MVCR Tech Tools

Workshop: Constructivism as a Paradigm

Scribblar is an online whiteboard application. While many disciplines lend themselves well to text, there are certainly classes where the ability to literally draw students a picture is worth a thousand words.

9to5mac reviews Nuance's latest iteration of Dragon Dictate for Mac.

Prezi designs and creates presentation software that is enabling millions of people to be great presenters.

Piazza is designed to connect students, TAs, and professors so every student can get the help they need when they need it. Today, hundreds of thousands of students across hundreds of campuses are using Piazza for their classes. It warms me to think I started something that is impacting the way students learn and the way instructors teach.

Google Forms are great for quick surveys and even quizzes (provided you don't need answer checking/feedback). SurveyMonkey isn't hard, but the free version has certain limits, and Google Forms is even easier to get up and going.

Interactive Learning Tools

The very basics of using Camtasia Studio 8. This series starts by preparing you for your first recording and ends with sharing a finished video project. (Includes a sample script and recording to work along with.) Once you have the essentials down, take your editing to the next level by exploring advanced features and techniques.

Synchronous or Asynchronous eLearning? Check the Benefits of Synchronous and Asynchronous e-Learning to choose the best learning solution for your learners.

In an online classroom environment many of the learning activities and expectations are similar to those found in a traditional classroom. These learning environments offer meaningful interactions in a face-to-face setting and are most commonly referred to as synchronous learning activities (Hrastinski, 2008; Harris et al., 2009; Simonson et al., 2012).

Relevant to this week's topic, this short video explains what makes a good podcast (and I completely disagree with the commenter who says that podcasts should be rambling and silly--those types of podcasts are very annoying!).

Here is a list of reasons why faculty might want to text their students.

YouTube live streaming can be a way to hold an synchronous class session if your LMS doesn't include that feature. While it takes a bit of effort to set up, once you do it can be a decent way of having live video with a corresponding real-time chat. It can also be made private/unlisted.

O thy virtues, thou blog and bloggers. Seest thou this day the new dimension that thou hast brought to mankind and to pets. I tell you, this is fast education

This is a great primer, from Stephen Downes, on making blogging a part of the blogger's daily routine. See what you think - Donna Rubinson

Hi All, Interested in helping your students promote themselves by displaying what they have learned? E-portfolios can help. This Penn State site could help you get started. Mike Ribant

Hi colleagues, Here is a free real-time questioning and data visualization service that is basically like clickers except with cell phones. As long as everyone in the room has a cell phone, this could be used. Or, if some students in a class don't have cell phones, small groups could be formed each with at least one phone to use. Jeffrey Swigart

"Social media is crucial not only because it provides a fast way to share information, but also because it makes faculty workloads more transparent." This is a great article for those considering ways to share the wonderful work and achievement of both faculty and students. Karen Patterson

Results from one survey suggest online instructors are more likely than on-campus instructors to use social media for both personal and professional reasons. In his University of Hawaii online course, Introduction to e-Learning, associate professor Michael Menchaca requires his students to introduce themselves to each other by creating 15-second videos on Instagram.

This article reports on the use of Facebook in a research methods course at the University of British Columbia.

New tools from a librarian's perspective.

This is a good article for those in education who are new to Twitter. It is a 5 step primer on how this educator brings Twitter into her professional development and into her schedule.