Conclusion

I have really benefitted from participating in this course. There are some applications that I don't think I'll ever have the time to learn properly and be able to engage with quickly. I now know so much more about the Web and I feel empowered by that fact. I know I have the course record to go back to to practice the new skills I have touched on. Thank you for this opportunity.

#22 and#23 E-books and audio books

It was great to browse for books on the various sites. I prefer the paper book to enjoy the pleasures of curling up with a book. Nevertheless I had fun looking at various books and may introduce it to students who would like to access books this way. Audio books are a great treat though for use in the car over long trips or during long periods of waiting (ie doctor's waiting room and such). I have used them in the classroom very effectively in the old tape recorder days and can certainly see the value in updating the means of delivery by using internet sources.

#21 YouTube and TeacherTube

YouTube - Kellick Creek Flash Flood 10th Feb 2007

This is a piece of local history as well as a geographical phenomena that many of our students would not have ever experienced. The video shows a wall of water approaching the river crossing during a recent flood event.

#20 podcasts

I haven't listen to podcasts before and am really glad to have learned how now. I especially enjoy the following program but am rarely in a position to listen to it during the school year. How easy it is to do and how easy to access in the reader.


http://www.abc.net.au/queensland/conversations/conversationspodcast.xml

#19 Rollyo

This would be a great tool to select trusted sites for students to use to complete assignments. I really think that is a very useful tool. I have made a search engine called cybersafety for kids but am having trouble loading it. I note that others have had this trouble too so I will persevere.

#18 wikis

This concept has really captured my imagination. I have not explored Wikis before and formerly asumed Wikis were nothing but un unreliable encyclopeadia. I can see so many applications for the classroom and am excited about the possibilities. At the primary school level I can see the students' collaborative assignment tasks being enriched by the Wiki experience. Students researching and contributing different topics within an area of study, editing what other group members contribute, adding graphics and videos they have found which apply to the whole project, building an ongoing glossary and bibliography, virtual tours - the list goes on. I can' wait to get one started. I think I'll start with senior primary students preparing a virtual tour of the school for the new kinders!

#17 Delicious

I love it! A great way to organise and share interesting, useful sites. I can see this would be invaluable to use with primary students to help them access quality websites on specific topics more quickly . Networking with delicious would be a great way to share websites of interest with staff in an organised manner.

#15 RSS # 16 stay informed

What a wonderful facility. I think this would be a great addition to a school webpage. A quality educational subscription would be ideal. Takes the hard work out of trying to keep up with all the hard copy subscriptions. News at an instant.
Have found some great RSS feeds for myself and the students. Such quick access is a real plus.

#14 Facebook

Facebook hs always scared me. I am an addict by nature and I know that if I allowed myself the luxury of starting I would find it difficult to get on with the rest of my life! I have however opened an account now and have my own page. I am concerned now about the privacy issue. I was very interested in the article in the readings about how to make your site more secure. This has relieved me no end and I am busy trying to share this wondeful information with all the young people I know who put way too much on their Facebook page. I am now more comfortable with the security side of things but am still not sure I have the time to become more familiar with what I know will become an addiction. I do not see its value for my workplace as primary kids are too young to sign up legally. I am keen to share the cybersafety message with them now though.

#13 My Space

My Space is an interesting concept. I have watched my kids move from it to Facebook and then maintain both. After dabbling with this today I can see some real possibilities for a My Space at the work place. It may be a very real way for older management to reach younger staff in a way that is more comfortable and familiar for them than the regular staff meeting. The capacity for music on my space is a bonus too not shared by some of the other social networking tools. My son tells me it is for this reason alone that he wont ditch My Space!

#12 FlickR

Uno1
Originally uploaded by my photo space1

It took a while to get this right but at last with the help of a couple of fellow How2ers we got it!

#11 Library thing

This is a wondeful site. I have and will spend a lot of time on this. I have enjoyed creating my own library and seeing the links thus created. I can see the children enjoying this one and really brushing up on their review writing skills as there is a real/ virtual audience. Many children will race to read the first 10 books to add to their collection so that they can access the recommendations section. What a great "thing".

#10

#9 Virtual worlds

This is not for me. I am having enough trouble doing the things I need to do in this world without using up precious time in virtual worls.
I do appreciate looking at the possibilities though as many of our students and family members may make use of these sites/worlds/games. Just like common soapies that the children watch on TV. I dont enjoy them myself but watch them from time to time to understand what the kids are viewing and if necessary to engage them in conversationa about themes arising. I will use the virtual world info in the same manner I think.

#8 igoogle

I loved creating a webpage. i will need a lot of time to refine and make it more user friendly though. The itools were lots of fun. I especially like the organiser.
As for working at Google...forget it. There is no way I could keep my weight at a reasonable level with so much physical innactivity and temptation.

#7 Google Books

I love this application. There is so much room to explore. The ability to read a review , find a store or library holding the book and seeing other related texts on one site is fabulous. I tried to locate many of my own books - old, new, obscure - they were all there. This would be a good site for students to find similar books to one they enjoyed or other books written by the author. It is great to be able to add their own review as well as reading the reviews of others.
Is google the new microsoft? We probably need to give it the test of time. I don't think it is as original as microsoft was but it certainly has been able to adapt, refine and provide a service at a very reasonable cost.

# 6 Google Maps

This is a great site. I thoroughly enjoy this application. This is a very useful site for locating places.
I can see my students using this in lessons on topography as well as direction, scale etc. The satellite view is very useful. It is a wonderful tool for gaining a local knowledge of a place without being there. I prefer directions that include landmarks rather than "take the 32nd street on the left." Google Maps allows you to see the territory you may be travelling to. Buying Real Estate would be a time when Google maps would be handy. You can not only see the property you are interested in but you can also get a feel for the "look of the neighbourhood".

For directions that are easy to follow and printable I love whereis.com.au. I think I will be combining the positives of both.

#5 Google Docs

I am not at all savvy with google docs and I tried using a template to create a staff survey and found the time taken to do it was very quick and I enjoyed seeing the final result. I am still trying to work out how to send it on!!! These instructions were not too clear for the likes of me.
I tried my hand at business cards and invoices and am pleased with the results. It is amazing how the hours just fly by as I look at all the applications possible.

#4 What is this web 20 business?

Education 2.0 is a very interesting article on the possible impact of the internet as a degree granting education institution. The scenario is reminiscent of Toffler's Future Shock or Orwell's 1984. I think the freedom proposed has are a lot of positive's for university students. I feel though that bricks and mortar institution offers students a lot more than the academic content. There is the student networking that goes on, the fellowship etc. University towns have a conglomerate effect where scholars and professors tend to cluster; low cost student housing clusters; student traval agents, banks, eateries cluster etc. Without the institutions many students may become isolated and find tertiary study too difficult to pursue.
Primary schools seem to be far removed from this scenario on the surface. We primary teachers would argue that there is so much more to learning than the academic content. The development of the whole child is nurtured in primary education . Social interaction is essential if children are going to be socially competent in their world - or is this necessary in the world in which they are going to be living in??

#3 Let us know

I have registered my blog now and await confirmation. I am amazed at how bad Friday afternoon is for learning new things - particularly IT learning. I am looking forward to spending hours on end at home to perfect this.

#2 create a blog

At long last I have started my first blog. I am hoping to blog daily to maintain regularity and familiarity.