Yahoo! Pipes

How has it taken me this long to use this. I've heard about it numerous times in recent months, but I didn't think much of the descriptions.

This might make your eyes roll back when you see the interface, but the possibilities are incredible and it is well worth learning if you are interested in being a couple years ahead of the game. I only tested if for filtering so far, but it could be done for so much more.

One thing that this does is to create an RSS feed (even from a group of other feeds) that is SUPER customized.

I've been thinking about using an approach like this to deliver individualize feedback and tools for learners in both the CALL class and my EFL courses. I see some real potential in this tool (which is still in Beta).

All I can say is Wow!

Dan

Video: RSS in Plain English

Take a look at this video. You should already understand much of this if you have followed up with your subscriptions begun at the beginning of the course.

Nice video.

Dan

Student Books on Lulu

Great posting on a student publishing project. How cool is this? It is so modern, yet a little retro at the same time. How about some new books for your library. How about your students as the authors?

Dan

Comedy Central: Crash Course in Comedy

This is a really cool contest and application. I hope that they keep it around for a while, but it will likely disappear after the contest.

This application uses a technology from Oddcast who create avatars for use in Web pages. The audio can be drive by text (text is converted to speech by the computer), a audio file, recorded by phone, or recorded directly by microphone. You character will then perform this.

I thought that this was really fun and could be used in many ways that have nothing to do with comedy OR you could have students try their hand at humor (a difficult cultural and linguistic task)

I made a very brief example. Click HERE to check it out.

Dan

Google Maps

I know that this will just end badly, but I think that I love Google. They just keep on coming out with new, cool, tools all the time.

I've loved Google Maps (http://maps.google.com), but their newest feature just thrills me to no end.

You will now notice a new tab in Google Maps called "My Maps". This lets you annotate, save, and publish your own personal maps. Don't think that this is just a way to look at places, it is most definately a communication tool as well. These annotations can tell a story with text and images.

It was so cool I had to map out a few places around my campus. Check it out.

http://tinyurl.com/26gf2b

Lastly, this tool is incredibly easy to use. There's not that much functionality yet, which is good because there's not too much getting in the way of you using it. I predict that this will become one of my favorite tools to use both personally and professionally.

Dan

How to Use English Punctuation Correctly - WikiHow

This could provide some of you with a lot of fun. Do you see yourself as a punctuation perfectionist? Why not give advice to others by editing this wiki?

Dan

Teaching EFL to Children: The Delight of Being Constantly Challenged

Here is another article on TESL-EJ. It isn't really a tech article, but it is a good example how you can get teachers' stories out there using a simple Web page (in this case an online journal).

These are personal stories of Cambodian English Teachers collected at/as a result of the TESOL Conference in Cambodia.

Enjoy.

Dan

SuperMemo 2004

This is a neat-looking software reviewed on TESL-EJ (a nice journal with many practical articles for language teachers).

The software seems a little overpriced in today's market, but the features are quite useful. It is basically a flashcard program, but it has a lot of features that you aren't likely to find on the free ones, including support for HTML and multimedia (I don't know if you can embed something from Google Videos or YouTube--that would be nice).

Given the price, I don't think that I'd buy it, but something like this to provide ongoing review of language learning is a good idea. An approach like this is something that we should encourage our learners to do.

Dan

Creating ePortfolios with Web 2.0 Tools

Some nice comparisons and examples of using different tools for e-portfolios by Helen Barrett.

These are not all exactly the same on different formats, however, this could be because of the affordances (abilities) of the different tools.

These are not the only tools out there, but it is a good representation of what's available. Also, she does not take advantage of the ability to embed audio, video, and images in the pages. The pages are largely text. I would suggest that you utilize these evironments to much more with visual design and multimedia

Dan

Whip Learns to Golf

Even if you are not a golfer, take a look at this. Thanks to Bee for pointing this out.

This uses one person's experience with learning to play golf as a vehicle for discussing learning theory. It is a really interesting way to do this.

4 Corners Broadband: You Only Live Twice

This is an impressive documentary by the Australian Broadcasting Company on Second Life. It is easily the broadest, yet most in-depth look at Second Life that I've ever seen. It is a must see for anyone interested in this phenomenon.

They hit on so many different aspects of the service and the culture growing up around it, I'm just amazed.

* NOTICE - There are some adult themes in the documentary when they discuss adult content in the 3-D world.

NTeQ Lesson plans

I have no clue what NTeQ stands for, but it is aimed at helping teachers integrate computer technology into their classrooms. It is run by Gary Morrison (big name in Educational Technology) and Deborah Lowther.

There are a ton of lesson plans here organized by grade and topic. I found some real gems in there, however, the biggest problem is that many are incomplete and nearly all of the Foreign Language ones (including ESL) are missing objectives...come on teachers!

That being said, many are really good and include what to do and what technologies to use. They are also not overly prescriptive. They provide general suggestions that you can play with if you'd like.

There are lots of lesson plan repositories on the Web. Have you found any that you like?

Discussing Media Literacy With Dan Rather | PBS

While this is not a revolutionary posting, the simple fact that a person who has been welcomed into people's homes for 40 years as a journalist is commenting so elegantly on media literacy is of particular note.

I really like the way that Rather explains the need for media literacy as an essential part of education. This is the type of story that you would expect from one of those old, professors who have seen it all and see what's old becoming new again.

Media (or Information) literacy is one of the solutions that I advocate for dealing with the "problems" of inappropriate activities in online spaces from chat to MySpace. Telling students not to use them will work as well as the "Just Say No" campaign of the 80's (the generation preached to during that time showed unprecedented increases in drug use in the mid-90's). Educating people (I'd include adults on this) about the problems that occur in public (virtual) spaces and ways that they can protect themselves prepares them to engage the spaces and not just hide from them.

What's your view on this?

Rows of desks and lectures? Too old-school | IndyStar.com

Could you see yourself in a "New Tech" school?

More schools are popping up under this model. I haven't heard much about them before and the paper provides a rather shallow review.

I would venture to guess that you are going to see more alternative models popping up over time and that this is one of many.

I would love to see some case studies on these schools. I want to know how they hire, fire, train, and instruct (of course the last one is of most interest). I'd also love to know if Dr. Reigeluth's (IU IST professor) Decature project is part of this. His is a large systemic change project with Decatur schools.

http://www.GoogleLitTrips.com

Everyone is commenting on this in the listservs and I assume that it's being blogged about quite a bit too. Time to unleash it on you all :)

This is an interesting project that uses Google Earth (which is a program you have to download to your computer) to map out the literary routes for a number of novels. I'm assuming that you will see many more in the next few years.

Go to the site for information, resources, including the .kmz files for use with Google Earth.


Also check out Google Certified Teacher program (http://www.google.com/educators/gtc.html). Looks interesting for those of you a little more ambitous on the technology end.