BP16_20091028_iGoogleScreenshots

BP15_20091018_RMA2

Sketchfu commercial made with Screenflow and iMovie.

Check out my commercial for Sketchfu, an awesome drawing and sharing service that is totally, 100% free!

If you are an art teacher like I am, you will LOVE this service! Check it out here on my blog, and feel free to comment or give feedback on my movie....

and enjoy Sketchfu!

BP13_20091017_Web2.0_ResponseAHNing

The following is a repost of Aimee's post about Ning social network. Aimee does a great job explaining the basics of Ning, along with a personal review of the application.

I used Ning for an assignment for my last course at FSU, and I see the purpose it would serve for networks like businesses and schools. Recently, our district had an issue with a school dance where students and staff were divided over their "rights." While some parents, students, staff and community members communicated on Facebook, a network like Ning would have been a better choice because it would be specific to that particular issue. Then when the issue died down, so would that page on Ning. It would be valuable for the page to dissipate or dissolve as the issue did the same, so that there wouldn't be any leftover correspondence that could re-stir hard feelings.

So Ning is helpful because it is a more streamlined and more individual application than one like Facebook or Myspace. So check out Aimee's review of Ning and then check out the application itself! You may just find it useful!

BP2_2009102_Web 2.0_Ning
Andreessen, M. and Gina Blanchini. (2004) Ning. www.ning.com


Holcombe, A. [owner of photo] (2009) Ning in Education, retrieved October 11, 2009 from http://education.ning.com/


Ning is basically an online networking platform, much like Facebook, that allows for a more slected group of followers and directed topic of discussion. I would best describe by blending the following ingredients together: a standard personal informational website (such as a school website), a form for open discussion amongst members, and Facebook-style social networking and grouping. Whereas Facebook is one humongous overall network, Ning is more closed and specified based on the creator's needs and desired topic(s) of focus.

My school has just started the implementation of teacher websites where students can go for information and find homework...etc. However, with my higher level of technology awareness, I am feeling the need to create a Ning network specified just for my classes. I appreciate many features that Ning offers for educators, but one of my favorites is how students join the network and then can respond to questions, videos, articles, or anything that was posted by the administrator of the site.

I imagine a high school Language course where the content progresses with each grade level. The seniors or AP class (experts in the content) could be the administrators- the ones researching and creating the content; while the lower class(es) could learn from and respond to the content. The teacher would then move from educator to facilitator of education.... the title that the standards-based school model would support. The teacher would then monitor (and grade) all of the student activity and direct learning through forum questions.

Some might argue, 'why not just use Facebook?' My thought is that Facebook has a purely social context in which it is typically used. I find that all too often students do not understand how to interact formally in an environment that they only know as informal. I also do not want the liability that comes in knowing the personal lives of students, which is typically shared on Facebook. Furthermore, Ning can be a fully secured environment controlled by the administrator. No one could join and see & participate in discussion without being approved as a member.

For these reasons and beyond, I see Ning to be a powerful and professional social tool to create a more secure link between schools, homes, and the world that surrounds us all.
POSTED BY AIMEE AT 1:41 PM 0 COMMENTS

BP12_20091015_Web2.0Review6_Masher

Ok, all, here's the deal. I made a commercial for Animoto because I loved the idea of the service very much. And it is a great service. However, I may have to revise my stance on the best video making feature I've found so far in my Web 2.0 tools search.

Just today I found a service called Masher, and I am super psyched about this service! It uses a similar platform to Animoto, but has one difference that I am ecstatic about....it does not have a restrictive size limit like Animoto. For teacher users, this a one fabulous fact. After all, how much content can you squeeze into 60 seconds or less? For my Animoto commercial, I had a hard time fitting everything I wanted to say into the 60 second format, which is the challenge faced by ad execs every day. I, however, am not in the advertising business, although this service will allow me to use some of the best elements of advertising in my educational endeavors.

