Dr. Alice Christie's Web Site
The topic I chose to read about on Dr. Christie's Web Site was Google Earth. There are 3 types of Google Earth. They are Google Earth, Google Earth Pro, and Google Earth Plus. Google Earth is free but you have to pay for Google Earth Pro and Plus annually. Google Earth shows you the exact location of what your searching for. It even will show you buildings and traffic that is passing in the area. You can even find your house on there. You can also see where rivers and lakes are located on there.
As a Social Studies teacher, I think Google Earth would be an excellent tool to use in my classroom. It would give the students a better idea of what certain areas of the world looks like, and it is easy for the students to use at school or at home. I think it would help keep my students interested in what they are learning. Every student learns differently and this would give them another way to learn.
iTunes U
ITunes U has 13 different subjects to choose from. On the right hand side there is a list of the most downloaded podcast. Above the list of most downloaded podcast are quick links where you can find the names of the available universities on iTunes U. Once you click on the universities' link they will show the list of schools in alphabetical order, so you will be able to find the school you are looking for easily. Once you choose the school you want, there is a section for subjects, what's new, and highlights. They also have quick links and the most downloaded topics that are about the college.
If your not quite sure what the title of the subject your looking for you can do a power search. It's where you can put in key words and the name of the school you think it might be located under. You can also just go to a certain subject to find what you looking for. For example, if you like history, you would click on it then go to the topic that you're interested in. Once you do that it will show you the different titles of book and videos about that subject and how long they last. In order to download a podcast or video cast, you must be a member of iTunes. It's real easy to join. All you need is an email account and a password, and it doesn't cost anything either.
iPods in instruction
iPods can be used in many ways for academic purposes.It can be used as a course content dissemination too, classroom recording tool, field recording tool, a study support tool, and file storage and transfer.
There are many benefits for using an iPod in a classroom. The iPods are convenient for both the faculty and students. You can use them just about anywhere and it will reduce help reduce the hours spent in labs and libraries by the students. It will increase the interest of the students.
Although there are many benefits to using an iPod in the classroom, there are also some problems that have occurred. The recordings made on an iPod aren't the best quality. The students and staff don't always fully understand how to use it. There are limited training resources available. There are difficulties in obtaining licenses for content needed. There are also difficulties in buying iPods as well. Here is a link to the website I used. DukeUniversity
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The google earth does sound like a fun way to teach your students about geography. I know that I was not to interested in it but maybe if I would have had seen that I might have liked it more!
ReplyDeleteDwight, The points you made about ipods are great. I think ipods would be a great tool in class, because a lot of people have them and use them everyday. I also agree with your points about problems with ipods. They are quite pricey, but I think that once people get them, they are easy to figure out how to use.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Brittany above:
ReplyDeleteSometimes we need to explore things we "are not interested in." I was not only "uninterested in" but also "against", whatever that means, Twitter when I first heard about it. When Mr. Chamberlain asked me "John, do you Twitter?" I quickly and vigorously responded "No, and I'm not interested in Twitter." When Angela Rand less than a week later challenged EDM310 students to have students use Twitter to write book reports "in 140 characters or less" I thought she was out of her mind. But I had been saying all year "It's OK not to know, but it is also important to say 'Let's Find Out' " and I was not willing to find out. So I declared a four week trial of Twitter. And my life has changed and this class has changed because I tried Twitter which I declared was of no interest to me. Twitter has been the most important educational event that I have encountered in at least 20 years, and maybe more. So we should sometimes take a second look at what seems "not interesting." It appears that you have done just that in the case of Google Earth. I hope you follow through and learn about it. Mr. Chamberlain and Ms. Rand gave me a push. I hope Dwight has given you a push to Google Earth!
We will do a Google Earth project in this class. Dr. Christie's website will be a great resource.
ReplyDeleteI hope the iPod Touch or the iPad gets a camera. Then I will probably make it a requirement for this course. Or at least an option.