Diigo

Here is a link to my Diigo account.

I will use Diigo in the future as a place to easily find links to articles that I want to use in the classroom. It supports my pedagogy by its ease of use availability.

Argument Prezi-My Content

Here is a link to my prezi on argument.

This assignment took me quite awhile. First I decided on content to put in the Prezi. Once I had decided on content and the order I was going to put it in I realized I had too much content and needed to narrow it down to five minutes. After that I watched a Prezi tutorial to uncover how to use the software.

Despite the time factor of this assignment, I thought that it would be very useful for students. I would be able to put my lectures online in a fun format. I think the thing I liked the best about Prezi is the ability to embed videos extremely easily. I do like to use videos and have students apply concepts to the videos. I do think I will use Prezi more in the future.

Podcast Public Speaking and Nerves-Something new to try

Here is a podcast about public speaking and nerves.

Most students are nervous before giving a speech. Before students gave their first speech, I would have them listen to the podcast and post on a discussion forum how the podcast helped calm their nerves. Discussing content my students have just learned will enable them to retain the information and use it in class.

Hearing vs. Listening Video Asynchronous Comm

At the beginning of the semester, I teach students the difference between hearing vs. listening as they are not the same thing. This video does an excellent job explaining the difference and offering tips for active listening.
I would have students watch the video and apply the concept to their own life. In a discussion forum, I would ask: When have you found that you have been hearing vs. listening and what tip was most applicable to be an active listener? Using a discussion forum for asynchronous communication will allow students to have a conversation when they login to moodle.

Creative Commons

Content repositories often use "Creative Commons" licensing. What is it and how does it impact your use of the content found in the repositories?
Creative Commons licensing is a tool that helps you to give your knowledge and creativity through a free legal tool. Essentially it is “ free, easy-to-use copyright licenses provide a simple, standardized way to give the public permission to share and use your creative work — on conditions of your choice. CC licenses let you easily change your copyright terms from the default of “all rights reserved” to “some rights reserved. (creative commons.org).” Creative Commons works in conjunction with copyrights, allowing you to change and modify your copyright terms. Thereby allowing you an option of either waiving your rights or setting up a copyright. If you choose to waive your copyright and related rights you are allowing others to use your work. Since we are all in the field of education, we want other to be able to use our resources to better teach students with or without a copyright.
Why would you want to use Creative Commons? Copyright laws were written prior to the internet being used so prolifically. While the internet makes it easy to access information, it does not make it easy to utilize the information without proper permission given in advance. Creative Commons helps educators’ license material so that others can use it legally. Ultimately, Creative Commons provides the infrastructure with copyright tools to make sure that your intellectual property is protected.
Creative Commons sounds like a beneficial website. How would you go about using it? Essentially, you go to creativecommons.org and answer some questions regarding your work and you now have a copyright. The website looks like it is really straight forward and easy to use. It also has a well-developed question and answer section. I would encourage educators to look at the site and decide if they want to copyright their information.
All information taken from http://creativecommons.org/about/cc0

Synchronous Tool

The LMS that is used at my institution is moodle. Chat moodle allows users to chat synchronously. Using enhanced moodle there are other synchronous options, including skype, sykepcast, whiteboard, online presentations. I was happy to learn about all of the synchronous options available in moodle. I plan on using them in my course in the future.

I could feature a guest speaker using skype. This would allow my students to use and see the presenter. I could conduct office hours using moodle chat. I could also assign small group discussions through moodle chat.

Texting and Polling-Assessment Tool

I really enjoyed this activity. I think it is a good way to engage students. They can instantaneously see the response. It allows students to actively participate in the lecture. It also allows me to see what information I need to go back and re-teach. In an online forum, it would work much the same way. After students watch a lecture online they would take a poll and I would be able to see what information they understood and what gaps they had. This is a wonderful tool for asynchronous communication