Free Web-Based Software Reviews

Office Suites
I've been using Google Drive for quite some time.  In fact, back in my day, it was still called Google Docs.  When I hired into St. Joseph Public Schools in 20012, one of the first things I did was set up a Google Drive for my fellow elementary art teacher and I to share our ideas and catalogue our lesson plans.  Google Drive, in a nutshell, has free equivalents of the main Microsoft Office applications - Word, Powerpoint, Excel - but with two huge added perks: accessibility and collaboration.  I can access my Drive from any location.  Most times, when working on homework or another project, I prefer to create a Google Document so that I can be sure to have it no matter the device on which I'm working.  Where Google Drive differs from Microsoft Office is that everything auto saves and I can access it without having to email it to myself or bring it up on the same computer.  Google Drive also gives me the choice on how to share the things I create.  I can share them with others as "view only" or I can give others the chance to edit what I share.  What's really cool is that when someone else is editing a document or presentation, I can see the edit in real time.  A recent addition to Google Drive is the ability to download the app to a device.  This allows me to drag and drop items that I would to appear on my Drive from my computer, and again, access them from any device.

Image Editing
Last year, I took a professional development class specifically to raise awareness of free iPad apps for art educators.  One of the apps introduced was Sumo Paint.  Sumo Paint was described as an app that was somewhere between Paint and Photoshop.  I hadn't given much time to the app until it was mentioned again this week.  I revisited Sumo Paint in order to make my screencast and found it incredibly user-friendly and intuitively designed.  A lot of the icons in Sumo Paint correspond to those in Photoshop, but I think the layout and options are quite a bit simpler.  I'm not an advanced user of Photoshop, so I'm not sure how Sumo Paint would compare for advanced techniques, but a lot of the basics of photo editing seem to be there.  One of the downsides to using Sumo Paint is that it doesn't link directly to other Adobe products.  For example, when I'm using Photoshop, I often bounce around and drag things to and from Illustrator and InDesign as well.  While I'm missing that level of correspondence with Sumo Paint, for a free app that has many capabilities, I really can't complain.

Screencast

I created this screencast as an aid to students and myself in my classroom.  I think this screencast would serve multiple purposes.  First, if a student were absent during the introduction of a 1-point perspective lesson, this screencast would help her establish the basics and get back up to speed.  Second, this tool could serve as a good refresher for students who don't remember the steps of a 1-point perspective drawing the first time around.  Finally, this screencast would save me time in repeating directions to students and would allow me to focus my energy elsewhere.  If I embedded this video on a class website, I could simply direct students to it and have them work independently.

Google Mapping Activity

My idea for this activity was to have students use the custom mapping tool to plan a day trip in Paris.  I would provide students with specific guidelines for what they had to include in their day trip and they would then have to find places and a mode of transportation to and from these places.  The guidelines for students might look something like this:

-Start the day in hotel or hostel.
-Find breakfast.
-Find a nearby park to eat breakfast.
-Find an afternoon excursion.
-Find a place to eat lunch.
-Find an activity to do after lunch.
-Find a place to eat dinner.
-Find a site that has a wonderful nighttime view.
-End the day in the same hotel or hostel.

In addition to students finding the aforementioned places, they would also have to show the method of travel they would take be it walking, bus, or metro.  What I would really like to do with this assignment would be to add actual walking, bus, or metro directions showing accurate paths and distances.  For some reason, I had a really hard time getting this feature to work.  It seems as if there are two different versions of this tool, Classic Google Maps and some updated version.  The updated version (which I was working with) didn't seem very well supported.  All the support tools reverted to Classic Google Maps.  Nonetheless, I was still able to add descriptions that detailed how I would get about, which would still prove a valid learning experience.

What's great about this lesson is that it could be extended in multiple ways.  First, students could write descriptions in French to practice grammar and composition.  Second, students could detail the prices of meals and excursions in order to understand prices and budgeting abroad.  Or, students could provide historical information about a particular place to gain a new historical perspective.  Overall, fun tool with lots of possibilities.  I only wish the help and tutorials provides extended to every version.

*Please note I only created the first half of this activity to provide an example of what students would be expected to create.

