4TeachersSake

As I discussed in my previous post, RSS is for more than just blogs. In this post, I will share how RSS feeds can help you organize and grade student collaboration on wikis. If you are unfamiliar with the use of wikis in the classroom for student collaboration, you can find some examples from our school here or the educational wiki resource.

One of the major benefits of using wikis for student projects is the ability to track changes to a document via the history tab.

For each page in a wikispace, this tab provides information about every change to the document, including editor ID and the details of the change. Unfortunately, harnessing and assessing this information can be quite involved. Consider this typical situation. A teacher has a class of 30 students. She breaks the class into ten groups of three. Each group is assigned a page for its collaboration. For the teacher to assess the student work to ensure that all members are contributing, she must visit each page, click the history tab, and scroll through the list of changes, clicking multiple entries to see the changes. If the teacher has multiple classes, this process can be very overwhelming. In addition, it is a challenge to track the pattern of individual students.

However, many of these obstacles can be overcome using RSS feeds. One of the features offered by wiki sites is to subscribe to changes on a single page, across a wikispace, and even across the entirety of the all spaces. For example, I subscribe to changes to the Wikipedia page for our school, and I subscribe to the wikispaces for my classes and some of my colleagues’ classes.

While enabling RSS is a feature provided by the wiki sites, the real benefit comes in the power of the aggregator. In my case, I use Microsoft Outlook 2007. There are 3 features that I find invaluable with my aggregator: 1) The ability to take my feed offline, for reading when I am not connected to the internet, 2) The ability to sort the data in a variety of ways, and 3) the ability to search within the data.

Although I am rarely without my Tablet PC, just ask my wife, there are times when I do not have access to the internet. For example, I am currently flying cross-country to a conference, and as of today, there is no wifi on airplanes. However, Outlook stores my feeds offline for reading when not connected to the internet. After this post is written, I’ll need to get back to grading my wikisJ. This scenario also plays out on team buses, commuter trains, or just sitting under a tree.

Because Outlook has one-click sorting features, I can quickly sort and group by “From,” “Subject,” and “Date.” Luckily, the RSS feed assigns the author ID to the “From” field and the page name to the “Subject” field. In addition, the body of the post uses the nice formatting features of the History page. So a quick glance at the post shows the changes made by the student. Thus, by clicking From, I get each student’s work grouped together. I can read all of the student’s entries at once enabling me to judge the student’s contributions. Or, I can sort by Subject which gives me an overview of how the students collaborated to create their pages.

While not a common issue, there are times when it is important to find the author of inappropriate content. Because every edit is indexed by Outlook, I can search the feed for a specific word or phrase, then sort by date, Oldest to Newest. The result is the history entry corresponding to the first appearance of the off-task material. (WOW!!! Flying over the Grand Canyon….How awesome! Sorry, back to work)

Although I have focused on the edit history portion of a wiki, this same subscription technique will work for the discussions for each page.

Hopefully this information makes your grading a bit easier and your assessment of student work more productive.

Coming soon: I Love RSS-Part 3: Using RSS to deliver information

A colleague asked today if he could have two OneNote windows open, side-by-side.

Man, I remember reading that somewhere. A quick search of my RSS reader (Outlook 2007), and I found it twice: the original by Daniel Escapa and a link to it by GottaBeMobile. T

The network is a powerful resource.

I made a few additional comments in forwarding the links. Here were my instructions for XP:
In step 2, he is referring to the “Window” item in the top of OneNote’s menu bar:

I think in step 4 you just need to right click the icons in your taskbar and choose: Tile Vertically ( and not side-by-side). If this tiles all your windows, try just selecting the windows you want to tile while holding the ctrl key, then right click to access the different tiling options.

Thanks to my network…

OK, this may not be news to you, but it was for me. I consider myself a pretty advanced user of OneNote and Tablet PCs. As the guy who works with 715 student Tablet PC users and an additional 100 or so faculty/staff, I try to be on top of all things related to Tablet PCs and that includes OneNote.

