Friday, August 19, 2011
formspring.me
Whatever is on your mind... no guarantee that I'll answer coherently though. =D http://formspring.me/KindleVonPulse
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Reflective Synopsis
Over the course of the five weeks of term in which I learnt and in some cases, reviewed, these technological tools of education, I made several large discoveries as to the stability, implementation, reliability, understanding and how best to utilize the vehicles we have at our disposal in the classroom. From these experiences, I have drawn forth seven instances which I shall now explain.
1. Wikitools - Whilst this was an interesting and highly useful way to collaborate on information, there was a large issue in that only one person could edit at any given time. If more than one tried, any saved work would eliminate the work that another collaborator was adding to the mix. Or the opposite, given the particular circumstances of whoever did what and what mitigating reasoning came into play. From this, unless the collaborators had a given period of time to do their addition of information to the pool of knowledge, it is unsure of how much would be retained after pressing the SAVE button, ironically.
2. Blogs - Whilst they have formatting options and embedding and the like, it is difficult to enable one to a lot of in-depth tinkering of the wording and paragraphs and the like. In point of fact, one might be better off finding a different avenue with which to display their information if they desperately need the capacity to stagger what it is they are trying to say into a more presentable layout of dramatic wording for added effect.
3. Youtube - A lot of the videos are subject to the whims of the Youtube gods, or in reality the partners and admins of the servers. At any given time, for instance, a partner such as Vevo could call out a song used in a video and have the entire video muted in violation of copyright (fair use policy not withstanding) or even have it shut down and the account deleted depending on the violation or maliciousness of the admin/partner. This has happened to quite a few videos and accounts, even top notch Youtube partners by their ... peers.
4. PowerPoint - The limitations of such a device, upon actually googling them are also defined as the posivites of such a device.. yes, it is easy to use.. yes, it is cheap and inexpensive.. yes, it has a manual and the capacity to use images and sound and video. No, it doesn't work on all operating systems. No, it doesn't have a good reliability rate as far as most Microsoft products go. No, it will not make you a sandwich.
5. Google products in general - A lot of these are linked and a lot of them require you to sign in first to use them, which isn't so much of a problem until you take into account that Google is in fact tracking everything you're doing and whilst that may seem like an overly active level of paranoia, it does make one wonder if Google knows what you're up to at any given moment, who you're visiting on Google maps, what you're searching, who you're emailing, etc etc etc.... actually, what I meant to say was mentioning that Wikis reminded me of Wikipedia, in that under no circumstances should you ever, EVER use it. As I know for a fact that users (such as myself) randomly change facts and figures to screw with people's assessments because they haven't learnt yet that it is unreliable. "Researching is figuring out what is accurate, inaccurate, useable and Wikipedia." - Kieran Evans, 2008.
The common core themes of these technological tools is to enrich the quality of the education that learners can partake in, to expand how they can go about dedicating their minds and intelligence to delivering a more illustrious and benficial presentation to their target audience, which in most cases is other students and/or the teacher. It is to take an idea, a concept and build upon that which is already there, to stretch the capacity and capabilities of the students. Technology is moving in leaps and bounds and as educators we must design a pedagogy in which to help students to fulfill their education to the best of their abilites, coupled with the technology at hand to display an understanding of the progress that education has taken over the decades. To broaden the bridges and help our students to increase the reach of their education beyond the doors to our classrooms. To leave the classroom behind with its restricting desks and chairs and textbooks, and being unleashed into the world of the Internet where researching has no limit between two covers, where referencing is no longer a tedious task, where with the simple click of a button a student can upload an assessment within the meager time frames they are given rather than running pell-mell for the dropbox and possibly failing due to a second's hesitation to open a door or knock over a hapless old lady.
With technology, we save old ladies... and the minds of our students are not left to only partake of their education within the confines of our classrooms.
1. Wikitools - Whilst this was an interesting and highly useful way to collaborate on information, there was a large issue in that only one person could edit at any given time. If more than one tried, any saved work would eliminate the work that another collaborator was adding to the mix. Or the opposite, given the particular circumstances of whoever did what and what mitigating reasoning came into play. From this, unless the collaborators had a given period of time to do their addition of information to the pool of knowledge, it is unsure of how much would be retained after pressing the SAVE button, ironically.
