Using ICT in Further Education

Create Quizzes with Scoilnet

2012-01-14T13:31:00.000Z

Scoilnet, the Department of Education and Skills official portal for Irish education, provide a quiz portal where you can create and share multiple choice quizzes relevant to content for both the Primary and PostPrimary sectors.

Feedback is given either as you go through the quiz or in one go at the end.

You can search for quizzes via subject name or tag. I suppose post leaving cert content could be included in the post primary section though it may be better placed in a section on its own!

Here's a little Database quiz for you to try!

Get More Out of Google Infographic

2011-12-24T16:21:00.000Z

A useful summary of methods and tips for searching with Google from HackCollege. The sections could be split up, enlarged and made into a nice wall poster for easy reference!

Created by: HackCollege

Add CC Images Directly in Google Docs

2011-12-17T10:54:00.001Z

Amit Agarwal recently highlighted another great reason to use Google Docs in his post on adding stock photos.

Google Docs is integrated with Google Image Search to help you quickly find and insert web photographs in your documents. The results are filtered to only show images that have been licensed under Creative Commons and labeled for commercial reuse so you are legally allowed to insert these images in your documents.

Thoughts on Email

2011-10-23T13:22:00.001+01:00

Personally, I hope that email will live on!!

Data and infographic by AWeber Email Marketing

Speech Input Using Chrome

2011-09-01T16:17:00.002+01:00

Thanks to Amit Agarwal, I discovered that you can easily add a speech option to any input boxes that you have on your website inlcuding your search box.

Unfortunately, it only works with Google Chrome at the moment! But, as Amit explains it can also be used with a textarea. Here you can add longer sentences. If you are building up a paragraph, then the text must be copied to another location as the text area is cleared each time the microphone is activated. Could work well with short answer questions for those who struggle with typing text. A free and easily implemented option.

Works fine with Blogger, Wordpress and Moodle. Now, if only there was an easy way to add this option to Google Docs forms :)

Why not try it out below:

Click the microphone icon and speak

Remember, you must be using Chrome!

A Bold Experiment in Distributed Education

2011-08-21T15:04:00.002+01:00

"A bold experiment in distributed education" or the future of education??
Currently, 114,563 plus 1 have signed up!!!

"Introduction to Artificial Intelligence" will be offered free and online to students worldwide during the fall of 2011. The course will include feedback on progress and a statement of accomplishment. Taught by Sebastian Thrun and Peter Norvig, the curriculum draws from that used in Stanford's introductory Artificial Intelligence course. The instructors will offer similar materials, assignments, and exams.

Also available this year - Stanford's Introduction to Databases and Introduction to Machine Learning.

Flash Drawing Application

2011-08-09T16:06:00.001+01:00

Wish I could draw like this!! Odosketch provides a great way to learn how.

Read and Release Me!

2011-05-17T17:13:00.001+01:00

Just come across a book, from a member of Bookcrossing, thanks to a new book swapping initiative in my local Starbucks.

I think Bookcrossing is a great way to share books. Essentially, once you have read your favourite or even your not-so-favorite book, you 'release' it to travel the world and find new readers!

There are currenly 931,377 members from 132 countries.

You could become the 931,378!!

Which is you Favourite Dynamic View?

2011-05-05T07:25:00.000+01:00

Blogger currently offers five dynamic views for its public blogs.

# Flipcard: available at [blogURL]/view/flipcard
# Mosaic: available at [blogURL]/view/mosaic
# Sidebar: available at [blogURL]/view/sidebar
# Snapshot: available at [blogURL]/view/snapshot
# Timeslide: available at [blogURL]/view/timeslide

These views, however, are only accessible if the blog author allows them and modern browsers such as Internet Explorer 8+, Firefox 3.5+, Chrome or Safari are used.

I love the way Leonid Flegantov has included access to the views right at the top of his Web in Learning blog, so I have now done the same thing for this blog and my Free Resources for Education blog!!

The views are a great way of getting rid of the extra 'clutter' found in the sidebars of a blog but still enable you to access the content in an easy and structured way.

I think I like the sidebar view best. Which is your favourite?

The Jigsaw Reading Technique

2011-05-02T15:15:00.001+01:00

Just finished reading a great article, from the Tunisian English Teaching Forum, on Jigsaw Reading, by Tarak Brahmi. A number of class worksheets are also included.

Tarak explains

Jigsaw reading is a cooperative learning technique that aims at enhancing the learners’ reading comprehension skills by helping them to meaningfully interact with the reading material and to take responsibility in sharing what they have learnt with other learners.

I like the social aspect of this technique and although it is primarily aimed at enhancing reading, it could also be very useful in other subjects where memorising facts is required.

Tarak's article is just one of several excellent pieces included in the 5th edition of theTunisian English Teaching Forum magazine.

In light of the revolution that occurred in Tunisia in December 2010, this particular issue is "dedicated to the whole country and its martyrs for making a once-far-fetched dream become true".

