edna.edu.au

Afternoon Video Conferences @ MacICT

Upcoming Workshops:

An Afternoon with Marvin - Jan Eade, Tuesday, 26th May, $20 per school

Marvin is an animation software program which can be used in all KLAs. In this video conference teachers will be shown how the program developed, how it works and where to locate useful information about it on the Macquarie ICT Innovations Centre website. Teachers will be invited to reflect on the uses of the program and how animation programs such as this can facilitate high level learning.

Engaging Students with Web2.0 - Victor Davidson Thursday, 28th May, $20 per school

Victor Davidson enjoys watching the lights go on as students engage in Web 2.0 learning objects that deliver specific syllabus outcomes. Join him for video conference discussion of how he uses Web2.0 technology to engage students at his school.

He has been delivering the BOS All My Own Work modules online since 2007 and blending assessment and reporting in such a way that students preparing to enrol in Preliminary courses for the HSC are fully conscious of "authentic learning and ethical scholarship" as Mr Coutts-Trotter puts it.

In this session Victor will also briefly demonstrate the online resources available through the DET Portal and share some documents he has developed to blend global concepts with local conditions.

Double Jeopardy - Stu Hasic, Tuesday 2nd June

Stu's Double Jeopardy is an excellent, multi-faceted and flexible educational class or group activity for students of all ages. This videoconference will introduce the software and highlight its many uses and the ease of its use with a growing worldwide community. A brief video explaining how Jeopardy works can be found here: http://www.sydneyr.det.nsw.edu.au/support/other/technology/jeopardy/jeopardy.htm

Blogging and multimedia in the primary classroom - Maria Marshall, Tuesday, 9th June, $20 per school

Maria is a primary teacher who uses technology as a integral part of her program. This includes creating and sharing multimedia, using a blog with her students and using interactive resources. In this session she will explore the value of blogging and multimedia in building multiple literacies, reflecting on learning and building a sense of community.

Introduction to Windows Movie Maker - Glen Smith, Wednesday, 10th June, $20 per school

Windows Movie Maker is a free movie editing program to users of PCs. Participants will learn various functions involved in Movie Maker, including importing, organising and arranging clips, cropping, adding titles and credits, transitions and special effects, adding audio and exporting for use.

Finding free online resources for primary school teachers - Concetta Gotlieb, Tuesday, 16th June, $20 per school

This session will explore two ways of finding free online teaching resources. We will look at finding free resources by searching repositories such as Edna and social bookmarking sites. We will then explore the subscription model of finding free resources including how to set it up, what you should subscribe to and how you can receive updates.

Finding free online resources for high school teachers - Concetta Gotlieb, Thursday 18th June

This session will explore two ways of finding free online teaching resources. We will look at finding free resources by searching repositories such as Edna and social bookmarking sites. We will then explore the subscription model of finding free resources including how to set it up, what you should subscribe to and how you can receive updates.

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Tags: freeresources doublejeopardy blogging marvin moviemaker web2.0 professionallearning videoconference
Posted at 02:25PM May 19, 2009 by Concetta Gotlieb  |  Comments[1]

Support For LAMS

 

We have tried to design a flexible model for supporting you in this project.  Me.edu.au provides an easy to use framework for asking questions, seeing what others are doing and reflecting on our own learning experiences.  The other advantage of using me.edu.au is that it is an Australian community supported by the Federal Government, this means you'll find lots of interesting people to continue learning from.

As a member of this project this is what I will do (click on the links for how to videos):

• Write blog posts with helpful hints and ideas about how to use LAMS
• Write blog posts with results from our research
• Ask questions about how teachers are using LAMS in the LAMS Community
• Answer questions about how to use LAMS

As a member of this project you can:

• Ask a question on any of the centre staff whiteboards Debbie Evans, Mitchell Squires and Concetta Gotlieb
• Ask a question in the LAMS community
• Write a tip or idea in the LAMS community
• Search for and connect with other Australian educators who are interested in LAMS
  
• Or write a longer reflection (if you want to) on the blog
  

Whilst we have lots of options for getting online support if your unsure just ask in the LAMS community.  The best place to If you would like a more private community with please make your suggestions in the LAMS community.

You can access the support on LAMS

• Information about LAMS tools on the Documenation Wiki
• Talk to people about LAMS in the International LAMS Community
  

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Tags: blogging student-centred learning macict lams support
Posted at 09:37AM May 14, 2009 by Concetta Gotlieb  |  Comments[1]

Blogging in NSW Schools

Why use blogs or wiki's in the classroom?

Choosing a blogging platform

This blog post by Stu Hasic explains how to choose a blog hosting service and gives an example of the parent permission form.  I choose Edublogs even though you now have to pay $9 a month because you are blogging with a community of classroom and teacher bogs.  Remember to use the help videos to get an idea of how to use your blogging platform.  