2. Blogs - Whilst they have formatting options and embedding and the like, it is difficult to enable one to a lot of in-depth tinkering of the wording and paragraphs and the like. In point of fact, one might be better off finding a different avenue with which to display their information if they desperately need the capacity to stagger what it is they are trying to say into a more presentable layout of dramatic wording for added effect.
3. Youtube - A lot of the videos are subject to the whims of the Youtube gods, or in reality the partners and admins of the servers. At any given time, for instance, a partner such as Vevo could call out a song used in a video and have the entire video muted in violation of copyright (fair use policy not withstanding) or even have it shut down and the account deleted depending on the violation or maliciousness of the admin/partner. This has happened to quite a few videos and accounts, even top notch Youtube partners by their ... peers.
4. PowerPoint - The limitations of such a device, upon actually googling them are also defined as the posivites of such a device.. yes, it is easy to use.. yes, it is cheap and inexpensive.. yes, it has a manual and the capacity to use images and sound and video. No, it doesn't work on all operating systems. No, it doesn't have a good reliability rate as far as most Microsoft products go. No, it will not make you a sandwich.
5. Google products in general - A lot of these are linked and a lot of them require you to sign in first to use them, which isn't so much of a problem until you take into account that Google is in fact tracking everything you're doing and whilst that may seem like an overly active level of paranoia, it does make one wonder if Google knows what you're up to at any given moment, who you're visiting on Google maps, what you're searching, who you're emailing, etc etc etc.... actually, what I meant to say was mentioning that Wikis reminded me of Wikipedia, in that under no circumstances should you ever, EVER use it. As I know for a fact that users (such as myself) randomly change facts and figures to screw with people's assessments because they haven't learnt yet that it is unreliable. "Researching is figuring out what is accurate, inaccurate, useable and Wikipedia." - Kieran Evans, 2008.
The common core themes of these technological tools is to enrich the quality of the education that learners can partake in, to expand how they can go about dedicating their minds and intelligence to delivering a more illustrious and benficial presentation to their target audience, which in most cases is other students and/or the teacher. It is to take an idea, a concept and build upon that which is already there, to stretch the capacity and capabilities of the students. Technology is moving in leaps and bounds and as educators we must design a pedagogy in which to help students to fulfill their education to the best of their abilites, coupled with the technology at hand to display an understanding of the progress that education has taken over the decades. To broaden the bridges and help our students to increase the reach of their education beyond the doors to our classrooms. To leave the classroom behind with its restricting desks and chairs and textbooks, and being unleashed into the world of the Internet where researching has no limit between two covers, where referencing is no longer a tedious task, where with the simple click of a button a student can upload an assessment within the meager time frames they are given rather than running pell-mell for the dropbox and possibly failing due to a second's hesitation to open a door or knock over a hapless old lady.
With technology, we save old ladies... and the minds of our students are not left to only partake of their education within the confines of our classrooms.
Blog Deux (Two)
Blogs. These, in fact. *gestures lazily at former posts* Personally, I use my blogs for creative writing, this is one of the few instances where I have used my blogs for just... talking or Uni work.
Ease of use; Click -New-. Type words. Publish post. It's really that simple.
What it can do; Add images, add video, wordcheck, insert blockquote, embed... ah. I was looking for that button earlier. Nifty. Ah, format your text in whatever way you want. It's pretty good actually. And it's open to the Internet for perusal, commenting, the works. It is a great platform to work off for opinionated individuals, companies, students, teachers, whatsoever.
Limitations; Going off what I've already said up here, sure you can't host a convention here or roast a marshmallow, but you can host a blog post with interesting ideas or creative writing or something and then allow your viewers to roast you slowly over their flames. Or be incredibly awesome. Like me and mine.
Link/Embed; ah... pointless...? (O_o) *throws arms out* Just look?! IT'S ALL RIGHT HERE! :D
This link here best defines exactly what it is I can and have done with blogs and how much my procrastination has evolved to the point where I willingly research something and deliver a top notch blog essay... when I should be doing Uni work instead. >_<
Pfft, anyway, here: http://www.the-top-shelf.com/?p=1579
Ease of use; Click -New-. Type words. Publish post. It's really that simple.
What it can do; Add images, add video, wordcheck, insert blockquote, embed... ah. I was looking for that button earlier. Nifty. Ah, format your text in whatever way you want. It's pretty good actually. And it's open to the Internet for perusal, commenting, the works. It is a great platform to work off for opinionated individuals, companies, students, teachers, whatsoever.
