Alabama Virtual Library as a Teaching Tool

The Alabama Virtual Library, also known as the A.V.L., is a group of internet resources that can be used by student, teachers, or even just citizen of the state of Alabama. The site consists of magazines, journals, and news paper articles that can be helpful to the public. One way to use the site is to get an Alabama Virtual Library Card that you can get from any of the Public Libraries here in Mobile.

The other way the site can be useful is the database search. This tool allows you to find information but selecting an age group or a topic, ranging from Adult Education to Social Sciences. This site can also be used to find a specific magazine or journal, however it is only virtual copy of th information it is still very helpful to people. The Alabama Virtual Library can be useful to pretty much anyone living in Alabama but it is especially useful for college students and teachers.

"Head Fake" as a Teaching Tool

The "Head Fake" is a teaching tool I learned from a man named Randy Pausch, who gave "The Last Lecture." We watched "The Last Lecture" on another thing that can be used as a teaching tool YouTube. Pausch explains that a "head fake" is when you teach people something without them being aware that they are actually learning. The man I am speaking of did this by creating a software that taught his students computer design while playing a game that related to the popular movie, Alice and Wonderland. I believe this tool would be especially convenient when teaching Elementary Education because children do not have the longest attention span. Also, children can be tricked into learning things easier by using tools like painting and games. Other things I think could be useful in this category are songs. Children are more willing to learn when their teachers make it fun for them.

iGoogle as Teaching Tool

iGoogle is an amazing tool for virtual teaching. The concept of this tool allows the class and teacher to connect and all be able to use specific tools chosen by the teacher for their classmates to use. The teacher creates the page and can give the students the password. It is very convenient to give students an easy password to remember. Google allows teachers to choose a number of tabs ranging from music to art to history. Under each of the tabs the teacher can choose "tools" provided by Google. Certain tools seem more appropriate under certain tabs. For example, some tools I put under the Art Tab of my EDM310 iGoogle page are online painter and biblical art. I chose to a game tab because my major is Elementary Education and their is nothing kids love more than games. Some tools I chose for this tab are an educational one such the spelling game and then others that are just for fun such as pac man.

Podcasts as Teaching Tools

Podcasts are a teaching tool that I just became familiar with. Podcasts are very similar to the radio, but the only difference is that these podcasts can be created by anyone, even you and I. They connect and can be heard by anyone in the world. To create a podcast it can be recorded through a microphone hooked to the computer or it can be recorded with a video camera. After making these recordings they must be uploaded to iTunes and also approved by them. However, podcasts can be used to connect educators to their students. Podcasts are not only used by people who are bored but also by students voicing their opinion. Also, their are many educational podcasts that you can subscribe to on iTunes that we learned about in my EDM310 class. If you want to learn more about podcasts used in education check out KidCast, Connect Learning, and SmartBoard Lessons Podcast that can all be found on iTunes.

Blogs as Teaching Tools

I believe blogging is a new form of technology that could greatly help in the education field. Blogs are home ages such as the one seen here. A blog can be created to communicate between parents, students, and teachers. In the classroom I believe if each teacher and student had a blog such as in my EDM 310 class at South Alabama it would be easier to connect to the class not only at school but also while they're at home. It is somewhat like a virtual journal where we can voice our opinions and show the information we are learning in the class. I have learned that blogs are more convenient than sending out e-mails to each and every student. When students asks the teachers questions they can be seen by other students who may have had the same questions. Besides how it is used in my education class I think it would be helpful for younger students also because parents can see what is going on inside the class room.