3D Museum

This is a fabulous site that has created 3D images in the thousands - of skulls and artifacts from objects, mainly animals. They have created 3D images of these skulls and teeth so that people can look through categories or search for specific items. This is pretty cool and would be great for research or for students assignments. It would also be great as a resource for art teachers.

http://3dmuseum.org/

USB Cameras

Not everyone has access to a data projector or a top quality document reader, but there are viable alternatives.  In the last couple of weeks I have seen two types of cheaper style cameras that could work well in a classroom situation. The first is the IPEVO Point2View USB Document Camera - about $89.00 AU

The second is the Flexible Snake Scope USB Camera - about $39.95 AU

Both of these are great for using as document cameras but are equally as good for using in the classroom for a range of activities;

• step by step computer instructions from your screen
• science experiments, dissections or petri discoveries
• art and or craft demonstrations
• solving maths problems

These can be recorded and made into Vodcasts and then distributed to the class as personal reminders of how to complete the process. They could even be uploaded to iTunesU so other people could use them. Anyway that you use these cameras, they make good sense for your students. They are just as good to use for recording work if you do not have access to a camera in your classroom.

Sir Ken Robinson

This is an excellent argument for change in education. It highlights both the outmoded form of current education and the need for educational reform that pays more than lip service to differentiation, individualised learning and using technology to improve the depth of student learning. The animation is cute but the content of the talk is vital.



It is this intelligent questioning of pedagogy that must be the driving force behind educational reform. As always the technology is simply a tool that enables change. Technology without solid pedagogical reform is mere window dressing.

http://sirkenrobinson.com/skr/

Andrew Churches

Most of the information on the Bloom's Digital Taxonomy post was gleamed from Andrew Churches Wiki. For a detailed analysis of Bloom's Digital Taxonomy check out his wikispaces site. Not only has he given explanations of Blooms Elements of Learning but he provides examples of the types of tools that teachers could use whilst implementing digital technologies.


Andrew's Educational Philosophy:
The world is not as simple as saying teachers are digital immigrants and students digital natives. We have to change how we teach, how we assess, what we teach, when we teach it, where we are teaching it, who we are teaching and with what. Its a tall order, but these are exciting times. This is not just about the integration of technology into the classroom, though this is certainly a critical area. It is about shifting the entire paradigm of education.

http://edorigami.wikispaces.com/

Bloom's Digital Taxonomy

Bloom's Taxonomy has been a cornerstone on which we have based our teaching practice. For many teachers it was the starting place when writing a task or even a unit of work. Unfortunately his Taxonomy does not take into account computers in schools or 1-to-1 laptops programs. 


In the 1990's, a former student of Bloom, Lorin Anderson and David Krathwohl, revised Bloom's Taxonomy and published Bloom's Revised Taxonomy in 2001. The major difference is the use of verbs rather than nouns for each of the categories and a rearrangement of the sequence within the taxonomy. 

This update to Bloom's Revised Taxonomy attempts to account for the new learning models emerging as technology advances and becomes more prevalent. Bloom's Revised Taxonomy describes many traditional classroom practices, behaviours and actions, but it also adds new processes and actions associated with Web 2.0 technologies. Bloom's Digital Taxonomy isn't about the tools or technologies rather it is about using these to facilitate learning. 


Bloom's Digital Taxonomy is the new go to document when designing activities. This list is the the Web 2.0 bible of activities. Use this as a starting point to get into Web 2 tools or use as a reminder of the other tools that your students could also be using.


Remember - the individual tools are irrelevant it is the processes and then the deeper learning that occurs with the use of some of these tools.

From Andrew Churches Website - http://edorigami.wikispaces.com/.