Tuesday, 22 May 2012
Google Apps and Curriculum Tools: My Head is Spinning
After class on May 7th about Google Apps and curriculum tools, my head was spinning. So many great options!!! How do we keep them straight and incorporate them effectively? How do we manage passwords?
Any and all ideas welcome!
Monday, 21 May 2012
Is assistive technology really helpful to students with learning disabilities? How do we know?
“Assistive technology
(AT)...refers to any technology (commercial, modified, or customized) that can
assist, increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of
individuals with disabilities” (Holmes & Silvestri, 2012, p. 82).
This blog post summarizes and reflects on the findings of Holmes and Silvestri (2012) regarding whether or not AT is effective for postsecondary students with learning disabilities.
Article:
Article Summary:
Holmes, A., &
Silvestri, R. (2012). Assistive technology use by students with LD in postsecondary education: A case of application before investigation? Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 27, 81-97.
Article Summary:
Holmes and
Silvestri (2012) reviewed the research
literature regarding the efficacy of AT in assisting postsecondary students
(PSS) with learning disabilities (LD). Unfortunately, they were only able to unearth limited research. Importantly, the research they found consisted of studies that were mainly “qualitative, single subject, and
nonexperimental” (p. 87), rather than positivistically based, empirical
studies that used control groups. In addition, they discovered that the AT
research is largely atheoretical, as are the recommendations made by disability
service providers about AT for PSS with LD.
Studies reveal
conflicting AT benefits for different users. Disturbingly, they noted that the
use of AT in some users actually diminishes their academic performance, even
though AT may enhance the performance of others. For example, they
refer to studies that suggest that text-to-speech software may actually reduce
the reading effectiveness of students with working memory challenges, whereas
it can benefit students with phonological decoding problems.
Holmes and Silvestri
contend that AT is often recommended based on broad, untested assumptions made by psychologists and disability service
personnel who are often untrained in AT. They provide reference to three important models of AT
assessment. Importantly, they assert
that attention needs to be placed on studying the efficacy of AT in
relationship to the underlying processing deficits of PSS with LD. They
also caution psychologists not to recommend specific brands of AT such as
Kurzweil, but rather to recommend certain categories of technology, such
as text to speech software. In addition, they suggest psychologists
add caveats to their recommendations that allude to the need for final
decisions about the efficacy of AT to be made on a trial and error, case-by-case,
situational basis.
They note that there is
a high abandonment rate of AT by users. They provide many reasons for this, including
the lack of proper training in the use of this technology. Holmes and Silvestri
offer many excellent suggestions regarding topics related to AT and PSS with LD
that merit further research.
Reflections:
Although I agree that
more research is needed, as is more training for disability service personnel,
Holmes and Silvestri seem to underrate the value of qualitative research. Case studies and qualitative data can also be of
great value in understanding the efficacy of AT.
Videos related to
students with disabilities who use AT attest to the value of AT in assisting
them to access their education. For example, watch these videos:
Computers and people
with LD
Working Together: People
with Disabilities and Computer Technology
Below, one York graduate talks about the value of AT and other strategies in her educational and work success.
I welcome your comments
and experience in using AT with PSS with LD.
Great Infographic About Web Accessibility by WebAim
Are you designing your website with accessibility in mind?
If not, you may be preventing students with disabilities from accessing information and participating in your class.
Webaim.org provides valuable insights. First, look at the infographic below from webaim.org. It provides useful tips.
Scroll to the bottom of this blog for useful links to assist you in embedding accessibility into your
E-learning site.
Web Accessibility Principles: http://webaim.org/resources/quickref/
Testing Web Content for Accessibility: http://webaim.org/resources/evalquickref/
Hear what students with disabilities have to say when they can't access E-learning effectively: http://webaim.org/intro/#video
If not, you may be preventing students with disabilities from accessing information and participating in your class.
Webaim.org provides valuable insights. First, look at the infographic below from webaim.org. It provides useful tips.
Scroll to the bottom of this blog for useful links to assist you in embedding accessibility into your
E-learning site.