Masher uses a super simple format to allow users to create cool content with pictures, videos, and music. The service even includes a database of such resources for users to add to their content, and there are no "premium" services to entice users. It's pure and simply a free service meant to be used by the general public so they can create fun, rich media "mashups."

The great thing about a service like this is that besides being user friendly, there is no download needed, and no software to buy. Everything you need to create educational media is included in the website format, so long as you sign up for an account. That's it, and not a lot of information is needed to sign up.

The lack of expense, download, and time restrictions make this video creation service my new favorite for the classroom. While I love the super user friendly service of iMovie, my district does not have a Mac lab, so iMovie is not an option for my students, or for myself if I leave my laptop at home. And while a part of me would like to take my Mac to school to use, another part of me is scared to ruin my favorite new piece of equipment. So I'd rather use the computers I have at my schools, which I should work in conjunction with the technology I'll import to those specific computers. So that way I have piece of mind that my content is there for my use.

So, there it is, a revision in my assertion about video creation Web 2.0 tools. Try Masher for the ability to add more time to your presentations, you aren't likely to regret it!

www.masher.com

BP11_20091015_WebTools5_Sketchfu

Alright, so I know my last post concerned a web drawing tool for use for the art classroom. Here I am going to blog about a similar, yet at the same time, very different web drawing tool. I am also going to compare and contrast the two tools a bit.

In my last post, I sang the praises of ArtRage2. While that tool is terrific, I found another free online drawing tool that may trump AR2 in some ways.

Sketchfu is an online web tool and service where you may start a drawing immediately, without even signing up for anything. If you want to "publish" your drawing later, you will want to sign up, but all you have to enter is a sign in name, a valid email address, and a password. What you get in exchange is a really cool drawing tool with a built in movie like feature that plays back exactly what you drew, line for line. (Hopefully I will be able to upload my finished pic to my blog as well as the video portion.)

The process of playing back your video after creating a quick little mini art work is the best part of Sketchfu. Besides the ability to create your own drawings, the service also includes features like Browse drawings, Browse people (and you can create a profile), and "Best of Sketchfu,"where the highest rated drawings are posted. That's another neat thing about Sketchfu. You have the ability to publish your creations to the site right away, which allows other viewers to find your work, comment on it, and even rate it!

Other great features include the ability to name your creations, the ability to link directly to other services like Blogger, Facebook and Myspace, direct RSS feeds, ability to email content, and so much more! You can customize the speed of your drawing play in the drawing window.

And if you like to collaborate, you can even allow others to add to your drawing! (Or turn that feature off if you so desire.)

The actual drawing ability is limited, unless you own a drawing tablet (I do not!), so compared to ArtRage2, the drawing is not as smooth. However, you don't feel limited in Sketchfu like you do in AR2, because there are no "extras" dangled in front of you for the small sum of $25. There are no pay options in Sketchfu, making it an awesome deal for the classroom. (No whining from students....why can't I add glitter, Mrs. Lunsford? Answer....because it costs Twenty-five dollars!)

I could see using Sketchfu as a teaching tool, a collaborative tool, or as a "free draw" tool. The only drawback is that the students might want to sign up for the service. I could get around that by having kids only sign in under one school created name. And no posting without my approval. The kids could use naming conventions such as Title_Name, so I could identify the students work under our school sign in.

I'm really excited about this tool! If you are an art teacher, surely check out Sketchfu.com, it is AWESOME and so very, very much fun!

http://sketchfu.com/drawing/388073-eye-yi-yi-

BP10_200910115_Web2.0Review_ArtRage2

Web 2.0 tools should be fun, experimental, engaging, educational, and more. While I have no trouble finding tools and resources for my Speech classroom at the high school level, I am having some trouble finding tools for my art classroom.

The trouble with technology at the elementary level is that the tools must be simple, streamlined, and super easy to use. When I do a search about art tools, not much comes up. I did find one tool, however, with a "starter" version of a paint program that can be downloaded for free, to a PC or a Mac. The great thing about this tool is that with the free version, teachers can download the program to as many computers as the school and tech crew will allow.

