I am realizing more and more, the complexities of providing and maintaining access to technology for SPPS staff, particularly when we have pushed so hard for them to use the new technologies in their instruction. Bandwidth- or not enough of it- is the current dilemma.
The reality is that this isn't our mother's Internet... many of the web.2 tools take up huge amounts of bandwidth, which has resulted in an almost constant traffic jam, which often discourages our teachers from continuing to try to use the technologies. Many say that more bandwidth is not the answer, that what we must do is monitor how the existing pipe is being used. There are no easy or simple (or economical) answers.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Post 16- Thing 17, One New Thing: Comic Life
As far as "new things" are concerned, there are so very many that I see or interact with on a daily basis, that I become a little dizzy just thinking about the possibilities. The truth is, I am not one to "play" on the computer- for me, my computer equals work- so I appreciate it when I am forced to learn a new application, such as when I promise to teach it to a class of students...
My tech integration colleagues have done some very cool projects with students using Comic Life, piquing my interest. (See French postcards at Washington- http://washington.spps.org/French_II.html )
I had not gotten around to actually using it though, until I talked Jill at Harding into using it with her Spanish students for a class project. (I also volunteered to teach it to them....) Students can use their own digital photos or create their own art for the strips. They then insert dialog and captions to tell the story or relay the information. I could see this used in many content areas for biographies, how-to, persuasive, pro and cons on an issue and many others. In the case of Jill's Spanish III students, we used it to practice present and past tenses.
Though not every student was completely immersed in the project, I'd venture to say that they enjoyed it, and that it was a nice change of pace for them. Show-time is later this week, on Thursday, when we'll see the finished products. I'll plan to post a couple of them here.
The upshot is that I see this product, which is available to all SPPS staff & students, as a great "show what you know" tool for our students, particularly for ELL or World Language practice.
Try to find some time to check it out.
Leslie
My tech integration colleagues have done some very cool projects with students using Comic Life, piquing my interest. (See French postcards at Washington- http://washington.spps.org/French_II.html )
I had not gotten around to actually using it though, until I talked Jill at Harding into using it with her Spanish students for a class project. (I also volunteered to teach it to them....) Students can use their own digital photos or create their own art for the strips. They then insert dialog and captions to tell the story or relay the information. I could see this used in many content areas for biographies, how-to, persuasive, pro and cons on an issue and many others. In the case of Jill's Spanish III students, we used it to practice present and past tenses.
Though not every student was completely immersed in the project, I'd venture to say that they enjoyed it, and that it was a nice change of pace for them. Show-time is later this week, on Thursday, when we'll see the finished products. I'll plan to post a couple of them here.
The upshot is that I see this product, which is available to all SPPS staff & students, as a great "show what you know" tool for our students, particularly for ELL or World Language practice.
Try to find some time to check it out.
Leslie
Friday, January 4, 2008
Post 15-Thing 16, Using MNLink/MINITEX Document Delivery Service
MEDD is basically a service offered by MINITEX whereby documents are delivered to you electronically, free of charge. All you need to do is create an account for your school or classroom. Articles can be viewed, downloaded or printed, though there are copyright restrictions. See http://www.minitex.umn.edu/docdel/medd/
Many of the private and suburban high schools use MEDD and I continue to be surprised that no one in SPPS has made use of it. I encourage you to check it out. We are here to facilitate if you want to give it a whirl.
Leslie
Many of the private and suburban high schools use MEDD and I continue to be surprised that no one in SPPS has made use of it. I encourage you to check it out. We are here to facilitate if you want to give it a whirl.
Leslie
Post 14- Me in action, posting a photo on my blog
OK, I tried this weeks ago and kept getting errors. When I went and read the help Q & A, it looked like it might be an issue with Blogger, but I have not made it back to try again. Here goes... Whoa Nellie! It worked! I actually was able to post a photo. Now maybe I'll go choose some more and then have a lovely illustrated personal blog like Lindsay! Here I go...
Post 13- One New Thing, Social Bookmarking
I am an avid reader of professional literature and publications, so tend to know more in theory about various tech innovations and tools i than I can actually DO. Sometimes this creates and uncomfortable disconnect. Today while reading the latest online issue of TechLEARNING News, I came across an article called Social Bookmarking in Plain English that not only explained social bookmarking to me, but introduced me to a very cool online resource Common Craft that I know I'll use again. Common Craft does the following: (Text from their website.)
Our product is explanation.
Our product is explanation.
We use a simple format and real-world stories to make sense of complex ideas.
We're interpreters. We present your products and services in plain English using short, unique and understandable videos in a format we call Paperworks.
