Hi Mark,
I appreciate your work and enthusiasm. I find Moodle to be kind of visually boring and I think Wikis suffer from other visual and workflow flaws as well. I think during this early stage of 2.0 evolution, there will be fits and starts in learning how to integrate different tech modes successfully in the class. For me, as a middle school teacher in inner city LA, my students need very straightforward solutions. Sometimes simple programs can yield more complexity from the students while complex programs produce diluted responses and work from the students. In the end, tech use in the classroom, is, in my view, like teaching in general: an art that can use science, rather than a science that can use art. With that in mind, I think we all will arrive at different solutions for our very personal styles, unique student groups, and cultural environment. I have tried dozens of class blogging solutions in the past five years. 21 classes, edublogs, blogger, wikis, self-created websites with Wordpress, classchatterlive.com, and others. I just found another very very simple, straightforward site that is only 30 dollars a year with unlimited classes, unlimited students, and teacher control over content -- it enables my students to add videos, audio, text, photos, etc., all without cumbersome, multi-click, overly complex interfaces like those found in some of the more well-known sites. It is called ClassPress. Again, as with others, it's not the sexiest site around, but the student blog entries with WYSIWYG, colors, and somewhat customizable look and feel, are really all I need. With links I can then use a Wiki or a Blogger.com page to connect students to outside projects or instructions if I want. I'm rambling, but I encourage you to continue to interface with as many teachers as possible, especially those like me who are more tech enthusiast than tech savvy, to have a feedback loop that works for us all. Thanks again for your comment and work.

Many, Many Thanks! I will check out the links and get back to you! Awesome information! Thanks again!

Mark,
Thank you so much for the information about wiziq. In fact, I met Nellie "virtually" last year, and I followed her presentations on wiziq. She's an awesome teacher and wiziq is really a great resource for online classes. I will use it for my online classes starting next August. I'll tell you how it works.
Best wishes, Alejandra

Hi Mark,
Thanks so much for taking the time to give me some advice and steering me in the right direction. I will be investigating your suggestions and act accordingly. I really enjoy working with the idea of instructional technology, something I feel is missing, something to bring technology learning, curriculum content and teacher training, combined. Maybe its already being done and I am unaware of it or the terminology that its goes by.
Thanks again for stopping by.
Have a nice day!

Hi Mark,

Thank you so much... I'll take a look at this.

Thank you Mark,
Do you know if a school can produce their own learning modules on Moodle and use them as learning objects? I am new to Moodles but I am doing a project now that involves this possibility.

Thanks,
Berta

Thank you Mark, It does look interesting. I will look through.
Berta

Wow Mark, you're a busy man. I was unfamiliar with WiziQ, and it appears to be something I would really like to get into. I have just started a network for international school teachers and tech enthusiast and would love if you could become a member and post a little something about this.
http://theinternationalschoolteacher.ning.com/main/authorization/signUp?

Thanks so much, really appreciated,
- Troy

Hi Mark, thank you. I will do that. You are great. Berta

Thank you for the info you sent. I will join and begin my classroom streaming experience as soon as I can. I still have a few weeks yet before school begins, so I have a little time left to get ready! Thanks a bunch! :)

Hi Mark,
Thanks for the video. I'll definitely check it out.

Thanks Mark,
I actually have used WIZIQ a few times, not really in my job as an assistive technology trainer in Loudoun but in conjunction with my podcast, the A.T.TIPSCAST. I encourage my wife to use it for her tutoring too. Good stuff there.
Chris

Hi Mark,
Thanks for the heads up on WiZiQ.
Anthony

Thanks for all of the helpful information and links, Mark. I'm going to check it out, and hopefully get back to you soon!

Thanks Mark- nice resources, I now know what I will be doing with my weekend!

Thanks Mark, looks interesting. I tried to follow the link but could not see the recording. Do I need to register first to see the recording?
I noticed that Adobe now offers some free basic services through their shrunk-down ConnectNow. Is it similar?

Thank you for the note! I appreciate it and perhaps we can partner!

Thank you Mark, I will investigate this.
Ruby

Thanks for the information; I will look into it

Thanks Mark. I have already signed up and hope to have a good look at it over the next few days. We already use a similar (commercial) application but I am sure my students will be interested in Wiziq - it is something I will certainly consider including in our 'technology and design' module.

Thanks again

Clive

Thank you for the information Mark.

Great! Thanks for your instruction. It is a great tool for elearning.

Hi Mark, thanks for the link. I'll check it out.