Concept Mapping Activity

Here's an example of a concept map I did using the French verb être (to be).  This example could be one that I would create for students as a study tool to learn the different parts of speech of a verb, but more than likely, I would use this tool to have students create these maps for themselves.  I found a lot of reward in having to think about the different parts of speech and map it out.  A variation of this concept could be for the instructor to pick a different part of speech, i.e. present tense, and have students create the present tense for multiple verbs.  I also see the potential of this tool to be used to check for student understanding.  The only downside to this is that because bubbl.us functions on the web, students would have the ability to look up verbs.  However, I could always create a blank concept map and have students fill in the blanks.  Overall, very intuitive, user-friendly tool that holds a lot of potential.

Reading Response Week 4

Application

In addressing “Application” question 1, I will show how the instructional design of the proposed problem of teaching unit costs differs using Behavioral Learning Theory, Schema Theory, and Situated Learning Theory.

In order to teach unit costs using Behavioral Learning Theory, I would present learners with three different prices and sizes of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Bean (the jelly beans that range in flavor from strawberry to vomit), their goal being to find which of the three price/size combinations is the cheapest per ounce.  Perhaps the steps to solving the problem are done in an electronic fashion that provides antecedents along the way.  For example, if a student is using the correct division to solve the problem, that student might be met with a pleasant sound or a visual cue that suggests that she is on the right path.  But if a student deters from the correct way of solving the problem, the student might be met with an unpleasant sound or some kind of warning.  Another fun twist on this scenario using Behavioral Learning Theory is that the teacher could put a pleasant flavored bean next to the correct solution to the problem and unpleasant flavors next to the wrong solutions.  If students think they have arrived at the correct answer, they can eat the bean and receive direct reward or punishment based on their choice.  

Teaching unit costs via Schema Theory would involve students having prior knowledge of measurements, comparisons (greater than, less than), division, money, and decimals.  I would begin teaching them about unit costs by checking for understanding of the aforementioned items.  I would then be sure to provide them with a calculator to make sure that the process of problem solving is as automated as possible.  It is hopeful that students would have a vast schema of all the above items so that when solving a unit costs problem, they could “use existing schemas to interpret events and solve problems,” (38).  

Finally, teaching unit costs with Situated Learning theory would involve more of a real-world experience.  With this theory in mind, I would start by having students divide into small teams.  Each team would have the task of gathering an item for a party.  For example, one team would be responsible for cups, another for plates, etc.  The task would be for students to purchase enough of their item for the party while documenting their choices.  For example, team A, who could be in charge of cups, would explain why they made their selection for buying the cups they did and show the price/cup of the other choices they were considering.  

Chapter 14

I found chapter 14 to be interesting in that I can see areas were my school district is implementing HPI practices amongst staff members, but also in encouraged practices that relate to teacher/student interactions.  Conversely, there are also areas in my school district that I think still fall under the “single-solution, miracle interventions,” mindset (137).  

In general, if implemented correctly, the ideas of HPI could transform any group of people to have “valued organizational results” (138).  I think the problem is that key components often get overlooked or left out.  For example, my school district has a mission statement, clearly states our goals, and uses an evaluation system that provides direct feedback.  We don’t, however, provide training opportunities for all, have clear rewards and consequences for poor performance, or support many career development opportunities.  I think that if our school district fully embraced an HPI model, we would see improvements in collaboration, collegiality, and student performance.

I think the ideas of HPI - “to achieve, through people, increasingly successful accomplishments that are valued by all stakeholders” - could be beneficial for students as well.  When we think of HPI at a student level, the original intent of implementing it in workplaces might switch, but the ideas are the same.  Already, I think I have a lot of the ideas in place within my classroom.  For example, I have clear expectations for behavior and projects, provide students with appropriate materials, give timely feedback on projects, and have the ultimate goal of shaping minds to be successful in society in place each day.   

Podcast

After checking out a few educational and art related podcasts for this assignment, I finally landed on one to profile that I think encompasses everything I like in a podcast: Education: NPR.  I know this site is more of a composite of educational related radio stories not necessarily by a single source, but it's an excellent resource for everything from statistical analysis to quirky stories in typical NPR fashion.  There were a couple things I really love about the site.  First, it's not just a site for educational related podcasts, but also for educational blogs and articles.  Second, the podcasts themselves are generally around 4-6 minutes in length; not great for the long distance commuter, but definitely a good bite-sized chunk of time.  Finally, the site is easily navigable, updated almost daily, and tracks listening activity.

