Synopsis

In today’s society children grow up exposed to a large range of technologies, many of which were not even available 20 years ago. Prenksy (2001) explains that today's children, which teachers now face in the classroom, have grown up with access to technologies such as personal computers, mobile phones, portable media players, tablet PCS and video games. The children coming into the classroom are what Prenksy (2001) defines as Digital Natives, meaning that the digital language and the skills required to operate the range of technologies is their native tongue. Those who have not grown up with such exposure to technologies are known as Digital Immigrants (Prenksy, 2001). Teachers in today’s classroom must take steps to ensure they take advantage of their students’ native language, of digital technologies. Teachers who are Digital Immigrants should also take steps to ensure that they are competent with the use of technologies, which are being brought into the classroom.

One digital technology, which is becoming particularly prevalent in today’s society, is the mobile phone. The mobile phones which students’ have access to do not simply allow them to place and receive calls. They are smart phones, which allow students to access the internet, listen to music, take part in social networks, take pictures, and much more (Murray, 2010). However this raises an important question, which was discussed earlier on in the blog, ‘Should mobile phones be used in the classroom?’ One argument, for the use of mobile phones in the classroom is that if we can’t beat them, join them.

Scornavacca, Huff and Marshall (2009) state that students’ access to mobile phones is becoming so prevalent that teachers may as well take advantage of the new technology, rather than shunning it and requiring students to turn them off while at school. Twiss (2009) explains that mobile phones also provide great learning opportunities, for example; the cameras can be used as part of literacy tasks or used to document experiments, audio recording can be used to support students whose literacy skills are still developing, or they can be used to access pod casts during language classes. One of the common arguments against the use of mobile phones in the classroom is that they are very distracting and will take students attention away from the task at hand.

A recent article (Scornavacca, Huff & Marshall, 2009) explains that while it is true that mobile phones provide the potential to distract students, the reality is that students are already secretly using their phones in the classroom; choosing to keep them on silent and occasionally engaging in social networking during class. Trials have shown that by encouraging students to bring their mobile phones into the classroom and use them as part of their learning, they are less likely to be distracted by accessing social networking sites (Scornavacca, Huff & Marshall, 2009).


During my engagement in this blog I have been amazed at the wide range of digital technologies which are available for free on computers and online. I personally feel that I am a digital native, having been exposed to a range of technologies since an early age, however not even I knew about many of the digital tools that I have investigated in this blog. As part of this post I will explore some of the tools which I have discovered in further detail, highlighting their benefits and how they could be used in the classroom.

Group 1: Wikis

Wiki’s are websites which allow users to add, delete or edit the material over the internet (wiki, n.d.).

Before I engaged in this blog I never knew that you could create your own Wikis for free. The only wiki I was aware of was Wikipedia.com, which has a huge amount of information on just about anything you can think of. Although Wikipedia.com is a great resource of information I have never trusted the information as being very reliable, as the information it contains is can be edited by any users. It’s also this reason that universities and schools do not allow students to use this site for references. In order to explore the use of a Wiki I first created my own.

To see an example of a wiki that I have created, please go here. This example of a Wiki simply shows how information in can be shared and that media, such as videos, can be embedded. Through engaging in other Wikis it became apparent to me that in order to use them in schools, teachers must ensure that they take certain steps to ensure that all students' contributions can be tracked. One way of doing this is to assign each student a colour, when they add information to the Wiki they simply write in their assigned colour. Another method is to require students to tag any updates with their name. Initially I did not believe that Wikis would be beneficial to the classroom, but through my explorations I have discovered otherwise. This is supported by Richardson (2006), who explains that wikis are an excellent choice for exploring any topic which lends its self to a collaborative compilation of information, such as research on historic events or SOSE discussions.

Group 2: Digital Video

Another useful tool which I brought up in this blog is digital video. With the price of digital cameras dropping everyday and the standard addition of a camera to most mobile phones, many members of our society have the ability to record their own digital videos. However it doesn’t just stop there. There are many programs which can be downloaded to allow people to edit and share their digital videos.

One program in particular which I have had some experience with is Windows Movie Maker. This allows you to edit videos, add text or add a compilation of images to create a slideshow. I found this program very easy to use and it allowed me to express myself in a completely different way than I ever have before. I didn’t simply have to put my thoughts in to words; I could add images, captions and background music. My favourite thing about digital video is the ability to share it online; specifically on youtube.com. This website allows users to share their videos for free, so that friends and family can view them online.