Limitations; Going off what I've already said up here, sure you can't host a convention here or roast a marshmallow, but you can host a blog post with interesting ideas or creative writing or something and then allow your viewers to roast you slowly over their flames. Or be incredibly awesome. Like me and mine.
Link/Embed; ah... pointless...? (O_o) *throws arms out* Just look?! IT'S ALL RIGHT HERE! :D
This link here best defines exactly what it is I can and have done with blogs and how much my procrastination has evolved to the point where I willingly research something and deliver a top notch blog essay... when I should be doing Uni work instead. >_<
Pfft, anyway, here: http://www.the-top-shelf.com/?p=1579
Blog Roku (Five)
Google Docs is a particularly useful vehicle of writing and keeping copies online for perusal, back-ups, further writing or editing, etc. In fact, I myself have used Google Docs in the many months before I bought and installed MS Word on my laptop as it was more reliable, free, easy to access, easy to use, didn't stall like Word does and as long as I could connect to the Internet, I always had a copy.
Ease of use; The hardest part of using Google Docs is that you must log in to your Gmail account first. So difficult. I can't understand why people would go to all that effort (sarcasm evident).
What it can do; It is, basically, MS Word on the Internet, powered by Google. It has all of the perks and very few of the cons. If I wasn't so attached to WordPad, I would probably be drilling out the plans for these blogs on Google Docs first.
Limitations; Internet connection. Without that, you're cut off and it's useless to you.
Embedded picture:
There's not much of an "in conclusion" for Google Docs, it is in reality fairly straight forward and just a simpler and easier to function version of the faulty and virus ridden mess that is MS Word.
... I'm not biased >_>
Blog Quatra (Four)
PowerPoints, huh? Personally I've been using PowerPoints since I was a wee tyke messing about on my family's brand new IBM PC. Ah, those were the days. I got it into my head to use one in a class project, taking along the data projector and utilizing the whiteboard to good use, I recieved quite a decent mark on the assignment. Ah, those were the days.... hm, deja vu.
My teacher at the time took a copy of my PowerPoint assignment to her University class as an example of using PowerPoints in the classroom. Such a nice idea of her to ask my permission first (not being sarcastic, she did ask) for to alleviate any plagiarism claims.
Ease of use; At the time, I had my father's help understanding how to use the program, but most of it was through trial, error, saving/backing-up files, etc. There is a help manual in the menu bar though if you get stuck.
Limitations; Little space for text, if text is your main basis of your presentation in that it is not coupled with a speech.
What it can do; PowerPoint can enable a presentation to flow easier with the drawing of an audience's visual attention and keeping them alert and focused whilst allowing the presenting student to retain the capacity to fill their heads with words, be it out loud or some other form of text based or oral vehicle.
Link; I have no idea how to embed a PowerPoint. Hopefully that will change in two hours or less (Edit: I still didn't find a way to embed a PowerPoint, or anything resembling one).
What it boils down to is that heavily relying on a PowerPoint is not the best idea but using it as an ally in the war that is asessment writing and grade winning, one would be able to possibly enlist it in the best way possible for that student or presenter of whatever means is required.
My teacher at the time took a copy of my PowerPoint assignment to her University class as an example of using PowerPoints in the classroom. Such a nice idea of her to ask my permission first (not being sarcastic, she did ask) for to alleviate any plagiarism claims.
Ease of use; At the time, I had my father's help understanding how to use the program, but most of it was through trial, error, saving/backing-up files, etc. There is a help manual in the menu bar though if you get stuck.
Limitations; Little space for text, if text is your main basis of your presentation in that it is not coupled with a speech.
What it can do; PowerPoint can enable a presentation to flow easier with the drawing of an audience's visual attention and keeping them alert and focused whilst allowing the presenting student to retain the capacity to fill their heads with words, be it out loud or some other form of text based or oral vehicle.
Link; I have no idea how to embed a PowerPoint. Hopefully that will change in two hours or less (Edit: I still didn't find a way to embed a PowerPoint, or anything resembling one).
What it boils down to is that heavily relying on a PowerPoint is not the best idea but using it as an ally in the war that is asessment writing and grade winning, one would be able to possibly enlist it in the best way possible for that student or presenter of whatever means is required.
Blog Three
Affectionately titled, is it not?
So I found myself the other day in need of four new blogs, and a sixteen hundred word reflective synopsis of the aforementioned blogs. Nifty, huh? Oh, and it needs to be done, for me, in about... three hours.
