far as organizing tasks. I then tried to imagine an effective use of voo2do in relation to instruction. This is where it seemed cumbersome to me. I use the calendar feature on Outlook as my tech source for reminders to supplement my old fashioned pencil to date book method. From a student point of view, I entered information from this course on my voo2do account, as well. That was even more cumbersome to me, perhaps because there was so much more to organize. Using the resources provided on CTE (especially the activities organizational grids) serve me well. I found the added time to use voo2do, even though it was easy to enter the data, seemed redundant, considering my current satisfactory organizational methods. Accessing it on line seemed to be yet another extra step to me.
While I can not believe I am expressing this next statement, perhaps I don’t have enough various things to make voo2do an asset for me! I know I feel that as far as using it in my capacity as a teacher. However, I had a thought of using it to allow parents to access time line requirements and reminders related to long term projects, homework, etc. Families would simply need a password and remember to check the site. Perhaps it could be an additional support to the traditional paper reminders and/or teacher web page reminders. My perspective as a student in this and future courses is different if all members were using it, but I still struggle with grasping the need if we are using CTE, D2L, Black Board, etc.
Allowing members of various groups to edit and revise projects is currently limited to just allowing online access to the original document with the use of a password. Changes would have to be made in a word document after copying and pasting the original and sending the revisions as an email attachment. However, consideration is being given to updating that feature if there is enough demand expressed. (Writeboard, which I reviewed earlier, is a perfect tool for that group document application.)
Perhaps those who use the computer more often than I would better appreciate the functions of voo2do in helping them organize responsibilities and timing in their personal and work lives, but I think voo2do may be better served in the business world.
WiZiQ
What is it? What does it do?
WiZiQ (read Wiz IQ) is a FREE web-based platform for teachers and students. It contains a state-of-the-art virtual classroom, as well as the ability to create and share online educational content and tests, as well as make connections with others who have similar subject interests. Options within the virtual classroom include:
- Ability to post images, PowerPoint presentations and documents
- Audio and video sharing
- Live chat
- Control Privileges over the session
According to the WiZiQ website, “the Virtual Classroom allows the participants to communicate using video and audio with a headset or through text chat, and to share whiteboards, presentations, documents and images.”
WiZiQ has been compared to Elluminate, but prides itself in having additional features that make it a unique (and free) Web 2.0 tool.
All the synchronous sessions on WiZiQ are automatically recorded so users can revisit and also search for a certain topic at their convenience.
WiZiQ also lets the user create content online and then convert it to a sharable format.
On WiZiQ, users can enter a subject and locate other WiZiQ users who share similar interests. The site also allows individuals to contact other members to exchange knowledge, ideas and content. While I was exploring the site, I came across a user I knew and was able to send her an email, asking her thoughts about the WiZiQ platform.
What are the infrastructure and technical requirements for this tool?
Signing up for an account to WiZiQ is easy and, most importantly, free! Individuals are required to enter an email address, and a password, along with their name to activate an account. To get started, the user follows a set of simple directions:
- Invite contacts to join WiZiQ or search for members who share your subjects on WiZiQ and invite them to the virtual classroom.
- Schedule online sessions with your contacts or fellow members.
- Meet in the virtual classroom to share and exchange knowledge live and online.
How can you use it effectively in instruction?
WiZiQ houses a large collection of presentations for the teacher to access. These presentations are categorized by instructional levels as well as content/topics. Teachers can also find professional development presentations as well. Within the members section of WiZiQ, teachers can connect with hundreds of other members and browse content or questions about a variety of topics to expand their knowledge and understanding, while gleaning ideas and strategies from other educators around the world.
What are other education applications for this tool?
Using the virtual classroom features found within WiZiQ, a teacher may be able to conduct synchronous meetings with other teachers, parents, or students. These chats could be saved on the WiZiQ site and accessed by individuals at other times that are convenient for their own viewing purposes. WiZiQ does provide a privacy feature that can limit the viewing of recorded chats to only individuals invited to the presentation. Teachers could do a “Back to School Night” recording, showcase student work, or provide parent training regarding such topics as science fair projects, special education procedures, or volunteer training sessions.
