Monday, March 17, 2008
Setting up an account and creating a VoiceThread
Signing up for a VoiceThread account requires an email address and a password. After signing into the website, a person can view several tutorials by clicking on the “Help” tab to get started. It is quite remarkable to realize, after watching the “One Minute VoiceThread” tutorial, how easy and user-friendly this tool appears to be. There are further tutorials offered to explain everything from setting up a microphone, to comment moderation, to embedding a VoiceThread. I chose a picture (from my own photos) to represent myself for my account, and I was set to go.
I quickly launched into the making of my first VoiceThread, which I found quite easy to do. After selecting the “Create” tab, only three steps appear: Upload, Comment, and Share (it is very straightforward!) I already had many pictures uploaded onto my computer from my digital camera, so I decided to make a presentation using digital photos. I discovered that a person creating a VoiceThread has the option to upload many different types of media, such as image formats like: jpg, gif, bmp, and png. Document formats such as: ppt, pps, pdf, doc, xls, and video can also be used.
After selecting my photos and uploading them to the site, I was able to arrange them in the correct order. Next, I used the Comment tab to record my voice with a brief commentary on each picture. I also had the option to type in text, instead of using audio.
Other added features are available to enhance the presentation effect of the VoiceThread. By using the “Doodle” feature, a creator can make drawings directly on the images being viewed, while the commentary is unfolding. Instead of seeing the final product of the presenters’ thoughts, the viewer gets to see the entire process. These “doodlings” brings a sense of live presence, as if the presenter is sitting right next to you. There are several other features unique to this form of media-sharing.
In the last stage of creating my VoiceThread, I chose to make my presentation public, but I selected not allow for outside comments. Next, I chose to embed in my blog. Voila! My first VoiceThread was a simple presentation, but one which allowed me to begin to understand how very user-friendly and creative this Web 2.0 tool can be.
I quickly launched into the making of my first VoiceThread, which I found quite easy to do. After selecting the “Create” tab, only three steps appear: Upload, Comment, and Share (it is very straightforward!) I already had many pictures uploaded onto my computer from my digital camera, so I decided to make a presentation using digital photos. I discovered that a person creating a VoiceThread has the option to upload many different types of media, such as image formats like: jpg, gif, bmp, and png. Document formats such as: ppt, pps, pdf, doc, xls, and video can also be used.
After selecting my photos and uploading them to the site, I was able to arrange them in the correct order. Next, I used the Comment tab to record my voice with a brief commentary on each picture. I also had the option to type in text, instead of using audio.
Other added features are available to enhance the presentation effect of the VoiceThread. By using the “Doodle” feature, a creator can make drawings directly on the images being viewed, while the commentary is unfolding. Instead of seeing the final product of the presenters’ thoughts, the viewer gets to see the entire process. These “doodlings” brings a sense of live presence, as if the presenter is sitting right next to you. There are several other features unique to this form of media-sharing.
In the last stage of creating my VoiceThread, I chose to make my presentation public, but I selected not allow for outside comments. Next, I chose to embed in my blog. Voila! My first VoiceThread was a simple presentation, but one which allowed me to begin to understand how very user-friendly and creative this Web 2.0 tool can be.
An amazing and unexpected find!
All I can say is, WOW!! Stop everything, and go visit this amazing site right now! Educational Software and Web 2.0
As has been my custom when approaching a new Web 2.0 tool, I tend to look around for tutorials or web sites which offer “how-to” explanations. Before even visiting the VoiceThread web site, I discovered the Educational Software and Web 2.0 web site. I highly recommend this site to educators, or anyone, learning more about Web 2.0! (Don’t worry, I shall return to my VoiceThread momentarily).
I discovered the web site after first finding Suzie Vesper’s blog, Sharing the Addiction. Vesper, an ICT facilitator in New Zealand, along with other contributors, have created this web site with a wealth of information, tutorials, examples and links for educators to learn about Web 2.0. It has many similarities to Valenza’s Information Fluency; another absolute must for any teacher-librarian’s favourites links.
