Thing 15: Emerging Tech & Scanning the Horizon

The reach and connection that educators have with students, families and community members, I believe, is crucial to the learning process.  Three trends posted on Emerging Ed Tech address just this:

Opportunities and Benefits of Live Streaming
Live streaming is changing how students learn and how teachers teach.  It provides a unique, interactive experience that takes students outside the walls of their classrooms and schools.  It provides real-time content on demand that is available to virtually (no pun here!) everyone and enables students and teachers to connect globally.  With live streaming, students can revisit posted streams to catch up on missed information and receive reinforcement on topics where, and when they need it.  Those teachers who tuned into the presidential inauguration last November probably didn't give much thought to the idea of live streaming.  Many fof them could be heard saying though, how relevant and real the experience was for students. Teachers at all levels can harness the opportunity to view or participate in live streaming to facilitate meaningful learning experiences for students and to connect and engage with the larger community.   

Educators using SnapChat to Communicate with Students
SnapChat is a popular social media platform that pre-teens and younger teens use frequently to share moments and events.  Savvy educators are now using SnapChat as a tool to connect with students to communicate through posted pictures and videos.  Some use it to announce quick changes to assignments, highlight an event or share something important.  While SnapChat is designed to communicate on a personal basis, there are those that believe it is a useful tool for communicating and engaging with the younger student population.  Snaps are temporary, however, and leave no evidence of information shared.  This is a drawback when attempting to retrieve messages or document what has been previously shared.  Other challenges might include the exclusion of those students who don't have access to a device, wi-fi or data plan.

Wearable Technology
It's on the rise! From Blue Tooths, to Smart Watches, to Fitness Tools, they are catching on quickly.  In the classroom, such tools can help teachers with taking attendance, recording content or lectures, and even track student performance data.  Wearable tech can streamline classroom management, motivate students and facilitate deeper learning. Challenges include teacher/student training, funding and accessibilty.

These sites offer more infomation on how wearable technology impacts the classroom:

Augmented Reality (posted by the Guardian)
Wearable Technology & the Future of Education (addresses PD, collaboration & engagement)

Thing 28:Online Learning and DIY PD

Completing Thing 28 was just the nudge I needed to begin synthesizing the work I've started toward developing a personalized learning plan.   Beginning now, I will work toward completing the following goals:  

👉Stay abreast of trends in education and technology
👉Connect with innovative educators
👉Educate myself on specific topics related to technology, education and leadership

As the school year draws to a close, I hope to make some progress toward achieving these goals with the various resources I've identified.  I'll be in a good place to continue my work throughout the summer, and bring new perspective to the 2017-8 school year.

A few years ago I created a Twitter account, but have only really begun regularly posting (and reposting) within the last year. While I have contributed posts of a personal nature in the past, I use Twitter now as a professional tool to connect with other educators and participate in professional discussions.  I follow many researchers and educators, both locally and nationally and have created lists to narrow down posts and make reading more manageable!

I have also joined 13 different communities on edWeb, a social network for professional learning.  Because this forum is new to me, I found it challenging to be selective because so many are interesting.  If I had the time and ability, I probably would join more!   I'm excited to start exploring and in particular, I look forward to contributing to the Emerging Tech group.

In addition, I started a Listly account to use in curating resources.  I hope to use this (perhaps even in conjunction with BloomBoard) as a "grounding place" for good reads, ideas and tools.   

Thing 36: Create a Resource Guide

Completing this assignment is timely for me, as I considered ways to curate the ideas I share and present to the teachers & schools I support.  I chose Listly as my curation tool, and love how simple it is to use! In the free version, users have the ability to create up to 3 lists in a week, and have the option of adding text, links, photos, videos, audio, placemarks, csv files and more!  It's similar to Twitter or other Social Media sites in that users can add friends, follow others, and vote up other lists. Another great feature is the Bookmarklet feature via the Chrome extension that allows users to add immediately to their Listly lists!  I am hoping to share this with my teachers and administrators as a resource for information, but also as a way to educate them on digital curation. LOVE!

Thing 04: Digital Storytelling 2017

Adobe Spark Page allows users to create professional digital stories using video content and graphics. It's  extremely simple to use and I was especially pleased with the collages that I could create using multiple photos.  Uploading/sharing was a cinch!  Here's an example of a Page I created for School #46 after digitally documenting their Spring School Expo.  

I also used Adobe Video to create a presentation of student research on famous African Americans. Though the app allows you to adjust the volume of video content, it's difficult to hear the students in this one (and they even used microphones!).  I also wasn't able to figure out how to adjust transition times or text animation.  Any insights on this are appreciated!  Like Adobe Page, the app is very intuitive and allows users to create polished videos in no time!

Take 2 on Thing 3: Twitter & Other Online Communities

Twitter Advanced Search:
Use this to locate posts with specific words, phrases or hashtags.  Also, search accounts based on the person who posted or mentions someone specific in a post.  Can even search posts by location! Using the location criteria I found lots of updates on the Buffalo Bills!  Advanced searches could be useful in the classroom for obtaining information that is real-time, location-based, posted within a particular date range or by a specific individual.

Twitter Widgets

• Profile - Embed your tweets to appear in your blog or on your website.  Click here to link to view a running list of my Tweets.
• Search - Create a search that updates real time that appears in your blog or on your site.  Here's mine!
• Other widgets - TwitStamp allows you to update your Twitter status to sites that accept images; Twitter Widget allows you to adjust the background of your blog to the Twitter post you embed; Twoxit Widget provides the code for you to embed on your site for users to update their own Twitter status.

Using widgets on a school or classroom site would make the user experience more focused, without the user even realizing!  School community members could link directly to real-time, pertinent Tweets that highlight the positive.

Everything Guide
A super duper resource that provides guidance on topics ranging from creating a Twitter bio and posting, to searching and managing who you follow or who follows you.  Critical tools for educators can be found here to become more efficient in communication, time management, and constituent engagement.