To give you an idea of the range of stories Education: NPR covers, I'll share a couple.  The first I listened to was one related to how schools in Pennsylvania are using the sharing of personal stories in front of a crowd to build empathy in students.  The podcast talked about how after Columbine, officials at the school thought that if they could get students to open up and relate to others, students would be less likely to feel isolated and thus less likely to commit violent crime.  This podcast then went into the personal stories of a few students and gave the reactions of students hearing the stories.  The stories were heavy and sometimes hard to listen to, but showcased the true vulnerability of these students and the support of their peers.

Another podcast I listened to followed a reporter interviewing 4th graders in the Bay Area about the Common Core.  The podcast started off by him asking the students if they know what the Common Core is and how they would rank the difficulty of the Common Core Standards.  It then transitioned into the students explaining math techniques taught with the Common Core and the reporter admitting that he knows little of the techniques they're using.  He counters by offering the technique he was taught, of which the students know nothing about.  It's an interesting bit that makes one question the process by which students arrive at a solution.

Other such podcasts on Education: NPR include: Does Smuggling a Cow into School Make You a Creative Genius? and Anatomy of a Great Commencement Speech amongst hundreds of others.  It's fun and educational.  Check it out!

Social Bookmarking

The social bookmarking tool, Delicious, was new to me, but something that I thoroughly enjoyed and I’m sure will continue to enjoy.  Obviously, there are a lot of applications for this type of tool in education.  Delicious would serve as a wonderful collaboration tool for sharing and organizing professional sites amongst teachers.  It would also be a great tool for organizing different categories of reading that teachers can share with their students.  Another, perhaps less likely application, would be a type of sorting game that students with their own Delicious sites could play.  I imagine students finding different artists’ websites and tagging them to fit into particular categories.  For example: Modern Art, Surrealist Influenced, Cubism, etc.  Students might also categorize the personal websites of their peers.  This could lead to an interesting discussion about what categories were chosen and why.  It could also be used to check student understanding of particular movements of art.

Podcast Synopsis

After checking out a few educational and art related podcasts for this assignment, I finally landed on one to profile that I think encompasses everything I like in a podcast: Education: NPR.  I know this site is more of a composite of educational related radio stories not necessarily by a single source, but it's an excellent resource for everything from statistical analysis to quirky stories in typical NPR fashion.  There were a couple things I really love about the site.  First, it's not just a site for educational related podcasts, but also for educational blogs and articles.  Second, the podcasts themselves are generally around 4-6 minutes in length; not great for the long distance commuter, but definitely a good bite-sized chunk of time.  Finally, the site is easily navigable, updated almost daily, and tracks listening activity.

To give you an idea of the range of stories Education: NPR covers, I'll share a couple.  The first I listened to was one related to how schools in Pennsylvania are using the sharing of personal stories in front of a crowd to build empathy in students.  The podcast talked about how after Columbine, officials at the school thought that if they could get students to open up and relate to others, students would be less likely to feel isolated and thus less likely to commit violent crime.  This podcast then goes into the personal stories of a few students and then gives the reactions of students hearing the stories.  The stories are heavy and sometimes hard to listen to, but showcase the true vulnerability of these students and the support of their peers.

Another podcast I listened to followed a reporter interviewing 4th graders in the Bay Area about the Common Core.  The podcast starts off by him asking the students if they know what the Common Core is and how they would rank the difficulty of the Common Core Standards.  It then transitions into the students explaining math techniques taught with the Common Core and the reporter admitting that he knows little of the techniques they're using.  He counters by offering the technique he was taught, of which the students know nothing about.  It's an interesting bit that makes one question the process by which students arrive at a solution. 

Other such podcasts on Education: NPR include: Does Smuggling a Cow into School Make You a Creative Genius? and Anatomy of a Great Commencement Speech amongst hundreds of others.  It's fun and educational.  Check it out!

Link to Delicious

Here's my Delicious page.

Here's a Piece from My Undergrad. Surrealism Inspired.

Link to Flickr

Here's my Flickr page.

Reading Response Week 3

There are many definitions of what is later referred to as instructional design and technology presented in chapter 1.  It’s not that I disagree with any of these definitions.  In fact, I agree with most of them.  In my opinion, however, it seems as if the definitions are just expanding on what I think are bigger themes in the field.  For me, instructional design and technology should include the following characteristics:

·      It should create a more convenient learning environment for teachers and students.