At Educational Software and Web 2.0, I loved the “Online Tools” page, and I intend to investigate it further when I have more time. The “VoiceThread Workshop” (a pdf) is greatly beneficial to anyone who wants to set up an account to use with their students, as it explains how to add identities to your Voicethread for each student.
Don’t forget to “Furl” this site or add it to your del.icio.us!
As has been my custom when approaching a new Web 2.0 tool, I tend to look around for tutorials or web sites which offer “how-to” explanations. Before even visiting the VoiceThread web site, I discovered the Educational Software and Web 2.0 web site. I highly recommend this site to educators, or anyone, learning more about Web 2.0! (Don’t worry, I shall return to my VoiceThread momentarily).
I discovered the web site after first finding Suzie Vesper’s blog, Sharing the Addiction. Vesper, an ICT facilitator in New Zealand, along with other contributors, have created this web site with a wealth of information, tutorials, examples and links for educators to learn about Web 2.0. It has many similarities to Valenza’s Information Fluency; another absolute must for any teacher-librarian’s favourites links.
At Educational Software and Web 2.0, I loved the “Online Tools” page, and I intend to investigate it further when I have more time. The “VoiceThread Workshop” (a pdf) is greatly beneficial to anyone who wants to set up an account to use with their students, as it explains how to add identities to your Voicethread for each student.
Don’t forget to “Furl” this site or add it to your del.icio.us!
Multimedia Sharing: An Introduction to VoiceThread
VoiceThread is a Web 2.0 tool which is best described as a “collaborative slideshow.” This multimedia-sharing tool provides a way for people to share images, and then add commentary; a sort of mix between slideshows and podcasting (Educational Software and Web 2.0). As described by Suzie Vesper:
“VoiceThread.com is an amazing application that holds great promise for the classroom. A VoiceThread is an online media album that can hold essentially any type of media (images, documents and videos) and allows people to make comments in 5 different ways - using voice (with a microphone or telephone), text, audio file, or video (with a webcam) – and share them with anyone they wish. A VoiceThread allows group conversations to be collected and shared in one place, from anywhere in the world. It can be used for collaborative digital storytelling at ALL levels of the school” (VoiceThread Workshop).
Similar to other Web 2.0 photosharing sites such as Flickr, Voicethread allows its users to create “mash-ups;” a combination of things to create or display a thought of some kind. (VoiceThread can incorporate Flickr and Facebook photos). However, photosharing mash-ups tend to be artistic visual creations, and do not incorporate audio and text in the creation.
“VoiceThread.com is an amazing application that holds great promise for the classroom. A VoiceThread is an online media album that can hold essentially any type of media (images, documents and videos) and allows people to make comments in 5 different ways - using voice (with a microphone or telephone), text, audio file, or video (with a webcam) – and share them with anyone they wish. A VoiceThread allows group conversations to be collected and shared in one place, from anywhere in the world. It can be used for collaborative digital storytelling at ALL levels of the school” (VoiceThread Workshop).
Similar to other Web 2.0 photosharing sites such as Flickr, Voicethread allows its users to create “mash-ups;” a combination of things to create or display a thought of some kind. (VoiceThread can incorporate Flickr and Facebook photos). However, photosharing mash-ups tend to be artistic visual creations, and do not incorporate audio and text in the creation.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Educational uses for wikis
In Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, Richardson describes the student learning which is generated from using wikis: students learn how to publish content; students develop and use collaborative skills; and students negotiate with others about correctness, meaning, relevance.
Profetic's site about wikis, Pedagogical Potential , describes other important educational functions of utilizing wikis, such as: they maximize interplay; work in real time; and are text-based. As best described by Richardson, “It’s a very democratic process of knowledge creation.”
