Thing #9 - Sign In!

This was a really fun exercise.  I made a few different signs, courtesy of www.says-it.com , as you can see.  I also did a couple comic strips with a generator found at www.makebeliefscomix.com .  Here's some stuff I made!

Who doesn't love a corny history joke?  One of the cool things I thought of as far as using image generators in the classroom was the personalization factor.  I think it's so neat to be able to make your own comic strips and poster art, customizing it to fit in with a lesson, making it into a meaningful homework assignment, or even just capturing a great joke for your desktop.  That concludes Thing # 9, so...



Thing #8 - Mash 'Em In

Flickr mashups are pretty interesting, to say the least.  I've noticed that the bulk of the apps featured on the page linked to our Learning 2.0 site were smartphone apps, and that makes sense.  The digital camera's got some serious competition thanks to the prevalence of smartphones (it doesn't hurt that the photo resolution on those things has really improved these last couple o' years).  So here we are, snapping away with our little phone cameras, and now we've got all kinds of cool Flickr mashup apps to do a variety of things to those photos.  I personally like the word art app for my computer, though.  It's just fun, and it can say pretty much whatever you want it to (ransom note, perhaps?).  It's a prime example of a Web 2.0 tool: user-generated content, and I don't even really have to know what I'm doing.  Just type a message, tweak some colors and details, and voila!  I've got some content ready to put right into my blog post!

As far as the value of mashups, I'd say they're useful since they can be used on-the-go (hey, that's where the stuff worth photographing is anyway), and can be uploading almost instantly.  This whole idea goes back to my post about Skype and how these programs and apps make the world a more connected place where conversations can be carried on from absolutely anywhere, and mobile photo mashups are no different.  How could mashups be used in the classroom?  These days, it seems that virtually every HS student not only has a cellphone, but most likely that thing is nicer than what I've got, and would be capable of utilizing mashups like the ones I'm discussing.  Harnessing their technological attachment is easy enough, and I'm certain that a clever teacher could find ways to exploit students' connectedness in educationally beneficial ways.

Thing #7 - Flickr

I have heard rumors, swirling whispers in which unknown characters relate stories of the rumored existence of these so-called photo sharing websites.  In hushed tones, I heard the names Flickr and Photobucket, but had yet to see for myself.  So I went to see for myself. (Great intro, right?  Just trying to keep all my reader(s) on their toes.)  Seriously though, I am somewhat familiar with sites such as Flickr, but since I am not much of a shutterbug, I have not spent any time exploring the site until now.

After a good perusal of the website, I've arrived at the conclusion that Flickr is pretty cool, even for someone like me, who doesn't take a lot of pictures.  I had falsely assumed that photo sharing sites were not much more than a collection of random people's family candids.  I was wrong.  I"m finding that I can type just about anything into the search bar and be presented with pages of relevant and interesting photos.  Who knew?  I really like the sets in which themes are explored and stories told, such as a set illustrating Sao Paulo's ban on outdoor advertising, or another set all about chair styles.  So random and cool.

I'm a big lover of the arts, and I harbor a secret love for street art/graffiti.  It must be the rebel in me trying to express himself.  I know the illegality of many pieces of street art is to be frowned upon, but I usually find that it just strengthens the allure.  Not to mention the general style of street art, with its bold colors and lines, whimsical characters and messages, and of course the funky style its often presented in really gets my attention.  I found a picture that I especially enjoyed, and does much to illustrate my point of view.  Its a piece from a legitimate art show in L.A.  Hope you can appreciate the bold simplicity like I do.  http://www.flickr.com/photos/warholian/5793257324/  And as for Flickr, I think that this exercise has pushed me to take a closer look at an online resource that is not only fun, but has great potential for being educational as well.

P.S.  Due to the image I chose being copyrighted, I could not seem to include the actual image within this post.  Just click on the link and you can have yourself a gander.  Photo credit goes to Michael Cuffe. 

Thing #6 - Too Point Oh Tools (Didja read the manual?!)

I was just a kid in the mid-1990s.  Let's take a trip down memory lane for a moment, shall we?  Baggy pants were coming into fashion, hip hop music had hit the mainstream in a big way, and everybody knew the Macarena.  The internet's ubiquity had not yet been realized, but it was getting close.  And Batman had a video phone.

I was so jealous of Batman and his video phone.  I remember seeing him talking to Robin, Commissioner Gordon, various scientists when he needed evidence examined, and even Alfred via the video phone he had in the Batmobile!  This guy was connected.  I can recall thinking that if we could talk to people through a telephone, if sound could be translated into a signal running down a wire, then surely, one fine day, we would figure out how to send video in the same fashion.  Of course, the media reporters could send video back to their stations, but that required a lot of equipment and expertise.  I fantasized about having the ability to see and talk to people in other places with my own video phone.

And then it happened.  Skype came around, and today, anyone with a PC, laptop, tablet, or smartphone has the ability to see who they're talking to in real time.  And I love it- I talk to my sister in Charleston, SC via Skype.  I talk to my brother when he's overseas.  Heck, I even Skype my best friend even though she's only 20 minutes away.  To me, Skype is an exceedingly useful tool, one which strengthens our connections with those we know, and allows us to make new connections with those we don't.  The world has gotten a great deal smaller thanks to applications like this.

I took a look at the educational arm of the Skype website: http://education.skype.com/ .  It's got a lot of cool features right on the home page, including teacher, project, and resource counters, which illustrate the huge number of people involved and contributing to the user-generated, Web 2.0 (look at me referencing!) conversation.  Discussion boards, related videos and tutorials, and countless project ideas practically jump from the pages.  There's a lot of great ideas here- using Skype to connect your class with a class in another country and culture, world weather projects, using Skype to see a place featured in a book the class is reading, having a guest speaker talk to the class. 

