Since we are using a blog for ETEC 522, what features do you think could be added to make our learning experience even better (keeping in mind we are adults, and our focus here is K-12 students)? Do you think there is room for another venture? What would move blogging from good to great? This […]
Continue reading Anyone for a Vlog? Posted in: Week 07: Blogs
Meet Steve Muth and Ben Papell, co-founders of VoiceThread, LLC. VoiceThread is located in Boca Raton, FL and filed as a limited liability company on January 1, 2006. If you are interested, here is a 53 minute interview with both Steve and Ben from Mr. Media conducted in December, 2008. The interview is excellent for […]
Continue reading Steve Muth and Ben Papell :: Co-founders of VoiceThread, LLC Posted in: Week 04: Entrepreneur Bootcamp
Jim,
Nice outline and links to more information. I also appreciate the fact that finding out information on the founders can be difficult! Considering it is a fairly new venture, I’m not surprised. I am impressed with these entrepeneurs who can identify a need and then go ahead and create it. Or is it an innovation? Hmm.
Interesting… a cheap Camtasia/screen recording s/w?
Hi Jim,
Given all the exposure VoiceThread has been given in pro-d circles, I am surprised that there isn’t much biography info on the founders! I love this product and have used it in lots of ETEC assignments, but ironically, not in my class. This product seemed to go “commercial” really quickly, requiring $$ to expand the free basic subscription, although the educational site is a pretty good deal. What sets it apart from other recording s/w is the ability to record comments that appear linked to avatars, and to play them back asynchronously, thereby making it really useful for creating an online discussion community.
Thanks for the info!
KJ
Before you publish your posting, please make sure that you select a category (eg. Introductions) as well as assign some meaningful tags (keywords).
Deb Giesbrecht 6:50 pm on October 20, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I agree Karen – recordings do not necessarily give you the advantage of skimming without missing something. I have used voicethread in other classes and have found it quite user friendly. I think it has something to do with listening to the sound of your own voice that throws people off. I have noticed though you do have an option to use the video comment function on this blog! Maybe we could all try it at least once!
Juliana 9:14 pm on October 20, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Thanks Karen for your post! I agree with you about written word verus spoken word. You can’t really skim through a speech 😉
Although I do wonder if we defer to text because it is easily searchable for terms. Wouldn’t it be interesting if technology evolves and we can post videos or voice threads, but the computer can do a search for the spoken word? If technology does evolve in such a way, there is the possibility that we won’t be relying on text as much.
Juliana.
Karen Jones 8:13 am on October 21, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Great idea, Juliana! The technology to screen the spoken word has to be around, doesn’t it, no doubt developed as a way to monitor key words in spying applications!
khenry 10:09 am on October 22, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hello Karen I do believe the technology exists as well and if not as you presented at least elemnts of, for example speech recognition. What though of accents?
Kerry-Ann
jenaca 12:08 am on October 21, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hey Karen, I also like to skim through the text versus having to listen to a voice repeatedly until I understand what is being said. However, that being said, I do think that using voice is a great way to change up the over used readings…I sometimes enjoy listening to the radio and hearing what is being said, versus reading the newspaper…Maybe for this class it would be useful to use both? The readings could summarize what the voice recording discussed?
Just a thought
Jenaca
jarvise 8:11 am on October 21, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I’m with you on the skimming. I think it can be accomplished with audio, though. When I skim through a Blueray disk, the name of the ‘chapter’ will appear along the bottom. It would be a cool function (that could make someone some money) to create a skimming tool that highlights (in text) key words at different points along the audio or video track. I often will pass over a podcast if I can’t immediately (within the first few seconds) see that it will have something I’m looking for.
There is definitely a place for audio and video in the context of different learning styles. Now to make it more user-friendly. Perhaps a word cloud generated through the audio clip, so we can see what the main points are going to be?
Emily
Emily
Doug Smith 12:23 pm on October 21, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I must admit that I’m not a big fan of vlog / voicethreads. I think there is a narcissistic trait inherent to them that turns me off. When someone creates a written blog post or comment, there are different ways that I can consume it, in terms of my setting, my timing, my environment. When it comes to a vlog, I get the feeling that it is all about the author/presenter. My consumption is now very much on their terms.
While this likely does not represent the author’s purpose in creating a vlog, it is how I see it after it has passed through my own “Doug” filter.
khenry 10:38 am on October 22, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi Doug,
You raise some interesting points. Text indeed offers more neutrality but being a one way conversation implies even greater care (also with voice thread I suppose)) to avoid misinterpretation
Kerry-Ann
Angela Novoa 1:42 pm on October 21, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi Karen,
i too agree. I was thinking that by providing different opportunities to fostering different skills we are intending to cover more students’ abilities for achieving the same learning outcomes. For example, those students who have difficulties on writing will have opportunities for enhancing their performance by integrating voice thread to writing (and vice versa).
Angela.
mcquaid 3:10 pm on October 21, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Like Doug, I don’t think I would like a voice-only blog. It would seem like too much work, or that I was being forced to sit and listen instead of choosing to read what I wanted to.
VoiceThread’s cool – I’ve used it before, too… but I wouldn’t blog with it. Plus, how would people with hearing loss do when they visited your site?
I do think voice comments on a blog would be cool, though… to actually get a voice reply from an author when you make a comment? That’d be neat.
verenanz 8:32 am on October 22, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi Karen,
I helped my daughter’s kindergarten teacher create her class blog. She used voicethreads often to help the parents and students at home with pronunciation. Like you alluded to…not many people “answered” in an oral form.
This her is blog, check out the “stories”- they are all voicethreads I think..
http://viaud.edublogs.org/
So…I would suggest that this is a great option for a primary school teacher, but it is still teacher focused rather than student focused at this point in time.
Verena:)