Early in our initial rollout of Tablets to teachers, I had been disappointed that OneNote did not integrate Equation Editor into the functionality. Don’t get me wrong, they did almost everything else right. But as a math teacher, although now just a hobby, I wanted pretty equations.

I tried copying Equations from old Word Documents and pasting them into OneNote. YUCK!!! The graphic was all pixilated and could not be resized without getting worse. Oh, well at least I could use the stylus to write equations in my own handwriting.

When ON 2007 and MathType 6 emerged, I had hopes. So I tried again. Bummer, still not pretty. Back to handwriting.

After my recent post on MathType and Wikispaces, I had an equation in my clipboard, and I thought “What happens if I paste LaTeX into OneNote?” Maybe that is the secret. Alas, no luck. Not pixilated, but it was that weird LaTeX language. Then I saw that little icon for pasting options. For some reason, I decided to see what the paste options were.

Hmmm. Seems silly to have “Keep Source Formatting” and “Paste as Picture.” Aren’t they the same? What else would this distorted equation be pasted as if not a picture? What the heck, I’m game, I’ll click “Paste as Picture.”

Be still my beating heart; is it true? Could it be? I’ve found the Holy Grail! OMG it even stretches, nicely.

So, if you want pretty math text in OneNote, either copy it from an existing Word document or use MathType, then use paste options to paste as a picture.

As a math teacher I have always been frustrated working with wikis. There have always been obstacles making it more challenging to include rich mathematical notation in a wikipage. As a Tablet PC user, I still yearn for a way to directly incorporate the ink drawings I make along with my freehand notation; however without using screen clippings this is not possible. At least now I have found a way to use MathType to make the process of embedding LaTeX formatted mathematics into a wiki page. While this post will refer to MathType, there are numerous other LaTeX editors which will serve the same role.

For some time now, wikispaces has made it possible to use the LaTeX syntax for formatting mathematical notation. Unfortunately, LaTeX is not commonly known, at least not to K-12 students. Enter MathType: a software application that provides a nice interface for entering math notation into documents. In addition, one of the features of MathType is its built-in translators, which allow the user to convert the “pretty” formatted text into two other formats (MathML and LaTeX).

Before you begin using it with wikis, you need to change one of the default settings for MathType. Once MathType is open, you need to select PreferencesàTranslators. From this dialog, you can set the default copy behavior for MathType to use the built-in translator TeX – LaTeX 2.09 or Later.

Now simply enter your formula as you would for inserting it into a Word document. Then select the expression, and copy it. Now, open your wikispace page for editing. Position your cursor where you’d like the mathematics to appear. However, before you paste, you need to use the special wikitext tag [[math]] in order for wikispaces to interpret your paste as mathematics. So type [[math]] then a return, then paste your equation. Don’t be alarmed if it seems like an alien language; that is LaTeX. Then hit another return, followed by a second [[math]]. Save your changes, and the result should be a well formatted mathematical expression.

Also, because wikis are meant to be collaborative, what if other editors were to detect a typo in your expression? They do not need to retype it. Instead, they copy the expression, either from the pretty format on the web or the LaTeX version from the editor window. With MathType open, a simple paste will place the expression in MathType in pretty format for editing and the process repeats as above.

Hopefully this process will make using wikis a bit easier in the math and science classes.

For more advanced users, or for those who plan to use this on a regular basis, MathType allows you to create your own translators, and as a result you can save yourself some work by making a few modifications to the files on your harddrive. Basically the translators are simple text files with some scripting language. With just a bit of editing, a translation specific for wikispaces can be created.

Once you have the new translation files, it can be used in one of two ways. Within MathType, you can choose PreferencesàTranslators, again. From this dialog, you can set the default copy behavior for MathType to use the new translator. Now any time you want to create an equation for wikispaces, you open MathType, type the equation, and copy it. From there just paste it into wikispaces. Because we have embedded the [[math]]tags directly, the editing is complete. In addition, if you use Word with MathType, you can type the entire draft first, expressions and narrative. As you go along, create equations as necessary. Once the document is complete, there is a feature in MathType’s toolbar to “Convert Equations.” From this dialog box, if you select “MathType Equations,” “Whole Document,” and your new translator, MathType will go through the whole document and prepare it for wikispaces. After a simple copy and paste, your work is done.