I believe the integration of the digital videos in the classroom would allow students to explore the concept of Visual Literacy; which is defined as the ability to decode and develop an understanding of visual media (Messaris, 2994). This also reflects the requirements of the literacy stand in the Australian Curriculum, which has a strong emphasis on exploring multimodal texts (ACARA, 2011).

Group 3: Prezi

Another tool which I have experimented with is Prezi. A Prezi is a defined as a ‘cloud-based’ presentation. This means that all the information is presented on one page, or cloud, and different parts of the page are focused on during the presentation. In order to conduct the presentation in a logical sequence a path is created, and aspects of the page are focused on in a predetermined sequence. This form of presentation is very different to a slideshow presentation, such as those created in PowerPoint. Slide shows are a series of slides and during the presentation the slides are simply displayed one after the other. I personally find Prezis to be much more engaging to view than a slideshow presentation.

Including Prezis in the classroom would again reflect requirements set out in the Australian Curriculum (ACARA, 2011) which explains that students should create and deliver presentations, which involve multimodal elements. There is no reason why Prezis could not be used for this purpose. I also believe that students may also find creating Prezis to be very engaging, as they may allow them to express their creativity in a more meaningful way. This is reflected by Prenksy (2005) who states that students will be much more willing to take part in activities which encourage creativity.

Group 4: ZooBurst

The final tool which I am going to talk about is ZooBurst. ZooBurst is an online tool which allows the user to create an interactive, digital popup storybook. I found this tool very easy to use, particularly as the basic layout was already set out. All I had to do was add characters, add the text to their speech bubbles and write a description on each page. Due to its ease of use, I believe this tool would provide a great opportunity for lower primary students to begin exploring story writing. Once again, the use of this tool would reflect the requirements of multimodal elements of literacy, as expressed by the Australian Curriculum (ACARA, 2011).


Before engaging in this blog I did not realise that there were so many amazing digital tools available online, many of which are free. My exploration of these tools has provided me with a number of great ideas, which I cannot wait to implement in my future classroom. As a teacher in the 21st century it will be my goal to ensure that I always take advantage of the digital tools which are readily available.





References:
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). (2011). The Australian Curriculum. Canberra, ACT: Author. Retrieved from http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au

Messaris, P. (1994). Visual “literacy”: Image, mind, and reality. San Francisco, CA: Westview Press, Inc.

Murray, C. (2010). Mobile Learning in the Classroom. Agora, 45(1), 48-54.

Prenksy, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon 9(5), 1-6.

Prenksy, M. (2005). “Engage me or enrage me” What today’s learners demand. Educause Review 40(5), 60-64

Richardson, W. (2006). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Scornavacca, E., Huff, S., & Marshall, S. (2009). Mobile phones in the Classroom: If You Can't Beat Them, Join Them. Communications Of The ACM, 52(4), 142-146.

Twiss, T. (2009). mobile phones in the english classroom. English In Aotearoa, (69), 70-74.

wiki. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/wiki

Group 4 Tools

ZooBurst
Zoo Burst is an online program which allows the user to create digital, interactive, story books. Here's an example of a story I made.


Bubbl.us
Bubbl.us is a tool which can be used to create mind maps. It's very simple to use. Here's an example of a mind map I created - I was trying to work out what to do this weekend.

Google Maps

Google Maps is essentially Google Earth, except it does not require you to install any software on your computer. It is all available online – the benefit of this is that if you are using a public computer or one you don’t own you can still gain access. 

Google maps could be used to begin learning about essential skills such as mapping and directions. Google maps allows you to search for directions from one location to another – it gives you the distance and even an estimate of time, depending whether you’re walking or driving. 

Using google maps you can also create your own maps, which you can share with friends. Here’s a tutorial on how to do this:  This could be useful for the classroom for planning camps or allowing students to create their own maps as part of a SOSE project. 

Here’s an example of a map I have created, which marks all of the places I have ever lived.

