BACKCHANNEL DISCUSSION TOOL
High school students can sometimes be quite introverted and shy in the classroom, but outspoken online. Additionally, some high school classes move through discussions quickly, and not all students find the opportunity to speak up in class. Both of these issues are addressed as high school classes encourage a Twitter backchannel discussion, in which quiet, shy, and unable-to-get-a-word-in-edgewise students are able to speak up in class without actually speaking up in class, sharing their comments, insights, and even relevant links through Twitter as the discussion goes on. Educators have found that Twitter backchannel discussions provide for more interaction not just in the classroom, but beyond, as students often enjoy further carrying on the conversation even after class time is over.
BACKCHANNEL DISCUSSION TOOL
High school students can sometimes be quite introverted and shy in the classroom, but outspoken online. Additionally, some high school classes move through discussions quickly, and not all students find the opportunity to speak up in class. Both of these issues are addressed as high school classes encourage a Twitter backchannel discussion, in which quiet, shy, and unable-to-get-a-word-in-edgewise students are able to speak up in class without actually speaking up in class, sharing their comments, insights, and even relevant links through Twitter as the discussion goes on. Educators have found that Twitter backchannel discussions provide for more interaction not just in the classroom, but beyond, as students often enjoy further carrying on the conversation even after class time is over.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Twitter makes the education world smaller, connecting principals, teachers, and other education professionals across the U.S. and even around the globe. Principal Sheninger at New Milford High School in New Jersey started using Twitter to keep in touch with parents, but found its real value in reaching out to other educators and collaborating with them. He is able to use the tool to find new ideas, new resources, and ideas for professional development
I was developing a game for webpp, looks fine on iphone3gs but rather fussy on iphone4. This is a hack or get around to make your webapp display high res graphic on iphone4 and ipad.
In mobile browsers, you need to be especially careful about
using timers because of the battery consumption. If you need to use many
high-frequency timers at the same time, try to manage them using
only one timer that will launch different behaviors from the same
process.
The first question we need to ask ourselves is, what happens
when our web page goes to the background because the user switches
focus to another application (in multitasking operating systems) or
opens or browses to another tab or window? Another problem is what
happens when the phone goes to sleep (because of the user’s inactivity
while the script is executing). The behavior of timers can be a little
tricky in these situations.Yet another problem is that timers execute on the same thread as
the main script. If our script is taking too much processor time (a
normal situation with large scripts on low- and mid-end devices), our
timers will be delayed until some spare execution time is
found.If we use a low frequency for the timer (for example, 10
milliseconds), the timer will generally have problems meeting the
timetable.Remember that the JavaScript execution time depends a lot on the
device hardware and the browser’s engine. Even if they’re running the
same operating system, like Android, execution times can differ: for
example, an HTC G1 will be much slower than a Nexus One with a 1-Ghz
processor.
As shown in Figure 4, the real times
are very different on different devices. On low- and mid-end devices,
if they work at all, the result is far from our 200 ms intention—some
low-end devices don’t even accept timers with a frequency of less than
1 second.
Table 11. Timers support compatibility tableBrowser/platformTimers
availableTimers in
backgroundSafariYesStopped. From iOS 4.0:
continue working while in other browser's
window.Android
browserYesStopped.Symbian/S60YesStopped. From 2.2:
continue working while in other browser's
window.Nokia Series
40No webOSYesContinue
working.BlackBerryNo NetFrontYesNo
multitasking.Internet
ExplorerYesStopped.Motorola Internet
BrowserNo Opera
MobileYesContinue
working.Opera
MiniNo Note:The Gmail for Mobile team discovered some issues with timer
behavior on mobile Safari and Android devices, and made the results
public in the team blog at http://www.mobilexweb.com/go/timers. The conclusions
are: for low-frequency timers (1 second or more), there are no
performance issues, and you can add as many as you want; for
high-frequency timers (for example, 100 ms), though, every new timer
created makes the UI more sluggish. The preferred solution is to use
only one high-frequency timer.
CIT used to have an e-Portfolio service that did not have a high take up rate. There are several reasons for this that I can think of:
It was provided under the build it and they will come model. I believe not enough was done to convince students and teaching staff about the benefits of building e-Portfolios.
Consequently, no one was willing to integrate this into their course, as part of reflective learning.
Keeping an e-Portfolio was seen as extra work, which neither students nor staff were keen on.