ArtRage2 is a really fun tool, the only thing a bit disappointing about it is that the "full" version is highly advertised in the "starter," or free, downloadable version. This causes the user to feel they're missing out on something really good, so the user could focus on those missing parts instead of how nice the free features really are.

The download for the service was very easy, you'll have to make sure you install the correct version for your computer (PC or Mac). Once installed, a user template loads the first time you open the program, with tips and tricks for the novice user. That is a very nice feature, although again, much of the advice is for the full version, so some of the training isn't applicable to the version you just downloaded.

I could see using this tool in my elementary art classroom in several ways. First, it could be downloaded to all the computers in our lab at no cost to our school. Once installed, I could take students into the lab and do a short lesson or two to teach the tool and let the kids explore. I could also use this as an additional "free draw" tool. When some young artists finish the projects they have to complete for my art classes (and grading), they end up with extra time without assigned work, because other students are still working. I don't want to send them back to class early, because their classroom teachers need their planning time. So I have materials on the tables and in an organizer on the counter, out and accessible at all times, so that when students are done with their assigned projects, they may use their extra time to "free draw." The wonderful thing about this tool as a resource for "free draw" time would be accessibility, "drawings" would create little if no waste, and it allow students time to use technology in the art classroom. While I don't currently have a computer in my elementary art classroom, I could make a good argument for one or two PC's in my room if I could make tools like ArtRage2 available to students on a regular basis.

I painted a "Fall Tree" with this service, and will try to upload it to this blog for your viewing pleasure! :)

It was fun playing with all the tools within this web 2.0 tool, like the "oil paint" brush, the pencil, and chalks. With all the different choice; paper textures, thicknesses of line tools, color choices, and so much more, this tool would be a fabulous classroom tool. You can even upload finished projects to school websites, blogs, or print out the student creations, so long as you can figure out ways around format issues or the cost of printer ink. I think this would be used best for playing an experimenting for elementary art, so that these issues would be irrelevant.

Overall, I really love this tool and think it could be great fun for my art students.

So check out ArtRage2, it really is an awesome tool for teachers, especially art teachers! :)

http://www.artrage.com/artragedown.html

BP9_20091014_AnimotoVideoCommercial

My Video Commercial for Animoto, a terrific service that is totally awesome for the classroom!

View the video and then visit www.animoto.com

Enjoy the video and this awesome Web 2.0 tool!

Therese

BP8_2009_Reaction Post

Beckie's post about Iweb is valid and truthful. Teachers have a need to make connections with one another, and to be able to connect content.

Iweb is a super easy to use, nicely formated tool that is adaptable and friendly to the novice user.

Beckie's review of Iwebs is accurate and fair. Check it out here!

http://beckielamborn.blogspot.com/2009/10/web-2.html

BP7_2009_Web 2.0 Tools Review 3

Another educational solution to energize and bring excitement to the classroom? How about Animoto, a service that can be used to create videos from pictures, video, and music clips. Animoto can be a new way to introduce materials for education in a new way. The program is downloadable, and is user friendly and easy to use.

Animoto won a Webby award in 2009 for being the best services and applications website, as well as an SXSW web award for best film/video website. There are apps for Facebook and Iphone users, and educational uses abound.

The intention of Animoto was to create dynamic videos for various uses, and to draw in viewers by conceptually mimicking music videos and movie trailers all in one package. As a tool for teaching, Animoto can be used to narrate applications like PowerPoint to make these applications even more visually stimulating. As an educator, I know that some students are easily lost during a session of PowerPoint.

