Collaborative Presentation of Web2.0 Tools Check out our presentation :) For their Explorers and Inventors Unit of Inquiry, students from Grade 5 created Tagxedo Word Clouds using the text from their own biographies that they wrote. We then uploaded a selection of the best Word Clouds and got other Grade 5 students to guess who it was and how they knew - what clues did they see within the text that gave it away. Voicethread is right at the top of the Bloom's Digital Taxonomy Pyramid in the 'creating' section and could be useful when analysing and/or synthesising information especially in the way that I have used it below... Voicethread provides a perfect way to collate student comments - with the added advantage that the students could add their comment as video, audio, written and could also annotate. It is especially useful in a mixed ability classroom and with shy students who are less willing to share their thoughts in a large group. Voicethread is very successful use of a GREAT Web2.0 Tool to create & present, showcase students work, and gather feedback to assess students knowledge & skills...! Love it :) Reflection Learning Objective: Students will demonstrate their knowledge of a variety of significant explorers
Activity: Students have already worked individually on biographies of their own choice of explorer and displayed this information as a Tagxedo wordcloud. Students will now use Voicethread as a tool to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of other explorers using visual & written cues to generate information about explorers and build on and question the thinking of the rest of the class. Possible Challenges: Teachers and students should initially be discussing essential agreement about how to be respectful, responsible and safe when responding. Teachers may feel that they need to moderate the comments of certain students especially since the presentation is accessible online. Reflection: Getting student to reflect on a summative assessment task using Voicethread allows all students to have a voice. It allows them to select their medium of response, whether it be video, oral or written. It also allows them to respond to others and add to others thinking. As soon as students realize that they have an audience – a real one, not just a teacher sitting at home grading a pile of responses – personal pride kicks in and they work harder at the accuracy of their posts. They take time – for once – to read through previous posts because they don’t want repeat but add to the conversation. Copying becomes a thing of the past since everyone can see the comments before. Instead, students question and build upon previous posts and take the learning further. I came into the role of ICT teacher after 13 years in the classroom, so my passion is using technology as a tool to support student learning. I am particular partial to tools that are intuitive and motivating, that enhance the learning possibilities, and that take learning to the next level. We tend to forget that students of today have grown up with this kind of technology – cell phone use, instant access to information, online gaming, to name but a few examples. This may be innovation for us but for our students, this is normal – at least outside of the classroom. Using Web2.0 tools in a classroom environment instantly makes the content more accessible for the student. As many of the common core standards state, the student should have the opportunity to integrate and evaluate content before applying their understanding and presenting their findings. Referring to Blooms Digital Taxonomy, being able to use tools to analyse, evaluate and create – both online and offline – that promote higher order thinking skills. Web2.0 tools encourage real time collaboration with whomever you want, wherever you want. Students are able to be connected at home, school and even on the move. They can collect and process information from almost any device and the possibilities are endless. We no longer have to provide scenarios or simulations; we can provide them with an authentic learning experience by getting them to help provide solutions for the real life issues and problems of today. Students that get to bring their knowledge and experience of any of these types of tools is instantly more motivated. Yes, using technology is not as innovative for them as it is for us but it does speak their language and make them feel more at home. I do believe schools in general are doing students a disservice by making them leave the tools that they are accustomed to – that they have grown up with – at the door. Students should not have to rewind twenty years just to make teachers feel more comfortable.
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Contents1. Resume/Bio
2. Online vs. face to face Venn Diagram 3. Collaborative Presentation of Web2.0 Tools 4. Designing an online discussion 5. Establishing an Accessible Social Presence 6. Designing a comprehensive Assessment Plan 7. Online Course Syllabus 8. Reflection: iNACOL Standards for Quality Online Teaching About MeHello, I am Tony Potts, the Director of Digital Learning, PK-12 ICT Coordinator, ICT teacher and technology integration specialist at GEMS World Academy, Dubai. Please feel free to ask me ANY questions...
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