View The places I have called home in a larger map

Group 3 Tools

Prezi

What is Prezi? Well, Prezi is a free online program which allows the user to create ‘cloud-based’ presentations. If you have no idea what that means, think The Beast File (if you’ve seen Hungry Beast on ABC). Just a little side track, if you want to see what I mean by Beast File, check out this clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7yfV6RzE30. 

Right, where was I? Prezi! Well using Prezi you can create great presentations which are not only simple to create, they are really great to watch. Cloud-based presentations are much more interesting to watch than the basic old boring slide show presentations, i.e. Microsoft PowerPoint.

Here’s an example of a Prezi I created, it’s a short presentation about Drop Box.

DROP BOX on Prezi

See what I mean? For some reason I find cloud-based presentations, such as Prezis, much more engaging that other forms of presentations. I think the use of Prezis would be a great addition to the classroom. Teachers could use them to create presentations or students could use Prezi to create their own presentations on a topic, rather than just going for the bulk standard slide show. Let’s face it, slide shows are boring. Why not use a Prezi instead?

PowerPoint
PowerPoint - I don't like it!

Don't get me wrong, PowerPoint has its place.PowerPoint is fairly user friendly and can be used to do quite a lot of things, from slide show presentations to interactive storyboards.

However, I see PowerPoint used so much in the classroom and at university. Yes, it provides a simple way of presenting information, but I believe there are much more engaging ways to do so! When ever I see PowerPoint used for a presentation at university I instantly switch off, because I find them really dull and I know I am going to be bombarded with masses of information.


Hence why I love Prezi so much. With Prezi you can easily deliver information, but it is much more engaging to watch. I also know that when I see a Prezi I'm not gonig to be bombarded with huge amounts of information, as masses of text just won't work well with a Prezi.

I love Prezi. I'm not a fan of PowerPoint.

Okay - Upon further review I take back my dislike of PowerPoint. PowerPoint can do loads of amazing things! PowerPoints can be great tools and can be very engaging. It just depends on how it is used. PowerPoint can also be used to create much more than basic slide shows.

Group 2 Tools: Digital Media

Digital Media - Where would I be without it? Probably watching TV...

In today’s life we are constantly surrounded by and involved in digital media – such as digital images, digital audio and digital video. Even the good old TV has gone digital, with the analogue signal to be switched off by 2013! I will be writing about some of the tools which can be used to view, create and edit different types of digital media.

Digital Video
Digital videos are very easy to create, edit and share. They can either be created using a digital video recorder, iphone or digital camera. However, this isn't the only way to create a digital video.
Digital videos can also be created using programs such as Windows Movie Maker. This program allows you to make videos from scratch or edit those which you have recorded. It's is fairly easy to use and quite self explanatory, as long as you have some basic computer skills to start with. Here’s an example of a video I created as part of my Art assignment back in Term 1, last year.



Digital videos can also be shared on sites such as youtube, granted that you have a decent internet connection speed and a gmail account (which is free). As you have probably worked out, the video above was uploaded to YouTube so that I could share it with you.

Pod Casts
Pod casts are digital video or audio files which can be downloaded over the internet. A lot of content can now be downloaded in the form of pod casts such as radio shows, educational programs and news.


Pod Casts were made popular by the iPod, which allowed users to download Pod Casts and listen to them on the go.

Podcasts can be a great addition to the classroom, providing another resource for learning. If a class has access to iPods or iPod touches students could listen to a pod cast if they finish their work early. They could also be used as part of a group rotation, or the whole class could listen to an excerpt of a podcast. There are loads of educational podcasts on topics from language to science..

Pod casts are also not limited to the professionals or those with a decent budget. Pod Casts can easily be created using a range of programs, such as Podmatic. This could be used for students to create a podcast as part of an assignment, or a teacher could create their own podcast to accompany students’ home work.

Digital Images
With the price of digital cameras constantly dropping, people have more and more access to them. This allows every day people to take pictures of memorable events to share with their friends and family. We no longer have to take our film to get developed. We can share them for free online through a wide variety of means. We can e-mail our pictures, add them to social media sites (such as facebook) or share them on sites such as flickr. Facebook is my favourite way of sharing my photos (and stalking old friends). However, this isn’t practical for school as facebook is not available to students under 13 – and it goes against school policy to add students on facebook!

In conclusion Digital Media is readily available today – So why not take advantage of it in the classroom???

