Supporting Teaching by Creating Presentations

One of the characteristics of an effective teaching is clear presentations which benefit the students to grasp information easily, to understand as much information as possible, to retain information longer and to gain knowledge that is observable and measured and which address different styles of learning.

For creating a presentation, you should know first what do you want your students to learn. After deciding your exact goals, start doing the content which should be simple. Another important point is minimizing the opportunity for distraction by removing any irrelevant material such as music, sound effects, animations, and background images.


There are various types of presentations' tools that can make learning interesting and active


Jing

Easy to use screen capture software. Add visuals to documents, online conversations, and more.

Microsoft PowerPoint

Slide presentation software.

Keynote

Slide presentation software. (Mac only)

Flash

Creation of animation, interactive forms, games.

Camtasia

Screen video capture software. Record on screen activity; captioning.

Prezi

Live and on web presentations.

OmniOutliner

Flexible program for creating, collecting, and organizing information.

iStockphoto

Member-generated image and design community with over 4 million photographs, vector illustrations, video footage, audio tracks and Flash files.

Flickr

Online photo management and sharing application.

SlideShare

Web-based slide sharing application.

LecShare

Creates accessible PowerPoint files. LecShare Pro has audio/video capabilities for $20 upgrade.



One of my presentations using prezi

Reflection

I believe that for creating an effective learning environment, a teacher can use presentations in which he\she use variety of ways to do so . As we have discussed at the lectures, much attention should be paid to the font, color contrast, media used and many other things that might affect students learning. In this course, presentations were widely used to convey the message of the integration of technology and education and they worked effectively.

Mobile Learning

Mobile learning is simply defined as learning anywhere and at any time with the use of mobile devices such as handheld and tablet computers, MP3 players, smartphones and mobile phones. Individual learners who are engaged in this type of learning can personalize their learning environments by deciding where and when to learn.

 

UNICCO define it as “It presents unique attributes compared to conventional e-learning: personal, portable, collaborative, interactive, contextual and situated, it emphasizes "just-in-time-learning" as instruction can be delivered anywhere and at anytime through it. Moreover, it is an aid to formal and informal learning and thus holds enormous potential to transform the delivery of education and training”.

 

 

Based on my experience as a learner, mobile learning allows me to reflect upon topics freely and enhances my communication skills and because I have  access to web-enabled mobile, most of the time I try to find out apps that help me in my professional development . I consider this to be type of mobile learning. My mice and nephews didn’t go to the school yet and they are using one of the mobile devices “Ipad”. The point I want to make is that their learning progress is incredible.  While setting at the car or at anyplace, they are listening to educational songs that help them in their pronunciation and vocabulary or playing games that contains problem solving and so on. Also another case a person told me that his younger brother learned how to read and write only after using social networks. So,  I think mobile learning is beneficial for both the teacher and the students for the following reasons. As I am English teacher, mobile learning helps my students a lot that it encourages learning in a real-world context “authentic” . Also, as I am favor of the communicative approach in learning, I think that these types of devices promote and foster collaboration and communication in the international language “English”. It is also adaptable to individual and diverse learners. In addition, using Ipad programs to replace textbooks solve the heavy school bags problem. There are many useful applications that enhance my students leaning like accessing dictionaries, audio examples of pronunciation, record themselves or each other during speaking and pronunciation activities, note-taking..etc.Through Mobile Learning technology concept development, my role as a teacher is to identify the specific mobile technologies that help in achieving the aims of our education here at Oman, in order to understand what works and why.

However, mobile learning has its shortcomings presented in the potential for distraction or unethical behavior; physical health concerns, data privacy issues and charges for mobile connectivity. In addition, the fact that mobile learning is limitless in term of content makes the teachers’ role harder. 

References:

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/themes/icts/m4ed/

 

 

 

 

IWBs in the classroom Pedagogy

This technology came to help the teachers to design activities that are students-centered and to differentiate their classroom program for a range of student abilities and interests. Interactive whiteboard is a touch-sensitive screen that is linked to a computer and a projector which can be used for both independent and co-operative learning.

