Week 4 - Digital Revolution

Week 4: Digital Media

 

It’s amazing what online tools can do (even free ones!). My 80 year old mother asked me to take photos of her. She wanted to have some nice photos for her funeral (she is very well. Thank you for wondering...). She kept asking me if I could remove her wrinkles. If I knew about “befunky” (www.befunky.com), I could not only take her wrinkles away but I could make her look as if she was my younger sister! I am not going to use a sample photo of my mother and her wrinkles, but here are photos I used to make it little “funky”!

Before

After

 

In week 4, we were introduced to the digital media - digital images, audio and video. I was yet again 'non-native' in this area. I must say that I did have lots of fun playing (may be too much?) with the new tools but also had many stumbles. 

<<Digital Audio Recording>>

I downloaded Audacity. It is impossible to review the tool as I am not familiar with other audio recording tools. However, I would like to share the following points with you, after brief use of the Audacity;

· Tool bars are written in technical language such as Transport, Tracks, Chirp etc.
 

· Have many interesting “Effect” items but not familiar with the list of vocabularies, e.g.,Paulstretch, Gverb, Phaser.
 

· Audacity only provides recording and editing functionalities. It contains no publishing options therefore the file has to be manually uploaded to publish on other services.

In my opinion, it would not be easy for teachers to fully comprehend this tool, unless they are not only technical but also audio tech guru.

If you are using Audacity as your podcast software, you may wish to try others. In relation to the ease of use, Audacity is ranked as the lowest comparing to other products (source: http://podcast-software-review.toptenreviews.com/). PodProducer is free and easier to use than the Audacity.

I haven’t said much positive things about Audacity. However, I would use the tool effectively and efficiently in LOTE teaching. I recently met a wonderful Year 10 student who has completed Year 12 Japanese. She shared a story about a speech contest which she participated in her Year 7. She presented her speech perfectly. Then a judge, a Japanese male, asked her a question. Blank….. Panic…..She asked him, in her perfect Japanese, to repeat the question, but she couldn’t understand what he was saying! Why? Because she was taught only by a female teacher and never heard male speaking in Japanese!! In LOTE teaching, it is important to expose students to language that is spoken by different genders, age group, with different speed and tones. I could use tools such as Audacity to record different type of speeches.

In week 1, I published VOKI. Please visit MIKI-VOKI.

<<Podcast>>

What is the origin of the word ‘Podcast’?

Answer: “A "podcast" is a broadcast specially formatted and intended for an Apple iPod. Hence iPod broadcast becomes shortened to podcast” (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_origin_of_the_word_'podcast').

 

After an extensive search on podcasts, I selected “BBC World News School  Report". This is a 3 minutes weekday news bulletin designed for 7 to 14 years old.

I believe it is a great educational tool because it offers;

· Access to current world news

· Content is age appropriate

· Selection of language is appropriate

· Becoming a global citizen

· Develop oral language (including tone, pitch, speed) for news reading

· Develop formatting of news reading

· Available anytime and anywhere for students

· The podcast offers script which can be useful for visual learners and students with hearing impairments

In addition, BBC also provides students an opportunity to create their own news report. BBC site has a comprehensive resource site for students and teachers to design the project.

Podcast can be also used to set out revision and homework tasks, and facilitate self-managed learning activities. Students can be a listener of podcasts as well as a creator by demonstrating planning, gathering information, researching, reporting, and using correct/appropriate language.

My first Podcast creation was done on PodOmatic. The step by step instructions are very easy to follow, written in simple language, and give users useful options. I created my first podcast;

<<Video>>

I used Windows Movie Maker 2.6 and found it very easy to use. I, as a LOTE teacher, would encourage students to;

· Create and film a drama in Japanese

· Create a video letter to buddies in Japan

· Real-time video conference with buddies in Japan

Students, as creators, will develop various skills in film making. I listed possible learning outcomes by using Bloom’s Taxonomy;

Creating	· Publishing · Developing imagination · Creating raw image · Enhance raw image
Evaluating	· Check/judge the content and format as individual or team
Analysing	· Organising information · Compare against other similar videos/movies.
Applying	· Develop media literacy
Understanding	· Learn how to use various software such as You Tube, Digital camera/recorder, befunky, Tux Paint.
Remembering	· Applying previous knowledge for designing content & format

 

I created a short video to introduce “Japan” – “ようこそ　日本へ“(Welcome to Japan!)

 

 

Digital media sound space-aged and technical but most of the technologies that students are using are the same as those in most homes. The main difference is that, in schools, their educational potential is being explored. Nothing new to children, but they may be new tools for some teachers! Completing GDLT is one thing, but we have to keep our ICT knowledge and skills up to date at all time. Learning never ends....

References:

//web.mnstate.edu/instrtech/scmodules/InstructionalPodcasting/InstructionalPodcasting2.html

http://software.toptenreviews.com/

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/school_report/9345726.stm

http://www.befunky.com/#./?&_suid=1364356462420014133534601876402

http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/back-to-school/technology-in-the-classroom-20100119-mhn3.html