Group items tagged

"As people share more information about themselves online, the internet, in effect, has created a public transcript of consciousness -- storing our thoughts, locations, social lives and memories in data warehouses all over the world. This has enabled technological advances and shaped our social interactions. It's also really freaked some people out. "

"This video illustrates how we are using QR Codes to enhance learning opportunities for our students at McGuffey School District in Claysville, PA."

QR Stuff generates codes from the following Text, Website URL, Telephone Number, SMS Message, Email Address, Email Message, Contact Details (VCARD), Event (VCALENDAR) Google Maps Location, Wifi Login (Android Only), Paypal Buy Now Link, Social Media , iTunes Link & YouTube Videos. You can also use their pay for service for other options eg t-shirts etc.

"Games like World of Warcraft give players the means to save worlds, and incentive to learn the habits of heroes. What if we could harness this gamer power to solve real-world problems? Jane McGonigal says we can, and explains how."

In today's schools, most research is completed online, and Google is a great resource for combing the web. But at the same time, it's not always easy to find exactly what you want, given that there are usually millions of results - with varying degrees of accuracy. These tricks can help you find the best results, while saving time and making your life easier.

"Smokescreen is a cutting-edge game about life online. We all use Facebook, MySpace, Bebo and MSN to keep up with our mates - and we've all heard the stories about parties on Facebook being mobbed, or people getting stalked on MSN. The question is, what would you do if it happened to you? Over 13 missions, Smokescreen follows the story of Max Winston and Cal Godfrey, two mates who've set up an exclusive social network called White Smoke. After Cal's involved in a car accident and falls into a coma, White Smoke becomes huge - and starts attracting huge problems. Each mission sees you explore the world of White Smoke, and find out who you can trust - and who you can't."

"There are lots of ways to record your Skype calls easily, allowing you to save them locally for posterity (ie. covering your back). But mostly you'll want to record a call and drop it into a podcast or make it publically available for all. I've collated the best apps for recording Skype in this list. While some of the applications are free, most of them require you to shell out a few bucks. The list is split into separate sections for Windows and Mac."

"Welcome to PBL-Online, a one stop solution for Project Based Learning! You'll find all the resources you need to design and manage high quality projects for middle and high school students."

From PBS This is the first program in a series "Program: Digital Media - New Learners Of The 21st Century Episode: Full Show Featuring the foremost thought leaders, innovators and practitioners in the field, Digital Media is a startling preview of a 21st Century education revolution."

This cartoon strip from nerdson blog has been translated and reproduced on the UNESCO elearning blog. It is an interesting way to explain to students about how Creative Commons works.

This launch page has interactive movie tutorials for GoAnimate, Stupeflix and Xtranormal. Clicking on the links will take you to the interactive where you can begin to create your movie using the various tools.

A great video on Twitter looking in particular at the use of Tweetdeck

"Using games in the classroom - This is a presentation to pre-service teachers about the affordability and importance of game-play. Low-end."

"Last week my wife and I told our 13-year-old daughter she could join Facebook. Within a few hours she had accumulated 171 friends, and I felt a little as if I had passed my child a pipe of crystal meth. I don't mean to be a spoilsport, and I don't think I'm a Luddite. I edit a newspaper that has embraced new media with creative, prizewinning gusto. I get that the Web reaches and engages a vast, global audience, that it invites participation and facilitates - up to a point - newsgathering. But before we succumb to digital idolatry, we should consider that innovation often comes at a price. And sometimes I wonder if the price is a piece of ourselves. "

From ACMA Cybersmart this very catchy video has stats on what students are doing online as well as lots of targetted advice on what to do to prevent problems and what to do when problems arise. It also contains visual links to the support docs that Cybersmart can provided.

"We're excited to announce the Grand Prize of the 2011 What's Your Story? Internet safety video contest!"

A google custom search engine that returns results under a range of tabs including lesson plans, printables, practice, videos and games.

"Have you been gamified yet? Perhaps not a painful as it sounds, gamification is on its way to becoming THE buzzword of 2011. Social media engagement tools such as badges, points, levels, leaderboards, etc are making their way out of hipster apps to every online engagement you can think of. Yes, it all sounds oddly familiar (green stamps, reward cards, etc.) but of course, it's all NEW NEW NEW, with gurus and pundits claiming that gamification will change the way we live and of course, spend money."

"It doesn't seem to matter what age group or demographic that I talk to, kids (and adults) everywhere are fans of Angry Birds. As I was playing around with Angry Birds (yep I'm a fan too), I started thinking about all of the learning that could be happening. I have watched a two year old tell an older sister that "you have to pull down to go up higher". I have watched as kids master this game through trial and error. Being the teacher that I am, I started dreaming up a transdisciplinary lesson with Angry Birds as the base. I happened to be writing an inquiry lesson that has students look at inventions throughout time and thought: the catapult-that is an invention that has technology and concepts that are used even today. This is one of those inspirational moments that comes when you are drifting off to sleep and has you frantically searching for paper and pen to record as fast as the ideas come. So what did I do? I got myself out of bed and went to work sketching out a super awesome plan. Here is the embedded learning that I came up with"

"I'm firmly of the opinion that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in schools is misplaced and therefore misused. In essence, the way it is conventionally deployed negates much of the potential of ICT, and unless there is a dramatic reappraisal, we won't be witnessing much in the way of learning gains in schools. Here's my argument in two points:"