Animoto can be used in many, many ways in the classroom. Presenting classroom rules would be much more engaging using Animoto than handing them out on paper, plus is saves those copies. Other student oriented classroom uses include individual portfolio presentations, group presentations for classes, individual presentations for use in classes like Public speaking, and more. Teacher uses include things like presenting rules or syllabus in Animoto, revamping PowerPoint presentations to present content, and using the service as an absence tool. Teachers could create short video assets for play when gone from the classroom on school related business, when we know we’ll be out. “How to” videos would allow students to know what to do while the teacher is out, and would allow substitute teachers to see exactly what the students see to know what teacher expectations are. And all of this would be accomplished in an exciting, engaging format.

To sign up for and start with Animoto, just go to http://animoto.com/

BP6_2009_Web 2.0 Tools Review 2

Alright all, so here’s a solution to the issue of creating Podcasts if you aren’t fortunate enough to have an Apple computer with GarageBand software included.

Gabcast is a podcast creation tool that can be used to create podcasts using tools you already have! You can record using your phone or VoIP to create podcasts. You can also post audio to your blogs, create audio greetings, host conference calls, and much more!

There are lots of great features and abilities within the Gabcast format. One nice aspect is that there is a free way to access the features of Gabcast, so long as users use VolP recording. The service includes uses like it’s features to record a description of an item you’re selling on Ebay. So there are many uses besides educational ones.

The service has tons of cool features and personalization options like skins for your podcasts as “album” covers. Users can even use a telephone to record Podcasts, although this feature does cost ten cents per minute. The service does give five free minutes in order for the user to try out this portion of the service, but it does seem a useful option. There are additional features like automatic RSS feeds, ability to personalize how broadcasts are received and integration with Blogger and other popular blog sites.

New users must sign up for a new account and create a login id. Users will create a channel for their own account, and then can start to create their own presentations. Tags can be added so postings can be found by anyone searching for users content. Channel subscribers can be notified of new postings through Gabcast itself, but also through iTunes, web portals, rss clients, and email.

Educational uses for podcasting are extensive, so services like Gabcast are wonderful as they might be options for students as well as teachers. Most districts don’t have software like Garageband, mostly because of cost. Most of us see potential for such applications, but we must seek out alternatives for classroom use to minimize cost. Options like Gabcast can allow teachers to use technology tools we much incorporate into our modern classrooms, in a way that can be cost effective and student affective.

BP5_2009_Web 2.0 Tools Review 1

Full Sail University is asking grad students to explore Web 2.0 tools to expand our base of tools for use in the classroom. There are lots of great tools for classroom use, and so long as you have the technology to share or display said tools, exploring to find the tools can be a fun and exciting adventure. Using the tools is an exciting prospect, so I'd like to share some of my findings in several blogs.

One of the first tools I found is Etherpad, a free resource which allows the user to write to the document and invite other users who can also collaborate on the document as well. There are other similar resources in existence, like Google Docs, which allow users to make changes and collaborate in real time. Etherpad is a text pad that is synchronized, which means users can work together and each contribute to the document. An email invite is all that is needed to share the document with other users. An export of the document can be done in Word, PDF, Open Document, and additional options. There's even a chat feature within the document for additional collaboration.

The nice thing about this tool is that you don't have to sign up to use it, like Google Docs. You can view the document without creating an account.

Tools like Etherpad and Google Docs are great because groups or teams can use them to write into documents and have the changes saved in real time. So team members and groups can achieve goals together even when they’re not in the same space. Full Sail students use Google Docs to work on group projects together, but separately. Students can work together in different states or in different countries, for that matter. That’s the great thing about this technology. We’ve all gotten used to technologies because they are introduced over time and we have time to become accustomed to them, but years ago, society would have been extremely excited about such technology. In recognizing that this technology did not exist just a short span of years ago, we can get excited about it again. Web 2.0 tools are so very cool!

BP4_2009_Flickr

Ok, so I'm new to Flickr, in fact new enough I originally started to spell it Flicker!

I've caught students checking their Flicker accounts in our Speech courses, and occasionally they seem to be using it for educational purposes. Which is great, of course, but they are also checking out pics on their friends accounts. Which, of course, is fine on their own time, but not on class time.

