Module 4

I played around with Animoto and enjoyed this. There are a number of ways in which podcasting and vodcasting can be used in the classroom.

Vodcasts would be particularly useful for students to be able to access while doing their homework or while they are working on assessment tasks at home. A video could be made with an explanation of how a problem might be solved in Maths, for example. Another example would be to have a video of the assessment task being explained in its various parts. A student could then access the part they require for the work the are doing at the given time.

Digital story telling is a great way to show off students' work. These videos could be used for Open Days or other times when there is showcasing of student work. They could also be used to celebrate the achievements of students outside the classroom. These might include the sports field, community service, liturgical life of the school, capturing memories for graduations, etc.

For teacher who are open to it, it may also be a way in which students can submit work in practical subject like art or timber, as a way of journalling the design process and work in progress.

Module 3

Using Google Docs has a great use in the classroom. One of the features that I like most is the way collaboration on a document can take place. More and more, we are finding that when students collaborate in their learning, the benefits to learning are far greater.

There are still a large number of students, particularly in Stage 6, who do not see these benefits. The competition for the marks or high ranks leads them to thinking that it is better to not share their work and their learning. I think that with the natural tendency towards the use of technology that our students have, we can use this to lead them into collaborative learning environments.

In my next round of Network Meetings I would really like to give the Google Forms a try as a way of the evaluation tool. This means that the participants will be able to do the evaluation in their own time and give it the time it needs, rather than it be the last thing done in a meeting and done in haste!