That's actually surprisingly easy. But I'll let my fingers do the talking and let the evidence speak for itself. Now, why, you may ask, do I start with Blog Three instead of say... One?
On this blog, I will be talking about multimedia tools (images, video, audio).
And here come the bullet points.
- Ease of use; Youtube is a user friendly website, easy to follow with it's directions, and has recently included animations that can be created by a member. One must be a member to do anything of substance within the community of Youtube. Though that is fairly simple to adhere to and it doesn't cost you anything.
- Limitations; You have two choices - Upload from Computer or Record from Webcam. It is reliant solely on what the user has created or wishes to create on the spot and there is no editing capabilities after the fact, barring sticking floating boxes and text on the video which is, regrettably, pointless and highly annoying.
- What it can do; Upload. Record. Create Animation. Review. Subscribe.
- Example; http://www.youtube.com/user/Tujdosen
- Usefulness; In the classroom, having a youtube video or some sort of other multimedia tool in this regard from any other website capable of constructing or harbouring such an item of educational or entertainment value would benefit the class in the sense that they would be able to either construct, perhaps, a video of their own (limited for viewing, naturally, to protect the students) or integrate technology they are most likely familiar with into their education and hopefully providing some sort of safety net to protect them from the fickle malicious nature of would-be (re)viewers. In any case, the video itself would enable the students to see the all the "pieces of the puzzle" better in a larger mode of visibility, not relying solely on the teacher to provide the students with both education and entertainment as a bored child is not a learning child.
Hm. Rambling aside. A video does not go off on wild tangents like myself, and can not be distracted from the task at hand like I used to do to teachers when I was younger. So much fun. ANYWAY: Youtube, I use this because I'm familiar with it as a multimedia vehicle, but most websites are easy to use if you follow two main points: A) Your own language. 2) FAQ.
So I found myself the other day in need of four new blogs, and a sixteen hundred word reflective synopsis of the aforementioned blogs. Nifty, huh? Oh, and it needs to be done, for me, in about... three hours.
That's actually surprisingly easy. But I'll let my fingers do the talking and let the evidence speak for itself. Now, why, you may ask, do I start with Blog Three instead of say... One?
On this blog, I will be talking about multimedia tools (images, video, audio).
And here come the bullet points.
- Ease of use; Youtube is a user friendly website, easy to follow with it's directions, and has recently included animations that can be created by a member. One must be a member to do anything of substance within the community of Youtube. Though that is fairly simple to adhere to and it doesn't cost you anything.
- Limitations; You have two choices - Upload from Computer or Record from Webcam. It is reliant solely on what the user has created or wishes to create on the spot and there is no editing capabilities after the fact, barring sticking floating boxes and text on the video which is, regrettably, pointless and highly annoying.
- What it can do; Upload. Record. Create Animation. Review. Subscribe.
- Example; http://www.youtube.com/user/Tujdosen
- Usefulness; In the classroom, having a youtube video or some sort of other multimedia tool in this regard from any other website capable of constructing or harbouring such an item of educational or entertainment value would benefit the class in the sense that they would be able to either construct, perhaps, a video of their own (limited for viewing, naturally, to protect the students) or integrate technology they are most likely familiar with into their education and hopefully providing some sort of safety net to protect them from the fickle malicious nature of would-be (re)viewers. In any case, the video itself would enable the students to see the all the "pieces of the puzzle" better in a larger mode of visibility, not relying solely on the teacher to provide the students with both education and entertainment as a bored child is not a learning child.
Hm. Rambling aside. A video does not go off on wild tangents like myself, and can not be distracted from the task at hand like I used to do to teachers when I was younger. So much fun. ANYWAY: Youtube, I use this because I'm familiar with it as a multimedia vehicle, but most websites are easy to use if you follow two main points: A) Your own language. 2) FAQ.
Monday, August 15, 2011
So...
There's not exactly an academic reasoning for this posting, but I just came back to class after about a four week sabbatical due to several mitigating reasons. I'm just going to talk about it here because:-
A) My counsellor told me to write about it;
2) Sharing is caring;
& Cat) I'm trying to get back into the swing of blogging.
That is important, I think.