The emphasis on raising awareness about Tunisia's "amazing beauty and it's boundless potential" is a wonderful addition in this poignant issue.

Open publication - Free publishing - More classroom

Free Moodle Hosting With e-Socrates

2011-03-25T15:38:00.000Z

e-Socrates aims to create "the best free Moodle hosting service for everyone who wants to do e-learning activities".

You can create a course and "have the full moodle power in your hands, without restrictions of any kind!" including being able to track your students subscriptions and setting a password for the course enrolment.

In order to use the site you must "always allow website visitors the right to read your contents, you can prevent them from subscribing as students but you can't prevent them from accessing the material".

This is the only "fee" required by e-Socrates in exchange for the free hosting service.

Currently there are over 500 courses available in different languages including Bulgarian, Catalan, Czech, German, Greek, English, Spanish, Croatian, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Vietnamese and Sanskrit.

Lots of sharing going on here :)

Forthcoming WebEx Webinar and Archives

2011-03-19T13:58:00.001Z

The upcoming Cisco WebEx webinar on Beyond the Classroom: Making Mobile and Social Learning Work in Schools, which will be held on 30th March, sounds very interesting.

The webinar promises to provide:
* Inspiring ideas for embracing collaborative learning and mobility
* Best-practice advice for keeping mobile and social learning safe
* Real-world suggestions and cautions
* Technical tips for ensuring that your network is prepared
* Ideas for engaging students, teachers, administrators and boards

To date, Cisco WebEx have archived 32 of their previous education related webinars recorded from 2009 to the present.

A wide range of interesting educational topics have already been covered such as:

Well worth checking out the Cisco WebEx Archive!

TED-ED Brain Trust Coming Soon

2011-03-12T15:21:00.001Z

TED is a small nonprofit devoted to "Ideas Worth Spreading" and brings together people from the worlds of Technology, Entertainment and Design.

Now the TED-ED Brain Trust is forming and is looking for the expertise of "visionary educators, students, organizations, filmmakers & other creative professionals".

Every minute, three hundred new learners are born into this world. How can TED play a role in enriching the education of these individuals? How can TED enrich the education of the billions of learners around the globe?

TED-ED needs your help to answer these questions.

Google Docs Viewer Gets Even Better

2011-02-20T15:27:00.002Z

I have already posted about the delights of Google Docs Viewer and now it has just got even better!

12 new file formats have now been added, which can be viewed online without having the specific software. Also, in Gmail, these types of attachments will show a “View” link, which will bring up the Google Docs Viewer.

New formats available:
* Microsoft Excel (.XLS and .XLSX)
* Microsoft PowerPoint 2007/2010 (.PPTX)
* Apple Pages (.PAGES)
* Adobe Illustrator (.AI)
* Adobe Photoshop (.PSD)
* Autodesk AutoCad (.DXF)
* Scalable Vector Graphics (.SVG)
* PostScript (.EPS, .PS)
* TrueType (.TTF)
* XML Paper Specification (.XPS)

Enhancing the YouTube Experience

2011-01-18T18:19:00.002Z

EmbedPlus enhances your viewing experience of embedded YouTube videos by adding some useful interactions. These include:

Realtime Reactions: Show viewers the latest online reactions, right inside the player. Currently, YouTube comments and Twitter feeds are featured.
Scene Skipping: Chapter buttons that let you skip to marked times. You can also use the wizard to mark notable parts or mark multiple events and then simply reference scene numbers in discussions.
Movable Zoom: Dynamically magnifies the area you point over. Get a close look at moving objects or writing.
Slow Motion: Instantly watch videos at a slower rate.
Instant Replay: Replay an event soon after it happens.
Third Party Annotations: Add your own timed annotations to any video. Use it to display titles, captions, scene labels, and side comments during playback. The text is displayed on the control bar to avoid blocking the video screen.

I can see this being quite useful in the classroom particularly the zoom and slow motion options! Here's one I made earlier!!

Training Material for IT Certification

2011-01-15T11:40:00.000Z

The Mobile Classroom, by James Messer, is a great ICT resource providing videos to help you with some of your most common questions about personal computer technology. The content is aimed at anyone who has a connection to the Internet.

James also provides specialized video training material for some IT industry certifications including CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+, Microsoft 70-680 and Nmap at his Professor Messer website.

These videos run approximately from ten to twenty minutes and are all hosted on Professor Messer'sYoutube Channel.

Enjoying Apture Highlights

2011-01-06T11:48:00.000Z

Apture Highlights is a browser extension that lets you experience the power of Google search, and the richness of YouTube, Flickr, Twitter, and Wikipedia without leaving the webpage you are on.

You simply highlight a phrase on any webpage to reveal search results without ever leaving the page.

I agree with Apture when they say it is "fast, powerful, and fun". Oh, and so easy to use as well. Brilliant!!

Apture Highlights Extension Welcome Video from Tristan Harris on Vimeo.