Perhaps the software itself was not very conducive to building e-Portfolios. One key area with users seem to be that the e-Portfolio should have a customisable design and layout (at least on its public face). Our system was not flexible in that aspect. In fact, in the latter years, the option to publish the e-Portfolio was taken away entirely.
The e-Portfolio service was a walled garden. It wasn’t easy to bring in digital artefacts, which may have resided on other public services, nor was it easy to repurpose that information into useful formats – personal reference, actual resume, showcase of work.
No one figured how students would access the e-Portfolios after they graduated as it was all based on our single sign-on system.
A reflective commentary by one CIT staff in NUS on his dept's attempts to implement an ePortfolio service - and why it didn't have a high take-up rate.
encourage a Twitter backchannel discussion, in which quiet, shy, and unable-to-get-a-word-in-edgewise students are able to speak up in class without actually speaking up in class, sharing their comments, insights, and even relevant links through Twitter as the discussion goes on
Educators have found that Twitter backchannel discussions provide for more interaction not just in the classroom, but beyond, as students often enjoy further carrying on the conversation even after class time is over.
This quick exercise allows students to further digest and understand the material at hand, while at the same time creating a great resource for future review.
An example of how students can be empowered to not just consume, but to also create e-learning programs for their peers. Perhaps we can use this as an illustration of a unique learning/visualization affordance made possible by technology.
Incidentally I think they have the best "Please wait" message ever for a program: "Please be patient while this page loads -- it takes several minutes. But it does include, after all, the entire universe." :)
I've been thinking. If the highest level of e-learning is augmentation of existing teaching and learning capabilities, then why not investigate cloud supercomputers - the logical extrapolation of today's cloud computing.
Imagine the learning possibilities if students could easily run simulations using real-world data to investigate real-world phenomena or even social ones, to see what would happen if you tweaked certain environmental / historical conditions. Then teachers could use the various simulated outcomes as a starting point for discussion purposes - e.g. if everyone on earth had a car, what would happen to the earth's temperatures in the next few years? and then ask further questions from there using fundamental principles. Less time spent on tedious models, and more time spent observing systems interactions, may help make the next generation of
It sounds like a very high-level concept, but I think a practical example is when I used the speech-to-text convertor feature of an English dictionary app on my iPhone to help a boy learn how to pronounce words correctly. It turned a boring dictionary into a fun interactive game for him, and he learnt a few new words along the way.
Just some food for thought this holiday season. Merry Christmas!
NMC Virtual Worlds is a program of the New Media Consortium. Our mission is to help learning-focused organizations explore the potential of virtual spaces in a manner that builds on community knowledge, is cost-effective, and ensures high quality. NMC Virtual Worlds provides a palette of premium custom services for education and training, and conducts an ongoing series of events, conferences, and programs. A suite of pro bono services and fellowships are a central aspect of the organization, and reflect our deep commitment to learning and access.
Many company owners want to cut down the cost of reduction and running of the business. Its not easy since they have to keep up with tax filing, high cost of filing the returns and running the business.
Well,
that was quick. Right after yesterday's surprising announcement,
Sony flew its yet-to-be-released NEX-VG10 camcorder into London just in time for
today's showcase event. Naturally, we had to get our hands on this shiny baby,
and boy we were impressed. In case you missed the news, this snazzy device is
the world's first consumer HandyCam with interchangeable lens, meaning you can
share E-mount lenses with your young NEX DSLRs, or take advantage of
the abundant A-mount lenses with the help of an adapter (which will cost you
extra, mind you). Likewise, there are also hot and cold shoe mounts on the mic
shaft to cater your current camera accessories. Read on for our thoughts on the
rest of the camcorder -- we've put together a little sample clip for you at the
end as well.
There
isn't much to complain about with this $2,000 (and, sadly, possibly £2,000 for
the Brits) piece of kit in terms of appearance and ergonomics. We like being
able to hold it by either the seemingly solid body (using the strap) or the mic
shaft, and both ways provided comfortable grip without much fatigue due to the
light weight (even with the bundled lens). We were also able to quickly master
the jog-dial control next to the 3-inch screen, but for this price, we expected
a touchscreen interface as well to make life easier. As for the bundled F3.5-6.3
18-200mm lens, we found that zooming required a bit more effort than we liked,
so thankfully there's auto focus mode -- just like any ordinary camcorder -- to
save us from further wrist work with the focus ring. We must also point out that
unlike the Olympus PEN,
this Sony camcorder didn't pick up any mechanical noise from its lens auto
focussing; otherwise, this kit totally wouldn't deserve such price tag.
