Online Diagrams with Gliffy

For my third form of emerging technology, I looked at Gliffy, an online application to create and share collaborative diagrams. Gliffy looks and acts like a desktop application, but is actually a web-based service that stores and saves your images so you don't have to install or maintain the software. They take the idea that people understand faster with pictures to heart and their services give users the chance to organize information into concept maps, floorplans, and flow charts by simply dragging and dropping shapes from their extensive library. The interface allows customers the ability to manipulate the color, size, design, text and format to their specific liking. The public diagrams can then be shared and edited by others or published to a space like a blog.

To register with Gliffy and obtain one of their free basic accounts, I visited their website at http://www.gliffy.com/ to sign up for their one-month trial. Then, all I needed to do was enter a valid email address and password. Once both were confirmed and I agreed to their terms of service, I was ready to proceed. Users are then taken to a blank grid, and I proceeded to tinker with their basic shapes and images. Since I am moving at the end of the month, I decided to use their images to develop a floor plan of my new space. It will be helpful to print this out and share it with my friends who have volunteered to act as my movers, so they can see where I'd like all of substantial, heavy pieces of furniture. This image can be viewed above or as a larger image via this link:http://www.gliffy.com/publish/1528951/.

A very user-friendly site, Gliffy provides ample support with participant forums, a frequently asked questions page, and a link to a YouTube demonstration video. I would strongly encourage users to search these featured options when lost or confused. Future teachers can use their tips and tutorials to guide organizational charts (a parent telephone tree for field trips or emergencies), flowcharts (a behavioral consequences diagram for difficult students), or even technical drawings (to explain scientific concepts like the water cycle). Try it and decide for yourself.

Social Bookmarking with Del.icio.us

Allowing its users the ability to categorize and strategically organize personal bookmarks from any computer, Del.icio.us is a social bookmarking site for discovering, sharing, and storing websites.

Here is a link to my series of "tags"...
http://delicious.com/jcarnold

Enjoy!

Experimenting with Smilebox

Smilebox is an online service that offers clients the capability of producing greeting cards, slideshows, animated scrapbooks, photo albums, and postcards for nearly every occasion. This form of emerging technology allows its users to organize, edit, and share photos in a creative fashion while choosing from hundreds of multimedia designs. In its most basic terms, you choose a design, personalize it by downloading your own photographs or images, and then share it by emailing it or posting it to a blog. Smilebox offers most of its services for free, but other upgraded packages are available if users would like access to unlimited premium designs, accessibility to print their projects, or more music options.

The good news is that digital scrapbooking is not a terribly complicated process--even for a novice like me. To begin, you need to visit their website and download their software to run from your computer. Then, you only need to enter an email address and password so you may store and save your creations. It is honestly that easy! After establishing an account, you are free to browse their design options and upload your images or videos stored on your computer, or even integrate actual text into your creation. Once you have completed your project, you have the option to post it to a personal blog or email it to friends and family. Don't fear because Smilebox prompts you with all of these options and walks you through step by step. Overall, this is a wonderful service for friends, parents, and teachers to share memories as an online yearbook of sorts!

My design aesthetic is quite minimal, so I chose to play around with postcards and pictures I'd taken in recent travels. Because I gravitate toward a more streamlined format, my photographs and memories are more basic than the options Smilebox offers. You are entirely free to let creativity reign (and my advice is that you do just that until you find something that suits your style!) and can take advantage of their ideas by just browsing through the various projects in their design catalog. I incorporated my pictures into a slideshow format and hope you'll enjoy.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Exploring Gabcast as a Form of Emerging Technology

In simplistic terms, podcasts are audio or video files delivered to your computer over the internet. Since they are pre-recorded, the distribution is efficient and may be viewed anytime. With free subscription, podcasts are available to anyone with an internet connection. You don't even need to have an Ipod or handheld device because you can listen right from your web browser. Because they are a news feed, they can be cataloged in various podcasting directories for users to search at their convenience. If you're curious, you can listen to a number of episodes online; I personally frequent iTunes to catch up on The Economist, The Onion Radio News, NPR, and This American Life (Chicago Public Radio). I like to sync them to me personal iPod device so I can find time to listen to programming while in the car, working out, or running errands.

