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Here comes the future...

ThingLink.com

Image via CrunchBase

Just came across ThingLink tonight and it seems like a pretty versatile app.  With ThingLink you have the ability to make your images interactive.  Hover your cursor over the image above and you'll see what I mean.


Upload an image of your own or from Flickr, FaceBook, or a different web source, and then add content tags.  Your tags can have text, sound, web links, videos, or you can even add an image in your image.  Videos tags use YouTube, Vimeo, and TED, while images can be tagged from Flickr, Instragram, and more.  You can make audio tags linking to SoundCloud, iTunes, and Spotify.  There's a lot more ways you can tag an image, so take a look at the examples in their gallery.


ThinkLink images can be embedded on a webpage and shared with other editors.  Lots of possibilities for classroom uses. I don't know if Instagram was worth a billion dollars, but I can see a lot more uses with ThingLink.


Special thanks to iTeach blog for introducing me to this resource.

Online Professional Development

2009 Guam Quarter (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Webinars are a great thing to have for anyone who wants to improve themselves.  On Guam, it used to be a big deal for a teacher to get sent off island to attend a summer conference.  Teachers would attend events and then share the information with others when they got back.  Unfortunately, those opportunities decreased more and more in the past decade due to the lack of funding.  Teachers can attend university classes but that isn't an affordable option for many.  The result is a teacher corps that is stagnant in their professional growth or knowledge of new methods.


The good news is that doesn't have to be the case anymore.  Webinar events from around the world can be viewed on your computer at no cost.  That alone should be an eye opener for any school administrator!  Webinars, or online seminars, can take different forms but usually consist of a presenter sharing slides with an audience.  It may also be an interview or a workshop on a particular application.  Most professions require continued training and re-certification, so webinars make a perfect choice for professional development.  Some webinar sources for educators are The Global Education Conference, Classroom 2.0 Live, Future of Education, and SimpleK12.  Google also offers events through their Google+ Hangout feature.  The optimum way to participate in a webinar is to do so live as it is happening.  Each of the sources above use a conferencing application to bring all of the participants together.  Since the session is being conducted in a different time zone, it is important to know when events are happening at your time.  Use a time-zone converter for that if the source doesn't provide on for you.  If you can't make it at that time there is usually a recording of the session posted somewhere.  YouTube and iTunes may have these non-live versions as well as the providers listed above.  Some webinars require registration or may include a small fee, but there's plenty of material readily available for free.  Sign up to receive notifications of upcoming events.


With webinar events, educators have access to great minds like Howard Gardner or Daniel Pink.  Not only can you hear their presentation, but you may have an opportunity to ask them a question yourself.  Online webinars are where I've learned about emerging ideas in education like Finland's educational system and the 21st Century Fluency Project.  I keep a personal blog of the ideas I gain from these events and draw upon it often to shape my own professional beliefs.  There are also marathon sessions offered several times throughout the year that will include multiple back-to-back webinars.  Google's Education On-Air conference starts in a few days and you can look forward to a fantastic Global Education Collaborative conference in November.


The other resource found in webinars is the audience themselves.  Most of the webinars list the participants and keep a running chat discussion going as the presentation plays out.  You'll find people attend these sessions from all around the world.  This side chatter can sometimes be more interesting than the presentation itself.  Usually someone acts a wrangler and provides helpful links to what is being presented.  Some of webinar software allow you to save the chat discussion in addition to the main presentation.  This is helpful because it can be hard to keep up with the chat forum and listen to the presenter at the same time.  The chat forum is a great feature because it lends to the community feel of webinars.  Plus, you don't have to stay quiet during the presentation and you can get out of your chair when you want.  Better still - get involved yourself.  You can add your own comments to the chat discussion or "grab the mike" and ask the presenter a question at the appropriate time.


I think you'll find online webinars a worthwhile experience.  Think of them as opportunities for personalized professional development.  You'll learn new ideas and meet new people from the comfort of your own laptop.  Of course, you may miss out on that all-expense paid trip to Arizona but you'll free up your time to do other things.  This professional development that won't cost you a dime.  Tap into the world's collective knowledge and join a webinar today.   Online webinars are the perfect choice for professional development that won't cost you a dime.

Related articles

• Getting the Most Out of a Webinar (onlinecollege.org)

SimpleK12's Online Education Conference

Attention Education friends – You’re invited to a one-of-a-kind PD event that’s going to be a lot of fun …

and best of all, it won’t cost you a dime!

Come learn with educators from around the world at the Online Education Conference: An international conference that’s 100% FREE!

This PD event has been sponsored by SimpleK12, one of the leading providers of 21st century teacher professional development. Join the Blue Bunnies as they camp out in the SimpleK12 offices for 24 hours straight, bringing you the best-of-the-best conference sessions with presenters from around the world. (Thanks for organizing such an incredible FREE event, SimpleK12!)

Online Education Conference - Details

• What: A 24-hour training extravaganza for educators around the world!
• When: Wednesday, April 25th, 2012 – Thursday, April 26th, 2012
• Where: Online – Join LIVE from your computer or mobile device
• Cost: 100% FREE!
• Register: http://simplek12.com/tlc/webinars/#OEC

What sessions can you attend?

Sessions will be running all day and night … so pick and choose whatever works best with your schedule. There’s something for everyone! 

What can you learn about?

Perhaps the better question is, “What WON’T you learn about?” Conference sessions cover ALL of the latest educational trends and topics, such as:

• Google Earth
• iPads for Education
• Free Web Tools
• 21st Century Student Projects
• Blogging
• Google Maps
• Podcasting
• and more!

What are you waiting for?

Registration is free … but space is limited. Don’t wait – Reserve your seat now before it’s too late! Sign Up Here: http://simplek12.com/tlc/webinars/#OEC

What’s not to love?!

No Travel. No Registration Fees. Lots of Fun. A Great Learning Opportunity. Need I say more?!

Help spread the word about this FREE, international online conference. Tell as many educator friends and colleagues as you can! Don’t let anyone miss out on this incredible learning opportunity!

See you there!

25 TED Talks for Education

Hi all,
I'm sure I shared at least one TED Talk with you during your Gateway training so I thought I'd pass this post from Craig Allen on to you: 25 TED Talks Perfect for the Classroom.  Below is one sample from the collection that covers oceanography - a topic you'd think we'd cover more on our island.  You can find TED Talks on their website and they also have a YouTube channel for Education. 

I haven't seen a TED Talk yet that didn't interest me or make me think.  Hopefully it will have the same effect on your students.

Related articles

• TED Releases Educational Talks For Kids (spottybanana.net)
• TED Ed YouTube Channel Launched, Calls For Content (socialbarrel.com)

A rethinking of curriculum

06-29-07_1515.jpg (Photo credit: kjarrett)Here's a terrific post by Grant Wiggins from Authentic Design: Everything you know about curriculum may be wrong.  Really.  I think it's a must read for educators and especially administrators.  It's a great article to share.  Give others a different perspective of what education can be, or else they'll be stuck with the only idea they have. 

And here's another from Tom Whitby: We Don't Need No Stink'n Textbooks. 

Related articles

• The Mother of all Curriculum "Myths" (queuniversidade2.wordpress.com)

What can swarms of robotic helicopters do for you?

View videos like this and others at TED.com or on the TED Talks YouTube channel.
"Riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the World"