I can see the appeal of Flickr, however, despite my criticism that they need to add that e to the name. (So I can stop have to go back to edit and remove it every time I type Flick(e)r!

While I do feel somewhat overwhelmed by all of the different media assets we're using in my Full Sail University program, I could see using this in the classroom. Students, parents, and admin could follow my flickr account, so I actually see this more as a tool for communication than for classroom use. However, it does have good applications for student use.

I have a hard time coming up with a use for Flickr with Speech, other than using it as a search tool to find pics for presentations, which would be a student use of Flickr. I do see serious potential to keep connected to parents, admin, etc. I just posted pics of chairs my 6th graders painted at SHA EL, and I could let parents and students know they could follow the account for updates on this and so much more.

Another use would be to create folders of my art lessons for parents and admin to follow.

As far as lesson plans, I could see using Flickr to create portfolios of students art work, or to display my own works to my art students. One thing often left out of the art classroom is the art teacher's ability to share their own works of art. Portfolio creation would be a great way to use Flickr in many classrooms, for students and teachers alike.

BP3_2009_Lunsford Therese Anti-Teaching

Education is more than teaching to a test, using the right methods, or playing the educational game right. Theories turned techniques like multiple intelligences and brain-based learning are wonderful because they are student focused, but they don't help with problems like administration focusing on dollars and test scores.

There are many problems in education, and there are many possible solutions. It's hard to say we can boil educational issues down to using technology to fix it all. Virtual Learning Environments with course management systems are a great resource for college students, but are they practical for use in public school districts?

Many districts in Michigan use Blackboard, or at least have the technology available for use for educators who want to use it. Some of the issues this educator finds in using technology like Blackboard is that the support for such educational resources is not intrinsic, and the educator has to find training and support outside of the district. The educator often has to pay for the technology training from their own pocket, although this author has been fortunate enough to have training paid by her district for this specific technology. Another issue is finding the time to work with and develop a course within the technologies framework. A resulting issue is that the training taken by educators is lost if the teacher cannot implement the website changes, formatting, and uploads right away, because if it isn't used right away, it's usually forgotten. If an educator is lucky enough to find training, implement it right away, and get a good website up and online, said educator may have a terrific resource tool for the education of his or her students. However, many obstacles must be overcome before that educator can use tools like Blackboard to educate students.

Personal Learning Environments and Web 2.0 tools are other technology resources that could be highly influential on education. The face of education is changing, and should be. Technology changes faster than many of us can keep up with, and education has to keep up with those changes, whether it creates training or monetary issues. Technology itself is not the end all be all of educational issues, however.

Schools are in need of changes to engage and include students in as many ways as possible. Students today

are born technology aficionados, and so it is obvious that we need to start to include technology into education. The question is; what questions do we need to ask? For example, how much technology is enough? What technology programs are best, and how do teachers access them? How do we access the appropriate training we need, as educators, so that we are at least as knowledgeable as our students?

Technology like Blackboard can be very useful in education, and should be available to all schools. While Blackboard is a resource that requires a user to pay to use it (often paid for by districts), resources should be developed that don't require payment. Resources that could be used and shared, as well as free training resources and assets would be requirements for all districts, specifically poorer ones. Resources like picture editing software, community blog and wiki resources would be optimal to include as necessities in todays schools. Every classroom should have an Elmo (or similar technology) and a projector, as well as at least one computer for the teacher to use to the display information on. Classroom technology inequality causes disparities in education in economically disadvantaged areas, which is a problem currently, and has been for years. How can every student truly have an equal education when some students are held back by a lack of equity in something as simple as technology?

Technology is not the answer to every educational problem in existence. While technology equity is important for all students, and technology is required for modern classrooms, but technology alone cannot run a classroom. Passionate teachers and administrators are required to acquire and use technology to make a classroom great. Students must also decide to take an active role in their own educations, and embrace the newly vamped classrooms. Technology alone in not the only answer, but if it can cause connections between student and teacher, content and curriculum, then it is vital. If used correctly, technology can be the tool that causes students to take the drivers seat instead of the back seat.