Some Ways to Use Wikis in the Classroom:
* create a wiki to act as a resource list of curriculum related materials for a specific class; this could include text, links, graphics, reflections, videos, powerpoints, audio files, and spreadsheets
* use a wiki as a form of note-taking: compile links to websites, images, books, databases, etc. as a part of one’s research
* for writing workshops where students wish to peer edit
* group work projects can use wikis to share important notes and articles so that no one person is left responsible to be the “keeper” of the notes
* wikis make great forums for teachers to share lesson plan ideas; it becomes a library of lesson plan idea
*use a wiki to present a final project
Other educational Uses for Wikis:
* can be used as pathfinders or subject guides, such as Joyce Valenza’s Information Fluency wiki
* can be used for book talks, such as Meet The Stars: Books & Web 2.0
* can be used as a virtual school library website, such as Acadia Library
* can be used as a website for upcoming events or announcements for classrooms, sports teams, or organizations, such as the ALA Conference wiki
* can become used as a Professional Learning Community, such as the Teacher Librarian Wiki
Addressing teachers’ concerns about wikis
Teachers may see great potential for using wikis with their classes, but at the same time, have some reservations about how they can keep them school-appropriate, and safe from vandalism on the internet. Teachers could choose to use a wiki-site which features a password and login system (similar to blogs) to track who interacts with the site. This will provide a way of restricting those who can edit and access the site; Wikispaces has this feature. (On one the wikis I created for a course project, I set the restrictions so that only those whom I invited could make edits).
Teachers may be tempted to keep a tight control over the happenings of their class wikis. Although there must be teacher supervision and monitoring, Richardson believes that in most classes where the teacher turns responsibility and control over the students, it is usually has the best results. When students have ownership, they will protect and maintain the integrity of the site.
Another concern about wikis relates to how intellectual property is created and published. Richardson explains, “philosophically, wikis can play havoc with the traditional ideas of copyright and intellectual property.” Wiki software challenges and complexifies traditional notions of - as well as access to - authorship, editing, and publishing (Profetic). Using wikis provides even more opportunity for teachers to dialogue with their student about these issues. It becomes important that students know the differences about community collaborations and individual ownership of ideas.
In conclusion, wikis are another web 2.0 tool which have unlimited potential for teaching and learning experiences. My own learning about wikis is presently unfolding, as I am currently using them for several of my presentations in my TL-DL courses. I am fascinated by other possibilites for their use.
Profetic's site about wikis, Pedagogical Potential , describes other important educational functions of utilizing wikis, such as: they maximize interplay; work in real time; and are text-based. As best described by Richardson, “It’s a very democratic process of knowledge creation.”
Some Ways to Use Wikis in the Classroom:
* create a wiki to act as a resource list of curriculum related materials for a specific class; this could include text, links, graphics, reflections, videos, powerpoints, audio files, and spreadsheets
* use a wiki as a form of note-taking: compile links to websites, images, books, databases, etc. as a part of one’s research
* for writing workshops where students wish to peer edit
* group work projects can use wikis to share important notes and articles so that no one person is left responsible to be the “keeper” of the notes
* wikis make great forums for teachers to share lesson plan ideas; it becomes a library of lesson plan idea
*use a wiki to present a final project
Other educational Uses for Wikis:
* can be used as pathfinders or subject guides, such as Joyce Valenza’s Information Fluency wiki
* can be used for book talks, such as Meet The Stars: Books & Web 2.0
* can be used as a virtual school library website, such as Acadia Library
* can be used as a website for upcoming events or announcements for classrooms, sports teams, or organizations, such as the ALA Conference wiki
* can become used as a Professional Learning Community, such as the Teacher Librarian Wiki
Addressing teachers’ concerns about wikis
Teachers may see great potential for using wikis with their classes, but at the same time, have some reservations about how they can keep them school-appropriate, and safe from vandalism on the internet. Teachers could choose to use a wiki-site which features a password and login system (similar to blogs) to track who interacts with the site. This will provide a way of restricting those who can edit and access the site; Wikispaces has this feature. (On one the wikis I created for a course project, I set the restrictions so that only those whom I invited could make edits).
Teachers may be tempted to keep a tight control over the happenings of their class wikis. Although there must be teacher supervision and monitoring, Richardson believes that in most classes where the teacher turns responsibility and control over the students, it is usually has the best results. When students have ownership, they will protect and maintain the integrity of the site.
Another concern about wikis relates to how intellectual property is created and published. Richardson explains, “philosophically, wikis can play havoc with the traditional ideas of copyright and intellectual property.” Wiki software challenges and complexifies traditional notions of - as well as access to - authorship, editing, and publishing (Profetic). Using wikis provides even more opportunity for teachers to dialogue with their student about these issues. It becomes important that students know the differences about community collaborations and individual ownership of ideas.
