EDpuzzle: a Go-To Platform for the Flipped Class Novice

Flipping a lesson, let alone an entire classroom, is a time-consuming, laborious, chore.  Yes, the payoff is spectacular (differentiated learning, individualized pacing, higher-order thinking, etc.), but many teachers take one look at the legwork it takes to produce, edit and host video content and throw in the towel.

My job as an Instructional Technology Specialist, is to show them the light at the end of the tunnel.  Today, I hosted a training on blended classrooms and flipped learning (presentation below).  In my research on ideal platforms for the novice teacher, I found EDpuzzle.

My initial reaction was an increasing head-nod of approval as I saw that it could:

- Sign in via Google (+1).
- Search and import video from sites like YouTube, Vimeo, TeacherTube, LearnZillion, and Khan Academy.
- Allow teachers to record their own audio track over the existing video.
- Allow teachers to add voice comments inserted within the video.
- Insert quizzes within the video.
- Manage who in your class has watched the video, when and what scores they achieved on the embedded quizzes.
- Host the video in a minimalistic browser window...
- ...or embed the video elsewhere!

In my training, I exposed teachers to ~10 websites they could leverage to create/host video for their sample flipped lessons.  75% of them went with EDpuzzle as their solution.  Comments that I overheard were:

- "I love how it walks you through the process of customizing the video."
- "So all I have to do is just log in with my Google account and I can begin creating?!"
- "Wait...I can keep track of who has watched the videos?  Awesome."
- "Cool...I can rerecord the entire thing or just put in a voice comment."

In well under 30 minutes, one teacher (with no previous screencasting experience nor PD on how to use EDpuzzle) managed to create this video:

Some feature requests that teachers had were:

- the ability to export the video to .mp4 or re-upload the new video (minus quizzes) to their YouTube channel
- the ability to add in Video comments
- the ability to add in text comments that can link out to another web resource

All in all, EDpuzzle is a fantastic platform for novice and experienced Flipped educators alike.  Take a moment and check 'em out!

+Bob Petitto's Flipped Class *reFRESH Training:

PixiClip: A Whiteboard-casting Solution for Chromebooks

Apps like ScreenChomp, Educreations, ShowMe and Explain Everything have had huge instructional impact in the classroom.  With a click of a button, students are able to demonstrate understanding by having the app record their voice and annotations.  These clips are then saved to the cloud and shared with the teacher.

Like I said, huge impact.  Especially when aligning these skills to the Common Core State Standards for Speaking and Listening.  The problem: these apps don't exist for the Chromebook.  In fact, since Chromebooks cannot install executable files, not a single screencasting solution (aside from Google Hangouts on Air + Screensharing) exists for the device.

After two days of searching (a.k.a. two days of disappointment), I finally discovered PixiClip, a  glorious Whiteboard-casting Web2.0 solution!

The best features include:

• No sign-in needed!
• Ink annotation
• Text annotation
• Upload (multiple) images
• Insert audio/video
• Records automatically
• Automatically pauses between interaction/utilization of tools (unless recording voice/webcam)
• Ability to restart the recording
• Share via social media, email, link, or embed (see below!)

Word-of-warning--PixiClip is still in Beta:

• No Google integration
• Resizing images doesn't always carry over to the finished recording
• Embed is a bit spotty

This app shows a lot of promise, especially if leveraging Acer's new c720p Touchscreen Chromebook. 

Click here if you cannot see the embedded Pixiclip.

Free Professional Development when Going Google

I recently came across this fantastic website containing 5 FREE courses for educators on Google Apps for Education.  Each self-paced course consists of 5 units (complete with video tutorials and activity) and post-course assessment that results in a congratulatory Certificate of Achievement.  Check them out below!



Free courses provided by https://educourses.withgoogle.com/

Chrome & Chromebooks: Chrome and Chromebooks for Education Course

Apps for Education: Google Apps for Education Overview Course

Drive: Google Drive for Educators Course

Gmail: Gmail for Educators Course

QuickTrick: Editing Photos in a Google Doc w/ PicMonkey

I wish Google Docs had a built-in photo editor like Microsoft Word...but they don't.

My solution: the PicMonkey Chrome extension!  I love PicMonkey as a photo editor.  While some of the features and tools are premium that require a paid subscription, the majority of them are free and easy to use.

See my screencast below on how to quickly edit a photo that's already been inserted into a Google Doc using the PicMonkey Extension!

Google Apps for Education: Our Academic Playground

About 2 months ago, I was commissioned to come up with a graphic that would explain the benefits of transitioning to a Google Apps in cooperation with our District's Strategic Plan.  It had to be informative but simple, engaging but not over the top.  The Prezi below is the result.  Enjoy!



If the Prezi fails to load, click here.

Google Moderator for Collaborative Decision-Making

I'm an avid user of Google Forms.  They're easy to create, distribute and seamlessly compile into a spreadsheet that can be shared with any stakeholder.  The one drawback--they're not collaborative.

There's a time and a place when I want data that I can put into a Pivot Table and analyze =COUNTIF(...) formulas.  Most of the time, I'm just looking for general consensus.

