Teaching a teacher...new tools, tips, and techniques.

Overall, I would say that the last couple months have helped me become more aware of the tools and resources available for use in online and blended classrooms.  My favorite new tool is definitely VoiceThread, because as a Spanish teacher, the need for my students to practice listening followed by verbal response is essential.  Prior to the course, I knew that putting up a video or podcast was easy enough, but these tools don’t allow the student to respond verbally, so I was really excited to find out about VoiceThread.  VoiceThread can deliver a lesson, and require students to give verbal responses to multiple prompts, all in an asynchronous, online format.

Another tool that I really like for responding to a video is TED-Ed.  This curation resource lets you check for student comprehension of a video by using simple multiple-choice questions.  The user interface is easy to use both for the instructor and the students, and the instructor can even add links to multiple types of additional resources.  I’ve used videos in the past, but even after hosting a discussion about them, I haven’t been certain if the majority of my students had really been paying attention during the viewing.  I think that not only will the quick comprehension check help me determine if watching the video is a productive use of time, but just knowing that it is there will help some students to stay focused.

This class also got me to think about some sites that I had already known about in new ways.  For example, I had never thought of Pinterest as a learning tool before.  Honestly, I had only thought of it as a site used mainly to show off cutesy crafts projects.  Now, another teacher and myself have an idea for using it to teach an entire segment of our curriculum, and, when we brought it up to some other members of the department (informally), they really seemed interested.

In the future, I intend to use these tools, as well as several others, in my classroom.  Although my district does not yet have a timeline established for making the 1:1 transition, I know that this change will come.  When it does, in order for the transition to be successful, we need to be ready to embrace these new tools and ideas.  Now, I not only feel better prepared, I actually feel excited!