CEP812: Group Leadership Project - Final Part

What tool did your group use to deliver the PD tutorial? Why?  Our presentation starts with a rationalization why there is a need for the tutorial and how our technology of choice can assist in adult learning. We have incorporated several tools to deliver our tutorial for professional development:

1. Jing - to capture the screen and to record short clip videos on step-by-step instructions on how to use WizIq. 
2. iWisoft Flash/SWF to video converter - to convert the short clip videos (.swf) created in Jing to a video (.avi) format so we can upload the files as non-Flash videos to SlideRocket, an online presentation tool. 
3. SlideRocket - to bring together all the elements for the tutorial. Elements include: 
• the short video clips that were created from Jing 
• a couple of YouTube videos on WizIqVirtual Classroom, its features, and uses 
• a comparison chart of several web conferencing products 
• animated text frames to lead you through the flow of the tutorial  
• embedded real-time Twitter updates from people who uses WizIq

What did you learn during the development process of the final product? It was our initial plan to use PowerDirector, a photo editing tool, to tie all the elements together. It was used to trim the videos but unfortunately, it did not produce quality videos and its limited features on text animations made us find another option. It is always a great idea to have alternative options just in case something during the development process fails.

Communication is crucial in a team project. Sharlene and I did call, email, post on discussion forums, and we conduct web conferences in order to keep updated on the progress of our assignments. Our phone conversations could be just talking about other school projects and how we are handling the challenges in completing the other projects and then have a short talk on our group project. 

What would you do differently if you had to develop a similar product again? If I had to develop a similar product again, I would like to explore more online tools that encourage collaboration. I was glad that we did not settle for using PowerDirector, a standalone software, and decided to use SlideRocket, an online presentation tool, instead. If the project requires teamwork, It would be very ideal to have all team members meet at a scheduled time and use the collaboration and interactive tools that are now available online to make the project more of a team effort.

CEP812: Professional Learning Plan

CEP810: RSS Feeder Reflections

• Sep. 23, 2010 – With the five given feeds, I can already look through 482 topics that are related to education and technology.  Then I decided to add and follow the blog, Technology and Learning, which made it to a total of 585 topics. I consider these resources as great examples as I start searching for additional feeds into Netvibes.

• Sep. 25, 2010 - After I have completed the task, because of Netvibes’ ease of use and functionality, it was uncomplicated for me to search and add nine more feeds that are related to education and technology.  I particularly watched the Adult Education and Technology blog.

•  Sept. 27, 2010 – I started with five sites with 482 topics and in just few days, I have 15 sites with 1070 topics that I can use towards my professional development.  At the "Adult Education and Technology" blog, I posted a comment on a video about a vision about how screen technology will be working by 2014 for adult education.  I waited for it to be approved for web posting by the blog author.  Unfortunately, the blog hasn’t been updated for days and my comment has not been posted.  The blog contains great resources which made me decide to still keep the site.   

• Sept. 28, 2010 – The “On Blogging and Social Media” site has not been active too and I decided to replace it with the New York Times subscription.  The following day, I left a comment on an article regarding a study where many children want to read using digital devices, while parents worry technology will distract young bookworms. This time, my comment (#30) was approved and has been recommended by two other readers.

• Oct. 3, 2010 – I have a total of 1,114 resources for teaching and learning! Podcasts, blogs, articles, lesson plans, creativity tools – you name it.  Now, all I need is 1,114 extra minutes to catch up. The sites I have are very useful sites. My rss feeds are set in public view and meant for sharing!  When I started searching for web sites, I tried to make sure there was a balance of learning and teaching resources that are related to technology.  It will be just a waste of time and energy gathering all these information if they are not useful towards my professional development. 

• Oct. 5, 2010 -  Read more of my insights that I have written about this lab activity. 

As Alvin Tolfer says, “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”    As I reflect on this activity, I think I should always strive on focusing on these three elements:  I should always be prepared to LEARN and explore new ways of learning new technology and teaching strategies;  be willing to UNLEARN and shift my understanding from old models to updated views; and be open to RELEARN and revisit the foundations and the basic instructional design of education.