Useful Webaim.org Links
Web Accessibility Principles: http://webaim.org/resources/quickref/
Testing Web Content for Accessibility: http://webaim.org/resources/evalquickref/
Hear what students with disabilities have to say when they can't access E-learning effectively: http://webaim.org/intro/#video
Monday, 7 May 2012
From Joyful Contemplation to Painful Frustration
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| Baby in Stroller in Forest - Mobile Device in Hand |
Net Generation Baby Out Enjoying Nature and Fresh Air?
This week's project involved creating a video and uploading it to Youtube or a Blog. "What would I do a video about?" I pondered as I jogged along the new bicycle path recently paved, running under the hydro lines along a north corridor of Toronto. It was a beautiful, sunny spring day. Birds were chirping, trees were blossoming, and families were out biking, roller blading, and skateboarding. Inspired by the beauty of the day, an idea hit me. I could blog about how using technology can limit our children's appreciation of nature and restrict their lives as they stay indoors, sedentary, surfing the internet, engaging in social networking, or playing digital games, rather than exercising and appreciating the beauty of the outdoors. I decided I would videotape my jogging journey, capturing the beauty of the birds, butterflies, flowers, and other joyful humans enjoying the outdoors. I saw baby geese with their families, toddlers kicking balls, senior citizens hold hands strolling through the forest, and a middle aged woman sitting on a park bench, swinging her legs back and forth like a child joyfully experiencing a swing for the first time. I was happy with the plan as I took my iPhone out to video the experience. I was joyfully contemplating the beauty of our outdoor world and the impact of technology and I was excited to post my video on this blog. But joyful contemplations soon turned to painful frustration.
Unfortunately, I ran into one technological difficulty after another. Here is just a small sample:
1. After I proudly taped my first video, I looked at my phone - only to discover a message on my iPhone saying it had run out of space and could not save the video. I needed to delete other videos from the phone. Moral of the story - don't take video on your phone unless you have enough memory.
2. I did manage to view the video, only to discover it was a Blair Witch project that was so jiggly that I got dizzy watching it. Moral of the story - don't jog and take a video at the same time unless you have video stabilizing program in your iPhone.
3. After I deleted many of my past videos and pictures, I took another video to upload to this blog. At this point, I had taken a wrong turn on my jogging journey and had ended up in a Mausoleum. I decided to take a break; I sat still and took the video, contemplating the meaning of life and death and the role that technology was playing in the lives of humans at this point in history. I pondered whether it was enhancing or detracting from our lives. This is the video I am uploading to Youtube. WARNING...VIEWERS BEWARE! This may be the worst videography you have ever seen. It helps to have your camera pointing at something other than tree tops when you take a video. Maybe it helps to be able to see the screen when one is out in bright sunlight! Considering I was sitting for most of the video, how did it get so wobbly? Yikes. Sorry. I guess the only good news is that this video is an example of what not to do.
4. When I got home I tried to upload it to Youtube. Even though I was connected to Youtube on my phone, I kept being prompted to put in my password in order to upload. I couldn't remember my password. Moral of that story....people with bad memories should keep their passwords for different accounts in a place they can access when they need the information.
5. I tried emailing the video, thinking I would later upload the video from my home computer. Well that didn't work. My phone said, the video was too large to email. My frustration was building now, but I was determined to succeed with the project goal.
5. When I tried to synchronize my phone to my netbook, I discovered how painfully slow and inefficient that process was. Hours later, the synchronization was complete..BUT WHERE DID THE VIDEO GO? It seemed that the system I was using to transfer my pictures and videos was only transferring pictures. Now I felt really mad. Moral of the story...don't use a netbook with minimal RAM to synchronize an iPhone. Also, learn how to transfer video.
6.. I tried several ideas for how to transfer videos; finally I found a click and drag method that worked, but the videos had numbers that didn't make sense...every video I tried to open was not the one I wanted. You can only imagine how frustrated I was at this point.
I could go on and on, but I won't. Suffice it to say I learned several key lessons from this project.
1. Technology can enhance the lives of human beings. During my run, I enjoyed music playing on my iPhone, I enjoyed videotaping my surroundings and voice journalling on my iPhone as I jogged and also while I reflected in the Mausoleum While running in the forest, I also appreciated being able to connect with distant friends and family so that I could solidify plans for the day. I especially loved being able to capture many beautiful moments in still photographs.
