stephen reck - technology&education

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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. 

gapminder.

gapminder calls itself a modern museum. it's a web site that presents global statistical information in a unique & engaging manner. its goal is to increase accessibility & use of global statistics to fight global inequality in health, wealth, technology, infrastructure, & development. through statistics, your students could gain a better idea of how the world truly looks. gapminder recognizes that as the world changes, we must change our outlook on the world.

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.

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.

we choose the moon.

prepare to ride with neil, michael, & buzz as they become the first to visit the moon. 

 wechoosethemoon.org is run by the john f kennedy presidential library & is constructed in honor of the 40th anniversary of the apollo 11 space mission. the website will go live on july 16, 2009 at 8:02am, just in time for the 9:32am launch time, exactly 40 years after the historic maiden voyage to the moon. the website offers archival photos, videos, & audio all presented in real-time (you can even follow the mission on twitter). this is a great opportunity for many americans to witness the apollo 11 mission for the first time.

 

Bitstrips.

bitstrips is an online tool that allows you to quickly create your own comic. comics can be used in a variety of classroom situations. you could have your students create a skit in a foreign language class, visually express vocabulary terms in english class, or create a timeline for history class. with bitstrips, you can quickly & easily make learning visual.

prezi.

prezi is, in my opinion, the greatest thing to come out of hungary since zsa zsa gabor. a colleague introduced me to this fun & aesthetically appealing web 2.0 tool back in february. we've been in love ever since. initially, i thought i was cutting edge. the only person in the states that knows the secret. i regularly used it in presentations & got many complements. it was when i attended the one to one computing conference at penn state that a keynote speaker used prezi for his presentation, that showed me it was no secret. the word got out. prezi is a great tool.

blogs are essential.

blogger.com says "a blog is a website where you can write stuff on an ongoing basis." that is accurate. a blog can take many forms depending on its author & its topic. blogs are often used by professionals to network or share ideas with colleagues. blogs can also be used as an online journal, a place to review restaurants, or an online travel diary. technorati.com reports that an average of 120,000 blogs are created every day. more and more of my friends are starting their own blogs. it is a great idea. blogs serve as a place for creative expression, conversation, & can be a great item to add to your résumé. blogs can take many forms.

wikispaces.

although not the only tool for creating your own wiki, in my experience it is the most popular (& alexa statistics back my opinion). wikispaces is a simple application for publishing information & collaborating with others. currently wikispaces hosts over 2,500,000 members on over 1,000,000 individual wikis. private, ad-free wikis with unlimited users & edits are $50 a year for most consumers, but wikispaces sees itself as an important education tool & provides teachers with a free private wiki for classroom use. in my opinion, wikispaces is the best choice for wiki development.

discovery streaming.

discovery education streaming is one of my favorite resources. the service is a paid subscription, although every school i encounter has access either paid for by the district or intermediate unit. if you are unsure if your school has an account, you can email discovery education directly to inquire. upon initial log in, you will be required to enter a school passcode & create a user account. you will use your user account name & personal password to log in every subsequent visit.