Here is a brief video, explaining how this works on my tablet PC.

Hope this helps.

This begins a series on RSS, which may be the greatest thing since sliced bread. The Internet is growing so rapidly, that I really no longer find it productive to go to the web and surf. While there are a few sites that I go to in order to keep up on the big stuff: sports, general news, etc, I prefer to have information delivered to me using RSS.

My guess is that the most common use of RSS is to subscribe to blogs. For example I subscribe to the following blogs among others: GottaBeMobile, OneNote and Education, Ms. Stewart’s 6^th grade Language Arts, Practical Theory, and Incremental Blogger.

However, RSS can be for more than just following blogs. It can be used to create your own personalized newspaper. You can go to NYTimes or CNN and subscribe to their RSS feeds. Unfortunately this is not ideal for me. If you subscribe to the general feed there is way too much. You can also choose specific feeds, e.g. Education, but again this is not always on target for me. Enter customizable RSS news feed…

Head to your favorite search engine and go to the news portion. Once there you enter a search, e.g. +”Tablet PC” +Education and click Search, you will get the current search results. However, once the results are generated, you should have the option to “subscribe” to these results. (Note: not all search engines work, but most of the biggies do) This means that your RSS aggregator will now run this search, and any new articles will be delivered to you.

This can also be a great tool to share with kids. If you are studying a current event or a particular topic about which there may be news, your students can all create the same feed and as a result, everybody has a relevant current event feed. Obviously, narrow the search or you may be overrun…”Election” vs “+Election +battleground”

Coming soon: I Love RSS-Part 2: Grading student work on wikis

This morning I presented at the Laptop Institute preaching the benefits of Tablet PCs.  I am sure I was a bit biased and bordering on pushy, but you be the judge.

The Tablet Pc > The Laptop

The benefits of tablet technology increase student use and teacher productivity. This session will explore how the tablet technology is a difference-maker for educational use based on experiences at Cary Academy. We will examine Tablet specific applications of technology across the curriculum.

| View | Upload your own

I streamed the presentation on UStream.  Unfortunately, I did not get a capture of the screen, so this is just the audio really.

Live Streaming by Ustream.TV

For two hours this morning, our 7th graders reinacted Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. 

In the past we have tried numerous ways to stream such events on the web, so families could attend “virtually.”  However, internet bottle-necks and setup hassles always made this a burden with little benefit. 

UStream to the rescue.

With less than a days notice to get prepared, we were able to stream and record the event.  In terms of setup, all we used was a teacher’s HP TC4400 Tablet PC and a Logitech 5000 webcam.  Prior to considering streaming, the teachers decided that they wanted the students to learn to project their voices, so no sound sytem was used in the theater, as a result the audio is strained at times, but not bad for a first try.

 Here are the results:

Act 1 (really just part 1)

Act 2

Act 3

I can’t wait to try this again.

Technorati Tags: Education, performances, shakespeare, Technology, ustream

I’ve been exploring some new tools in my classroom with my students with amazing results. The technology is called “screencasting” and basically the tools used capture the movements of the mouse on the screen along with the images (websites, drawings, etc.) on the computer screen. While this occurs, a student’s (or teacher’s) comments are captured through the microphone of the computer or through a inexpensive microphone plugged into the microphone jack on the computer (a $7 microphone produces much better sound quality).

The end result is a video that can be used to demonstrate a topic, explain a website, analyze a concept through a applet, etc. I have used screencasting for my own purposes for my students for several years now as they can be used as a very effective teaching tool, especially if one incorporates questions or requires students to produce a product through the video. In my mind, the interactivity portion is often missing in the screencasts that are currently being developed by instructors as they are a “time shifting” resource. This means that they can be viewed at any time and can be paused. This allows students to work at their own pace and also allows for instructors to ask the students to reflect, write, produce, etc. a product while watching or pausing the video.