What are the limitations and cautions related to use of this tool?
In the near future, WiZiQ will be offering some advanced features for a monthly subscription fee, but the basic features on WiZiQ will continue be free.
Within the WiZiQ Terms of User Agreement, services are listed as not available to minors under the age of 14. If a teacher wanted to conduct an online synchronous chat with younger students, parent membership would be required, as well as adult supervision of the minor participating within the online experience or accessing recorded chats on the WiZiQ site.
What are the management considerations for this tool?
According to the WiZiQ website; “WiZiQ puts learners and teachers together regardless of the boundaries and enables live, online teaching for absolutely no cost to the teacher or the student.”
Scheduling online presentations for your students, colleagues, or students’ parents may require significant management and planning. It would also be important to address technology access for individuals attempting to access the information presented online. For individuals who lack technology at home or broadband internet connections, alternative access may need to be considered.
Teachers using the WiZiQ site for resources and collaboration with other members may want to explore several of the synchronous training presentations that have been recorded and stored on the site. These presentations will provide the viewer with additional information regarding the variety of features found within the WiZiQ platform and its virtual classroom.
Zoho Show 2.0
What is it? What does it do?
Zoho Show is an online presentation tool similar to Microsoft Powerpoint.
It is a free presentation tool that can be accessed anywhere, any time, by anyone.
You can upload presentations into Zoho Show or you can create original presentations on the site.
Zoho Show offers a complete editor with many presentation features such as text formatting, background themes, color, bullets, and clipart.
What are the infrastructure and technical requirements for this tool?
The advantage of using Zoho Show is that it is browser dependent and does not require the purchase of a software program.
Zoho Show can be accessed on Windows and Macintosh computers. All you need is a computer with internet access.
How can you use it effectively in instruction?
The program is useful for working collaboratively on presentations and students can easily share their work.
Like Powerpoint, Zoho Show is another fun way to present information in a graphic manner.
Teachers can use Zoho Show to have students work on projects at home and school without worrying about access or home computers lacking software.
What are other education applications for this tool?
The presentations you generate in Zoho Show are private and are accessible only by you.They are protected by your Zoho ID/password authentication. However, presentations can be shared with others or made public if you choose.
You can save a Zoho Show and play it even if you do not have internet connectivity.
Remote presentations can also be created.
What are the limitations and cautions related to use of this tool?
At this time Zoho Show presentations cannot be printed.
Transitional effects cannot be inserted between slides.
What are the management considerations for this tool?
The user needs to have an account and password. Therefore, students would need to be capable of logging onto the site. Aside from that, Zoho Show is readily available via an internet connection. So, it can be easily used within a lab situation.
Scrapblog
What is it? What does it do?
Scrapblog allows users to create scrapbooks by importing photos. The scrapbook pages look beautiful, just like regular scrapbook pages that someone might spend hours creating. On Scrapblog, you can simply drag and drop photographs into shapes and boarders. Users can choose a theme for each page or use blank pages. elements suchs as shapes, borders, transitions, and music can be added. It is very easy to use.
Wat are the infrastructure and technical requirements for this tool? An internet connection and your digital phots are all that is needed.
How can you use it effectively in instruction?
Scrapblog can be used in many of the same ways as PhotoStory. Students can create on-line scrapbooks of field trips, school projects, or special activities and send them to their parents or do class presentations. Students could also use Scrapblog to create scrapbooks of different periods in time, geographical regions, or settings from a story. Many classroom applications are possible.
What are the limitations and cautions related to use of this tool? Check the policy regarding posting students’ photographs. Make sure students did not opt-out.