I took a look at Gabcast, a specific podcasting and audioblogging platform that allows you to use your touch-tone phone to create and distribute content. I heard about Gabcast from a classmate who insisted it was user-friendly. So, I visited their website, registered as a user, verified my personal account information and followed the prompts to record an episode. I needed to create an account and find a channel to gain broadcasting access. I titled my podcast 'The Travel Diaries' and my personal channel assigned was #23526. Next, I dialed the United States access number and recorded my inaugural episode. It is now available to those who'd like to subscribe to my channel as well as a variety of their other podcasts through their listening station at: http://www.gabcast.com/index.php?a=fp

Overall the process of setting up Gabcast seemed surprisingly easy, but I struggled when trying to embed those audio files into my personal blog. I became a bit frustrated because I had no way of knowing if I was doing it correctly. But, after glancing through the blogs of others, I got an idea that it could be done and I was at least heading in the right direction. So until I can figure out how to customize my blog to include my gabcast, you can find an episode of 'The Travel Diaries' here for your listening pleasure: http://www.gabcast.com/index.php?a=episodes&id=23526 or here from Gabcast! The Travel Diaries #1

Assistive Technology

With the push toward inclusion, teachers have a variety of students in their classroom with a wide spectrum of needs. Learning about assistive technology available will help teachers to best design their classroom to satisfy the requirements of all children.

The online language translators don't completely eliminate the language barrier, but they do help to alleviate some of the difficulty in communication. With the increased number of students who do not speak English as a first language, the opportunity to use technology to translate becomes far more valuable. Services such as Babelfish and World Lingo can help to translate classroom newsletters home to non-English speaking parents, or to place instructions both in English and another language when giving specific directions on worksheets or assignments. This can help to lessen any initial confusion. The benefits to this free service are great, but it is also necessary to be aware of their inconsistency and inaccuracy. The translators give a general overview but can't always translate word for word, so it's important to note that slang may not be interpreted correctly and sometimes words in different languages have multiple meanings.

I am utterly amazed at how far the grasp of technology seems to extend. The digital, audio, visual and software enhancements Microsoft provide allow for nearly all people to have access to the benefits of computers. Alternative input devices such as joysticks, wands, touch screens, and sip-and-puff systems make sure that individuals can control the computer by means other than a standard keyboard. I had an Art History professor who had limited physical ability but utilized a device strapped to his chin to control lectures and slides. I witnessed the general ease of its usability, and am impressed with its overall outcome.

According to the Epilepsy Foundation and an article by Dr. Giuseppe Erba, photosensitive epilepsy affects patients with a particular sensitivity to "flashing lights or contrasting visual patterns, such as stripes, grids and checkerboards." The condition causes their brain to produce seizures when exposed to the visual stimulation. As teachers, we need to be aware of the environmental threats and can do small things such as watching television or videos in a well-lit room to reduce the contrast between the room and the screen, dim the brightness on the control panel, use smaller screens, and make certain students are viewing images from a safe distance.

Overall, with such extensive technology available, teachers should be able to support diverse learning. Whether through language translation assistance or accessibility technology to help with physically impaired students, teachers must first be aware of the needs of their students in order to be able to guide them to the technology available to them. For teachers, knowing your students, their abilities, difficulties, and needs will make certain you can send them in the right direction.

A Brief Introduction to Myself and Technology

I'm the quintessential free spirit who tends to choose the path less traveled. My irreverent approach to life has taken me many places around the world and allows me to live by my own rules and dance to my own groove--sometimes to a fault. I champion individuality in myself and in others, and am working toward a balance between accepting elegant tradition and the signature modern world.

As far as technology is concerned, I consider myself a novice. I'm surely capable but still prefer the clicks of typewriter keys to the hum of a computer, and gladly mail handwritten notes instead of sending emails. I've always been cautious about blogs and posting thoughts online because I tend to be an intensely private person. Had it not been a school assignment, I never would have approached this blog. I'm only slightly petrified! I have been pleasantly surprised at how easy Blogger has made it for users. It seems like after a couple simple clicks and entering of personal information, you're set. I would offer the advice to browse through the thoughts of other bloggers to make sure you're in keeping with the standard. Find a style and template that suit your personal style and just give it a whirl. For the most part, things can always be changed, amended, adjusted...and if not, just embrace the mistake. Happy accidents, right?

Since the purpose of this online portfolio is to share in a forum for classroom projects, here's a link to my 'Integrating Technology in the Classroom' wikispace. Enjoy! http://w200-integratingtechnology.wikispaces.com/JArnold+Integrating+Technology+in+the+Classroom