stephen reck - technology&education

iphoto.

iphoto is a program that comes pre-installed on every mac. it is used to import, organize, edit, & publish photos. like most mac products, iphoto is extremely easy to use & makes a professional looking product. if you have macs in your classroom, iphoto should be your go-to application for any projects requiring photographs either imported from the web or taken by your own students.

miro.

a great software addition for your computer is miro. it's a cross-platform, zero-headache, free, video player and can be used as a great classroom resource when videos are needed. miro can subscribe, download, and organize video podcasts. although it sounds like simply a replicate of itunes, miro provides far more support and attention for video entertainment. users can actually search for new videos via google, yahoo, youtube, or others directly from within the program. miro is most useful because of its versatility, as it handles a wide variety of file types and allows you to pull videos from a wide variety of sources.

animoto.

animoto allows users to create online video presentations. it marks a clear evolution from the standard photo slideshow in ease of use, entertainment value, and educational worth. animoto takes your photos and music and creates a captivating slideshow that can be viewed via a specific url or embedded elsewhere. with its newer education branch, animoto is a great resource to create exciting multimedia presentations.

quizlet.

quizlet is a flashcard application, allowing teachers to use pre-built sets of vocabulary or create a custom word list. quizlet is free to use & provides a variety of resources. the interface is easy to understand. vocabulary lists can be shared by providing the targeted user with a link or url.

rubistar.

rubistar is a web application that easily allows the custom creation of assessment rubrics. rubistar provides access to dozens of pre-made rubrics, or you may create your own. the website is free & requires no log-in, account setup, or membership. this is an excellent resource for project-based instruction.

donate gift cards.

plastic jungle, a website that allows the purchase, sale, or exchange of gift cards, claims the average american household has $400 in unwanted gift cards lying around. there are millions of gift cards throughout the country with low remaining value. if you can't figure out what to do with the remaining $11.86 on a gap card, donate it. owners of idle gift cards typically use plastic jungle to exchange unwanted cards for cash or amazon.com credit, but a new option is now available. you can donate the full value of your gift card to a school in need with plastic jungle's new partnership with donorschoose.org.

mobileme.

welcome to cloud computing. cloud computing is seen by many as the way we will use computers in the near future. no longer will software applications be housed on a computer's hard drive. instead, programs will be housed & accessed online through a web browser. mobileme is a service provided by apple that houses several web applications, online backup storage, wireless synchronization, & many other features. this service stores information in a "cloud" & pushes the information to your cell phone, computer, or online portal. the service costs $99 a year & it can be a teacher's best friend.

yacapaca.

yacapaca is an online test & quiz generator. it is free to access. teachers only need to create a log in account. yacapaca has hundreds of pre-made quizzes ready for classroom use. users can sort by keyword or subject to find specific topics. teachers can also choose to create their own quizzes. custom quizzes can be made of entirely new content or questions can be imported from pre-made quizzes. there are many easy ways to construct online quizzes, surveys, & tests using yacapaca.

obama's dollars for reform.

president obama & his education secretary, arne duncan, are attempting to influence state education law through the promise of federal stimulus funding. ultimately, their goal is to increase the number of charter schools & hold teachers accountable for standardized test scores. this continues the debate over the role of standardized tests in our education system, a debate that has raged since former president george w bush's landmark no child left behind legislation. some states, such as california, are already in the process of overturning laws that prohibit the use of standardized test scores to determine a teacher's effectiveness in order to receive federal dollars. obama's new plan will place an even greater emphasis on high-stakes tests.

umapper.

umapper is a map-authoring web 2.0 application that makes it extremely simple to create maps. the maps can be visited by supplying a user with its url or the author can embed the map into a wiki or website. umapper uses adobe's flash technology to easily display custom information. teachers can quickly produce maps, add relevant information, & share with students without the need to create an account, sign in, or download any specific software. umapper is a great tool.

docstoc.

if you ever needed to share a document or presentation with a group of people, check out docstoc. docstoc does not require a log in or invite to view a document & is free. all documents on docstoc can be searched, previewed, & downloaded. similar to other online publishing sites like youtube or flickr, docstoc shares an assortment of files. users can post word, excel, powerpoint, pdfs, & many other file types. docstoc also provides categories for easy navigation including legal, business, business, technology, & others.

test optional.