·      It should look to create student-driven learning and greater student independence.

·      It should support an idea in the most user-friendly way.

·      It should be open to process and supplement the intuitive nature of teachers.

What I found to be surprising in chapter 1 was that humans weren’t included in the definition of instructional design and technology until 1977.  Media aside, it’s still humans who have to drive the media and design how the media will supplement classroom content.  I guess if anything seemed to be missing, it would be the mentioning of teacher intuition.  Maybe this wasn’t mentioned because it isn’t something that can be measured, but it seems as if the intuitive nature of a teacher plays greatly into the success of a classroom.  

The “Application” scenario presented in the book was interesting because our middle school rolled out a 1:1 initiative this year.  Although the program is still in the preliminary phase and it’s hard to gauge whether this initiative will positively affect instructional practices, I was able to come up with reasons why the hypothetical scenario in the book might have faltered.  

First of all, it’s likely that the project gave teachers and students lots of tools, but didn’t instruct the teachers how to use the tools or how to incorporate these tools into the curriculum.  It might also be likely that the tools themselves seemed trendy, but in actuality, didn’t supplement curriculum in any meaningful way.  In the two years I’ve been employed in an elementary school, I’ve probably seen 3-5 programs, which seemed like the new, trendy wagon to jump on, but faded out within a year because of the aforementioned reasons.  Perhaps many of our teachers had a similar mentality as Postman, wondering what problems these tools answered?  

Another possible reason the proposed program had minimal effect could be lack of funding needed to service and maintain the computers and update the tools.  Or, it could be one of the reasons why television media had minimal effect: teacher unwillingness to adopt the change.  Although many teachers have adopted widespread tools such as online grade books, email, etc.; other teaching tools, without proper training, could be seen as frustrating and more of a nuisance.  

I think one strategy that could be used to mitigate the above factors would be a thorough introduction of the tools and training of the tools for teachers so that teachers don’t feel the pressure of learning and introducing something new by themselves.  I think it would also be important for teachers to have a say in the instructional devices to be introduced before committing to them.  Perhaps by doing this, teachers would feel more included in the decision and would be able to select tools they think are applicable to the curriculum.

Here's Where I Lived in France

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One of My Favorite Videos

Reading Response Week 2

My first impressions of using the technology-based tools this week were those of familiarity and unfamiliarity.  I have previous experiences with a blog, RSS feed, and wiki, but the extent which I’ve used these tools varies greatly.  Out of the three technologies, I feel most comfortable with a blog.  (I actually kept a blog during my time in France and recently found out it has over 1,000 views.)  I created an RSS feed and a wiki during my undergraduate studies, but haven’t taken advantage of these tools since.

I actually found all three of these tools to strongly obtain the Web 2.0 characteristics as described by O’Reilly.  All three were user-friendly, free (which takes away the exclusive, business-like models of many Web 1.0 tools), based on some form of collaboration and/or community, and easily accessible.  All three also seemed intuitively designed with clean interfaces making them easy to navigate and manage.

I can think of a number of ways a wiki could be used in my classroom, both as an instructional, organizational tool and as a tool for students to manage their artistic creations and experiences.  I think a common application amongst educators is to have a classroom wiki, which serves as a tool for communicating with students and parents, and cataloging items relating to the curriculum.  I could definitely see myself making a wiki for my class (and I’m a little disappointed that I haven’t already) in order to post units, demonstrations pertaining to those units, art news, events, etc.  I could also see students using a wiki as an art portfolio or as a source for displaying artwork and then critiquing others’ work via the comments feature.  A wiki could also be used to supplement a research project.  Perhaps students have to create a wiki about a particular artist with widgets to supplement the research.

When thinking about which part of Dale’s Cone the blog and Feedly lend themselves to best, it’s important to consider this idea from the aspect of the creator and the aspect of the viewer.  First of all, I learned each tool by “direct purposeful experiences,” meaning that I went through the steps of creation and playing around to figure out how each tool operates.  For the viewer, I think both the blog and Feedly would fit best into the “contrived experiences” tier.  In the article, it’s mentioned that an experience is contrived when “we deal with a representation that differs from the original reality in size, in complexity, or in both.”  With a level of abstract thinking applied, the blog eliminates the need for an audience to congregate in one area to listen to a story and then respond directly to the storyteller.  Feedly, on the other hand, makes it so I don’t have to obtain physical copies of the literature I want to read or constantly refresh numerous sources for updates.  Content wise, both of these tools have the ability to expand into most every tier of Dale’s Cone based on what media the creators choose to add and their intended usage. 