What are the management considerations for this tool? It is very easy to use. Teachers will need to monitor students’ photographs, help them download photos on the computer, set up blog or projector for sharing.
del.icio.us
What is it? What can it do?
del.icio.us is a social bookmarking site. It allows you to keep and share favorites with friends, family, coworkers, etc. It also allows you to discover new things which have been posted by others. Your bookmarks are stored online which allows you to access and store websites from anywhere. It can be browsed by anyone, however, you need to register for an account in order to save bookmarks. To register all that is needed is a username and password. It is a completely free service and you can multiple accounts, I.e. personal and work. The site was created in 2003 by Joshua Schachter as a hobby. In December of 2005, Yahoo! acquired del.icio.us. Although this is a public site, bookmarks can be marked private which are only viewable to you. Bookmarks can be searched by keywords and tags (a one-word descriptor that you assign to a bookmark). Del.icio.us is an open-ended system.
It can be used to:
Conduct research
Create a Wishlist
Podcast
Plan a Vacation
link log
Save recipes in a Cookbook
Collaborate with others through a shared account.
Infrastructure and Technical requirements:
In order to access it all you need is browser and an internet connection like: Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Opera or Flock.
Suggested ways for effective use instruction and other education applications:
David Muir in “Simply Del.icio.us listed the following educational possibilities:
Web sites for research or projects
Books recommendations
Professional research
List of books you would like to read
Placing web links on your school web page
Students can find resources at home and access them at school and vice versa
Share what you are reading or view what your peers are reading on the web
Web site collections tagged by school topic
Other ideas:
Create a personal dictionary
Network with other educators
Create a school or grade level bookmark account
Collaborate and share bookmarks with colleagues
Send or highlight bookmarks to specific users
Create a special tag just for a class project
Create a list of resources for students that can put on a course website
When previewing the site, I did several researches and found that like all searches the more defined topic the more specific sites are given. For example:
| Topic | Items | Other information |
| Spreadsheets – to teach a lesson on graphing | 21 | Types of sites: Create a graph; Graph types for kids; graphing with excel; |
| Use of technology in the classroom | 3,385 | Various sites which tell how you could use technology and the value of technology |
| Reading | 231,842 | Related tags: reading, books, education, literature, literacy, reference, productivity |
| Cause/Effect | 1, 7888 | Graphic organizers, lesson plans |
| Lesson Plans | 4,062 | |
| Elementary Lesson Plans | 1,438 | |
| Elementary Rdg. Lesson Plans | 421 | |
| 1st Grade Reading Lesson Plans | 112 | |
What are limitations and cautions:
There are limitations and cautions related to all social bookmarking sites. The Educause Learning Initiative article, “7 Things you Should Know about Social Bookmarking” states:
By definition social bookmarking is done by amateurs. There is no oversight as to how resources are organized and tagged. For example, if a user saves a bookmark for a site with information about greyhounds but only tags the site with the term “greyhounds” and not also with “dogs” or perhaps “dog racing,” that resource might never be found by someone looking for information about breeds of dogs. Because social bookmarking reflects the values of the community of users, there is a risk of presenting a skewed view of the value of any particular topic. For example, users might assign pejorative tags to certain resources, in addition, social bookmarking means storing data in yet another location that you have to maintain and update.”
Other cautions:
Inappropriate websites could be posted
Not all information may be reliable or true
There are no standards for tagging – teachers could provide a list of acceptable tags for a project
As can be seen from chart above – students must be given guidelines as to what to search for
Need to be registered to be able to mark bookmarks
Teachers would need to review websites that students could access
Management Considerations:
Blocked by BCPS
Registration required to mark bookmarks but not to search
Need to agree to Terms of Service
For general questions there is a FAQs and help pages. If answer is not found there, you need to email your question. No phone number is given.
Bloglines
· What is it?