BP2_2009_LunsfordEducationalWebsites

I've recently subscribed to several educational websites which will aid me in my quest to keep up on the most recent educational information, innovations, and insights.

I've subscribed to "Michigan Education Association's" Facebook updates, which will allow me to keep up on my state's association news. Submissions on state budgets and educational changes are the types of blog articles I find here. I also subscribed to "Inside Michigan Education," where I can find information outside of the state association. This site covers topics from various aspects of Michigan education, and focuses less on issues and instead reports on interesting happenings in education.

I found several great subscriptions to sites related to the arts, and many specific to art education. The "Latest Activity on National Art Education Association Elementary Division," allows teachers to converse with one another, connect, and share information. My "National Endowment for the Arts" subscription allows me to find information about the arts in general, as well as connections to various art professionals outside of education. "The art teacher's guide to the internet" is a fun blog site that is used as a tool for sharing varied information with art educators, and includes great links for art educators. I've also subscribed to the "National Art Education Association's wikispace," to access information for and about the 2009 National Convention.

Finally, I've also subscribed to "Videos Related to Full Sail University," to view media created by staff and students at my college to keep up on assets created for educational uses.

I expect to keep adding to my arsenal of blog subscriptions. While checking various websites for all this information can be overwhelming, it will be nice to have subscriptions to these sites which will only update me when something new is added to these sites. That allows all of this information to be consumed as time allows, which is great, because I find all this information can be an overload, and overwhelming. The fact that these resources are free and can be used when I want to use them is comforting.

BP1_2009_Educational Uses for Blogging

There are many uses for blogging in Education. If broken into categories, these might be categorized by who they are useful for. Teachers can use blogs to correspond with other teachers, to find information for classroom use, or to use as teaching tools within the classroom. Not to mention finding information on funding sources, state and national education related news, and more. Students can use educational blogs to find information for classroom use, to keep up on topics related to the classroom or to contribute to blogs themselves. Administrators and above can use blogs to keep staff informed of new information, and have the staff contribute anonymous feedback to blog posts.

Students in my Speech classes have asked if they'll get to use technology, especially blogging, to express their thoughts in the classroom. Currently, I have the students write journals in response to our weekly debate segment. I currently have it set up so that we hold a debate for the last twenty minutes of class on Friday afternoons. For the first 6 minutes of class the following Monday, the kids do a journal write in response to the debate. This allows the students to say anything they didn't get to say in class (if they didn't have the opportunity), or reiterate their thoughts in a way they may not be able to verbally. They also get to practice their writing skills, and practice reflective thinking. It also allows them to try to come up with solutions to the problem.

I'm thinking creating a new blog post for each debate topic would allow students to practice all the same skills, but also to share thoughts with one another. It would allow students to further reflect on the good ideas and points made by fellow classmates. Having screen names that don't identify the students as themselves would allow them to submit anonymously (I would have a master list of student's screen names). Students love to communicate, and using blogs in an educational arena would allow them to use the technology they already love to use, and use it in a constructive, smart way.

One of the best ways I personally find for use of blogs is to keep up on the latest news in education. I've subscribed to blogs from national and state sites to keep up on the latest info from educational associations. I'm also excited to use blogs to contribute to the information out there for educators. Studying for my Masters has put me in a position to gain new perspectives and to share my new found insights with fellow educators.

Blogs appear to be a tool for the future in educational use. If used with caution in the classroom, students can gain new knowledge and insights, and share thoughts and values. Teachers can stay connected with other staff members within their district, as well as connect with teachers in other districts, states, or even countries. Art teachers across the country could share lessons, and cross-curricular planning could occur between subject areas through blogging. The uses for blogging are endless, as are the possibilities. So log on, educational world, and blog on!