Libmedia201

Blackboard SMU uses the course management system Blackboard.  For help creating Blackboard courses and learning the basics, consult Academic Technology's Blackboard help page, as well as this Blackboard online tutorial. Access your Blackboard courses here. Presentation Software Sometimes it's helpful to provide visual aids to complement teaching, stimulate discussion, or allow out-of-class teaching. Tools designed for this purpose, such as PowerPoint, can be used well or used badly. Click here for resources that provide advice for thoughtful use of PowerPoint, as well as a few additional presentation tools. Classroom Response Systems ("clickers") One way to encourage student engagement is by using electronic devices that allow students to record their answers to multiple choice questions and allow you to instantly display the results. The anonymity encourages participation, and their answers help the teacher know when further discussion is needed.  Use of clickers can also serve as a catalyst for discussion.  Click here to learn more about using response systems effectively.

Converting a Face-to-Face Course to an Online Course Teaching online, whether in a hybrid course or a wholly-online course, requires different techniques and different tools.  Without the F2F contact, professors will need to be even clearer about setting and articulating expectations for digital work and participation.  Encouraging interaction between professor and student and among students is an additional challenge, as is monitoring student learning as the course progresses.  The online environment requires the use of basic technologies to digitize course materials as well as mastery of the university's learning management system.  And various tools like Skype allow synchronous communications, while blogs and Twitter can encourage asynchronous interaction.  Here are some ideas to get you started.

If the student has difficulty learning by listening, then try…

Before the lesson:Pre-teach difficult vocabulary and conceptsState the objective, providing a reason for listeningTeach the mental activities involved in listening — mental note-taking, questioning, reviewingProvide study guides/worksheetsProvide script of filmProvide lecture outlinesDuring the lesson:Provide visuals via the board or overhead Use flash cards Have the student close his eyes and try to visualize the information Have the student take notes and use colored markers to highlight Teach the use of acronyms to help visualize lists (Roy G. Biv for the colors of the spectrum: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet) Give explanations in small, distinct steps Provide written as well as oral directions Have the student repeat directions When giving directions to

the class, leave a pause between each step so student can carry out the process in his mind Shorten the listening time required Provide written and manipulative tasksBe concise with verbal information: "Jane, please sit." instead of "Jane, would you please sit down in your chair."

Computers are extremely patient and uncritical when children make mistakes---marvelous characteristics which make them quite effective for young children¹s learning. Not only that, the newer interactive software allows young children to explore and experiment in a safe environment where there is no wrong answer and where a child may experience success, sometimes for the first time.

Both verbal and nonverbal children can use the computer as a communication tool. Software provides both subjects and purpose for conversations for those who are able, and willing, to speak.

In the classroom and at home, students use Popplet for learning. Used as a mind-map, Popplet helps students think and learn visually. Students can capture facts, thoughts, and images and learn to create relationships between them.

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When educators want to know if a game is appropriate for the classroom, they shouldn't just rely on someone telling them it's great, whether that someone is a company or even a colleague. To truly understand if the game will work with your curriculum or your intended goals for learning, you need to sit down and actually play the game. Spend the time to explore this software, app, or board game to your satisfaction. As you play, you can experience what students will experience and learn how to support them when they play. You'll develop an understanding of what can be learned from this game, whether it's content, thinking skills, or both.

ou want to know what makes games the most effective? They are voluntary.

Voluntary participation means that players actively agree to the rules and procedures of the game, rather than having those forced upon them. When we are forced to do something, the work we do in games actually becomes less safe and less enjoyable.

For students with learning disabilities (LD), technology can be an assistive tool replacing an ability that is either missing or impaired

Computers change the writing process by making it easier to develop and record ideas, to edit ideas, and to publish and share with others.

ronunciation editing, or the capability to adjust pronunciation of words produced by speech synthesizers, is available with some talking word processors. This feature allows writers to spell words and hear them pronounced correctly rather than phonetically (Beukelman, Hunt-Berg & Rankin, 1994).