· What does it do?
o Bloglines tracks the information you’re interested in, retrieves new stuff as it happens, and organizes everything for you on your own personal web news page. I believe it reads all the blogs out there on the web through a blog’s RSS feed and organizes and manages it all for you. Once you have logged in (subscribed for free)- you can complete a preference list of what you are interested in like cooking, health, sport, etc. Along with your general preferences, you can select from the top 10 blogs such as CNN, iTunes Top 25 songs, Librarians’ Internet Index- Websites you can trust, Quotes of the Day, etc. Plus you can import your own blog subscriptions (blogs you already visit).
o Currently Bloglines searches and indexes more than 80 million live web articles.
o Bloglines allows you to be very choosy and only track the things you are interested in — then they do all the legwork for you. They find the latest news, collect it for you, and keep it on your Bloglines page until you’re ready to read it. You log in when you can, from any computer with a web browser.
o All-in-one Blog and news feed search, online subscriptions, news reader, blog publishing and social sharing tools
o Available in 10 languages
o Mobile version optimized for handheld computers and cell phones
o Email subscriptions help manage your e-newsletter traffic
o Package Tracking (UPS, USPS & FedEx)
o Custom weather forecasts
o Quick Pick Subscriptions get new users started quickly and easily
o Personalized recommendations to find new subscriptions
o Bookmarklet for single-click subscriptions to any source
o Notifiers for all browser types to remind you when new articles have arrived
o Bloglines Saved Searches deliver future articles matching your key words and phrases
o Most Popular lists show the days hot topics and which blogs are getting the most noticed
o Handy add-on tools for bloggers such as automated blogrolls, subscription buttons
o
· What are the infrastructure and technical requirements for this tool?
o Must have access to the internet with a web browser
o Obtain an username password with an existing email account
· How can you use it effectively in instruction?
o Teacher could subscribe to Bloglines in order to avoid informa6tion overload. Bloglines will find the latest news, collect it for instructors, and keep it on their Bloglines page until they are ready to read it. I see Bloglines being used for a class who needs current information on a specific topic.
· What are other education applications for this tool?
o Educators can subscribe to educational blogs such as TechLearningBlog or podcasts in order to keep current of technology.
o Weather can be tracked for lessons using temperature, rainfall, etc.
o Locate trustworthy websites from the Librarians’ Internet Index
o Uses 10 languages, so could help ESOL teachers gather pertinent information for their students especially using foreign language podcasts
· What are the limitations and cautions related to use of this tool? And what are the management considerations for this tool?
o The teacher will need to subscribe since an existing email address is required to join.
o Not all information is appropriate for students, so the teacher still needs to “weed” through information gathered and organized by Bloglines.
Flickr
· Flickr (http://www.flickr.com) is the Web 2.0 tool that I chose. It is an online photo management tool. The site has the following capabilities;
1. Upload pictures from desktop
2. Organize pictures
3. Share Pictures (Collections/Set) – This has a privacy feature where you can limit who sees work. It also has a copyright feature.
4. Mapping – Put pictures on map
5. Make Stuff with pictures
6. Keep In Touch – Discussion capability
· Flickr can be run on either a MAC or PC. To upload pictures you have the following options;
1. Via the Flickr Uploader
2. Via IPhoto, Aperture, or Windows XP Plugins
3. Via e-mail
4. Via various free third party desk top programs
The site relies on standard HTML and HTTP features, allowing for wide compatibility among platforms and browsers
· The first thought that came to mind with the effective use in instruction was a high school photography class. I spoke with my son’s friend who is an art student at THS and he uses this program along with others in his home in order to research, learn, and share ideas about photography. At the elementary level, I immediately thought of our art teacher and the ability to photograph student work and file via the collections/set option in Flickr. A set could be the grade level and the collections could be based on topic. This appears to be a great way to keep track and share work with parents. I also thought the Make Stuff option might be a great fundraiser for the school. What parent doesn’t love pictures of their kids on stuff?
· After my initial thought involving the art department, I then went to the core curriculum. In fourth grade our students in Baltimore County are to know where all the states are on a map. An instructor could have students bring electronic pictures of places in states they’ve been and these pictures could be put on a map with the drag and drop feature. This would personalize the learning. This could also be used in fifth grade when the students take their field trip to Philadelphia. As a math teacher, I immediately thought of geometry in our world. The students could take pictures of various geometric shapes and angles in our world and it could be uploaded into a sharing page in order to give a real world application to geometry.