Essentially, they use very simple, very low tech screencasts to explain tech concepts in a down-to-earth manner. It certainly worked for me and was also entertaining. I now feel like I know what the del.icio.us reference on websites means and also think I 'll further investigate social bookmarking and well as promote it to the teachers I work with. More on this when I have actually tries it out.
Leslie
Post 11- SPPS Online Resources- A Brief Overview
The following is a copy of the notes (edited and revised somewhat) that I created while listening to the group presentations during the November MILP meeting on SPPS Online Resources. While it is not a complete list, it will provide you with an overview of some of the resources. See Post 11 for an overview of resources not mentioned here.
Leslie
ABC-CLIO
• Social- studies & literature
• Google-like searching
• Returns in categories
• Ranked results
• Images
• Includes encyclopedias, essays, reference
• Topic exploration section with activities and quizzes
• Citation button in multiple formats within articles
• Staff section sppsforstaff sppsfor staff0708
o Aligned with textbooks
o Test creator
EBSCO-
• Similar to Gale but higher level
• Various databases, can translate articles
• Help section & tutorials
• Can narrow down topics, creates concept maps
• Visual searches
• Many are abstract only, so you must obtain article elsewhere.
Use MEDD at MINETEX to get full text
Ethnic Newswatch-
• 280 publications
• Resources in 18 languages
• Can limit search by date
• Ethnic group pull-down menu
Gale Databases-
Multiple access points for varying levels-
Student Edition
• Multilingual
• Newpapers, periodical and reference
• Related topics
• RSS feed
• Article email
Discovering Collection
• Topical search
• Sort by date, relevance, etc
Grolier
• 7 encyclopedias
• What happened today in history? (Birthdate activity)
• 10 minute tutorial (read or video)
• “For educators” section aligned with state standards
• Uses Boolean for search
Proquest
• Newspapers, periodicals
• Excellent science info
SIRS Researcher
• Issue based
• Topic trees
• Pro/Con approach
• My analysis section with 5 step approach
• Excellent search features
United Streaming
• See training in Atomic Learning for this library of digital video clips, images, quizzes and teacher support materials
Leslie
ABC-CLIO
• Social- studies & literature
• Google-like searching
• Returns in categories
• Ranked results
• Images
• Includes encyclopedias, essays, reference
• Topic exploration section with activities and quizzes
• Citation button in multiple formats within articles
• Staff section sppsforstaff sppsfor staff0708
o Aligned with textbooks
o Test creator
EBSCO-
• Similar to Gale but higher level
• Various databases, can translate articles
• Help section & tutorials
• Can narrow down topics, creates concept maps
• Visual searches
• Many are abstract only, so you must obtain article elsewhere.
Use MEDD at MINETEX to get full text
Ethnic Newswatch-
• 280 publications
• Resources in 18 languages
• Can limit search by date
• Ethnic group pull-down menu
Gale Databases-
Multiple access points for varying levels-
Student Edition
• Multilingual
• Newpapers, periodical and reference
• Related topics
• RSS feed
• Article email
Discovering Collection
• Topical search
• Sort by date, relevance, etc
Grolier
• 7 encyclopedias
• What happened today in history? (Birthdate activity)
• 10 minute tutorial (read or video)
• “For educators” section aligned with state standards
• Uses Boolean for search
Proquest
• Newspapers, periodicals
• Excellent science info
SIRS Researcher
• Issue based
• Topic trees
• Pro/Con approach
• My analysis section with 5 step approach
• Excellent search features
United Streaming
• See training in Atomic Learning for this library of digital video clips, images, quizzes and teacher support materials
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Post 9- Thing 5, Teacher Web Pages
Five years ago, when I began this position, the idea of a web page was as foreign to me as a trip to the moon- and that year, when I created my first page and put it up, it was amazing to me- that I had my own little piece of the pie out on the web. The wow factor, while cool, does not get the job done. But teacher web pages do. I continue to be amazed at what an efficient and effective an Urban Planet page can be at getting information to end users and in supporting instruction. If back in the classroom, it is one resource I know I would make good use of, as it has a very high return for the time needed to create a page.
The issue as always, is time. Time to learn how to create a page and the time to maintain it once it is created. What I have seen with this is that if you wait for it to happen, it likely won't on it' s own. You need to 1.) Schedule time and 2.) Use your resources. Take advantage of your colleagues and others who have more experience with Urban Planet than you and ask for help when you need it. Or, take a class. However you get there, give this resource a try!
The issue as always, is time. Time to learn how to create a page and the time to maintain it once it is created. What I have seen with this is that if you wait for it to happen, it likely won't on it' s own. You need to 1.) Schedule time and 2.) Use your resources. Take advantage of your colleagues and others who have more experience with Urban Planet than you and ask for help when you need it. Or, take a class. However you get there, give this resource a try!
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