After looking into each of the different tools that were provided this week, the one that I chose to use for my project will be Edmodo. Of the tools that were presented, I have only used Google Sites before taking this course, and although I like that resource, I wanted to try something new. Between Moodle and Edmodo, I instantly sided with Edmodo. As I watched the introductory videos, Edmodo seemed simple to use with a very clean interface. Furthermore, there was something very familiar about the design of the course management tool...it looks exactly like Facebook.
Not only is that appealing to me, it will undoubtedly be engaging for the students to be able to interact for class on an educational site that feels just like a social networking site. The site is very simple to use and posting materials, comments, and assignments is extremely easy and quick to do. Another key feature is the security side of the site. As a teacher in this day and age, you have to be extremely careful how you communicate with your students (making sure you follow your district's acceptable use policy, get signed consent forms for communication, etc.). Edmodo makes the security side of things very easy, and it is great to have this real separation between social networking and educational social networking. Additionally, the courses are by invite only using the course code, so you can easily manage the members and monitor everything that is going on.
For my curricular project, the students will be investigating systems of complex inequalities and eventually creating interactive presentations of their own. This project will have to be broken down into many assignments in order to accomplish the task, so Edmodo will make it easy to post assignments, deadlines, and grades for the students. Furthermore, it will allow for students to ask any questions of me or their classmates as we are progressing through the project.
The first thing I will post will be the links and materials necessary for the students to gain the conceptualizations needed to solve these types of problems. A great resource that I reviewed last week, was Khan Academy and the video tutorials that go along with that. I will be able to post the videos that I find the most helpful in the best order for the students to work their way through the solutions. Following this stage, I will be able to post assignments that students will submit for a grade based on the completion and correctness of their practice assignment. Eventually, when they get to designing their own presentations, I can post helpful links and tutorial videos for how to use Prezi and Vuvox for the students to explore. I was concerned at first how I could embed Edmodo into my project, but I quickly realized that its a seamless transition to using this course management site for my project.
I did the same site as well and the first thing that came to my mind as well is that it looked very close to the facebook set up. All I have to say is whoever designed that website was genius, because what is better to kids then facebook.
ReplyDeleteThe security issue is one reason why I chose to avoid both Moodle and Edmodo for this project. My district has a program which is similar to Edmodo and Moodle, but it sounds like Edmodo actually makes it a pretty easy process to create a secure and safe online learning environment. It is something I would seriously consider using if I ever go to another district.
ReplyDeleteI used the same site as well and I have to say that I really like Edmodo for the features it has to offer for learning online. I also like how it's free and looks similar to Facebook.
ReplyDeleteEdmodo appears to be very popular for this project. While I like Edmodo for older learners, I am not sure that it is appropriate for younger elementary students (i.e. 2nd and 3rd graders). While Edmodo is a great resource, students have to be somewhat motivated to complete the assignments as they are not always right in front of them (sometimes you have to look through posts to find them).
ReplyDeletei agree with you. I think Edmodo is an excellent tool for students to complete independent tasks and to bring the classroom and learning outside the traditional classroom. I would like to use Edmodo to enable students to become more in control of their learning.
ReplyDeleteEdmodo seems like a great tool overall but I am a bit septical of the security functions. I teach third grade CCD every Sunday and I had to take training on internet security in order to teach. And part of me is a little concerned about parents and administrators reaction to these sites
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