Project #3

Target Audience: Biology Students
Technology: Digital Frog International
Learning Activities: I will either make a tutorial for this technology or make an assignment for them to use as a virtual dissection.

I know that many of the Biology teachers are choosing this technology, but I think that it is a very useful way to incorporate dissection for parents who are opposed or for lack of resources.

Youtube

Video Chat

For once, this is one piece of technology that I'm actually pretty good at. I spent the summer studying abroad in London, so I used video chat to talk to my family at least once a week. I'm the most familiar with Skype, but I have also used msn messenger video chat as well. After learning about different options in class, I would like to try out a few of them to see how they would compare.

For the assignment, I chatted with one of my best friends from home on skype. It was useful because we were able to see the expression and feel more like we were actually talking. We did have a few problems with echoing, etc, but I think that part of our problems were due to her slow internet connection.

In the classroom, video like this could be very valuable for having "guest speakers" who would not be able to come to the actual classroom. Also, you could use video like this to show students an environment, such as a lab, that you wouldn't be able to have access to.

Fair Use

It was really interesting to learn the basics of copyright and fair use. I showed my roommates the video because they are Disney fanatics, and they quite enjoyed it. :)

I think that fair use benefits teachers because they can supplement their lessons with materials without too much effort or expense. Without fair use, teachers would have to go through an extensive process to get permission to just use a picture or a video. Since I am a visual learner, I benefit so much from pictures/youtube videos/diagrams that teachers use in powerpoints, etc. Lessons would be pretty boring without the chance to spice up with materials. Also, it would be very difficult for a teacher to gather their own materials if they couldn't use someone else's for a lesson.

Basically, fair use makes it easier to be a good teacher. As long as you are giving credit where it's due, I think it's great to take advantage of the opportunities given thanks to fair use.

Website Up and Running

Here is a link to my class website. Thanks to Ben for the help to make it enjoyable instead of frustrating :)

Videos

I really enjoyed making the class video together. I was blown away by how simple it was to piece it all together. I can see real value in making videos as a teacher. Depending on your location and materials, it isn't possible to do all that you'd like to in the classroom. So, if you can make a video and show it in class or put it on your website, it could be a real learning tool. Also, it gives another way to reach students who might be bored by normal lecture or who are very visual learners. I'm excited to start work on project #2 and make a movie of my own.

Personal Learning Networks

First of all, I always realized the internet was huge, but this week my eyes were opened to so many resources online! It is incredible how many different types of sites that you can explore as a part of your personal learning network.

Some of the resources I explored were teaching related. For example, I subscribed to an education blogs website where teachers can share lesson ideas and materials. Also, I subscribed to scholastic's teacher sharing website with a similar premise.

I also signed up for an account on Linked In because it seemed like an interesting concept to me. And I'll be looking for a job within the next year, so it'd be nice to start forming contacts. I'm still in the process of finding people on the website, but I'm glad to have an account that I can go to later when I could really use it.

Another resource I discovered through this activity was ItunesU. This is a part of itunes that I had never discovered before. You can find information through different universities as well as K-12 programs. There are podcasts, links to websites and videos, etc. It is a tool that I am excited to explore more. To get to it, you open up itunes store and then click on the itunesU link along the top menu.

I am glad to be exposed to so many new sources that I can draw from individually and as a teacher!