the new york times reports that there are an increasing number of schools no longer require sat or act scores for admission. although the trend has always been popular with technical or religious schools, now many liberal arts schools are joining. the article looks to investigate the affect of dropping mandatory test scores has on recruitment and enrollment. Mr. Epstein reports that in the increasingly competitive search for talented students, "test-optional policies become alluring." Some cite test-optional policies simply aim to drive more applications, making an institution appear more selective. Other schools rely on standardized test scores to distribute merit aid.

noodle tools.

noodle tools is a great web site to assist research. there are two main features to noodle tools. the site provides a search engine, noodlequest, tailored specifically for academic research. the user simply answers a few questions & noodlequest does the rest. the most popular tool offered through noodle tools is noodlebib. noodlebib creates citations & bibliographic listings automatically. the user simply chooses mla, apa, or chicago, enters relevant information (title, author, etc.) into an online form, & noodlebib will create the citation. 

race to the top.

last friday, presdient obama announced a new program for public schools across the nation. the prize for the winner? part of $4.35 billion in federal grant money. how does a state win? obama states the fund "will reward eligible states for past accomplishments & create incentives for future improvement." the focused areas for improvement include more rigorous academic standards, better recruitment and retention of teachers, tracking the performance of students & teachers, & turning around failing schools. the $4.35 billion is one component of the $787 billion stimulus package, enacted by the federal government in february 2009.

zamzar.

zamzar is an online file conversion application. its name, zamzar, is a reference to kafka's metamorphosis. this is because zamzar morphs files from one type to another. with this tool, users have the option of converting files housed on their computers or they can download videos (from youtube, for example) & save them to their hard drives. 

communist teachers.

in the 1950s, the red scare was tearing through america. senator joseph mccarthy was on a mission to rid the united states of "foreign" ideologies. oppressive police interrogations, red-baiting, & blacklisting led to the job-loss & imprisonment. in a frenzy of fear, accusations, & paranoia not seen since the salem witch trials. with grave disregard to the first amendment in the name of security, thousands of americans were targeted by mccarthy's forces. even major league baseball, concerned it would be targeted as a soviet sympathizer, changed the name of the cincinnati reds to the cincinnati redlegs. the red scare impacted all americans, even teachers.

nettrekker.

nettrekker bills itself as the #1 educational search tool in schools. essentially, nettrekker filters search results to only websites it deems educational & safe. in my experience, one of the skills students consistently lack is the ability to effectively search the internet for relevant information. a lot of adults have problems sifting through the internet to find answers, most students are even more clueless. a past student, while creating a presentation on the catholic church in the middle ages, simply entered "catholic church," & was confused why the majority of websites listed were for specific churches & lacked any information on the catholic church during the middle ages. this is just one example of a process that replicates itself in every classroom attempting internet research. nettrekker is here to help, by displaying only educational websites that are kid-friendly.

file dropper.

a few weeks ago, i stumbled upon a great web application called file dropper. file dropper allows you to upload & share files with anyone. simply upload your file & file dropper provides a url so you can find your file in the future, or share your file with collaborators. your classroom can now easily collaborate on projects, or you can easily distribute digital worksheets/rubrics/activities/etc online. & it is free.

proof technology works.

today marks the end of the third week of summer school. as i shared earlier, i am back in the classroom this summer to teach world cultures & us history 2.  summer school is something i enjoy doing every year because it reconnects me to students & validates my position as technology integration coach. as a teacher, i know how frustrating it is when someone that doesn't spend time in the classroom (administrators years removed, consultants with no teaching experience, etc.), then begins to provide advice on how best to teach. i try my best to spend as much time as possible in the classroom, so i don't lose touch of what it means to be a teacher in my school at this moment. spending time in the classroom also lets me try out, first-hand, new resources or strategies. this summer we are using our macbooks everyday. we are making movies, podcasts, & presenting information to one another on a regular basis. the kids are enjoying their time. the kids are performing well.

cover-it-live.

cover-it-live is a live blogging platform that allows users to collaborate in real-time through a format that is similar to instant messaging or a chat room. often i see cover-it-live as a tool to administer back channel conversations (conversations going on, silently, during a presentation). many conferences use cover-it-live for participants to comment, question, or clarify information presented during keynotes or other sessions. global events, like the british open & the tour de france, use this tool. it can be a really useful tool for your classroom, too.