2. Nevertheless, technology can also be very frustrating if you don't know what you are doing. Being a digital immigrant, clearly I am missing many skills that I assume our digital natives already have (or at least will acquire more easily than I have).
Technology is changing the way we interact with nature and with each other. Importantly, our next generation is starting at a very early age to navigate the benefits of technology. What do you think about the picture of the toddler above who is out for a stroll in the forest on a gorgeous sunny spring day, but who is focused on his technology gadget rather than the gentle breeze, the chirping birds, the colourful butterflies, the blossoming flowers, and the sweet baby geese? Will technology enhance this net generation baby's life or will it limit his enjoyment of nature, face-to-face human interactions, and the appreciation of real versus virtual experience?
The video link is below. Heed the warning above....the videography is poor. If I were you, listen to the message and avoid the visuals.
Mind you, now I am curious. Youtube said, "We detected that your video was shaky, do you want us to fix it?" I said yes. Now I am curious. What kind of a new monster video has been created by asking technology to fix what was already a bad video. Hmmmmmmmmm. Well, one hour later, I see the video editing is still in progress. All I can say is, "I hope I have uploaded a video for this project - Yikes"
I am directing you to the link rather than embedding the video since the "editing in progress" may never stop. At this point in this video project game, technology is not enhancing my quality of life. Humbug!
http://youtu.be/edoEZYbGFvk
P.S. I returned to this post and am now embedding video....much to my dismay.
Please comment. Do you think that overuse of technology is preventing students from being active and enjoying the outdoors? What are the best ways for students to use technology to their benefit rather than to be enslaved by it?
Friday, 4 May 2012
What the Tweet?
Class 1: Tweeting? What use is it anyway?
I set up my first Twitter account in January 2012 at Cannexus, an annual national career counselling conference.
Why?
I wondered what value Twitter could be in assisting career planners and job seekers. I was also curious about what all the fuss was about regarding Twitter. Why would anyone want to Tweet 140 characters? Why would anyone want to pay attention? How could this tool be useful. How was it being used?
My first look revealed that some people were Tweeting about "nothingness" that seemed totally irrelevant, at least to me One person would say, "I am in the airport right now on my way to the conference". Two hours later, they would say, "I have arrived at the conference" Three hours later, they would say, "I am here now." Did I really need to hear a hour by hour breakdown of the lives of people I didn't even know. Others seemed to be using Twitter just to promote themselves or their businesses. I have enough exposure to advertisements every day. I certainly didn't need more unwanted ads.
I soon discovered, however, that there were some useful benefits. "What?" you might ask. Well, the live feed of Twitter Tweets that scrolled across conference projectors (or on my phone) was interesting. It provided a snapshot about what my fellow conference participants were thinking about during workshops other than the ones I was attending. It was also interesting to see what others were finding relevant at the sessions I was attending. Importantly, my own Tweets served as a useful record for me to keep track of several short key highlights that I wished to reflect upon and follow up on. Can't a paper notebook do that? Of course, but I don't take my notebook everywhere with me. I do take my smartphone. This means I have access to my Tweets wherever I am. I was surprised to learn that I actually ended up referring back to my Tweets when talking to others several months after the conference, as my Tweets contained conference details I couldn't pass along without this mnemonic.
During the conference, I also learned about the use of hashtags "#" and how Twitter users could search for topics of interest such as new job postings and job forums. I discovered how job seekers and career planners could use Twitter to keep on top of current trends and connect with people who shared similar interests in their career field. Twitter was even being used by organizations as a way to evaluate potential job candidates. One executive director said, if job candidates had decided to follow him on Twitter before their job interview, he was more inclined to favour these candidates; this Executive Director felt that such job applicants were being more proactive and took a more active interest in the news of his organization. He also inspected their Tweets to get an pre-interview impression of the job applicants. Interesting! It seems that more employers are using Twitter to post jobs as well as to evaluate job candidates.
After the conference, my account lay dormant...until now.
