Podcasting

For an activity in class we split into groups to create different podcasts. We just did a brief segment on the movie Aladin and why we believed everyone should have a chance to see it. With this activity I realized that anything you can lecture or tell your students, you could also post online with podcasts making your lecture public to all that were interested. Using along with programs such as D2L, students that are out of the classroom at the previous time of the lesson could view or re-view what was taught at their own pace. These podcasts allow pausing and playing which would be beneficial and helpful for students such as myself that have a harder time learning from an auditory based teaching style. 

Google Docs

Igoogle could help students by personalizing their own web page. Students are allowed to stream news links, have local weather shown whenever they wish to view, even put games or videos on their home page.

With Picasa you are able to edit or enhance photos, but it does not go into detail like Adobe or other photography softwares. I find that it would be easy to use in the classroom, and not very complex for students to learn and use. It would be helpful in making photos used on display boards look more appealing to the eye.

Knol is much like wikipedia, so it is beneficial to locate information quickly but students also have to remember these statements on Knol are not revised or reviewed before posted online so the information is not 100% reliable.

All these tools are free and user friendly. So when debating which programs to use in the classroom i think many teachers over look this option. Especially with todays economy i think it would be wise to promote the use of these softwares to different school districts.

Wiki Prompt

Wikis are a very useful tool to every one! They allow new and creative ways to approaching tasks in our lives. 

For example itt would be very beneficial to me to use the wiki calendar to help plan out student goal or assignments (especially if they have set dates to complete certain standards written in their IEPs), as well as keeping my own work organized. Along with this application there are various other applications which you can apply to your classroom or for personal use in many different ways. 

Course Management Prompt

Just like internet sites have taken over text books, course management tools, such as D2L, Moodle, and Blackboard, are taking over teacher's curriculum and grade books. These programs can pretty much handle everything you would do in the classroom. Programs such as D2L, Moodle, and Blackboard can administer tests or quizzes, provided formats for projects or assignments, post grades, collect assignments, and include class discussion sections. I think these programs are great ideas because I then know if one of my students is out sick or something, they can stay caught up with the rest of the class simply by checking in with the program.

Google Docs Vs. Zoho

Using the two different applications, I found the google applications a lot more friendly.  I felt it was more user friendly because the overall lay out is much more like word processor which most of us are used to using from school.  I wish I would have known of these applications because it could have saved me a lot of money compared to buying the microsoft package when I started my freshman year at St. Cloud State.  I did like Zoho though because it seems like it allows you to be a lot more creative once you get used to the set up of the application.

More flickr

I find it very neat that you can apply the different techniques to different pictures using flickr.  Using the online image generator applications, you can use the tools in many aspects of the classroom.  One important factor could be to use the slide show option to represent visuals throughout a lesson plan. You would reach out to both visual and auditory learners. Another, especially when educating students with EBD, you could create pictures representing different symbolisms or emotions throughout lessons.

Week 3

I feel pretty comfortable posting pictures online with programs like Flickr, considering you have some control over who views them. I think programs like Flickr are very beneficial in ways that you can keep family members and friends who live further away up to date with photos they view online, versus waiting until the next holiday or whenever they can make it into the area to share your photos.  Programs like this can also be beneficial in the classroom because you can post pictures of students' work and progress and only allow parents and family to view them with the private settings.  This wouldn't limit the progress update to just parent-teacher conferences, they could refresh and upload additional pictures weekly or daily, allowing the family to check at their own discretion.