All told, I'm a big fan of Skype (obviously), I fell that it's capable of making class projects more engaging, educational and edu-taining.  It can temper lessons with a dose of real-life, and has, simply put, made the world a much smaller, accessible place to learn and grow as members of our global society.

Thing #5 - Too Point Oh!

I think that a lot of us had already experienced the Web 2.0 concept before getting into this activity, but maybe you (like me) didn't even realize it.  The basics of Web 2.0 have been an integral part of the everyman's online experience for quite a few years now.  Social media such as Facebook and Twitter, YouTube, Wikipedia, and so many others are extremely popular and successful models of Web 2.0 in action.  But what exactly is the Web 2.0 concept?  Allow me to give you my take on the whole thing.

Web 2.0 is a colloquial term applied to a website that is interactive- that is, it can be affected by any user visiting that particular site.  Sites such as Wikipedia, for example, can be altered, added to, corrected, et cetera by pretty much anyone with a keyboard and monitor in front of their face (but look out for those pesky admins!).  Facebook and YouTube wouldn't be able to carry on if not for the user-generated content that graces their pages all day, every day. A Web 2.0 site is a collaborative, living document, constantly being updated, expanded, commented on, and yes, sometimes passed off as gospel truth (yikes!).  The beauty of such sites is that communication between users is the driving force.  It's an enormous conversation, like a huge convention, founded on common interests and everyone's welcome to attend (no cover!).

Michael Wesch's The Machine is Us/ing Us video was very good at illustrating these points.  It was dynamic and interestingly composed.  I felt that the main message of the clip was that form and content are no longer inseparable; we are free to manipulate the content without the use of professional web-building tools and know-how.  Ideas are free to be expressed here.  We use the machine, in turn the machine affects us, and we exist, in a sense, as one (too deep, man...).  Moving on- I took a look at Wikipedia's definition of Web 2.0, because frankly, I like Wikipedia.  I know it might not have the same level of authority as the Encyclopedia Brittanica, but I've always found it to be a great starting point when researching a topic. 

The Web 2.0 entry got me thinking about wikis, which I utilize regularly.  Wikis work under the Web 2.0 concept- they are comprised of user-generated content, can be edited by anyone, and is constantly changing and expanding.  Great stuff.  Got me thinking of a great segue into my next point (ta-da!).  In Mr. MacManus' post Web 2.0 is not about version numbers or betas, he mentions that the 2.0 concept is essentially "web as platform" rather than say, a newspaper, which is viewed passively, cannot be changed or commented on, and therefore lacks the diversity and continual conversation found on a Web 2.0 site.  Booooring!

And how does all this stuff relate to education?  The answer's so simple it might be easy to overlook.  In our EDUC 5540 class, we are constantly being introduced to tools and resources which enable and expedite the passing of information and ideas between teachers.  Web 2.0 resources comprise the backbone of these endeavors.  And how will 2.0 affect the field of education in the future?  Answer: it already has.  Children today are growing up with YouTube and Facebook as a part of their daily lives (you might call them the Web 2.0 generation, but I bet you won't really start calling them that).  They understand the value and function of social media, the free exchange of ideas, already.  Educational resources such as Engrade (which I've seen used in my HS field observations), which work similarly to our beloved LiveText (sarcasm?), shows how Web 2.0 concepts are already being integrated, used and relied upon by high school students today.  It's not like Web 2.0 is the future or anything.  Web 2.0 is the Web, y'know?

Thing #4 - You Talkin' to Me?

So let me get right to it- I am not big on commenting (gasp!).  I have long considered myself much more of a listener than a talker.  Now, I have what I consider a good explanation for my way of thinking and how I approach a conversation.  I truly love to learn new things, and being very shy as a child paved the way for me to become quite the listener.  Over time, I developed my opinions on so many topics, as we all do, but had almost no interest in sharing my thoughts.  I am much more interested in hearing what others have to say, so as to gain another viewpoint, thereby increasing my scope of understanding.  In short, I like to use others' opinions to augment my own opinions.  That said, I have never been a strong commenter, but if anyone needed the minutes read back to them, I'd be your guy.

As far as the assignment is concerned, I see the value in an active blogosphere, the importance of maintaining a conversation through the posting of informative, encouraging, and/or relevant comments.  You can't have a community in which no one talks to anyone.  In fact, that's the opposite of a community.  That's the description for a bunch of strangers who secretly loathe each other.  It's like the author of the Blue Skunk Blog said- on the whole, people don't blog "only for themselves."  If that was the case, they'd be writing in a spiral notebook- humorous, and true.  Bloggers post to initiate a conversation, but a conversation needs more than one active participant (total elementary, right Watson?).  I really liked what CoolCatTeacher had to say about blogs and comments- her discussion of the importance of newbies caught my eye.  Really good stuff about bringing diverse perspectives to the blogging process.  I also took note of her discussion of "Darth Commenter," because who hasn't dealt with one of those?  Even if you don't blog, I'm sure you've scrolled down to the bottom of a Yahoo! News article.  Talk about ignorant, inflammatory, and inappropriate (don't forget anonymous!) commenting to the max.  Yuck. 

Alright, this is where I'm supposed to list the 7 blogs I'm going to comment on, why I chose those particular blogs, what comments I made and why I made them.  Since commenting is not my strong suit, this will likely take some time, so please consider this short paragraph as the introduction to this "comments on comments" section.  More to come!

Thing #3 - License and Registration

I registered my blog a couple weeks back, but now I'm thinking it'd be nice if I made some effort at a blog entry for each and every Thing I accomplish, so here goes... I, um, registered my blog.