EDUC 8847-7101 Multimedia Technology to Facilitate Learning

Module 3: Assignment

M. Kennedy

 

Pre-Training:

• Wordle

http://www.wordle.net/

Wordle creates word clouds from text provided by the teacher. It can be used for essential learning because it emphasizes the key concepts that will be studied or introduced in the next unit.

I chose this site because it creates a fun graphic for students to look at while also emphasizing concepts that need to be learned. Word clouds help students understand difficult passages.

• Bubbl.Us

https://bubbl.us/

Bubble.us is a mind mapping software that is free to use. It is great to introduce a new topic to students in a fun and entertaining way. It creates a visual big picture of the unit of study you are about to begin.

 

Graphic Organizers:

• Mind42

http://mind42.com/

This is a collaborative mind mapping software that students can work on together asynchronously. It is browser-based and free. It is a great tool for brainstorming and generative cognitive processing.

• Flux Time

http://www.fluxtime.com/

This site lets you create an animated graphic organizer. It is free and if you sign up you can save, manage, and edit your animation. Your animation can be embedded into a group Wiki or a Blog.

 

Presentation:

• Yodio

http://www.yodio.com/default.aspx

Create a video presentation with photos you take from your cell phone. You add voice to your photos and create a presentation. This is a free service so students can use it to show what they learned on a field trip or they can create presentations using screenshots and recording their voice to explain what they learned.

• Brain Shark

http://www.brainshark.com/

Brain Shark is a fun and creative way to turn PowerPoint presentations into videos. By taking screen shots of the pages needed to teach how to use Edmodo, I can then download them into a PowerPoint, then upload the PowerPoint into Brain Shark and add commentary to each slide. It is a great way to transform inactive presentations into voice-enriched active video presentations. It is more engaging than printing worksheets with the screen shots.

These two sites are free to use and are very easy to use. They create great video presentations without having to all the hard work of taking a video and then editing it.

 

Authentic Assessments:

• Toon Doo

http://www.toondoo.com/

Students can create cartoons to showcase the concept they have learned. It is a great way to get students actively engaged in their own learning. By creating a cartoon, they must be able to express what they learned, which in turn will bring about a deeper understanding of the material.

• Xtranormal

http://www.xtranormal.com/

Xtranormal turns words into 3D animated movie presentations. Students can share what they have learned through an interactive presentation. This helps students who may be too shy to present in front of the class.

I chose these two sites because they are free for students to use and easy to understand.

 

EDUC 8847-7101 Multimedia Technology to Facilitate Learning

Module 1: Assignment 1

M. Kennedy

http://www.learnitin5.com/edmodo

 

This website is a 5 minute video with an overview of the basics of Edmodo. It is learner-centered and focuses on behavioral activity. “The premise underlying the learner-centered approach is that multimedia designs that are consistent with the way the human mind works are more effective in fostering learning than those that are not” (Mayer, 2009, p. 13). This short video is focused on showing the learner how to use Edmodo, not on what can Edmodo do for a classroom.

 

http://blog.edmodo.com/2012/05/16/organize-your-edmodo-library/

 

This is a step-by-step instruction for how to organize your library on Edmodo. This is a learner-centered website. It is focused on how the learner’s mind works and how to use the software, not on how Edmodo would benefit or not benefit the classroom. “Learning-centered approaches begin with an understanding of how the human mind works” (Mayer, 2009, p. 13). Most people need to have step-by-step instructions when using new software for the first time, so by providing those steps, the focus in on the learner, not the technology.

 

http://blog.edmodo.com/2012/08/16/5-edmodo-activities-for-your-first-day-of-school/

 

This website is a technology-centered website. It is focused on how Edmodo can be used in a classroom to enhance learning on the first day of school. “Technology-centered approaches begin with the functional capabilities of multimedia and ask, ‘How can we use these capabilities in designing multimedia presentations?’” (Mayer, 2009, p. 10). These tasks are given to help teachers see how Edmodo can be utilized in a classroom. The focus is not on how the human mind works, but on how to enhance learning using multimedia.

 

Reference

Mayer, R. E. (2009). Multimedia learning (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.