In the first class of EDUC 5860, a York University course about digital issues in higher education, we were asked to start using Twitter. My first reaction was, "What the Tweet!" What use could Twitter possibly be in a graduate education class? My second reaction was, "Oh no, what is my Twitter account name and where did I put the password?" One thing I hate about digital technology is the number of login names and passwords we have to remember. Of course, I wouldn't have taken this course if I didn't want to know more about how to use social media and other technological tools for teaching and learning, so I was excited to find out more about how Twitter might be put to good use. I soon learned there were many potential valuable uses.
First, it was helpful to learn about the most recent research being discussed at the 2012 American Educational Research Association (AERA) conference being held in British Columbia. Since our professor, Ron Owston, was going to be at the AERA conference, and therefore couldn't be in class, we were asked to search for #AERA, to find out more about what the conference participants were Tweeting about. Through the Twitter feed, I was able to learn not just about how people were reacting to the conference sessions, but also about new interesting website links that led to further up-to-date news and relevant information. Some of the people Tweeting also had interesting past Tweets I could explore. Some of these Tweeters shared research interests similar to mine and thus were potential useful contacts for future projects. I discovered many people who shared similar passions to mine, people I might not have had such easy access to if it hadn't have been for Twitter.
We were also instructed to post questions on Twitter to certain forums such as #edchat and #elearning to see if anyone would respond. Although I did not get a response to my questions from those in these forums, I did get a response from a classmate on Twitter. Thank you Michael! I also got to learn more about the personality and interests of my peers through their Tweets. Twitter created a different forum to interact with classmates.
Yes, perhaps online Tweeting is not the same as face-to-face connection. Nevertheless, it does offer another vehicle to connect with people on a different level. Different is not necessarily bad. Moreover, I can see how online interactions have potential to lead to richer face-to-face connections, should one desire to further the interactions in-person.
Ron also taught us how to use https://bitly.com/ in conjunction with Twitter. Thanks Ron! When you only have 140 characters, you don't want to waste this limited space with a long website address. Bitly takes long web addresses and shortens them so you have more space within your Tweet to say something meaningful.
I am also finding Twitter a useful vehicle to learn about what others in the class are doing and thinking and how they are reacting to topics and posts. Yes, there are many other ways to facilitate classroom interaction, but somehow 140 characters forces people to be concise (unlike this blog). I have been amazed just how much valuable information can be gleaned from 140 characters.
In conclusion, I am only beginning to learn how Twitter can be useful in education, career planning, and job search, but I am now much more optimistic than before that there actually is value in Tweeting.
What do you think? Can Tweeting actually be useful and educational? Please use the comment section to tell us more about what you have learned from using Twitter.
I set up my first Twitter account in January 2012 at Cannexus, an annual national career counselling conference.Why?
I wondered what value Twitter could be in assisting career planners and job seekers. I was also curious about what all the fuss was about regarding Twitter. Why would anyone want to Tweet 140 characters? Why would anyone want to pay attention? How could this tool be useful. How was it being used?
My first look revealed that some people were Tweeting about "nothingness" that seemed totally irrelevant, at least to me One person would say, "I am in the airport right now on my way to the conference". Two hours later, they would say, "I have arrived at the conference" Three hours later, they would say, "I am here now." Did I really need to hear a hour by hour breakdown of the lives of people I didn't even know. Others seemed to be using Twitter just to promote themselves or their businesses. I have enough exposure to advertisements every day. I certainly didn't need more unwanted ads.
I soon discovered, however, that there were some useful benefits. "What?" you might ask. Well, the live feed of Twitter Tweets that scrolled across conference projectors (or on my phone) was interesting. It provided a snapshot about what my fellow conference participants were thinking about during workshops other than the ones I was attending. It was also interesting to see what others were finding relevant at the sessions I was attending. Importantly, my own Tweets served as a useful record for me to keep track of several short key highlights that I wished to reflect upon and follow up on. Can't a paper notebook do that? Of course, but I don't take my notebook everywhere with me. I do take my smartphone. This means I have access to my Tweets wherever I am. I was surprised to learn that I actually ended up referring back to my Tweets when talking to others several months after the conference, as my Tweets contained conference details I couldn't pass along without this mnemonic.