Mark,

Thanks for your comments. I took a look at both Wiziq and authorstream.

Wiziq is very different from what we do at FreshBrain. We provide a platform where teens can engage and create with technology. They learn by creating the kinds of things that are interesting to them - movies, music, video games, etc. We don't put curriculum online, quiz them, etc.

Authorstream is more consistent with the kinds of tools that we do make available (in our tools section and pointed to in our activities, projects, etc.). It seems to provide some great ways to take advantage of slides that you create by making them embeddable or turning them into a video. Pretty cool! We will look into how we can include authorstream and determine where we can include it.

Thanks!
Dale

They get this in the classroom today.

---
With your work in Technology, I recommend you take a look at Wiziq's virtual classroom and authorstream's power point presentation platform. Both are web based platforms, have a bunch of features and free basic service. Here’s a public class recording you might find of interest.

Thanks so much!

Thanks for the information! I will look over that soon! I enjoy seeing new technology tools/resources!

Stacy

Thanks, Mark! That's very interesting! It's amazing how many tools are at our fingertips!

Thanks Mark! Nice to know this is out here. I will be looking into it!
LeeAnn

Hello Mark, thanks for the web site. I need to really spend time on the site to understand it. So I can watch classes online as well as hold one?

Thanks Mark I love WIZ IQ also thanks for the tip I appreciate it

Thanks. I actually started looking at WiZiQ last night. I'll experimenting with the virtual classroom today.

Hello Mark and thanks for shareing. I've been aware of authorstream and wiziq for quite a time now and they are gr8 platforms. Authorstream can change ppt file into flv and host it on its own web and wiziq is gr8 for presentations and quizzes.. I am finding dimdim increasingly efficient for you can have a video conference with up to 20 participants. As a meeting host, you can share with them a whiteboard, your computer screen to demonste, or you can share a certain document. Of course there is also tokbox after it teamed up with etherpad it became a great video collaborative tool.
Thanks for sharing :)

I will look into wiziq. On another note, I am looking for curriculum that teaches financial literacy, economics, business and entrepreneurship in a one semester course for high school seniors. Since you teach economics, do you know of anything?

Mark,

Thanks for the suggestions. This is why I subscribe to this site for the porfessional collaboration that helps kids learn better in the classroom.
I will send comments after I review these applications.

respectfully,

Jesse

Thank you for the suggestion about Wiziq. I will certainly take a look. In my online teaching for OTAN, I've used Adobe's Connect program, but I know that costs big money to the agency. This looks like something everyone can do and maybe even get their students to deliver instruction. Do you have any examples of students presenting lessons?

Hey Mark,
I was watching your demo and at about 22 minutes in, you start sharing some PowerPoints but the first two (I think) didn't appear on the recording-The first one you see is the economic one at 24 minutes in. Is that just a glitch in the recording process?

Thanks Mark for the information. While I think the online interactive whiteboards are great, I am actually referring in this instance to the physically mounted or mobile IWBs found in classrooms and conference rooms.

Thanks, Mark--I will definitely check it out!

Thanks Mark, I've got the creative juices flowing. I'm going to see about putting some things together.

Thank you very much for your help!

regards,
Michael

Thanks Mark!

Mike

Thank you so much! At the moment I'm facing a bit of opposition re the virtual classroom concept, which is fairly new to Malta. Reading through this forum is really encouraging.

thank you so much, i will think of your idea soon

But it seem too slow to load yours, doesn' t it?

Thank you so much, you have rightly guided me.

Mark,

Thank you so much for the information. I will definitely look further into this, as it might have an application for what I do. I am always looking for a better mouse trap approach to delivery of my services.

Thanks Mark I am still trying to get the powers that be here to accept that technology is here to stay. Two days ago I was told that having my senior students create a professional email for extra credit was not appropriate.

Hello Mark just wanted to send you a Jack-O-Lantern

Do you think that you, other history teachers, and/or your AP students would be interested in a resource for art history images?

I would like to learn more about your homeschooling network as well.
Aloha from Hawaii
Katherine

Oh, Mark! This is the site ahaafoundation.org
I need to know
Do you think you would use the site I am creating with your students.
ahaafoundation.org is the beginning of a course in the history or art around the world.
Do you think history teachers might use the site?

Do you thing AP courses might use it?
Do you have any ideas about how to introduce the site to teachers and know which teachers are using it?

Thank you so much for asking and I know some of these are repeat questions. Sorry for that.