Applying to get your blog unblocked

In order to get your blog unblocked you'll need to make sure that all comments are approved by you as the teacher and that anyone who makes a comment on your blog is logged in.  Here is the full policy.  You can then apply to get your blog unblocked.  Here are the instructions.  Read this blog post for a NSW Teachers perpective.

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Tags: unblock websites blogging nswdet policy
Posted at 09:09PM Feb 28, 2009 by Concetta Gotlieb  |  Comments[2]

me.edu.au blogging tips

A few tips on how to make blogging easier and more effective in me.edu.au.

1. Save frequently, by clicking 'save as draft'
   
2. Fix messy formatting by 'avoiding html issues'
3. Turn off comment moderation
4. Visit the 'About Me' blog
5. Join the 'me.edu.au' community and share your tips

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Tags: blogging communities showme me.edu.au
Posted at 09:35PM Feb 10, 2009 by Concetta Gotlieb  |  Comments[1]

Report Comments for Blogging

 Today mum and I have been working out how we can tell parents how their kids have been working in the area of homework and blogging.  Below are the comments we came up with... feel free to suggest improvements.  It is interesting how doing an activity like this really gets you thinking about how you can frame things next year - eg be much clearer about the expectations and the importance of listening (and showing that you are listening) when participating in electronic communications.  The kids are really showing us the way with this by exceeding expectations of how a 10yr contributes to an online dialogue.

... is an active and engaged participant in electronic communications for example Wormbins. *  has shown the ability to reflect on and contribute to online discussion and helps to further peer knowledge by providing insightful responses and useful links.  * uses the blog to further her own knowledge by checking new content regularly and following links provided by both teacher and classmates.

... is an active and engaged participant in electronic communications for example Wormbins, *  has shown the ability to reflect on and contribute to online discussion and occassionally helps to further peer knowledge by providing insightful responses or useful links.  * uses the blog to further her own knowledge by checking new content often and following links provided by both teacher and classmates.

...  participates in electronic communications for example Wormbins, *  has shown the ability to reflect on and contribute to online discussion, however contributions usually focus on completing the task.  ... needs to understand the importance of listening to the opinions of others to assist their own learning.  checks new content only when reminded.

Thanks to Nirvana Rose-Watkins for her contribution.

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Tags: participation blogging reports
Posted at 11:37AM Nov 23, 2008 by Concetta Gotlieb  | 

Allanah King on opening the classroom walls to the world

This is a short simple example from EDtalks of how a teacher in NZ is using technology to engage her students in authentic communication.  A great introduction to blogging, podcasting and wikis with some teaching ideas to get us thinking.

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Tags: pedagogy opennes podcasting classroom blogging wikis
Posted at 10:09AM Oct 26, 2008 by Concetta Gotlieb  |  Comments[2]

Why this blog is unique

I write in a few different places because they serve different purposes.  Here is my reflection on the differences between my blogs.

Edublogs - Edusnacks.edublogs.org

• What I write about: reflecting on learning on learning theory and networks
• Who I connect with: other people who are interested in learning theory
• How often I write: a couple of times a month
• Why I like it: it's part of a large international community

Edublogs - Ourwork.edublogs.org

• What I write about: reflecting on learning and post work we have created
  
• Who I connect with: students and teachers
  
• How often I write: as often as I can
  
• Why I like it: the kids can connect with a wide audience of teachers and students
  

me.edu.au/b/concettagotlieb

• What I write about: teaching ideas, tools and reflections
  
• Who I connect with: Australian educators who are teach to similar curricula
  
• How often I write: every couple of days, everytime I capture something interesting at school
  
• Why I like it: it's uncomplicated and when I search within me.edu.au I get results of entries from people who are also Australian, it's a special community

It suits me to have a couple of different areas to blog from.  Mentally they are very different spaces for me, I go to them when I'm thinking about different things.   The people I interact with are different.

Want to start your own blog on me.edu.au? Watch this video.

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Tags: me.edu.a blogging curriculum why edublogs
Posted at 10:33PM Oct 14, 2008 by Concetta Gotlieb  | 

Reporting on Blogging Behaviour

Have just been writing some report comments for a class of bloggers I've been helping out with.  I found these resources which helped me come up with a basic comment format.

• Comment Challenge (Sue Waters)
  
• Four C's of Online Participation (Derek Wenmoth)
  
• Blogs Management Moderation and Protection (Al Upton)

I found Derek's four C's particularly useful and I think they probably formed the basis of my report comments.   Some examples of the report comments included:

• <name> has been a regular reader and contributor to the blog.  Her comments are insightful and questioning.  She  also provides additional information that adds to the general knowledge pool of the class, at times even making connections between the outside work and the blog.

• <name> is a regular reader of the blog.  She provides simple positive feedback.  <name> could add to the discussion by providing personal insights and linking to additional information sources. 

Does anyone know of anything else that might be useful when writing reports on commenting on blog?  Has anyone else written comments for primary students on their blog writing ability?  Please share your ideas in the comments below.
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Tags: primary reporting blogging
Posted at 02:50PM Jun 10, 2008 by Concetta Gotlieb  |