Given the wide range of digital tools that are available to educators and students to both develop content and work within Anderson’s (2008a) four key attributes of learning; learner, knowledge, assessment, and community centered, I have created a digital element element through emaze which could be used in conjunction with the first lesson in my course content module around digital citizenship. I have seen many of my students use this platform before and so I thought I would give it a try. My students are very well versed in the use of digital presentation tools and in any given set of presentations on a topic, utilizing an inquiry based learning style in my classroom, I will see digital presentations from a variety of great platforms. One of the best affordances that this offers myself and my students is the opportunity to collaboratively evaluate the pros and cons of each platform.
The main digital tool that is utilized within my emaze presentation is an edpuzzle. Edpuzzle is a web tool or element which teachers can use to engage students with video. The tool engages students in their learning through videos and provides educators with the opportunity to formally assess their students through both a formative and summative assessment process. The videos can also be utilized through the flipped classroom model. Educators can take a video that they would normally use in a lesson and incorporate questions that the students will be asked to answer before they are able to continue with watching the video. For further understanding of how this tool can be utilized, please access the edpuzzle website. The website does ask for a teacher to set up an account, but is free to use and unlimited in the number of edpuzzle videos created. Students will be required to set up an account to be able to access the video through the user code provided for each video. What is great about this tool is that it can be utilized throughout a lesson at any time to consolidate learning and students success can be tracked and recorded throughout.
Here is the link to my emaze presentation:https://www.emaze.com/@ALWZWIRC/presentation-name
Further to this digital element, another element that I find very useful in the classroom is Kahoot.it! Kahoot allows educators to search or create their own online forms of quizzes that students can access (without signing up, as all that is required is a game pin) to challenge each other in a friendly competition. It is a great opportunity to generate collaboration and social learning while providing the edge of having a little competition. Within my classroom, when I have used this platform or element with my students feedback is extremely positive and students wish to continually challenge one another to the game.
What I enjoy most about using these elements in the classroom and within Assignment 3 is the level of student engagement and enthusiasm for using the elements within their learning. Given theaffordances of using these elements across any platform or device also provides students and educators with the convenience and ease of being able to utilize the tools in almost any setting.
Reference
Anderson, T. (2008a). Towards a theory of online learning. In T. Anderson & F. Elloumi(Eds.), Theory and practice of online learning. Edmonton AB: Athabasca University. (PDF).