Such is the case for my most recent project: piggy-backing off the success of our VVSDtech OnDemand page for staff by creating a VVSDtech Student OnDemand page.  I wanted to make a collaborative decision as to what resources should belong on the page, and at the same time, eliminate redundancy, duplicate entries, and navigation between multiple web pages.  I had considered creating a Google Form that, upon submission, would prompt the user to visit the results of other users' submissions, but the more I thought about it, I realized:

1. Users might be deflated upon realizing that the idea that took them 2-3 minutes to submit was already submitted by someone else.
2. I don't want 50+ rows in my spreadsheet taken up by a single resource that everyone happens to agree on.

So, I decided against using a Google Form and instead opted to leverage Google Moderator.  For those that don't know, Google Moderator allows users to submit ideas and vote for each other’s ideas all on a single page in real time!  

The gDoc below outlines how to use Google Moderator for this purpose.  Feel free to use it for your own purposes.  Happy voting!

VVSD+GAFE=BYOT

http://www.dodigital.co.uk/education/google-apps-for-education/

Last week was a looooooooong week. Granted, I only had myself to blame; I had been burning the candle at both ends. By day I was K-5 Instructional Technology Specialist. By night, I was channeling my inner Bob Villa as I was finalizing my family room built-ins project.

But that's neither here nor there.  The point I'm trying to make is that by Friday, I was dog tired.  That is, until I received the news that I had been longing to hear since the onset of my career at Valley View: we were going to begin piloting Google Apps for Education beginning second semester!

Now to some of you, you might be thinking, "Big whoop...we've been using Google Apps for Education for [insert duration of time here]."  Well, you see, for us, considering to pilot Google Apps is equivalent to my family room built-ins project--it's gutting the outdated system, designing the new infrastructure, and then planning and executing the installation process (how's that for coming full circle?).

As far as I know, Valley View has always been a Microsoft Windows/Exchange environment...which has been a bit frustrating when attempting to propel our district forward in its endeavors to incorporate emerging educational technology integration models.  Since TechCon October 2012, we recognized the role Google Apps could play in our efforts to move towards BYOT, but it wasn't until the Leyden HS Dist. #212 1-to-1 Summer Symposium (and countless subliminal messaging opportunities in between) did we (and by "we" I mean "they") embrace the idea of "Going Google".

Frankly, I don't care how we got here, I'm just glad we're here.  Our journey has begun.  It won't be too long until we're sprinting to the finish line.  I'll be here to keep you updated along the way!

School Librarians as a Literacy Specialist...Not a Babysitter

In our district, the Library Media Centers (LMCs) are a dumping ground.  

As per the contract, K-5 teachers send their students to the LMC for 30 minutes a week as a Special, like Art, Music or PE.  During the 30 minutes, students receive a mini-lesson on a variety of topics including digital literacy, library expectations and procedures, keyboarding practice, digital citizenship and more.  They are also allowed, clearly, to check out books.  The checkout process can take around 10-15 minutes which doesn't leave very much time for the LMC director to execute their curriculum.

The LMC Directors want change!  In a recent article put out by The Guardian, "...[revolutionizing the school LMC] means a great deal...the library has the capacity to enjoy its own renaissance. Because of the digital revolution it is no longer just about the printed book. As a space, it is about inspiring young people." 

Our LMCs have that potential.  I've seen it happen.  Just yesterday, I popped in on one of our LMC Directors, Ms. Erin Preder, in the middle of a collaboration session with a fellow 5th-grade teacher and his students.  She and the class used Story by Disney, a FREE iPhone/iPad app, to create a Digital Story of the LMC Expectations.  The entire process took only 27 minutes from start (brainstorming rules) to finish (watching what they created).  Unlike the regulary scheduled 30-minute LMC blocks, the teacher stayed with the class and handled the management of the class while Ms. Preder led the class in collaborating, creating and technology instruction.

Ms. Preder displaying the final product to the participating class before publishing

As witness to this project, I can attest that it was collaboration at its best.  Both the teacher and Erin were working together to manage the class and maintain an authentic learning environment.  Erin and the students were working interdependently to create the final product.  Students were engaged from start to finish because they saw the relevancy and reward of the lesson design, the process, the procedures and the final product.  The students had buy-in because they were to be featured in the LMC Expectations slideshow that is to be viewed by the other classes; they were kept accountable, which also focused their efforts and minimized behavior issues despite the fact that only a single iPad was used for the lesson.  See the final product below:

For me, the entire experience was a glimpse as to how the LMC director should be utilized given the freedom to collaborate and cocreate with fellow staff members.  It's my personal opinion that if all LMC Directors were on a flex schedule, more opportunities like these would be possible, which would ultimately improve school climate, relationships among colleagues, and student engagement.

See below to learn more about Ms. Erin Preder and all the wonderful things happening in her LMC.

Visit her Blog

Follow her on Twitter

Follow her on Pinterest

Ditch the Packets...Use Thinglink as a Professional Development Tool!

"Oh boy!  I can't believe I get the opportunity to sit and watch the presenter play with new technology for an entire hour!"

