Module 6 (Web 2.0) - Exploring photos and videos on the web

This is an area that I am quite familiar with.

Those who have known me, know that I have fondness for photography and I am always eager to share my latest snaps.

Primarily I have used Imageshack (imageshack.us) to host photos as they can be shared easily with HTML codes, forum codes etc always available at the touch of my hand.


I was happy to give Picasa a go because I wanted to see what another site can offer. As part of the Module, I was required to create an album and share some of the images publicly. Featured below is an album containing some of my photos that I have taken.

I hope you can see this. If not, please let me know.

Looking at their use as a learning tool, I think sites like Picasa they make excellent photo hosting websites where students can keep a record of photographs that they have taken that are relevant to learning tasks. The images can be used again for other learning tasks either within or another subject area. I would emphasise that they post their own images only as a means of encouraging originality.  I think it encourages one to take pride in their work as well because they shot the image/s themselves and gives them the chance to showcase their skills to others.

Plus there are basic editing options available that they can use to improve the images whether it may be cropping, altering colours etc. There is even creative elements available through the Creative Kit. This comes in handy if they want to add some humor.

Picasa I feel also can be used for digital storytelling. Captions can be added to describe the images. Also a movie feature is available. 

Fortunately I am familiar with editing photos and there was nothing new that needed to be learn't about this aspect of sharing photos online. I will continue to do them offline because software like Adobe Photoshop provide the advanced features that online photo editing tools do not.

Module 3 (Web 2.0) - Google Docs

I had never known of the existence of Google Docs before starting this module and wow I was impressed what you can do with it.

I find that it comes most handy in classroom settings for collaborative learning tasks where students have to work in groups. Traditionally, each group member has needed their own computer with an offline version of Microsoft Office or word processing program. If ideas had to be shared emails with attachments had to be sent to each other. Changes could not be made in real time. You had to wait for team members to reply back to your emails with changes.

Now it can be done in real time. The file is uploaded on Google Drive onto the web and modifications can be made by team members using the apps. This allows for learning to occur at all times of the day. If there is an assessment task, group members dont have to meet at once unless to discuss who is doing what and progress. Content can be added or edited at any time. This works around the schedules of each team member. It also allows for accountability because team members can see who is doing what and when. Learning time becomes more productive, however there is that question of what to do should the internet go down and all the work can be accessed only in cyberspace?

Module 5 (Web 2.0) - Creating and Communicating Online

I was amazed by Prezi in this module. As a history teacher I have found that it can be handy for creating timelines or summarising key historical events. Instead of drawing a simple timeline, I am able to use graphics and use interesting fonts to present the information. Even better the slides make incredible transitions from one frame to another with excitement. If I was a student I would be wondering what the slide or event would be.

Here is the Prezi that I created. It is a timeline of the key events in the life of NSW Premier John Lang (1877-1975). This is part of Stage 5 History studies of The Great Depression.

John Lang on Prezi

I've also been trying to use Glogster as well. I am disappointed so far. I've tried to upload some images to create my handout and twenty minutes later, the images are still being processed. I will have to try again at another time.

Just putting some words on this handout wont be enough for me.

Bubbl.us I found was a very exciting tool to use for mindmapping. When I sat my HSC I remember having to cram as much as I could onto single A4 pages. My notes were mindmaps because for me they provided useful summaries. Sometimes the writing required some squinting.

I like to encourage mindmapping and brainstorming in the classroom as much as I can and I think the tool is handy for such a task. It addresses just about all the issues of doing a mindmap by hand.  It allows for better presentation of mindmaps and adds some colour and style to the presentation. Students can tailor the mindmap to their style or their needs. The mindmaps can be as big as they need to, however i wonder how one would be able to print them if they are big. That requires some further exploration.

Module 4 (Web 2.0) - Digital Storytelling: Podcasts, Vodcasts, Videos & Web 2.0

As I look back at Module 4, there is alot of scope for digital storytelling as part of classroom learning.

Everybody loves sharing stories -whether it is about something that they have read, seen or heard. It can be fact or made up.

I've been quite lucky through personal experience and radio training at University to be already exposed to tools that allow us to share stories in a digital format. For example I was taught to use a professional voice recorder and edit the mp3 file using audacity.

The big advantage of digital storytelling is that it allows for creativity. There are many ways that students can use the tools to express themselves as they learn.

I had a go with Animoto to create a photo slide presentation of Pyrmont which is used by Stage 5 and Stage 6 Geography students. It is often used as a case study as part of urban growth and development in their respective stages.

I was disappointed in what you could do with Animoto. For instance I wanted to add text to support the photos (all taken by me), but was limited in the number of characters that could be used. I could only use 30 characters for each slide. In the end I left it out.

Here is the video that I created:

I'm a big fan of Imovie. I created this short movie three years ago to give Stage 5 History students an overview of the Great Depression in Australia using a comic strip that I came across.

The students liked it. I think they were impressed by my storytelling skills.

From my experience, I have found that students do enjoy tasks that allow them to present stories digitally. They enjoy experimenting with the features that are available to them in movie making software. It allows for creativeness and is a fun method of understanding new concepts and knowledge. Also many are familar with the technology itself. For instance some enjoy making movies in their leisure time. It may be filmed on their phone, camera or laptop. They may edit it using Imovie to create a personal touch and then host it online on video hosting websites like youtube for the world to see. As teachers digital storytelling allows us to cater for student interest in digital technology and engaging in their interest and/or skills to express their learning.

Module 2 (Web 2.0) - Blogging

Blogging is one web 2.0 tool that I am highly familiar with.

