'MySimpleShow' Presentation Software This week we were introduced to the power of presentations for engaging and educating students. Initially I assumed we would just learn how to make fantastic PowerPoint presentations. And we did learn this. But we were also introduced to the phenomenal array of free presentation software on the World Wide Web. About MySimpleShow: After following a few hyperlinks and having a little play, I decided to make a MySimpleShow presentation. Mostly because they marketed themselves as being simple to make and their example presentations reminded me of this fabulous presentation we were presented with in week 1 (Video 1). Video 1: The inspirational "Do you dare to dream?" video by inKNOWation (2012). Upon exploring MySimpleShow further, I have realized that it does not reach my expected standards. It certainly did not measure up to "Do you dare to dream?" (inKNOWation, 2012; Video 1). However it was simple to make (as promised) and fun to watch. The simplistic nature of MySimpleShow presentations are useful in that they do not distract viewers from the content by presenting over-whelming displays of what I refer to as "digital awesomeness". On the other hand they still provide the pace and movement necessary to make them eye-catching and engaging. They are a great deal more simplistic than videos such as inKNOWation's (2012) presentation above and therefore do not successfully maintain engagement for extended periods. I believe this is the reason MySimpleShow only allows short presentations. Please watch the explanatory MySimpleShow below (Video 1). Video 2: "Explain Yourself Visually With MySimpleShow" by BCSS Digital Learning (2017) created using MySimpleShow (Simpleshow, 2017) The short and succinct nature of these presentations does not render them useless, but rather defines a clear niche for their use in the classroom. These videos provide a valuable opportunity to explain concepts in a more engaging, and re-playable, format. Miller (2017a; 2017b), also known as ‘Mr Miller’ has shared some inspiring examples of the use of MySimpleShow for teaching mathematical concepts (Video 3,4 below).
Video 3: "Triangle Inequality" by Miller (2017a) created for Math education purposes using MySimpleShow (Simpleshow, 2017) Video 4: "Box and whisker plots (part 1)" by Miller (2017b) created for Math education purposes using MySimpleShow (Simpleshow, 2017) The SAMR MODEL for Implementation in the Classroom: Incorporating ICT tools such as MySimpleShow presentations into the classroom is an expectation under the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) standards (AITSL, 2014). MySimpleShow presentations are a valuable ICT resource, but their learning value can be increased if they are implemented at the transformation phases of the SAMR model (Puentedura, 2006). Through the SAMR model, teachers can transform ICT-based lessons or activities to instigate higher-order thinking skills such as evaluation and creation as discussed by Bloom (1956) and revised by Anderson et al. (2001). An example of this is as follows: SUBSTITUTION: Action - MySimpleShow Presentations replace verbal/whiteboard presentation of information. Benefits - Students are more engaged during presentation. AUGMENTATION: Action - MySimpleShow Presentations replace verbal/whiteboard presentation of information. Presentations are later uploaded onto a wiki or blog for students to access and revise. Benefits – Students can re-play, re-watch and revise presentations from anywhere to help them do homework, assignments or study for tests and exams. MODIFICATION: Action – MySimpleShow Presentations are created by students as activities or assessment tasks and presented to their class. Benefit – Creation is often more engaging than observation. Students use higher-order thinking when creating (Bloom, 1956) and will develop a more in-depth understanding of concepts. REDEFINITION: Action – MySimpleShow Presentations are created by students as activities or assessment tasks and are uploaded to a wiki or blog page to create a repository for definitions and examples. Benefit – This final step means students can access a wide array of concept examples and definitions. All people learn and understand concepts differently, therefore with more resources available to a class, there is more opportunity for students to find a version of the content that makes sense to them. Technical Difficulties and Considerations Fortunately, the actual creation of these presentations is as simple and easy as the company states. I was simply asked to choose the “storyboard” or genre of my presentation (I chose Strategy and Goals), then presented with a number of slides to write narrations for, with helpful directions as to what the slides should focus on. Once my narration was written into the slides, MySimpleShow interpreted the words for me and illustrated them with pictures. I was then able to review and change these pictures to better suit my needs before going on to select music, narrator voices and subtitle settings and finalizing my presentation. So making my video was simple, but there were certainly frustrations. Firstly, in a professional context I would not recommend using the free version of MySimpleShow for these reasons:
As a result of the free version, I could not share my video correctly. In order to even get it onto weebly I had to:
