Camtasia

I have found the links for Camtasia.  I really like this program.  Though it is expensive, I think it is worth every penny.  If anyone is interested, I can show them how to work with this program at some point in the future.


Here is the link for downloading a 30 day trial of Camtasia Studio.  http://www.techsmith.com/download/camtasia/

Here is the link for the pricing breakdown for educators:
https://store.techsmith.com/education.asp

Test generator

Notes from November 30 Flipped Hangout

I was really pleased that our Google Hangouts were so productive on Saturday.  In fact, since we had such quality discussions that we should consider scheduling another meeting as a Hangout this winter.  Hangouts are a great way to model some distance learning capabilities to supplement flipped units. 

We started the Hangout by exploring some of the features of Google Hangouts.

• ·         Discussions of potential educational uses for Hangouts included involving students in class discussions who are:

o   Confined to home or hospital

o   Unable to attend class due to weather

o   On an athletic or academic trip

• ·         We also considered ways to connect classes in WV with students across the country or even overseas via Google Hangouts.  Think about the ability to do a class presentation to students in another country!

We briefly discussed our thoughts on the example flipped videos that were posted to Vimeo?

• ·         What advantages/disadvantages are there to using video?
• ·         Keeping video open, available to everyone or putting behind a password

Opportunities for expansion of the flipped program

• ·         WE forum gift

o   Amount to be determined

o   Will purchase class sets of iPad Mini tablets

• ·         ITQ grant development

o   Expansion of program in Cabell, Mason, Mingo and Wayne Counties

o   Funding to include training, software, expenses to national conference

We had a discussion of a number of tools for flipping:

• ·         Cam Studio, Adobe Presenter, iMovie, Explain Everything, Touchcast, etc
• ·         Vimeo, YouTube, TeacherTube, Weebley, Moodle, Edmodo, etc

Next steps:

• ·         Steve needs to check on tablets for Wayne teachers
• ·         Jason Gibbs will post information on academic pricing for Cam Studio
• ·         Lewis will post a link to an online assessment program
• ·         For the December 14 meeting (10 am at Drinko Library) everyone needs to bring, bring a video to share.  Post the video on some video service (YouTube or Vimeo) and submit a request to get the video whitelisted.  Be prepared to discuss the video at our December meeting.
• ·         A guest from Gilmer County plans to attend our December meeting to learn how we are doing flipping and to contribute to the discussion by sharing ways that he is doing flipped units in his rural county.
• ·         Please bring your calendar to the December meeting so we can schedule sessions for January – May 2014.

As always, it is a pleasure working with such quality educators.  I am very proud to be a part of this project.  Teachers in this part of the state continue to show the innovation and leadership that characterizes our region.

Vimeo is Back . . . sort of

There is some great news regarding Vimeo.
I have been in communication with the technology folks at WVDE regarding Vimeo.  At this time, Vimeo is blocked at the state level, however, you can send links to specific videos to filtering@access.k12.wv.us to get those videos whitelisted.
I sent the URLs of six Vimeo videos to WVDE for approval last week.  I had an immediate confirmation email letting me know that the request was received.  Less than two days later, I received an email that all six were whitelisted.  Of these six videos, one was Bonnie's, one was Jason's, one was Lewis', one was Rob's, one was mine and one was just something that I found on the web that looked interesting.  All were approved.  In fact, the videos that are in the November 16 and November 18 postings have been whitelisted.
Before I sent the URLs to filtering@access.k12.wv.us I made certain that there was no offensive content in the video, description or, perhaps most critically, the comments.  I disabled comments on my video to prevent offensive comments from jeopardizing the approval.
With this small victory, I plan to contact WVDE to see if we can get a Vimeo channel whitelisted that will allow us to post videos that are available to educators and students.
That all being said, this is the filtering that is done at the state level.  Each county has the ability to impose additional filtering.  While most counties accept the filters at the state level, a few block sites that the state permits.  If your district blocks Vimeo and YouTube videos that the state has whitelisted, I would encourage you to work with your district administration to get these valuable educational videos available to your students.

Connecting to Google Hangouts

As our November 30 flipped professional Development session nears, we need to to a few things in preparation.  Please sign up for a time slot to join a chat (morning or afternoon) on November 30 using the link Jason sent a couple of weeks ago.
You may also need to configure your computer for Google Hangouts.  The Vimeo video below give a summary of how to set Google Hangouts up on your computer.



Google Hangouts also work well on iOS or Android tablets and telephones so feel free to install these apps on your iPad or other device.

I will look forward to "hanging out" with you on Saturday, November 30.

Discussion videos for November 30

In addition to viewing the TED Talk posted by Jason earlier this week, please watch the following flipped lessons by some of our 2012-13 group.
We will discuss these lessons in our November 30 Google Hangout.
Please keep in mind that the content of the lesson isn't what is important to us at this time.  We are looking at delivery methods and ways of making the material accessible to students.
Since these videos are on Vimeo, you will need to view them from a site outside of the school network where they are blocked.  If you view them from home or a public hotspot you should be fine.

Mr. Grady's lesson on calculating density

Mr. Marcum's lesson on kinematics

Ms. Conner's lesson on momentum triangle

If you go to Vimeo, you can see many videos from Ms. Connor, Mr. Grady, Mr. Jackson and Mr. Marcum using the links provided on their names.  Feel free to check any of their videos to discuss on the 30th of November as well.
I will look forward to hearing from you on November 30.

3 Rules to Spark Learning

I remembered this video from last May when I started thinking about flipping our November meeting. Mr. Musallam speaks of how it took a life-changing event to shift his teaching to a level that drove students to ask the questions that expanded learning opportunities. As you watch the video, think about your thoughts on learning, asking the difficult questions, and how this endeavor will modify your teaching. Share your thoughts with the group using the comments feature below.

Disable Comments for Videos in YouTube

I checked this afternoon and this is now white listed by WVDE. Feel free to share with anyone that needs the information.

Women's Education (WE) Forum Support of the Flipped Classroom Project

As you are aware, the Women's Education Forum (WE) is supporting our flipped classroom project this year.  Information about the project and the WE group was covered in the October 30 Herald-Dispatch.

‘Flipped’ classroom offers promising results

 

Touchcast Poll Test

Follow the link below to watch a short video and vote for November training.

http://www.touchcast.com/jasonjackson/Touchcast-Poll-Test