New Research on Virtual Schools

Several research studies by Florida professors and others indicate: "Online classes may be a relatively young instructional practice for K-12 schools, but experts already generally agree on one point: Research shows that virtual schooling can be as good as, or better than, classes taught in person in brick-and-mortar schools."

Read more in this Education Week article (outlined in the overview)...then talk with the experts from Florida Virtual Schools next week. One teacher will be online each evening, Monday through Thursday (April 6-9)@ 7pm to answer your questions. Who knows? You may become a virtual teacher!

Details about the chat and how to prepare are in the class wiki. Deadline for next week's assignment has been extended to Friday, 4/10 at 11:55 p.m. to allow you to participate and get credit (or extra credit). See your course mail and Instructor Updates discussion for details.

Another Free Teacher Website Builder

ClassJump.com provides teachers web sites free of charge, where multiple classes can be managed and updated using an easy to understand interface. No knowledge of web site programming is needed to get your class or classes set up and quickly providing up-to-date information for your students and parents.
	Post homework
	Upload Documents to share with the class
	Post upcoming events to your calendar
	Post articles of interest and links to resources
	Receive documents uploaded by students
	Start a class message board, just for you and your students
	Create unlimited numbers of photo albums Students can create pages, too! Try it out!

PBWiki Enhancements

PBWiki announced some enhancements to their wiki software today:

• Starred Pages- Bookmark all important wiki pages and create a personal list of information that is important to you.
• Send a Link- Tell other members of your team that you’ve updated the workspace, or to call them to review, comment, or edit the page.
• Navigator- Quickly navigate to any folder, and browse all pages on your wiki. Also a quick way to view your Starred Pages.
• Threaded Comments (Premium Feature)- Now you can reply to comments!

Enjoy!

Looking Back at the Semester

It seems like a good time to begin review the course...with technology (of course!) So let's take a look back....

What do you remember? What did you miss?

First, I created a Powerpoint presentation and uploaded it to SlideShare. Slideshare let me add some YouTube videos I thought fit nicely! Cool! When finished, I embedded it in a wiki page.

What else can I do with this review presentation? Once it's in Powerpoint, I have lots of options. I saved the presentation as jpg images. That turns each slide into a separate image.

• The slideshow above is in Smilebox.
• I also created a VoiceThread. Click on the link and you can comment on any slide or memory by typing, using a microphone or webcam, or even calling a toll-free number! (Comments are moderated, so they may not appear immediately.)
  
• I used the slides to create a video in Animoto, one of my favorite tools:

• I saved it as a movie and uploaded it to YouTube:



• I created a new presentation in Prezi. (Watch out! Prezi may make you dizzy! But it is a cool presentation system!)

These are just a few of the many multimedia alternatives to Powerpoint or for delivering a presentation in a different way. For more presentation tools, check out this page in the WebTools4U2Use wiki.

I hope it serves as a good visual review of where we've been and what we've accomplished in a short time!

Which is your favorite way to view the review? Leave a comment to let me know!

Semester Review Quiz

A semester review quiz is now available online to help you get ready for the final exam. Most of the questions will come from your textbook.

Be sure to register a screen name to see your score...keep playing to see all the questions. Add questions if you'd like!

Gcast Changes

I'm sorry to say that Gcast, the website many of you used to create your own podcast, is no longer going to be free. The basic service is FREE, but beginning April 1, 2009, podcasting by phone will require a yearly subscription fee of $99. I had also used Gabcast by phone for free, but it now has limited phone-in capabilities. A comment on Larry Ferlazzo's blog suggests: "Two sites that we are going to try out are phonecasting.com and drop.io. Both of these sites offer the option of calling and recording a voicemail type podcast." A microphone for your computer is looking like a really good investment!

Virtual Conference

Want to know more about technology in education? Here's a great opportunity! The award-winning producers of FETC and T.H.E. Journal invite you to participate in a FREE virtual conference for K-12 educators and technology staff exploring the most pressing issues related to 21st Century Skills.

APRIL 23, 2009
11:00am-7:00pm EST

What you can expect:

• The latest developments in 21st century skills
• Engaging speakers sharing their expertise in an interactive and efficient way
• A dynamic exchange of best practices and tips for success
• A virtual networking lounge to expand your network of K-12 educators and technology experts
• Access to other participants through instant messaging
• Free content downloads and presentations to go
• Technology product and service demonstrations.
• Q&As with technology experts

Register NOW!

Wikispaces Plans Some Enhancements

Wikispaces is celebrating its 4th birthday and announcing some changes. If you used Wikispaces for your teacher wiki, you'll probably want to use it for your final project, too. This announcement doesn't say WHEN they changes will happen, but I wanted you to be aware that there will be changes! It looks like they will be major improvements, but the directions in your course pages may not be as helpful. You did a good job with your teacher wiki, but if you run into questions, let me know. I'll be happy to help.

Use Me! (Copyright Free Images)

You've learned that you cannot just grab any image off the web and use it in your own presentation or wiki! So what ARE you supposed to do?

Here are some sources you can use for copyright free or creative commons licensed images:

• Where Is It?
• Where to Find Copyright Free Images (and Some Clip Art) on the Web
• Copyright Friendly Images and Sound
• Discovery School's Clip Art Gallery
• Wise Gorilla Educational Clip Art
• Clip Art ETC
  

I'll bet you'll be able to find just what you're looking for!

Technology in 2019

Microsoft offers this glimpse of technology ten years from now. My guess? Most of it will be with us even before then!

<a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-GB&amp;playlist=videoByUuids:uuids:a517b260-bb6b-48b9-87ac-8e2743a28ec5&amp;showPlaylist=true&amp;from=shared" target="_new" title="Future Vision Montage">Video: Future Vision Montage</a>