I am finding screencasting to be an incredible tool as I seek to formatively and/or summatively assess my students in a Web 2.0 world. Moreover, THEY LOVE PRODUCING VIDEOS! Like anything, it is not a tool for all occasions, but it is a powerhouse in terms of revealing true knowledge.

Here is include a short screencast to demonstrate how I might use this in my science classroom.

http://www.4teacherssake.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/sc.jpg
sc.jpg

To create a screencast on your mac or PC you have multiple options for software. You can use online resources or stand alone software on your PC.

Mac Options for Stand Alone Software: IShowU (very inexpensive) or Snapz Pro X for use along with the free iMovie or a higher end video editor like Final Cut Pro

PC Options for Stand Alone Software: the killer application of the screencast world- Camtasia, Camstudio (Open source and Free), or Windows Media Encoder (Free with Win OSs) for use for Windows Movie Maker or a higher end video editor like Adobe Premiere Elements).

Mac and PC options that are Internet based: Screencast-o-Matic

A new free application at the moment form the makers of Camtasia, and it is cross platform: Jing! The screencast above was made using Jing. Enjoy and give it a try.

Technorati Tags: classroom, Education, Learning, Technology

It is amazing how technology makes the world feel even smaller. As part of our Middle School’s humanities program, our teachers attempt to have at least one of the authors of the books they are reading visit campus each year. Last year, we were fortunate to have Ji Li Jiang, author of Red Scarf Girl, speak to our MS students in person.

Unfortunately, the logistics for this are quite challenging. First, the author needs to be willing to travel and to be available during a reasonable time frame. This year, the Faculty selected Chris Eboch, author of The Well of Sacrifice. As fate would have it, Ms. Eboch was unable to travel to North Carolina while the students were involved in the book. Eager to participate, she offered to do a conference call as she had on a previous occasion for another school. However, a big part of the visits had been the interaction between the author and the students, and a significant piece of that dynamic was the ability to see each other.

Skype and the Webcam to the rescue.

A self-proclaimed tech novice, Ms. Eboch was willing to try a video call. As it turned out, she had a friend who used Skype and a webcam to talk with friends and relatives. So we arranged a practice call a couple weeks prior to the visit. Then last week, Chris Eboch visited our students in the lecture hall.

(Sorry the audio is a bit low. The question was “One of the important things in the novel was friendships, so why did you make so many people die?”)

Last year, we had used Skype to talk with a colleague in Africa doing mission work, so I was familiar with using Skype to talk around the globe. However, I was surprised how easy it was to add video to the discussion. Basically, add a USB webcam to a Tablet PC (or other computer), and you are in business. For our setup, we placed the Tablet PC and the webcam on a podium. The webcam had the student audience as a backdrop when there was not a student at the podium asking a question. Students came to the podium looked into the Tablet screen adjacent to the webcam and asked their questions. Using the headphone jack, we connected the Tablet audio out to the projector, and voilà we had our own little videoconference.

The presentation went so well that now we can’t wait for the next opportunity.

Technorati Tags: classroom, Education, Learning, skype, Technology, video conference

Steve Goldberg, one of my colleagues here at Cary Academy, is dipping his toes into the world of Google Earth. In his current World History unit on Egypt he has taken advantage of many wonderful Web 2.0 technologies to help his students become more engaged in their studies.

Using Google Earth, students can explore the Nile region much like they would in static textbook images or wall maps. By creating a prepackaged group of Google Earth place marks, Steve can allow his students quick access to the locations via GE. However, with picture sharing integrated into GE via Panoramio, students actually see the sites through the eyes of the tourists who have visited the temples.

But why stop with still pictures. YouTube to the rescue. With video sharing exploding on the internet, teachers can find the “home movies” of tourist visits to Egypt and share them with their classes. Here is an example that Steve shared with his class.

Along with some others I found.


I am sure that teachers would much rather travel to Egypt in person, but I doubt many school districts will foot the bill. At least with the Internet, we can share in the experiences of tourists lucky enough to make the journey.

Technorati Tags: classroom, Education, google earth, Learning, Technology, youtube