Help Someone Get Online

2011-01-05T19:38:00.001Z

I first came across Pass IT on from Selena Woodward. What a great initiative!

There are two simple ways that you can help someone online with Pass IT on:

On a similar thread, Race Online 2012, backed by the UK government, is a challenge to everyone in the UK to help become the first nation in the world where everyone can use the web.

Aspirational or achievable?? I guess 'time will tell'!

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Mathematica is Another Wolfram Goodie

2011-01-02T13:53:00.006Z

Mathematica Player, from Wolfram, is a viewer containing the full Mathematica engine ready to "make documents come alive".

To create your own interactive documents you will need to buy Mathematica but there are already thousands of completed documents freely available at the Wolfram Demonstrations Project and across the Web.

You are sure to find something that is suitable for your needs!

Secret Google Tips for Researchers

2010-12-31T11:53:00.001Z

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation produced a series of four videos giving tips on using google for research purposes.

The videos are about 10min long, very easy to follow and do provide some useful basic google search tips, despite being produced over 4 years ago! Also, there does not seem to be a fifth video even though it is billed as a 5 part series!!

Thanks to A.A. Karim for highlighting the series.

50 Resources for Administration Students

2010-12-20T08:45:00.000Z

Online Schools have recently compiled a very useful list of their recommended 50 Resources for Students Attending Online Education Administration Schools.

The list is divided into seven categories:
* Principals and Ed Leadership
* Technology
* Teachers
* Classroom Management
* Librarians
* Education Policy
* Resources

The Online Schools list is aimed at those taking a degree in education administration and who will be future leaders in the field of education. But, even if you are not specializing in administration, it is well worth checking out the various bloggers.

I was delighted and honored to find that my companion blog Free Resources for Education has in fact been included in the 'Resources' section. Many thanks Shawn!

RSA - 21st Century Enlightenment

2010-12-05T11:57:00.000Z

This video animate was adapted from a talk given at the RSA by Sir Ken Robinson. Brilliant, both the message and the animation!! It's kind of addictive :)

If you like it, then, you can choose from over 300 other videos at the RSA Youtube channel. So what exactly is the RSA.

Well, for over "250 years the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) has been a cradle of enlightenment thinking and a force for social progress".

The RSA encourage "public discourse and critical debate by providing platforms for leading experts to share new ideas on contemporary issues".

Powerful Current Data Visualizations

2010-11-27T14:08:00.001Z

Google Labs' Public Data Explorer lets you view and create charts based on public data such as mortality, fertility and unemployment rates. The charts and maps animate over time making the changes easier to follow and understand. I love the interactivity of these charts.

This employment chart, which is very relevant in Ireland at the moment, clearly shows the rapid increase in unemployment over the last 3 years linked no doubt to the rapid decline in the economy over the same period!!!

It is quite easy to find out from this chart that, in Ireland, over the last 50 years, the average family size has decreased from 4 to 2 children while the life expectancy has increased from 70yrs to 80yrs (approximately). Astonishing to see that the life expectancy in Afghanistan and Zimbabwe is almost half that value!

Set of Useful eLearning Tools

2010-11-14T13:31:00.000Z

The Learning Tools from UBC Arts ISIT are a set of useful eLearning tools that can be used to enhance teaching, while also providing a different learning approach for your students.

Although, several of the tools are specifically geared towards language learners, most of them can be used for any subject area.

The tools include:

Language Pronunciation Tool - a revolutionary linguistics toolkit designed to enhance a student's comprehension and pronunciation of a particular language.
Vocabulary Memorization Platform - helps students memorize the spelling of words by playing a series of games.
Handwriting Tool Handwriting Tool - a language learning tool that helps students learn to write and use Asian characters.
Timeline Tool - a web- based tool that allows you to construct an interactive timeline with audio and visual effects.
Multimedia Learning Object Authoring Tool - enables you to easily combine video, audio, images and texts into one synchronized learning object.
Image Annotation Tool - allows you to upload images and quickly create text boxes referring to parts of a diagram, painting, or photo.
Image Zoom Tool - allows you to upload large size images and quickly author a presentation with zooming functionalities and text explanation of the image.
Interactive Video/Transcript Viewer - an application providing a more functional way to view video archives and preserve oral narrative, especially for academic purposes.
Pachyderm Presentation to VUE Converter - extracts concept mapping information from a Pachyderm presentation.
FileShare - for sharing large files (up to 2GB per file size) with others.

Great Tutorials from GCFLearnFree

2010-11-01T18:19:00.000Z

GCFLearnFree provide "quality, innovative online learning opportunities" for anyone who wants to improve their technology, literacy or mathematics skills.

There are over 200 tutorials available including topics such as Facebook, Microsoft office, open office, computer basics, email and Internet safety.

GCFLearnFree also provide free online classes, for the Microsoft applications, where you can learn to use these applications with the help of an online instructor.

You can also create an account to store your own personal profile and learning history.

A very useful resource indeed!