During the conference, I also learned about the use of hashtags "#" and how Twitter users could search for topics of interest such as new job postings and job forums. I discovered how job seekers and career planners could use Twitter to keep on top of current trends and connect with people who shared similar interests in their career field. Twitter was even being used by organizations as a way to evaluate potential job candidates. One executive director said, if job candidates had decided to follow him on Twitter before their job interview, he was more inclined to favour these candidates; this Executive Director felt that such job applicants were being more proactive and took a more active interest in the news of his organization. He also inspected their Tweets to get an pre-interview impression of the job applicants. Interesting! It seems that more employers are using Twitter to post jobs as well as to evaluate job candidates.
After the conference, my account lay dormant...until now.
In the first class of EDUC 5860, a York University course about digital issues in higher education, we were asked to start using Twitter. My first reaction was, "What the Tweet!" What use could Twitter possibly be in a graduate education class? My second reaction was, "Oh no, what is my Twitter account name and where did I put the password?" One thing I hate about digital technology is the number of login names and passwords we have to remember. Of course, I wouldn't have taken this course if I didn't want to know more about how to use social media and other technological tools for teaching and learning, so I was excited to find out more about how Twitter might be put to good use. I soon learned there were many potential valuable uses.
First, it was helpful to learn about the most recent research being discussed at the 2012 American Educational Research Association (AERA) conference being held in British Columbia. Since our professor, Ron Owston, was going to be at the AERA conference, and therefore couldn't be in class, we were asked to search for #AERA, to find out more about what the conference participants were Tweeting about. Through the Twitter feed, I was able to learn not just about how people were reacting to the conference sessions, but also about new interesting website links that led to further up-to-date news and relevant information. Some of the people Tweeting also had interesting past Tweets I could explore. Some of these Tweeters shared research interests similar to mine and thus were potential useful contacts for future projects. I discovered many people who shared similar passions to mine, people I might not have had such easy access to if it hadn't have been for Twitter.
We were also instructed to post questions on Twitter to certain forums such as #edchat and #elearning to see if anyone would respond. Although I did not get a response to my questions from those in these forums, I did get a response from a classmate on Twitter. Thank you Michael! I also got to learn more about the personality and interests of my peers through their Tweets. Twitter created a different forum to interact with classmates.
Yes, perhaps online Tweeting is not the same as face-to-face connection. Nevertheless, it does offer another vehicle to connect with people on a different level. Different is not necessarily bad. Moreover, I can see how online interactions have potential to lead to richer face-to-face connections, should one desire to further the interactions in-person.
Ron also taught us how to use https://bitly.com/ in conjunction with Twitter. Thanks Ron! When you only have 140 characters, you don't want to waste this limited space with a long website address. Bitly takes long web addresses and shortens them so you have more space within your Tweet to say something meaningful.
I am also finding Twitter a useful vehicle to learn about what others in the class are doing and thinking and how they are reacting to topics and posts. Yes, there are many other ways to facilitate classroom interaction, but somehow 140 characters forces people to be concise (unlike this blog). I have been amazed just how much valuable information can be gleaned from 140 characters.
In conclusion, I am only beginning to learn how Twitter can be useful in education, career planning, and job search, but I am now much more optimistic than before that there actually is value in Tweeting.
What do you think? Can Tweeting actually be useful and educational? Please use the comment section to tell us more about what you have learned from using Twitter.
Wednesday, 2 May 2012
The Blog Begins: Why?
This blog has been created for EDUC 5860, a course entitled, "Issues in Digital Technology in Education" The content will be focused on uses for digital technology (DT) in education, with an emphasis on how DT can assist students with disabilities (SWD), in particular students with learning disabilities (LD). As a digital immigrant, I look forward to exploring the many uses of DT. Topics of interest include:
- how to enhance university teaching to connect with the net generation
- how assistive technology (AT) can assist SWD, in particular students with LD
- how DT can aid me in my own personal learning journey
- reflections on weekly class topics such as: Twitter, blogs, video capture, e-learning, and accessibility.
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| Portable digital technology always at our fingertips |
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