Finito!

How far we have come in such a short time. I have completed this course having already used a few of the applications covered, adopting many on the way and willing to learn and master others introduced throughout the weeks. I have enjoyed the "blogging" aspect of the course as it is something I am familiar with due to the fact my brother and sister-in-law used it as their main means of communication as they travelled overseas for a year. It was wonderful to see photos and read diary entries almost instantly as they travelled.It is quite a personal way of communicating as a couple of times when posting my blogs I accidentally clicked "Next blog" at the top of the screen and was taken once to a grief stricken account of one woman's miscarriage and another to a family album (someone, somewhere in the States).I guess if people choose to blog it is similar to Facebook and other social networking sites where your information certainly becomes public.
I have a new chapter of my learning beginning as I embrace these new technologies and I thank you for your guidance in this venture.

#22 ebooks and # 23 audiobooks

While there are people like me still around there will always be the need for physical libraries. It is sad to see the demise of big book stores such as Angus and Rebertson and Borders but the online book business provided by such companies as Amazon and the UK Book Depository seems to be booming. (Maybe that is the problem!) It is also a sign of the times that our Book Club box of books now arrives with not only books but at least one copy of the audiobook. It is also a sign of the times that many members "bags" the audiobook!
I did a prac in a public library some years ago and was surprised by their supply of audiobooks which were borrowed mostly by the sight impaired clients. I have since learned that this is a fast growing area of need and used by all clients. It may be as we are all trying to  multi-task and are aware that we are so time poor that we see being able to enjoy a story as we do other things.
I have not used a Kindle but they sound as if they would be useful in a school. I visitd the World EBook Fair and Project Gutenberg. This is certainly a growing area of technology.

#21 Youtube and Teachertube

Watching clips on Youtube is obviously a popular past time with over 1 million video views a day and the ability to allow users to “not only to upload their own video content easily, but also embed clips into their own sites.” My 4 children are often watching and sharing Youtube clips and adding many to their favourites. On a  popular morning news programme there is actually a segment called “Most clicked” and many of these clips have been posted on Youtube.

I use Youtube in the classroom as a quick attention grabbing part of my lessons. In particular I like the bible stories as they are usually word accurate but are accompanied by animations with cartoon characters, lego animations, stick figures etc. It is a fantastic way to make the bible come to life for my students but as with all resources they need to be viewed prior to the lesson to ensure that the content is applicable and appropriate. Students in our school are not able to access Youtube through our servers but many have commented that they have re-watched a particular clip at home.

Teachertube is a more specific set of clips and yet another thrilling realisation that someone has done all of the hard work already to have a fantastic bank of resources collated.

#20 Podcasts

About 5 years ago an ICT support person from our diocese worked with me and my Year 6 class to create podcasts on “Antarctica”. They took quite some time and I don’t think they were ever finally shared with a wider audience but the children did enjoy the process and sharing within the classroom. The class were able to use a set of Apple computers from the diocese and learnt to use the applications on them. We don’t have any Apples in our school now and I haven’t learnt how to create podcasts on other PCs.

I looked at The Education Podcast Network and listened to The Ace Kids from Ballina. They had some local news, local history, funny sketches and some feedback for the listeners. This project was obviously driven by an enthusiastic teacher. The children finished the podcast by saying their teacher was moving to a high school to teach and they didn’t know if the podcasts would continue. This highlights to me the necessity to teach the children the skills so that they can operate these ideas with minimal teacher instruction.

Many radio programmes finish their segments with the advertisement or reminder that the programme can be accessed through a podcast.

#19 Rollyo

Rollyo is another set of organisational tools. It is always nice when someone else has done the hard work for you and this appears to be the case with Rollyo. This is a little like taking someone else’s filing system and adding to it to suit yourself. Children could use this in the classroom or study situation by making a “bank” of sites for their classmates to visit.

#18 Wikis

Here is an application that I have seen in action and am involved in the process of “making” and adding to. Our primary teacher librarian cluster group has decided to make a 2011 Book Week wiki where all participants are able to share their fabulous ideas with like-minded professionals. This will be a wonderful resource and just the tip of the iceberg in terms of professional development.

#17 Delicious

Delicious sounds like a fantastic application  but it also appears to be yet another one that will take a significant amount of time to set up. The advantage of this application seems to be its appeal to social networking but as this is an area I am not fully engaged in it would not be one I am rushing to use.

#15 RSS and #16 Subscribing

It is amazing how many of these applications have been around but many I have not been fully aware of. It is only through doing this course, my awareness has increased and I now notice RSS is available in many aspects of my work. I have been accessioning books with SCIS and have only just noticed the RSS link at the bottom of the page. This application would be beneficial in that it would save you time as the information is being streamed directly to you.

# 13 and # 14 MySpace and Facebook

There is no escaping these social networking sites and they don't seem to be going anywhere soon. Most television channels, news programs etc have there own facebook pages. My sister-in-law has a travel company and seeing the need to keep up with progress, got her teenage son to set up a facebook page for her company. She said that business is booming through this avenue.
Three of my own children are on facebook and many of my friends, but so far I have resisted the temptation. I am a time poor person as it is and love the opportunity to catch up with friends face to face or on the phone. I am very conscious of the privacy issues concerning facebook and have been surprised (and horrified) to learn that photos of me have been posted on to someone elses  page without my knowledge or permission. I am constantly reminding my teenage children that their prospective employers could be viewing their pages and to be sensible in what they post. On a positive note, my children are able to keep in touch with their interstate and international cousins and keep us all connected with family news.
Myspace and facebook have necessitated the introduction of cyber bullying lessons and making students aware of the pros and cons of these applications.

#12 Flickr

I now have yet another new set of passwords and log ins! I had some fun with Flickr and can see it as a great way to organise my electronic resources. It would be a fabulous resource for children to use in class, downloading photos and adding relevant captions. It seems there is the option to make a "safe" group to share photos with.