Digital Tools Group 1: Wikis

Check out my amazing wiki - http://jonnyandhisipod.wikispaces.com/

PMI chart on the use of Wikis in the classroom:

PMI – Wikis in the classroom
Plus	Minus	Interesting
Engaging Encourages collaborative learning Builds ICT skills Reflects needs of Australian Curriculum Progress can be tracked by the teacher Hints and tips can be given as students work	Some group members may not be as involved in the wiki space as others Information on the wiki can easily be deleted by other parties (or other students) Although it is retrievable, this may become annoying. Not all students may have easy access to the required technology at home Time management Not all students may be confident with using ICT Students can easily plagiarise Parents may not be comfortable letting their students on the internet without supervision	If the teacher is away the wiki space is still accessible by the students. The use of the internet raises a lot of issues such as child protection, what the students access etc.

Wikis - Gotta love em.

Mobile Phones in the Classroom

This week I took part in an activity which involved using De Bono's 6 thinking hats to discuss different points of view relating to the use of mobile phones and mobile technology in the classroom. For this activity I focused on the blue hat, or the process.

I believe we have to face the fact that mobile phones and mobile technologies are becoming increasingly prevalent in today's society - students are going to have more and more access as the technology becomes cheaper and easier to get hold of. I think that the logical approach is to take steps to integrate the technology into our classrooms and make the most of it. We should ensure that we use to technology to keep students engaged in order to better their learning, rather than have them trying to secretly use their phones while their teacher isn't looking.

For example iPod touches are increasingly becoming a common resouce in the classroom. I have seen them used in a few different classrooms - where a class may have their own set of 6 or a year group may have a set which rotates around the classrooms. Students love to use them, demonstrating that they are very engaged in the activities. I believe they are an excellent addition to the classroom - so long as they are used correctly (I will talk more about iPods Touches another time).

On another point - to discuss the use of mobile technology in the classroom I used a wiki with a group of peers. A wiki is an online document which can be edited my multiple users, working collaboratively. This very much reflects Vygotsky's theory of Social Constructivism - where meaning and understanding is build up through a group of people working collaboratively to build on their overall knowledge.

I believe wiki's could be a great way for students in a classroom to work together - however it requires well thought out planning from the teacher to ensure it runs smoothly.

For example a large class may be split into groups of 5, each with their own wiki to create. To ensure that every students contributions can be monitored, each student could be assigned a colour to write in. This way the teacher can make sure that no students are slacking off and relying on their group to carry them through. The layout of the wiki may also be set out by the teacher, before the students start, to ensure that they understand the directions of the task.

iPod Touch Update

Well I have a few complaints about the app CellSpin - CellSpin is an app from iTunes designed for the iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad. It is designed to allow you to easily update blogs from your portable device, without having to go through all the trouble of opening up your blog and signing in etc..

It's good for uploading quick updates and pictures, however it's very annoying when you want to write a longer blog post. On most apps that involve typing you can turn the iPod on to its side so that it is in landscape, and the image will follow suit. This makes the keyboard much larger and a LOT easier to type with. However, CellSpin doesn't allow you to do this. So you're stuck trying to type with the small keyboard - so you end up hitting the wrong keys a lot. Or maybe that's just my stubby fingers...

Also multitasking is great on the new 4th Gen iPod touch, however if you're in the middle of typing something on CellSpin and want to quickly check the website you were looking at for a reference you will lose everything you were just typing. Hence why I'm not using my laptop - woops!

Any way - back to the point of this post. I have been testing out a few of the apps to see whether or not they would be of any benefit in the classroom.

The first app I used was I Can Animate - this allows you to make stop motion animations VERY easily. It was fun to use and the videos created can be uploaded to youtube directly from the iPod. This took about 5 minutes to make http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy55nQeKJ4o    You can't add sound or music, but maybe there's another app out there that would allow you to add music or you could do it later on a computer.

The second app I tried out was StoryKit - This allows you to create and then read your stories on your iPod. Again it's very easy to use. You can either try and draw the pictures yourself, although they look pretty dodgy, or you can take pictures for each page. You can then add text. Here's a quick short story I made http://iphone.childrenslibrary.org/cgi-bin/view.py?b=kef5o2usozijoxllzkn2

iPod Touches are pretty cool - but I can't help thinking an iPad would be even cooler!