In conclusion, wikis are another web 2.0 tool which have unlimited potential for teaching and learning experiences. My own learning about wikis is presently unfolding, as I am currently using them for several of my presentations in my TL-DL courses. I am fascinated by other possibilites for their use.
Setting up a wiki
Just like many other Web 2.0 tools, there are an abundance of wiki sites to choose from. Wiki Matrix is an excellent site to use to compare various wikis. It provides a detailed analysis of the features of wikis, and which of these features are provided by the wikis you have selected to compare.
Some of the most popular wiki creation sites include: Wikispaces, PBWiki, and WetPaint. While all of these are free sign-ups, a person will have to put up with varying degrees of advertisements on these wikis. For example, Wikispaces offers an ad-free wiki for $5 a month. All sites are very welcoming of educators and students.
My first experience actually using and collaborating on a wiki was for our Assignment 2 group project. Elizabeth created our group’s wiki, so when I “arrived” there, it was ready with pre-made pages just waiting for our research and ideas to be recorded. Our group began at working on Wikispaces, which was user-friendly, but very basic in features and appearance. Elizabeth suggested moving the wiki to the PBWiki site, which we discovered to have a more polished website appearance, as well as other features.
While Wikispaces allows for fast and furious editing, there are some things that I found frustrating. When you choose to “edit this page,” the next page suddenly no longer appears to have the same formatting as the page you were previously looking at. For example, extra spaces appear which were not seen on the original. What this means, is that while editing, Wikispaces is not WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). This can make editing a bit of a guessing game, perhaps requiring a bit of back-and-forth until you get the page to look how you want it.
However, WYSIWYG is true of PBWiki. This makes editing pages much simpler. Additionally, the editing toolbar has features such as: colour text and background; font style and size; and other commands similar to editing in a Word Document. It can even tranform your wiki pages into a pdf.
Recently, I had the opportunity to create a wiki on Wikispaces for a group project in another class. It was very simple to set up. Yet, we may select a different wiki site to transfer our information for a nicer visual presentation of our final project.
Despite, all of the little details which accompany editing something into an attractive visual product, the concept behind wikis is very straightforward. As Lee LeFever explained, it’s a simple as edit, write, and save!
Some of the most popular wiki creation sites include: Wikispaces, PBWiki, and WetPaint. While all of these are free sign-ups, a person will have to put up with varying degrees of advertisements on these wikis. For example, Wikispaces offers an ad-free wiki for $5 a month. All sites are very welcoming of educators and students.
My first experience actually using and collaborating on a wiki was for our Assignment 2 group project. Elizabeth created our group’s wiki, so when I “arrived” there, it was ready with pre-made pages just waiting for our research and ideas to be recorded. Our group began at working on Wikispaces, which was user-friendly, but very basic in features and appearance. Elizabeth suggested moving the wiki to the PBWiki site, which we discovered to have a more polished website appearance, as well as other features.
While Wikispaces allows for fast and furious editing, there are some things that I found frustrating. When you choose to “edit this page,” the next page suddenly no longer appears to have the same formatting as the page you were previously looking at. For example, extra spaces appear which were not seen on the original. What this means, is that while editing, Wikispaces is not WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). This can make editing a bit of a guessing game, perhaps requiring a bit of back-and-forth until you get the page to look how you want it.
However, WYSIWYG is true of PBWiki. This makes editing pages much simpler. Additionally, the editing toolbar has features such as: colour text and background; font style and size; and other commands similar to editing in a Word Document. It can even tranform your wiki pages into a pdf.
Recently, I had the opportunity to create a wiki on Wikispaces for a group project in another class. It was very simple to set up. Yet, we may select a different wiki site to transfer our information for a nicer visual presentation of our final project.
Despite, all of the little details which accompany editing something into an attractive visual product, the concept behind wikis is very straightforward. As Lee LeFever explained, it’s a simple as edit, write, and save!