Interactive whiteboard is an effective way to interact with digital content and multi-media in the learning environment. It can be used in:

• Manipulating text and images

• Taking notes in digital ink

• Saving notes for review via e-mail, the Web

or print

• Viewing websites as a group

• Demonstrating or using software at the front of a

room without being locked behind a computer

• Creating digital lesson activities with templates

and images

• Showing and writing notes over educational

video clips

• Using presentation tools built into the interactive

whiteboard software to enhance learning materials

• Showcasing student presentations

 

I think this technology address the theory of social learning very well in which it promote student engagement and interaction and consider them to be a key components of knowledge construction. It brings the entire class together and gets their attention in an active engagement. It also supports conversation in the classroom that with the use of multimedia, the abstract content becomes understandable now.

 

While I was looking for a tutorial videos of how to use interactive whiteboard, I watched videos of real classroom using it. The atmosphere was very active to the extent that I felt am engaged in the lesson. The children were very motivated to touch the board and participate and it was full of enjoyment. This is what nowadays classroom environment need and with use of this technology, I believe the Ministry of Education will fulfill its goals of applying Basic education.

   Example of one of the lesson done by me and my group

Digital Storytelling

Research has shown that the use of multimedia in teaching helps students retain new information as well as aids in the comprehension of difficult material. Digital storytelling contains mixture of images, text, recorded audio narration, video clips, and music that serves to capture the attention of the students and increase their interest in exploring new ideas. It is a computer-based tool to tell stories which focus on a specific topic and contain a particular point of view. Digital stories can vary in length, but most of the stories used in education typically last between 2 and 10. The elements of digital storytelling are summarized in this short video.


Below are examples of programs that will help you in creating digital stories:


 Apple iMovie


iMovie is Apple's alternative to Photo Story 3 and is a good choice for Mac users who want to create digital stories. This digital movie creation and editing program has most of the same features as Photo Story 3, however, it also supports the use of full-motion video clips. Like Photo Story 3, iMovie lets users add titles, effects, and transitions to their digital story projects. And like Photo Story, iMovie has some limitations too, including: it generally just supports video clips in the .MOV format, and it is not free, although it often comes installed on new Macintosh computers.


Audacity



Audacity is a digital audio editing program availalbe for Mac and PC that lets you record, edit and mix narration and music. It is recommended for those just starting out with audio editing and best of all, it's available for free.

Microsoft Photo Story 3


Photo Story 3 is a free, easy-to-use software application from Microsoft that lets you create slideshows using your own digital photos and images you download from the web or scan from old photographs, documents, books, magazines or newspapers. You can touch-up, crop, or rotate pictures, add special effects, music, and your own narration to your photo stories. Photo Story 3 does have some limitations: it is only available for computers running the Windows operating system, the stories created with the program can only be played back with Windows Media Player on PCs running Windows, and it only supports the used of still images, so full-motion video clips cannot be added to a digital story using this program.


Because it is free and easy to use, this program is a great choice if you use a Windows PC and are just beginning to create your own digital stories. It's extremely simple to use, has many useful features and is easy for even novice computer users to learn. It's also easy to teach others to use this program, from young children to senior citizens.Please be aware that there has been a great deal of confusion about whether or not Photo Story 3 will work on PCs running the latest Windows operating systems since it was originally developed for the Windows XP operating system. In our experience, the program works fine on most desktop PCs running Windows Vista or Windows 7. However, we have seen cases on some Windows 7 PCs where the customize motion feature that lets you pan and zoom around images (also known as the Ken Burns effect) sticks and is difficult to use.Also, please note that Photo Story 3 is a Windows only application and there is no Mac version of the Photo Story software application.