Currently I main two blogs

1. The blog you are reading (The Fab world of learning) which I have created as part of Master of Education studies
2. Fabian's Corner (http://fabianamuso.wordpress.com/) - An online newsletter about recent happenings in my world.

 I blog for two reasons.

1. To keep a professional record of my teaching and learning (this blog).
2. To share news with family, friends and colleagues. I have family and friends that live either interstate and overseas and it is hard to get in touch with them. 

Viewing the videos have helped me to reinforce my understanding of blogs. When I look at my blogging habits, it reinforces what blogs are for. Blogs are used to share news. Thats why Fabian's Corner was created - to share news relating to me. Blogs can be used to document information (like this blog) or even share our interests.

My audience is potentially the whole world, but at the end of the day there are specific audiences. I've identified that with Fabian's Corner. With this blog, its more about sharing my teaching and learning experiences with colleagues and peers and hopefully foster discussion on issues relating to the teaching profession.

In the classroom there is alot of scope to include blogs as part of learning. I find it would be of most use in assessment tasks particularly one that is undertaken over a long period of time such as a major work or portfolio. The student can keep a record of their progress during that time. They could be asked to list activities or work completed during that week, reflect on sources used and identify strengths and weaknesses. It is akin to maintaining a learning diary, except that this is done online. As a teacher, I can monitor their progress and provide the necessary feedback

Module 1 - Web 2.0 Course

I've already covered part of Module 1 such as introductions in my last post. This allows me to comment on what I have just learnt in the module itself.

Recently, I have been asking myself exactly what is Web 2.0? I've heard about it but had no clue exactly what it meant.

Web 2.0 builds up on Web 1.0 where it was company run and hosted web pages that controlled the information that was available to us. Now we as individuals can customise the Internet experience. We have control over content and how it is presented to us. Applications allow us to host our own content, whether it is through blogs, media hosting websites or wikis.

Information is easily transferred and is all done in real time. I think of the social interactions that take place through social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. We can share virtually anything. We can collaborate on projects with colleagues and with students online and in real time. As I made mention in my portfolio, learning no longer needs to occur in physical settings. Think of recent world events such as the Arab Uprising across the Arab World. I think Web 2.0 is shaping current events and will continue to shape events in the future. People in the Arab World have let the rest of the world know whats going on, and in ways that conventional media cannot. In Australia, I think of the Alan Jones saga after making highly insensitive comments about the death of Julia Gillard's father. The campaign against Alan Jones has largely occurred online.

IGoogle - I think its a fun way to customise the Internet experience by providing a one stop shop for information that is of interest to me. It allows me or the student to provide one location to access information and/or sites of interest to them instead of opening new tabs or URLs.  This could be good in a learning context as relevant apps suited to each subject can be included on their iGoogle web page. These can easily be added or deleted according to the learning that is taking place at that particular point in time.

CEO Sydney Web 2.0 Course & Greetings

While I await the results of ETL507, and to keep the momentum going, I've decided to enrol in a Web 2.0 E-learning course that has been organised by the Catholic Education Office Sydney.

To those doing the Web 2.0 course at the moment, I say hello to each and everyone of you.

Who am I?

To keep it short I've been studying the Master of Education (Teacher-Librarianship) degree for the past two years through Charles Sturt University.  I am hoping to graduate at the end of this year.

I am also a qualified secondary school teacher specialising in subjects such as History, Economics and Commerce.

Currently I am a casual teacher. I have been employed at a number of CEO Sydney schools and public schools. As listed in the index of blogs I am currently employed as a casual teacher at Bethany College and Waverley College. At Waverley College, my casual employment has mostly been as  teacher librarian. Though not listed in the index, I am also currently a casual teacher at De La Salle College, Ashfield and St George Girls High School, Kogarah.

This blog was created with the intention of keeping a record of my learning journey in that course but as teachers it is important that we keep a record of our development as professionals.

As this course ties in with my masters, I think its appropriate to comment on my learning in the Web 2.0 course here as well.

Semester II 2012 Wrap Up

I finally finished my ETL507 Portfolio this week. I submitted it on Monday and by the next day, I had an email to say that I had passed it. It meant that I passed the unit as well.

The problem with the portfolio was the choice of wiki to host the content and this led to presentation problems which was raised in the marking. I think its fair because I personally found it to the most frustrating aspect of the task. At least I have been provided with possible alternative sites such as wikispaces.

But the content side of it was great. While I had many readings to draw on, resources acquired from practice and this blog, it was a challenge putting it all together. I felt at times when writing the reflection and evaluaton that my learning was inadequate but further reflection realised that I did learn something even if it was not applied. I think as I gain more work as a teacher librarian, this will be overcome.

It helped me to realise my strengths and weaknesses as a teacher librarian and that will come in handy for when applying for a job because I can draw on the portfolio to provide answers to questions should I gain an interview.

With ETL507, I had worked on the dewey decimal classification numbers for the past few weeks. It was very challenging but webdewey really simplified it for me. It gave me the scope to examine different numbers and combinations and draw on that to identify the most suitable number. The exercises helped me a lot because it made sure that I stuck to the rules that went with it. If I didn’t do the exercises, I would have been in trouble.

And the SCIS standards were quite self explanatory in truncating it if needed. It even simplified the process for me. Even if I didn't need to truncate or apply SCIS standards I made sure I mentioned the need not to apply it by merely stating it was consistent with SCIS Standards.

Dewey isn't that ardous at all and in modern libraries it is as relevant as ever. Books need to be placed according to subject, otherwise what hope is there for finding it?

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