Module 4. Digital story telling.

 No doubt, no matter how old you are, that there is nothing like listening or telling to a good story!
As we move rapidly into a new era of technology, the delivery of story telling has moved from the traditional format of words on a page to one that is alive through using various multi media.

Digital storytelling is the over arching phrase to describe this new trend.  There are various forms of digital storytelling, namely podcasting and videos uploaded on Youtube.  Having this medium we are not limited to the traditional formats and are able to source a variety of stories from around the world, thus giving us a salad bowl of cultural experiences.

At present I am team teaching with an English teacher who is running a unit on social issues in Australia in the 19th century.  They are looking at a poem called 'the man from Ironbark'.  Whilst reading this myself I made a connection with Sweeney Todd and so I searched on the net for images, poems and a historical background on him.  Gathering them all together I was able to create a variety of activities using the material I created.  To go a bit further I am currently looking at finding digital stories about Sweeney Todd, maybe from an English historian or one of London's local history societies who look at the dark side of London's history!

Pros of using digital storytelling in class is that it is a visual stimulus, it's another voice rather than the teacher and it is much more student paced, so we can stop and start it to determine understanding and have a discussion. In addition digital storytelling can be an activity that the students use themselves to show their understanding, it allows them to access and express through various multi-media.  However this process can be quite time consuming, but managed properly it can be an extremely beneficial activity.

Module 3. Google docs

Last year I was introduced to google docs because I wanted to explore a new way of getting the students to respond to a source analysis activity that I had created.  My aim was to avoid using the traditional medium, whereby the students read the source, made notes and fed back to the class.  By using google docs I was able to put the students into a small group and they were to read and comment upon the source by uploading their understanding on the document, which was instantly visual on the board.  This allowed us to comment on each others feedback, thus giving instant peer feedback.  We were also able to create a summary of the knowledge that was then distributed amongst the class.

The good thing about using google docs is that I was able to see who was giving effective feedback in real time and who was refraining from participating in the activity, I feel this method made the students more accountable and rid the activity of inappropriate feedback as I was able to see who had written what.  This was also a really good activity for the students to do as they enjoyed the fact that they could see their feedback being showcased to the rest of the class.

In my new role I use google docs with the staff during staff meetings or training sessions.  For instance I have currently an action research project going with a team of 5 teachers.  At our first team meeting I created a google doc survey for the purpose of the team giving feedback on a particular education article they read, which was then summarised and distributed to the whole team.  The good thing about this was that the whole team did not have to spend hours reading through this whole research paper, but instead sections were given to individuals, who then read it, summarised it and uploaded it onto the google doc feedback sheet.

Module 2. Blogs

The purpose of a blog is to allow individuals to create a space where they can showcase anything they are interested in, the result of this is that others with similar interest can partake in discussing the topics and allows those involved to network between each other.

The pros of having a blog is that you are able to share your interest globally, thus encouraging your audience to give you feedback and participate in discourse. In relation to blogs for education the pro here is that teachers of similar interest are able to share resources, ideas and take part in profession dialogue.  Personally I would use a blog to be able to participate for example in discussions around teaching and learning strategies for boys, I could achieve this through firstly researching what blogs currently exist out there and then set my own up.

Module I Web2.0

What is Web2.0?

This is a very different to the original Web 1, whereby it was controlled by people who could upload information on the net, without others being able to contribute.  Out of this came Web 2, which allows everyone to upload, comment, contribute, interact and be apart of a global information network.

Web 2 allows individuals to communicate through using various tools on line, e.g. google docs, facebook and flickr to build upon relations and enables people to connect with each other, regardless of geographical location.

In today's session I looked at iGoogle.  The first step meant I had to choose a layout for my page and tick the relevant boxes highlighting my personal interests.  By doing this iGoogle generated gadgets for me to view according to my interests, e.g. news (international) and 'artist of the day'.  By having created this page, it allows me to access areas of interest at a quick glance and each day new headlines etc are available for me to use. iGoogle also allows me to personalise the space by adding gadgets downloaded from the website.