Photoshop Elements

Adobe Photoshop Elements contains an easy-to-use slide show creation module that works very much like Photo Story 3, allowing you to create slide shows that can contain zooms and pans, recorded narration, added text and transitions, such as fade in and out. However, unlike Photo Story 3, Photoshop Elements also allows you to add video clips to the slide show, and does not confine you to just using still images.But, there is one very significant problem with this program that may affect many users: the project file cannot be saved easily as with Photo Story 3's .WP3 file. With Photoshop Elements' slide show too, you cannot begin working on a digital story on one computer, save the project file on a thumb drive or external hard drive and then transport it to another computer to continue working on the story.However, if you are able to confine your work with Photoshop Elements to the same computer, such as a home desktop or laptop, this program may be a good choice for creating digital stories that contain video clips.

 

Premiere Elements


Premiere Elements video editing software from Adobe is a scaled-down version of the more expensive and more feature-filled Adobe Premiere, a a software application that is used by many digital video professionals. The Elements version of the program is filled with just about all of the features that digital storytellers could want, however, be aware that the learning curve for Premiere Elements can be greater than for many of the other applications that can be used to create digital stories. Premiere Elements is not free, although it often comes with the purchase of some digital video camcorders and discount pricing is available for students, teachers and staff at educational institutions through Adobe's online education store and other software resellers.
 In addition, Adobe Premiere Elements and Adobe Photoshop Elements are often available in a packaged bundle at a discounted price that is less expensive than purchasing the two programs separately.



Windows Live Movie Maker


This version of Windows Movie Maker was released in 2011 and was designed to replace the earlier version, Windows Movie Maker 2.6. Unlike Photo Story 3, which was designed for Windows XP but still works under newer Windows operating systems, Windows Live Movie Maker is only compatible with Windows Vista and Windows 7. Although many users of this program like its simple interface and the variety of features it offers, many users are frustrated that both the timeline and the ability to record audio narration, two key features for many digital storytellers, have been removed from this version of Movie Maker. It is for these reasons that many users still prefer to use Windows Movie Maker 2.6 instead of this more current version 




Windows Movie Maker


 Windows Movie Maker is a video editing software application that has been included as part of the Windows operating system since 2000. This program is used by many educators and students because it is readily available and generally supported by school technology services. One limitation of Movie Maker is that it only outputs files in the AVI and WMV formats.

Windows Movie Maker 2.6 was released in 2007 but is still a good choice for Windows users who want to use a basic timeline-based video editing program.



The videos at this presentation are designed by me

Reflection:


As linguistics believe that stories are central to language teaching in which they offer so much richness in language learning and teaching with element of entertainment, I believe this tool is going to help me a lot in my future career especially in dealing with the students in today’s classrooms “digital generation”. Using digital stories can enhance my lessons in many ways especially if they are in a larger unit. I can use this tool as a way to facilitate discussion about the topic or the view mentioned in the story. Moreover, creating digital stories make abstract content more understandable. Digital Storytelling appeals also to students with diverse learning styles and can foster collaboration when students are able to work in groups, and provides value in enhancing the student experience through personal ownership and accomplishment. In addition, when digital stories are published online, students have the opportunity to share their work with their peers and gain valuable experience in critiquing their own and other students’ work, which can promote gains in emotional intelligence and social learning. If I asked my students to make their own digital stories, I believe it is going to enhance them in many ways such as communication skills when they begin to search and think of the content and then when organizing the ideas, expressing opinions and constructing narratives.

Technology and Second language teaching

Does technology improve language learning? This question has been my concern with the fact that technology has being part of daily life. After my experience I think yes, it does enhance language teaching from the task design to the assessment. Technology has been an effective tool in achieving the pedagogical goals. For example, it allows more opportunities for the students to practice the language just as the case of Interactive Whiteboard, presentations, digital storytelling..etc. Web or network-based communication(emails, blogs, chat rooms, wikis) enhances language teaching and learning a lot. These webs provide a rich interactive environment. Tablets can also be used for preparing and transporting materials and for producing and sharing video, audio and rich media content with students. Skype English classes give the students chances to talk to native speakers. In addition the combination of video, audio and chat make easy to hold the students attention. Setting homework/starting topics for debate on facebook or another social network  . Another important role technology has played is addressing the different learning styles like the use of multimedia in presentations.