In the article “Falling Asleep at Your Keyboard: The Case for Computer Imagination,”

Martin Siegel gives many examples for what he defines as “computer imaginative.”  Things that are “computer imaginative” create unique experiences, employ a “coherent set of concepts,” and have a purpose.  A blog is an example of a web tool that allows for multiple people to assemble around a shared idea and participate in a discussion about that idea without the need to travel or participate within time constraints.  Those features in themselves are “imaginative.”  An “imaginative” application of a blog in an art classroom would be for students to create individual blogs with photos of ongoing work and for other students to critique that work via the comments feature.  This solves the aforementioned problems related to travel and time, and also the problem of students working on projects at home and not getting feedback until class assembles.  One might say that a group SMS could be sent to individuals, but a blog allows for a more coherent interface (perhaps the artist wants to share her artist statement and multiple photos) and opens comments up to a broader audience.

Feedly, on the other hand, solves the problems of having to physically obtain in one space the things I want to read or have my students read, and having to navigate through numerous sites for updates.  In the classroom, Feedly would answer the problem of having safe (because I’ve selected them) literature relating to a particular subject in one place that is free, user friendly, and community-based.  Student could also subscribe to other classmate’s blogs, similar to what we did, and comment as a form of critique.

Wiki Link

Here's my wiki site.

Reading Response Week 1

I found these two articles to be quite thought provoking, especially given the fact that my initial reaction to both articles continued to evolve as I applied what the authors were saying to my own experiences and specifically to art education.

In reading Reigeluth and Joseph, my initial reaction was that the mentality of creating a learning-focused paradigm was very idealized.  Do I agree with the idea that learning should be student-centered and “attainment-based rather than time-based?” Absolutely.  But the reality of the situation is that the majority of school districts don’t have the resources to customize student learning to the extent mentioned in the article, a point which Reigeluth and Joseph draw on when they address the imperative role of policy makers in making education learning-focused. 

Another interesting point mentioned by Reigeluth and Joseph, which is in stark contrast to Postman’s article, is the idea that technology should be standard in learning, no matter the task.  The article even went so far as to say that a lot of tasks that we would normally think to be supplemented with technology should, in fact, fully embrace technology.  This idea made me first think about what this would mean in an art classroom.  Perhaps Reigeluth and Joseph’s intent wasn’t to take away from a hands-on approach, but it still made me wonder how the instructor/student relationship would look if students were using simulations and electronic performance support systems rather than creating in a traditional sense.     Secondly, I questioned if fully embracing this approach would hinder Postman’s point of,  “[School] has always been about how to learn and how to behave as part of a community.”  Is it possible for students to get so caught up in “hard” and “soft” technologies that they fail to learn social responsibilities?

Jumping to Postman’s article, I was quick to label him as nostalgic and somewhat of a romantic.  At first it seemed as if Postman’s yearning for a simpler time was somewhat irrational, but his questioning of the accomplishments of technology got me thinking about the role of technology in a learning environment.  I agree with the idea that too much information is being thrown at everyone, not just teachers and students.  And most of this information is completely irrelevant to what we need to attain.  In a similar way, many school districts are always on the look out for the new computer programs that will “aid” students in learning.  Perhaps these programs are promoting student-centered learning, but a lot of them beg the same question asked by Postman, “What is the problem to which _____can answer?”

So what is the role of technology in the classroom?  Is it an immersive approach that should drive student learning in all aspects as mentioned by Reigeluth and Joseph?  Or is it an approach that nearly takes technology out of the picture as presented by Postman.  I think the answer lies somewhere in between.  I have a unique position, although one that seems to be shared by a few in the class, which is finding the appropriate measure to apply technology to an art setting.  (It should be noted that I do not intend to misrepresent the potential of technology in art and what technology has already done for art.  This is strictly speaking from an elementary art teacher perspective.)  I often use technology to demo art-making techniques, take virtual tours through museums, video project tutorials, etc.  I do, however, realize the importance of hands-on, tactical experiences and I never want technology to simulate those experiences for students.  At the end of the day, I think the most successful lessons are those which focus on student-driven learning and cooperative strategies that may or may not be supplemented with technology.