“The Open Clasroom” Presentation November 29, 2006
Posted by Joseph Papaleo in AGQTP/AISV, Ed Blogger, Video Conference, Web2.0, Will Richardson, blogs, classroom.2 comments
Yesterday afternoon, we had our presentation on blogs and what they are. What a success!! Only 20 or so staff attended the session out of 150 teachers at our school (although only 35 were invited, so not a bad rate in my opinion). But the staff that attended included the Head of School (his introdcution and conclusion were fantastic and I’m not sucking up!!), Head of Campus, Head of Secondary, Director of Curriculum, Assistants to the Director of Curriculum, Head of IT Projects, as well as other interested staff. The staff were inspired by James, Jane and Jo (see previous posts for more details), who as educators and blog experts were all very different to each other, yet they showed that blogs were a teaching and learning tool and how they can be used inside and outside our classrooms – making them truly “open”.
James relaxed introduction surprised a few staff, but it suddenly turned serious when he started to talk about pedagogies and constructivism and how blogs can be used in classes as a teaching and learning tool (alongside other teaching and learning tools). Jane was quietly spoken, but delivered so eloquently and showed how her ESL classes have used blogs over time, even though she had some issues with her slideshow at times. Her academic background came through and showed the staff that blogs were not a “gimmick”. Jo spoke passionately about her Year 8 class and the way the students used the class blog. Students at a small school in Canada found her class blog and their is now correspondence between the two school groups. She showed how the students use of English improved as people outside the class discovered the blog and lastly, how she plans to use a form of blogging (podcasting) as a Year 12 revision tool. (I wish I thought of that 
). Lastly, James wrapped up and showed how easy it was to create an edublog site and made a BIG announcement – but I’ll leave that to him to announce it to everyone else.
At the end of the session, it was clear that these presenters had hit the mark as there was lots of serious discussion. Today at work, staff were talking about it and wanting to get their classes to start blogging. I heard that at a Teaching and Learning committee meeting this morning, they kept coming back to last night’s meeting and the potential of blogging and other new technologies.
Sometimes, you don’t lead by getting up there and doing a big song and dance about what you are passionate about, but rather by sitting back and organising some great sessions and allowing others to see what it is you want them to see. It may take months, but it is worth it. So thanks Will Richardson, who started the inspiration with a wonderful presentation a few months via SkypeVideo, thanks to Reef Ed and the National Space Centre for videoconferencing with us, thanks to James Farmer, Jane Westworth and Jo McLeay for giving a great presentation yesterday. Two more sessions are planned for early next year – one on podcasting led by David Kelly, a friend and great IT teacher, the other on how a Primary teacher, Tom Barrett uses ICT in his classroom. Looking forward to them!
Fantastic!!
So, what has Jules Verne got to do with my blog? November 1, 2006
Posted by Joseph Papaleo in General, Google Earth, Janine Lim, Tom Barrett, Video Conference, k12online, k12online06.comments closed
Jules Verne wrote the book “Around the World in 80 Days” around 1872. Just a few years earlier, he and many others of his time were captivated by technological breakthroughs. These breakthroughs were related to transportation – the Suez Canal opening and the linking of train lines across the US and also in the sub-continent. And what did this technology breakthrough lead to? The rapid circumnavigation of the globe, hence his book.
So, what does this have to do with my blog I hear you ask. Well, in recent times, we too have had various technological breakthroughs that have led to people like me being captivated by the potential in our classrooms. What are these breakthroughs? The advancement of ISDN and now Broadband, the compression of audio and video files are just some. Coupled together, they allow us educators to take our class anywhere we like. I have written before about the possibility of Videoconferencing. And in the last few weeks, I have put together a presenation for the k12onlineconference and it is all about the uses of videoconferencing in the classroom. So, sometime today, my presentation “Around the World in 80 Minutes” will go live at the conference site with tips and where to find resources and the possibilites of videoconferencing, as well as tips on Google Earth. I must also note that I have referenced the work of: Tom Barrett; Janine Lim; ReefEd and National Space Center, UK
Thank you to these people for their blogs which I have been reading with interest for some time or for the services they have provided to me.
k12onlineconference “Elluminate” session October 29, 2006
Posted by Joseph Papaleo in General, Video Conference, k12online06.1 comment so far
I just participated in an international conversation with about 30 – 40 people using Elluminate. Messages were passed by voice, text, whiteboard and even video. I actually “met” some people who I had heard about or read their blog. Catching up with other people I haven’t corresponded with for some time as well. It started at 1:00am local time and finished a little over an hour later at 3:20am (Daylight saving kicked in).