Video 5: My attempt at a MySimpleShow presentation. Unfortunately I could not export the presentation so there is no sound and you can see my computer interface in the background. Safety, Legal and Ethical Considerations: According to the AITSL National Professional Standards For Teaching - ICT Elaborations (Focus Area 4.5; AITSL, 2014), teachers should, “Demonstrate understanding of safe, legal and ethical use of digital resources and tools, including cyber safety practices, respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources” Cyber safety and bullying could potentially arise through the misuse of MySimpleShow and similar presentation formats and students need to be aware of the rules and repercussions of actions which would be hurtful, demoralizing or discriminatory toward others. Since MySimpleShow is a web-based software having students create their own presentation will require internet-monitoring. Most schools have internet-filtering measures in place to ensure that only age-appropriate internet content is viewed. However, these are not foolproof so teachers must remain diligent in the classroom. Copyright is an important factor in MySimpleShow presentations. The MySimpleShow company has specific copyright laws which need to be considered. Only under the highest-cost package does the customer have third party transfer rights and the ability to remove the company’s watermark. Since it is possible to import images from external sources and write narration teachers and students must provide appropriate documentation of the sources of statements and images. All too often I see web-based articles and blogs which are lazily referenced or not referenced at all. Just a quick browse of blog sites will illustrate this. It appears as though the culture of the World Wide Web is very different to written texts in that authors are able to "get away with" plagiarism. A hyperlink should compliment not replace in-text citations, otherwise readers are not made aware of the author name unless they choose to navigate away from the page to find out. The education system needs to focus on teaching students online referencing and accountability as well as critical analysis of the integrity of web information. Where referencing is concerned, writing a blog or creating a presentation is no different to writing a report or a book. To truly acknowledge intellectual property we must abide by copyrighting laws; the author, title, date and URL should be named - at the very least. References Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R., Airasian, P. W., Cruikshank, K. A., Mayer, R. E., Pintrich, P. R., … Wittrock, M. C. (2001). A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. New York: Pearson, Allyn & Bacon
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL]. (2014) Australian professional standards for teaching. Retrieved from http://www.aitsl.edu.au/australian-professional-standards-for-teachers/standards/list? BCSS Digital Learning (2017, January 3) Explain yourself visually with my simpleshow. [Video File] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUsNIwzh8_I&feature=youtu.be Bloom, B.S. (1956), Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Handbook I: The Cognitive Domain. New York: David McKay Co Inc. inKNOWation (2012, November 27) Do you dare to dream? [Video File]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/HhFxQlDPjaY Miller, B. [Math Squad]. (2017a, January 3) Box and whisker plats (part 1) [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W9L98Cx7gQ Miller, B. [Math Squad]. (2017b, January 4) Triangle Inequality [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rO39OQ3A3EE Puentedura, R. (2006). Transformation, technology, and education [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://hippasus.com/resources/tte/. SimpleShow (2017) MySimpleShow Web Presentation Software. Retrieved from https://website.mysimpleshow.com/
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VIDEOS FOR LEARNING ICTs (including videos) should be implemented in teaching according to the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) Standards (AITSL, 2014). The learning value of videos is highly dependent on how they are utilised. In order to promote higher-order thinking teachers should aim to reach the transformation levels of the SAMR model; Modification or Redefinition (Puentedura, 2006). There are so many free examples of educational videos. I have added a few maths examples at the end of this reflection for your viewing. Before I go too much further, please watch this video by teacher Bill Murphy and notice; - Students can use the song to recall the mathematical procedure. - How engaging the video is. - The collaboration between students and staff Video 1: 'Dividin' Fractions' (Murphy, 2014). This week we were presented with an article written by Schwartz and Hartman (2007), providing a "learning pie" to explain the use of video for learning (Figure 1). The "pie" categorises learning outcomes and goes on to provide learning targets, assessments types and video genres for each desired outcome (Schwartz and Hartman, 2007). The Schwartz and Hartman (2007) article does not provide a substantial discussion on the value of finding or creating videos as a learning activity. There is great value in learners finding and creating their own informative videos. This activity requires that students adopt high-level thinking strategies and is an example