So... my family has been ignoring me, screening their calls to avoid me and not answering texts. Yay. I hate being the black sheep some days. Sure I get more freedom but the whole "can't rely on flesh+blood relations" does put a whole crimp on liiife. They've only just got back to me because I may have spurned a very public outcry on Facebook. RISE MY SOLDIERS! RISE! -evil face-
In any case, they're trying to build a bridge over the rift they caused. Which is always a plus, I guess. Too little too late, though, in some regards. I suffer from anxiety and depression which makes it difficult to get out of bed or even leave my room at times (I live on campus). Deep down, I'm a perfectionist but due to always failing to achieve that goal, I've drifted further and further away from actually DOING work... resulting in quite a depressing and procrastinating spiral. Yay -.-'
Actually, one of the few things I did in the last week was post a guest blog about procrastinating on a professional blogger's account (apparently they get paid for it...?) so I'll just shamelessly plug the link here: http://www.the-top-shelf.com/?p=1579
Moving right along, the teacher is milling about behind me on her rolling chair which, to be honest, slightly creeps me out. I work well under pressure and all, but seriously? Could you, like, leave me alone whilst I'm blogging...? (O_o) Not that she's ever read this. Nobody has, to the best of my knowledge. Right? Hellooooo? *waves* Nope. Nothin'. (Edit: I take that back, she was very helpful, but still being told "You're next!" is very ominous... unless you're handing out candy. *hopeful puppy dog eyes* =P)
Back to the explanation then, empty audience, I suppose. In a twist of fate, I got involved in the recent CQUni musical Sweet Charity, as a dome operator and learnt about the ITC usage in the top box. That was really interesting. I was with them for almost two weeks, which is apparently half the time of the production. Now I know what I'm using for my electives in this course. Also it's spurned me to get my Trinity College Drama and Speech ATCL diploma, which would enable me to teach Drama outside of schools (I have a blue card). Which, another shameless plug here, would allow me to join the ranks of Drama Teachers in my family's studio: (website added later... possibly after it's made by me)
So. Back to the task at hand. I feel I've slipped back into the rough and tumble course of my blogging, and I'll get right onto doing my assessments in this regard. Woohoo! :D
Obligatory sign-off,
K.J. Evans
A) My counsellor told me to write about it;
2) Sharing is caring;
& Cat) I'm trying to get back into the swing of blogging.
That is important, I think.
So... my family has been ignoring me, screening their calls to avoid me and not answering texts. Yay. I hate being the black sheep some days. Sure I get more freedom but the whole "can't rely on flesh+blood relations" does put a whole crimp on liiife. They've only just got back to me because I may have spurned a very public outcry on Facebook. RISE MY SOLDIERS! RISE! -evil face-
In any case, they're trying to build a bridge over the rift they caused. Which is always a plus, I guess. Too little too late, though, in some regards. I suffer from anxiety and depression which makes it difficult to get out of bed or even leave my room at times (I live on campus). Deep down, I'm a perfectionist but due to always failing to achieve that goal, I've drifted further and further away from actually DOING work... resulting in quite a depressing and procrastinating spiral. Yay -.-'
Actually, one of the few things I did in the last week was post a guest blog about procrastinating on a professional blogger's account (apparently they get paid for it...?) so I'll just shamelessly plug the link here: http://www.the-top-shelf.com/?p=1579
Moving right along, the teacher is milling about behind me on her rolling chair which, to be honest, slightly creeps me out. I work well under pressure and all, but seriously? Could you, like, leave me alone whilst I'm blogging...? (O_o) Not that she's ever read this. Nobody has, to the best of my knowledge. Right? Hellooooo? *waves* Nope. Nothin'. (Edit: I take that back, she was very helpful, but still being told "You're next!" is very ominous... unless you're handing out candy. *hopeful puppy dog eyes* =P)
Back to the explanation then, empty audience, I suppose. In a twist of fate, I got involved in the recent CQUni musical Sweet Charity, as a dome operator and learnt about the ITC usage in the top box. That was really interesting. I was with them for almost two weeks, which is apparently half the time of the production. Now I know what I'm using for my electives in this course. Also it's spurned me to get my Trinity College Drama and Speech ATCL diploma, which would enable me to teach Drama outside of schools (I have a blue card). Which, another shameless plug here, would allow me to join the ranks of Drama Teachers in my family's studio: (website added later... possibly after it's made by me)
So. Back to the task at hand. I feel I've slipped back into the rough and tumble course of my blogging, and I'll get right onto doing my assessments in this regard. Woohoo! :D
Obligatory sign-off,
K.J. Evans
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