I hope to high heavens that the phrase above is never iterated from a teacher participating in one of my instructional technology trainings.  The thought of it makes me cringe.  I believe that professional development MUST be interactive to be meaningful. 

I recently attended a full-day training where I was literally handed an 81-page packet of the presenter's PowerPoint slides.  70 other administrators received the same packet.  What's more, the presenter didn't even have the presentation available to the participants digitally.  

I hope nobody saw me shake my head in shame.  Or maybe I do...at least then they'd know of my disapproval.  

I understand that educators like to have documentation to refer to, but I knew that there had to be a better medium, one that could be useful, comprehensive, AND interactive.  Almost immediately, I remembered the Web2.0 site thinglink.  

The premise of a thinglink is simple:

The beauty of thinglink is its open-endedness. Businesses use it to showcase new products, newspapers use it to create interactive periodicals, and celebrities/artists use it for promotional material.  As an educator, I can do all three.  

I've been using thinglink to create interactive tutorials for teachers.  I've used it to highlight changes in software updates, provide interactive tours of our website, offer an interactive map during a recent mini-conference and most recently, provide teachers with an interactive explanation of HoverCam Flex, the software belonging to the HoverCam document cameras (see below).

Embedding thinglinks into blogs, websites, and even SMART Notebook files using the Voki widget (thanks to Rafranz Davis for providing this blog post!), is one of the best features of this Web2.0 resource.  Now, ANY page can have seamless, integrated interactive material!  I was even able to embed a thinglink into an iBook using iBook Author.

Thinglink has become my go-to web resource for providing explanations to technology resources.  I still rely on screencasts if I need to show a process for using or navigating a particular resource, but with thinglink, I can embed the screencast directly into the image!

After using this product over the past year, I've come up with the following wishlist of features ranked in order of priority:

1. Provide a larger work area when editing/tagging an image, or at the very least, provide a way to zoom in and out.  Resizing/Repositioning the boundary boxes of tags can be very finicky.
2. Allow reupload image!  Currently, you'd have to create a new thinglink, copy the tags from the old thinglink, paste them into the new one, delete the old thinglink and then make sure that the new thinglink URL/embed code is updated on all linked pages.   
3. Allow tags to be left or right justified within the boundary box so as to avoid the tag covering up key elements of the image.
4. More tag icons or the ability to upload your own icon.

And there you have it!  If you're already using thinglink in creatively educational ways, let me hear about it by commenting below!

Symbaloo as a School District Dashboard

What started off as a casual "wouldn't it be nice if" statement, suddenly became a symbolic sigh of relief for teachers across our district.  

Over the past several years, our district has adopted a multitude of new technologies to assist teachers and staff with time/class management and their daily professional responsibilities.  Unfortunately, this came at the cost of teachers having to manage close to a dozen different websites and user accounts.  Our email client is separate from our LMS which is separate from our wiki server which is separate from our student information system which is separate from the...you get the idea. 

What we needed was a central place teachers could visit to access the resources they use on a daily basis. We also wanted this resource of be user-friendly and aesthetically pleasing.   

Enter Symbaloo.

I knew Symbaloo had a massive following by elementary school teachers due to the colorful, push-button like functionality of the "webmixes".  As a high school teacher, I admit I was turned off at first by the simplicity of it all.  I soon realized that it could have huge potential as a landing page for web resources.  Its appearance mimics one of my favorite Web2.0 resources, go2web20.net.  Once I made the comparison, I instantly considered ways I could leverage its simplicity and functionality.


Finally, it hit me. Provide our teachers with a dash-board-of-sorts for the web resources they're required to access daily.  This resource would not only prove useful to current teachers, but even more so to guest teachers (substitute teachers) and new teachers to the district.  From this idea, the VVSDtech OnDemand page was formed.

After working with this product for the past few months, I have come up with the following conclusions:

PROS

• Free!
• Customize colors of the tiles
• Customize the size/dimensions of the grid
• Customize the tile icons
• Choose an image from the icon library
• Upload your own
• Show/Hide customized tile text  
• Add tiles created by other Symbaloo users
• Embeddable (as seen on our the VVSDtech OnDemand page)
• Embedded tiles for YouTube, wikipedia, and other Web2.0 sites
• Widgets like Google Search, Calculator, Twitter, Translator, etc.

CONS

• Widgets do not work in embedded webmixes
• Embedded webmixes are branded with Symbaloo logo and cannot be replaced
• Tiles limited to 12 colors
• Tile size limited to dimension of the tile placeholder on the webmix grid

FEATURE WISHLIST

• Allow embedded Symbaloos to be branded with custom banner (even if for a price)
• Allow custom colors from color picker/eyedrop tool
• Allow tiles to span over multiple tile placeholders
• Allows for "featured" tiles
• Allows for Titles for tile categories
• Hide empty tile placeholders

Today is Valley View School District's New Teacher Orientation.  Today, we plan on unveiling the VVSDtech OnDemand page and are hoping that it exceeds their expectations.  I'd love to hear your feedback!  Leave a comment below.