I have known about social bookmarking for some time and have played a little with Delicious. I understood the importance of being able to access your favorites from any computer via the web…..but there is so much more! In one of my sessions at GaETC, it was suggested that you use the search feature in Delicious when you want to find the best sites on a topic! Thing 15 was just the nudge I needed to explore Delicious further.
I had only used Delicious for the bookmarking side of social bookmarking. Now I realize the power of the social part! I added several folks to my network – people who are recognized for their contributions to educational technology. Looking at their favorites will show me the best from the best!
I also took the challenge of importing my extensive list of bookmarks from my laptop, a job that was overdue for me. I’m already glad that I now have all my favorites in one place!
Tagging is quick and easy! I love tech tips & tricks – and the power tip of highlighting a portion of the page before clicking will be one I plan on sharing with others!
http://delicious.com/ramerson
Preclectic Gathering the best ideas before they’re needed
By Jeff Giddens
Statesboro, GA
Neat and Tidy
Jeff introduced me to tidyFavorites, a visual way to create a bookmark page. I have been using Delicious for some time, but I decided to check it out anyway. I followed the link in Jeff’s post and watched the introductory video on the homepage. I love the idea of the visual bookmarks, especially for pages you use quite often. The main drawback for me would be the fact that they are stored on your hard drive rather than being accessible from any machine via the web.
I do think, however, that this might be a great tool for my father. He loves his computer, and has a daily regimen of visits to his favorite sites. I think having the large screen shot icons would make it easier for him to navigate through his bookmarks. I can’t wait to help him set up an account when I visit tomorrow!
For years I have helped students do class projects that required the use of a template from Microsoft Publisher. There has always been quite a few students that didn’t have access to Publisher at home. LetterPop is a great Web 2.0 tool that would allow any student with internet access to create a great flyer or newsletter-style document! It is a snap: drag, drop, click, edit, save! There are almost 300 templates from a wide variety of backgrounds from which to choose. You can upload images and add text and a title. It was so easy!
I wanted to give it a try. I decided to do a scrapbook page for a class scrapbook on the Old West using images and an interview with a real cowboy from the collections of the Library of Congress. It was a snap!
I can’t wait to try more of these online tools!
(below) sheet music from the collections of The Library of Congress, 1901
This online conference combines the best of two professional development worlds – the ability to hear recognized leaders in our profession….at home and at your convenience! What a great idea!
I am still on a high after attending my first GaETC last week! What a remarkable experience for me! I heard speakers in person that I have only previously read. It is exciting to hear the latest and greatest!
At GaETC, I attended a wonderful session by David Warlick on creating a personal learning network. It has inspired me to harness the power of RSS for personal growth. I decided to “attend” his online session tonight: Telling the New Story.
Here are some things he mentioned that stood out to me:
- We are preparing our students for a future we cannot describe.
- We must teach our students collaboration rather than competition.
- This generation has never had a TV with fewer than 100 channels!
- We have 21st century learners in 20th century classrooms.
- 64% of today’s teens have produced and published digital content. Are they more literate than their teachers?
- Learning 1.0 is defined by its limits.
Learning 2.0 will be defined by its lack of limits.
David Warlick’s 2 cents worth is certainly food for thought!
I love this stack of old photographs from a collection from the Bain News Service in the Library of Congress, taken in the early 20th century. Flickr and Rock You make it so easy! I can’t wait to show this great photo collage web application to everyone!
Recently the Library of Congress has moved into the Web 2.0 world….with a blog and a Flickr account! They placed about 3000 images from the public domain into their photostream. One of the collections contains images from 1910-1915. This will make a great addition to my primary sources class!!
I decided to look at transportation during this era. Take a look at this view of 5th Avenue in New York City. City bus, anyone??!!
I decided to use the creative commons search in Flickr. I found this beautiful photo of a chicory flower posted by aussiegirl, requiring attribution.
As a former school library media specialist, copyright has always been a big part of what we do – our responsibility to inform others. Copyright is such a big issue, often very complicated. Too many students and teachers think that in an educational setting, you can do anything you want with the intellectual property of others. We caution students that plagiarism extends from the written word to images and encourage teachers to require citation of text and images.
I always tried to model the use of images with permission, like the thousands of images on Discovery Streaming and GALILEO. Students, however, like the ease of Google Image Search and the right click-copy feature. It always felt like fighting a losing battle.
I was so excited a couple of years ago when I heard about Creative Commons. I have incorporated it into presentations with other media specialists to be sure that everyone knew of its existence.
I attended an information literacy conference in Savannah this fall where the keynote speaker was Carol Simpson, an expert on copyright. I noted that her presentation was filled with images with no citations! I couldn’t believe it! The session went on almost an hour. At the end she showed us the Creative Commons search feature in Flickr! I was relieved to see that information on her final slide…and excited to think of this wonderful and legal alternative to Google Image Search!
In one of my GaETC sessions, Patrick Crispen mentioned that now you can filter a GOOGLE search by usage rights when you use the advanced search option. I was pleased to see that feature, but wish it wasn’t hidden in advanced search.
Now comes the responsibility of teaching our teachers and students more about the use of Creative Commons as a means to protect them from plagiarism, while following the wishes of the copyright holder.
While waiting for my doorbell to ring on the cool, crisp evening of October 31, I decided to check out the Halloween entry on Wikipedia. Don’t tell on me, but while not recommending Wikipedia as a scholarly resource for student research, I often consult Wikipedia for a ready reference tool when I need to get some general information quickly! I tell my students that Wikipedia articles make good pre-search reading.
This article was global in coverage, with many additions coming from around the world – and quite a few on Halloween itself!
Reading about Vicki Davis, whose teaching career and interactions with her students were changed forever as a result of attending a GaETC session, was quite impressive to me as I prepare to attend my first GaETC! She did, indeed, introduce her students to their future.
I loved the concept of Mr. Monson’s 5th grade classroom wiki: Thousands Project. Such a simple idea that could reap many benefits – making the world a smaller place, learning about geography and collaboration, while at the same time reading, writing and thinking.
The story of the mill girls from Roswell in Turn Homeward, Hannalee was wonderfully told in this project wiki. I was impressed with the variety of Web 2.0 tools and other technologies that were included – the wiki, podcasts, Bubbleshare, timeline, reader’s theater – after reading the novel and doing a good deal of research. These students created something they could really be proud of!
The Salute to Seuss wiki would make a great project for any elementary school during a Read Across America celebration of Seuss’ birthday and could involve the entire school! That’s one idea I want to share with my colleagues before March 2!
I have set up a wiki for the North Georgia RESA Media Consortium participants as a place for the sharing of ideas and a tool for collaboration for media specialists in a six-county area. There were two other reasons, too! I hoped that if I set one up that I’d become a little more comfortable with this powerful Web 2.0 tool myself. I also wanted a safe place for other “digital immigrant” media specialists like me to dabble in Web 2.0. I’m going to add the link for the Seuss wiki as soon as I can!
Now I have a new idea! Two college friends in South Carolina and I have started taking 3 day trip each year that involves a bed and breakfast, reading, lots of coffee and good conversation. We rotate the planning of the trip which usually involves lots of email and cell phone calls. Why not move into the 21st century and do our planning long distance with a wiki?! How does the title ‘Ready, Set, Let’s Go!’ sound for starters?!