of videos used in the transformation levels of the SAMR model (Puentedura, 2006). In my video presentation in week 4 (here) I expressed some doubts over the time needed for students to make videos. However, recently I have found examples of simple and quick student videos. The example below goes for less than one minute. Video 2: Paper Slide Video demonstrating Input/Ouptut Tables (Oliphant, 2010). This was most likely made in a single lesson. Is this too simple? I think it depends on the desired outcome. If the video was aimed at gaining a deep understanding of one simple mathematical process, then it achieved its purpose. The activity required students reach each level in Bloom's Taxonomy: remembering, applying, analysing and evaluating the mathematical process as well as synthesing through their metaphor and the video creation itself (Anderson, et al. 2001; Bloom, 1956). Some learning outcomes would require a more in depth video creation. Although I feel teachers must ensure that the level of learning is proportional to the time spent. The video below was presented in our learning materials. It is an example of a huge amount of analysis, evaluation and creativity. It is a definite example of a "redefinition" level task based on the SAMR model (Puentedura, 2006). However, were this an assignment, the outcome would be that this student knows a lot about only one human organ. If a video such as this was to be created for learning human biology, the aim should be to create a video explaining an array of major organs (i.e. the digestive system). Video 3: The Secret of the Appendix (Bebee, 2015). So how should videos be used effectively? Let’s look at the Puentedura (2006) SAMR model. In the spirit of the week 4 content, I have made an image as well. CAN I PRACTICE WHAT I PREACH? Almost! Last week I posted a video of myself chatting about videos and the SAMR model. I wish I had saved it for this embedded task. However, talking to a camera and uploading to youtube wasn't a challenge, so it is good that I am required to make another! I installed "VideoPad Video Editor " and tried making a video. With my limited experience, there was not enough time to create an impressive video using this software. Nevertheless, I have had an attempt and learned what the software can do. To make this video I had to: - Research and install a free movie-making program - Learn how to import images into the software - Learn how to download youtube clips for inclusion in my own movie - Learn how to add text to my video (this was harder than it sounds!) - Learn how to overlay text, video and audio so that the you-tube clip was appropriately credited. - Learn how to save my new video as a MP4 - Learn how to open and export my video in VLC software to reduce it's file size - Learn how to upload my video to youtube for online accessibility and storage Videos can be made using smart phones, laptops, anything with a camera. They are stored on computers, hard drives or the internet. Online storage includes sites such as dropbox, googledrive or youtube. Youtube provides three privacy options; public (everyone can view), unlisted (you can only view it if you have the URL), or private (you have to log in as the author to view it). Videos can be embedded into websites and blogs. They can be shared on microblogs such as facebook, or the "old fashioned" way of handing over a thumb drive. Now that I know the basics, I wish I had time to present something more impressive: As per the AITSL Standards for Teaching section 4.5, Safety, legal and ethical considerations apply for video use. For example, videos with images or footage of students should not be shared publicly without parent and student consent. The authors of videos must be acknowledged and properly referenced. And teachers must consider the social implications of students creating or featuring in videos to avoid bullying or embarrassment.
Top Left: Algebra Basics: Solving Basic Equations Part 1 - Math Antics (Math Antics, 2015) Top Right: Trigonometric Ratios - SohCahToa (Alvarez, 2011) Bottom Left: Logarithms, Explained - Steve Kelly (Ted Ed, 2012) Bottom Right: How to Sketch a Graph (To the tune of Oasis Wonderwall) - VCE Maths Methods Music Video (Maths Methods, 2016) REFERENCE LIST: Alvarez, S. [Sergio Alvarez]. (2011, February 15) Trigonometric Ratios - SohCahToa [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRz2d5yedsg&feature=youtu.be Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R., Airasian, P. W., Cruikshank, K. A., Mayer, R. E., Pintrich, P. R., … Wittrock, M. C. (2001). A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. New York: Pearson, Allyn & Bacon. Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL]. (2014) Australian professional standards for teaching. Retrieved from http://www.aitsl.edu.au/australian-professional-standards-for-teachers/standards/list? Bebee, P. [ABCScienceOnline]. (2015, June 23) The Secret of the Appendix [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9UIVtv5CSs&feature=youtu.be Bloom, B.S. (1956), Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Handbook I: The Cognitive Domain. New York: David McKay Co Inc. Math Antics. [MathAntics]. (2015, May 22) Solving Basic Equations Part 1 - Math Antics [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3XzepN03KQ Maths Methods [MathsMethods.com.au]. (2016, January 18) How to Sketch a Graph (To the tune of Oasis Wonderwall) - VCE Maths Methods Music Video [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QH_qvFZZA0 Murphy, B. [Murph Math]. (2014, February 13). Dividin' Fractions [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCPst0eW2Jk Oliphant, J. [Joe Oliphant]. (2010, September 25). Paper slide video-Input/Output tables [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrHIQIieHnE Puentedura, R. (2006). Transformation, technology, and education [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://hippasus.com/resources/tte/. Schwartz, D. L., & Hartman, K. (2007). It is not television anymore: Designing digital video for learning and assessment. Video research in the learning sciences, 335-348, doi http://aaalab.stanford.edu/papers/Designed_Video_for_Learning.pdf TedEd. [Ted-Ed]. (2012, August 20) Logarithms, Explained - Steve Kelly [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzu2POfYv0Y FUNCTIONALITY SKILLS REQUIRED: I am amazed at how easy it is to create a blog using Weebly. Only basic computer skills are required (e.g. word processing and internet browsing), and Weebly’s simple and clear design makes its operation easygoing. There are a few more complex tasks, such as embedding and linking, that may cause confusion for beginners. Admittedly, I felt a little lost at first, although with some experimentation I figured out the basics. DISPLAY & LAYOUT: Weebly has a number of themes and categories to choose from as well as the capacity to edit themes or even build your own. I enjoyed experimenting with display settings to create a professional blog page with a strong ICT focus. These options allow every blog to be unique, enabling students to showcase their own individuality and create their own online brand (Glogoff, 2005). EDITORS: There is a capacity for multiple editors on Weebly and on the “pro” package, editors can be assigned levels of permissions, otherwise all editors have administrator control. It may be useful to share editing permissions with fellow teachers of the same year level and learning area. This way teachers can combine forces and provide one blog with double or triple the resources for their students to access. PRIVACY & BLOG MEMBERS: Weebly provides a useful privacy option, where particular pages can be password-protected, making them visible only to those with administrator permissions. This would enable teachers to share teaching records, resources and discussions privately. Under the “Pro Package” a blogger can create or invite members and assign them to groups. When signed-in, members can gain access to additional pages. This would be an exceptionally useful feature for a class blog where the teacher wants to create pages specific to certain classes or student groups. PRACTICAL EXPLORATION Blogs provide a fabulous opportunity for students to learn autonomously. Students can operate a single blog site to take them through their entire secondary school education. This would act as a portfolio of learning and enable students to observe their progress through the reverse-chronological order of their blog posts, certainly an example of how Blogs can transform a student’s entire school experience at the SAMR Redirection level (Puentedura, 2006). Belinda had a wonderful idea here for blogs replacing lab books. In order to explore the value of a classroom blog practically, I created an example science blog (here) for year 9 students. I included a calendar to provide key dates and a contact form allowing students to message me directly. I have created an example blog post on the page, encouraging collaboration, reinforcing concepts and providing resources. Glogoff (2005, p. 3) observed an increase the frequency of students exceeding assignment requirements when blogs were used as an assignment platform. I can envisage how a blog would encourage this behavior, therefore my faux class requires students to complete an assignment on their blog. The assignment (below and here) was designed using the SAMR Model and Bloom’s Taxonomy (Anderson et al., 2001; Bloom, 1956; Puentedura, 2006). LEGAL, ETHICAL & SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS The use of blogs as an educational tool comes with legal, ethical and safety considerations. Teachers, students and schools must ensure the privacy of others is upheld; for example sharing student photos must have parental and student consent. A web-based platform does not excuse plagiarism and measures must be in place to protect the academic rights. Finally, interactions between blog participants should be limited to constructive comments and positive praise; rules against cyber-bullying must be enforced to protect students. REFERENCES Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R., Airasian, P. W., Cruikshank, K. A., Mayer, R. E., Pintrich, P. R., … Wittrock, M. C. (2001). A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. New York: Pearson, Allyn & Bacon. Bloom, B.S. (1956), Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Handbook I: The Cognitive Domain. New York: David McKay Co Inc. Glogoff, S. (2005). Instructional blogging: Promoting interactivity, student-centered learning, and peer input. Innovate: Journal of Online Education, 1(5), 3. Puentedura, R. (2006). Transformation, technology, and education [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://hippasus.com/resources/tte/. |
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