Of
course, what we really care about is the picture and sound quality. All is
revealed in our sample reel below (remember to enable HD playback mode), but in
brief: stunningly accurate colors, sharp 1080/60i picture, and impressive audio
sensitivity (notice how the mic was able to pick up conversations from afar; you
can also enable just the front mics to minimise background noise). You may
notice some shakiness while we were adjusting the lens -- we'll blame it on our
lack of practice from the little hands-on time we had. Regardless, the NEX-VG10
certainly lived up to our expectation, and we look forward to hear what the
filming hobbyists think of this prosumer-level camcorder when it comes out in
September.
Update: commenter
aim120 dropped us a link to Sony's own sample clip. Enjoy!
Leaving purely technical considerations aside (in some cases the final result is better than in others), the general quality of those magazines is without doubt extremely high and the integration between classic and multimedia content makes their reading experience very pleasant and engaging. But there is a basic limitation that could play a significant role in preventing their widespread diffusion, thereby making them not competitive in terms of economic return. The problem is not the limited number of iPads in circulation, as some may think, but the difficulty – or the inability – to download single issues of a certain magazines on your device because of their excessive size, which usually is around 400 MB.
the general quality of those magazines is without doubt extremely high and the integration between classic and multimedia content makes their reading experience very pleasant and engaging. But there is a basic limitation that could play a significant role in preventing their widespread diffusion, thereby making them not competitive in terms of economic return. The problem is not the limited number of iPads in circulation, as some may think, but the difficulty – or the inability – to download single issues of a certain magazines on your device because of their excessive size, which usually is around 400 MB.
each download may take a period ranging from twenty to seventy minutes if you are connected to a wi-fi hotspot. If you use a 3G connection, instead, the download is inhibited and a message warns you that, due to the excessive size of the file, you must be connected to a wi-fi to continue to the download. Apart from the frustration generated by waiting too long for the completion of the download (especially if you consider that there are an infinite number of alternative sources of information available in a few seconds, for free, just surfing the web), when the user doesn’t have access to a wi-fi network, he is likely to quit the purchase altogether
This limit, which negatively affects sales volumes and profitability of editorial projects aimed at iPad users, will bring developers to rethink radically the structure of such contents and limit their size. Otherwise, a significant proportion of those users who have once experienced the frustration of the download will not want to repeat the purchase a second time.
Something it's not about how rich or engaging the contents are but how the ease of being able to reach for it is. ( infrastructure)
Afterall would you bother buying a magazine from your local newsagent if you had to stand there and wait in a queue for 30 minutes or more.
Was chatting with a pri-school teacher friend of mine yesterday, and he casually mentioned that he had created his own e-portfolio using Google Sites too. I checked his e-portfolio out and I found it very inspiring - all the more since it's a classic showcase of what an e-portfolio can be - and one done by one of our own working Singaporean school teachers some more. :) Hopefully this example should help towards dispelling the misconception that e-portfolios are a high-tech "waste of time" that only adds extra to a teacher's workload.
A recent study of Google+ showed that it is more popular with parents than students, which could be a favorable indicator of how popular it is for those educators of the same generation.
One example of how teachers are using Google+ Pages to run their classrooms, is that of Mr. McDowell who teaches World History at West Hills High School. Mr. McDowell has made great use of Google’s tools to give students access to documents, schedules, presentations, videos and password protected areas like attendance and grade records.
access to Google+ tools and pages from any computer promotes interactivity on the site and is a big hit with educators
Everyone's a cynic. Pundits seem to expect Google+ to be instantly as popular as Facebook or Twitter for some reason. Personally, I think it'll just take time and am hopeful about G+. I like it. I have seen extremely high quality content from members of the Edudemic Circle (join in here).
High school and college students may be “digital natives,” but they’re wretched at searching. In a recent experiment at Northwestern, when 102 undergraduates were asked to do some research online, none went to the trouble of checking the authors’ credentials. In 1955, we wondered why Johnny can’t read. Today the question is, why can’t Johnny search?
Wired.com photographers have the enviable job of shooting the coolest stuff and most intriguing people in the technology world. Now we’re giving away many of those photos to you, the public, for free.
Beginning today, we’re releasing all Wired.com staff-produced photos under a Creative Commons (CC BY-NC) license and making them available in high-res format on a newly launched public Flickr stream.
