What types of trends do you see in the ways audio and still/video media are being used to support learning?
Audio and still/video media are being used in the classroom to connect students to the material, experience, and each other. As I have stated in my learning philosophy, learning must be made MEANINFUL to students. By using audio and still/video media as add-ons to lessons, learning can be made meaningful. Teachers are able to present the curriculum in new innovative ways. Teachers are finding excellent resources and ways to engage their students. These resources can be used as instructional aids to reteach students who don’t understand the material or who missed a class. They can be used as inspiration, vocabulary building, as a “hook” to a lesson, for comprehension, student projects, etc. There are so many ways that audio and video can be used to enhance the learning experience.
Specifically, how do you see these media enhancing participatory learning within the Web 2.0 context beyond that possible by text media?
I found a blog titled 50 ways to use video in the classroom.
http://community.eflclassroom.com/profiles/blogs/50-ways-to-use-video-in-the-classroom
These ideas are great and more importantly, they are practical! My favorite is #50 Changing and inspiring the world (Videos make a POWERFUL statement. Students want to make a difference and making a video will allow them to). I believe that video will foster student creativity above what text media could. Using video/audio tools will help challenge your students and make learning meaningful to them. Using media as a teaching tool will absolutely help to engage students; however, I believe it is important to note that teachers need to use a variety of tools in order to reach all types of learners.
I really enjoyed the video that featured students from an Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Class of Spring 2007 at Kansas State University. This was one of the “Award-Winning Videos” featured on the Video Ethnography Projects link. One of the parts that stood out to me from this video after reading this specific question of how learning can be enhanced within the Web 2.0 context beyond that possible by text media was the very end when the chalkboard reads…. “Writing on a Chalkboard- What is missing? And on the other side you see: Photos, videos, animations, networks”. To add, one of the students holds up her notebook that reads… “I will read 8 books…2300 Web Pages…1281 Facebook Profiles “
Richardson & Mancabelli describe six new literacies for 21st century learning environments. Which of the six measures of literacy do you see as the most challenging? Why? Are there any you would add?
I find #4 to be the most challenging (Managing, analyzing, and synthesizing multiple streams of simultaneous information) because I think combining various streams of information into 1 thoughtful and organized whole is a difficult task. I feel that what I have already learned through this course would help tremendously. As I also read, “Learning is extremely social as we read, filter, create, and share with one another on an ongoing basis.” I think the important thing to note here is the word filter. We do this without even realizing that we are doing it. When we are analyzing and synthesizing, we also need to make sure we are filtering the meaningful or important from the nonessential.
Additional Thoughts and Quotes: I found these in particular from the readings and videos to be the most worth-while.
As I read in the text Understanding the Power of PLNs, Richardson & Mancabelli highlight 2 game-changing conditions. With internet access…. 1: we now have two billion potential teachers and 2: the sum of human knowledge will be at our fingertips.
“Right now, we can be intellectually close to people who are three thousand miles away, while in the same respect, we may be far away from those sitting right next to us”
I can see how podcasts have become so popular after viewing and searching around the Teaching with Technology Podcast site. I listened to many great podcasts that I found interesting including: The Kindergarten Achievement Gap, Creating Video Clips (under Media category), Educating Parents about Digital Communication, and Five Tips for a Class Web Site.
The reason why I continued to click around and navigate through the large list of categories was because it was extremely convenient. I also noted how each podcast was quite short and to the point. I bookmarked this site because next time I want a quick tutorial on how to use technology I will be using this as a resource.
I love using videos as a “hook” for students. Sometimes I’ll use music videos if the music applies or quick clips from their favorite tv shows! It really can get kids engaged!
And I enjoyed your discussion on filters. We, as teachers, have to do this all the time. I think we do it without even thinking about it… with our students thoughts, videos, text, etc. I also liked the quote you used from the PLN reading. We can be so close to people so far away from us but so far away from the people right beside us. And as much as we want to use technology, we need to make sure our students are collaborating with each other to use the resources that are available to us now.
Teaching with Technology Podcast site is a great podcast site for me too. Using audio and/or video resources in class or self learning is great benefits to students and teachers. However, I sometimes felt that audio resources are not that great IN class since somehow it used to distract students(might be because of time to connect to a network). Besides, from my experiences, I was also easily distracted by video lectures since they were mostly more than 30 mins long. So we as educators, might effectively organized instructional activities and materials.
At Juniata for my undergrad I made a video as part of a requirement for an Educational Technology class. I believe I used MovieMaker to create it. I don’t remember too much about the video that I created- I can’t believe that was almost 5 years ago now- and have not had a lot of experience with creating videos (for both educational purposes or outside subjects). After doing a little bit of research for the Tech Tools project, I came across Animoto- I watched a bunch of the videos that they featured and the special effects were amazing. It makes me want to explore video making and how I could use them to enhance the instruction in my classroom. I also purchased a new DSLR recently that has HD quality video- I am going to start playing aroud with it.
Yes, videos can definitely create quite an impact. Have you had a chance to make any videos yourself, or collaborated with another educator to produce one? If so, can you describe the project a bit.