· A Yahoo ID is needed to use Flickr. The biggest limitation is our own limitation in Baltimore County. All students must sign a release for any works or pictures to be used on the Baltimore County Website or in any other form of publication. I am not sure how this would transcend into the use of a Web 2.0 tool like Flickr.
· If Baltimore County would allow the use of a tool like this, there would have to be several guidelines put in place. A list of allowable members would have to be established in each classroom and at the school level. It would only be able to be used in the school level unless permission was released by parents and BCPS. There are several layers of management that would have to be gone through for this type of tool to be used
· I think this tool would be wonderful to use in the classroom and at the school level. However, I do think that all the red tape that would have to be gone through might be too much for Baltimore County.
Backpack & Wizlite
Scott’s Web 2.0 tools
Web 2.0 Tools
Backpack
The first tool I researched was called Backpack. http://www.Backpack.com. The function of this tool is essentially as the name implies. Backpack is a place on the web where a user can keep information organized. All sorts of files can be stored and organized at the site. PDF files, documents, photos and spreadsheets just to name a few.
The strength of Backpack lies in its application
for collaboration among teams. All members of a team can have access to your Backpack page, just like a social networking site. There is also a group calendar so everyone can keep track of the schedules of the other members of your team. Reminders of important meetings
can be e-mailed or sent as text messages to your phone.
Three applications of Backpack listed on he site that I found interesting were gathering and reviewing research, meeting and prep notes, and keeping a page of frequently needed forms.
Research Page
This example had some brief notes to inform the user of the content of the page and links to .PDF files with full articles.
Meeting and Prep notes
This example had a list of reminders for the meeting, files needed and important reminders of key concept to be covered. This use of Backpack would have been helpful to have for a meeting I had just this past week!
Frequently Needed Forms
The last example shows a place to archive frequently needed forms. This gives you access to files anywhere you have an Internet connection. This could also be a great way to back up files in case a computer cashes.
Backpack Summary and Recommendations.
All in all I thought Backpack was a terrific tool with reasonable pricing if the cost was shared among members of the team. Plans range from $24/month for a basic plan, which includes up to 6 users, to the Pro level that is 99/month for up to 40 users. A solo plan can be purchased for $7 a month, but the opportunity for collaboration is one of the key strengths of Backpack so going solo doesn’t seem the way to go. A 30-day trial is available but it appears that if you forget to cancel at the end of the 30 days you would be charged for the month. The fact that it costs anything is a drawback for me. Having used a service similar to this before, I found uploading and downloading speeds to be very slow. I cannot speak to this feature of Backpack without trying it more thoroughly.
Wizlite
WizLite is an Internet highlighting tool that allows a user to select and highlight text on any page on the Internet. These pages can be shared among small groups that are created by the user. This makes the idea of WizLite a very appealing one for student collaboration.
In Practice
WizLite works as an extension for the Firefox web browser and as a bookmarklet. A bookmarklet is a small application that is supposed to work as a bookmark or hyperlink to add functionality to a web page. All you have to do is set up a free WizLite account and verify your e-mail address and BINGO! At least that’s what I thought. As of the time of this writing WizLite is not supported by he latest version of Firefox. The bookmarklet functioned as a bookmark that when accessed, worked with some pages and at times loaded very slowly if at all. As a classroom tool this could be problematic. Another downfall of WizLite is the fact that it only works with old versions of Firefox and is not supported by other browsers such as Internet Explorer and Safari. When the software worked a user can highlight text and add notes to highlighted portions of the page to be read later. It is important to note that in order to read highlighted text and notes a social group needs to bee created. You can download Wizlite, create groups and create an account at http://wizlite.com/
Wizlite Summary and Recommendations.
It your computer lab has Firefox installed and you are willing to take the time to have your students set up social groups then Wizlite offers some intriguing possibilities for collaborative learning. There may be issues with access privileges so you should check it out thoroughly before planning to use Wizlite. User names should be chosen carefully to endure student safety.
BCPS E-Learning: Web 2.0 Tools 