The most well known wiki: Wikipedia
Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger created Wikipedia in 2001, with the intent that every single person on the planet 
be given free access to the sum of all human knowledge. Thus, when you arrive at the home page, you are greeted with: “Welcome to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.”
In Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, Richardson says, “…every time you access Wikipedia or most any other wiki for that matter, you do so as Editor in Chief. And it’s that freedom that has made Wikipedia the phenomenon it is as tens of thousands of Editors in Chief, people just like you and me, take on the job of collecting the sum of human knowledge.” Wikipedia has more than 75,000 active contributors, and almost 2,270,000 articles in English (Wikipedia).
Is Wikipedia a Reliable Source for Information?
A typical first reaction might be to question the reliability of something that is open and available to anyone to change. We don’t exactly live in a utopia; people make mistakes! What about vandals? Many people are skeptical that what is made “wrong” on Wikipedia will be made “right” by other collaborators.
However, “wikis are generally designed with the philosophy of making it easy to correct mistakes, rather than making it difficult to make them. Thus, while wikis are very open, they provide a means to verify the validity of recent additions to the body of pages” (Wikipedia). Most wikis have a way of looking at any recent changes. Often this is a list of all the recent edits. Therefore, a watchful eye can change back anything which has been altered inappropriately.
University of Buffalo professor, Alex Halavais, tested the facilitation of corrections made on Wikipedia, and found that after creating 13 purposeful errors on Wikipedia, all of them were changed back within a few hours. Furthermore, Wikipedia was compared to Encyclopedia Britannica; Wikipedia was found to be only slightly less accurate (Richardson). Perhaps this is surprising to the skeptics, but it does help build the case for the collaboration!
It is interesting to note that Wikipedia is an example of a wiki which follows “soft security” principles. This means that it uses discussion pages, history, policies and guidelines, in contrast to traditional document control with password protected authorization.
While it is important to be aware that wikis, by their nature, are susceptible to misinformation, Wikipedia can not be completely discredited. However, caution should be used in referring to Wikipedia as a primary source. Rather, it provides an excellent starting point for one’s research, by providing background information, which should be followed up and validated by other reliable sources.
be given free access to the sum of all human knowledge. Thus, when you arrive at the home page, you are greeted with: “Welcome to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.”In Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, Richardson says, “…every time you access Wikipedia or most any other wiki for that matter, you do so as Editor in Chief. And it’s that freedom that has made Wikipedia the phenomenon it is as tens of thousands of Editors in Chief, people just like you and me, take on the job of collecting the sum of human knowledge.” Wikipedia has more than 75,000 active contributors, and almost 2,270,000 articles in English (Wikipedia).
Is Wikipedia a Reliable Source for Information?
A typical first reaction might be to question the reliability of something that is open and available to anyone to change. We don’t exactly live in a utopia; people make mistakes! What about vandals? Many people are skeptical that what is made “wrong” on Wikipedia will be made “right” by other collaborators.
However, “wikis are generally designed with the philosophy of making it easy to correct mistakes, rather than making it difficult to make them. Thus, while wikis are very open, they provide a means to verify the validity of recent additions to the body of pages” (Wikipedia). Most wikis have a way of looking at any recent changes. Often this is a list of all the recent edits. Therefore, a watchful eye can change back anything which has been altered inappropriately.
University of Buffalo professor, Alex Halavais, tested the facilitation of corrections made on Wikipedia, and found that after creating 13 purposeful errors on Wikipedia, all of them were changed back within a few hours. Furthermore, Wikipedia was compared to Encyclopedia Britannica; Wikipedia was found to be only slightly less accurate (Richardson). Perhaps this is surprising to the skeptics, but it does help build the case for the collaboration!
It is interesting to note that Wikipedia is an example of a wiki which follows “soft security” principles. This means that it uses discussion pages, history, policies and guidelines, in contrast to traditional document control with password protected authorization.
While it is important to be aware that wikis, by their nature, are susceptible to misinformation, Wikipedia can not be completely discredited. However, caution should be used in referring to Wikipedia as a primary source. Rather, it provides an excellent starting point for one’s research, by providing background information, which should be followed up and validated by other reliable sources.
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