An interesting conversation was held about many topics and it was great to see that the apathy I experience here in Melbourne about Web2.0 technology seems to be the same all over the world. There seem to be just a few interested teachers and we need to bring many others along for the journey. Much like Jules Verne in Paris in 1870.
More about that in my next blog entry …
Off to bed right now. Good night.
k-12 Online Conference, Screencasts and kids October 19, 2006
Posted by Joseph Papaleo in General, Personal, Screencast, Video Conference, k12online06.1 comment so far
A very short note to say I’m still here reading others thoughts. I’ve created my first screencast and tried to put it up on my podomatic site, but after many tries, it doesn’t want to work. I’ll keep at it. I gave it to my students via our server and they just laughed at me!!
I’m also preparing for a presenation at work and for the k-12 Online Conference on Video Conferencing. So I’m very busy, developing ideas and I’ll be posting entries more frequently soon (oh, did I mention one of my children had her face whacked by a swing, requiring facial surgery and now my two eldest have contracted chicken pox?) Gee life can get hectic.
Video Conferencing – the potential October 3, 2006
Posted by Joseph Papaleo in General, Video Conference.comments closed
Just a short entry tonight. I started back at work today and it was nice to see the students again. We have about 4 weeks left of the year before exams and you can see the Year 9 students are quite nervous as it is their first set of exams.
Some time last year, a donation of video conference equipment was given to each campus. “Wow! How will we use these?” I thought. And to my horror, they have been used for meetings between staff members at each campus. Now, this equipment has saved me many dollars in petrol, helped the environment and given time back that would have been lost to travel between the campuses. But couldn’t they be used in the classroom?
I did some research and discovered some great places that offer classes “Excursions” without having to leave the classroom. The Great Barrier Reef in Cairns, Queensland, Australia was one of the first places I read about. They offer talks by experts on marine life and then take the class on a dive. And they even have teacher resources prepared for use back in the classroom. Wow!!
Taking classes to space centers, Art museums, History Museums, safaris, zoos or almost anything else is amazing. And there are heaps of resources available on the net (of course). See the Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration or SBC VideoConference Adventures who both provide a humungous list of Video Conference sites.
My favourite blogger on this topic is Janine Lim. Check out her blog – VideoConferencnng out on a Lim. It is very informative and opens up another world for us as teachers with her tips and new programs. Read about the Kid2Kid VideoConference Connections. Like me, you may not be ready to participate now, but keeping an eye on it certainly gives you an insight into what can be achieved.
I’d be interested to know how others have utilised Video Conferncing in their classes
k – 12 Online Conference “Unleasing the Potential” September 25, 2006
Posted by Joseph Papaleo in Screencast, Skype, Video Conference, Web2.0, blogs, podcasts.comments closed
Announcing the first annual “K12 Online 2006″ convention for teachers, administrators and educators around the world interested in the use of Web 2.0 tools in classrooms and professional practice. This year’s conference is scheduled to be held over two weeks, Oct. 23-27 and Oct. 30- Nov. 3 with the theme “Unleashing the Potential.” The K12 Online 2006 blog has just gone live.
On the conference blog you will also find the web form we will be using for the submission of proposals. Everyone is encouraged to submit a proposal. More details are on the conference blog: www.k12onlineconference.org. The blog will be updated regularly with everything you need to know about the conference.
This is such an exciting concept. Having people from around the world share ideas and resources. Many of these people are experts in the use of Web 2.0 technology in education, so why wouldn’t you participate in such a great idea?
And if you are in Australia like me, there is no reason to miss out as presentations will be made available for download.
Well done to the organisers.
