Podcasts, voice tools and audio recorders

Class 6

In this class we discussed about some tools to record in mp3 format. Before the class, we were asked to download some software like Audacity, Skype mp3 and Podcasts. During the class, we were taught about the uses of Audacity, Skype mp3 and Podcasts and also we were asked to do some activities making use of the previously mentioned tools:

Activity Nº Create an MP3 file with Audacity.

Activity Nº 2Export the mp3 file.

Activity Nº Host the podcast on Podbean.

Activity Nº Embed your podcast into your course blog.

Here you have the link to access my activities performed after this class and also you have a litter definition about the software mentioned:

Follow my activities in : http://ipecista.podbean.com/

Audacity is a free, easy-to-use and multilingual audio editor and recorder for Windows, Mac OS X, GNU/Linux and other operating systems. You can use Audacity to:

• Record live audio.
• Convert tapes and records into digital recordings or CDs.
• Edit Ogg Vorbis, MP3, WAV or AIFF sound files.
• Cut, copy, splice or mix sounds together.
• Change the speed or pitch of a recording.
• And more! See the complete

MP3 Skype Recorder is a free program which automatically records all your Skype conversations (including conferences). It stores your conversations locally in files using compact and very popular MP3 format. The tool can record P2P Skype calls and SkypeOut calls as well as calls to Skype Online number. The program sits in the system tray and monitors skype calls.It starts recording automatically when you begin conversation. It can record several calls simultaneously (one active with others on hold). When doing so the recorder stores every call in separate file for later use. Simple and intuitive interface requires almost no tuning. All you have to do is install the program and provide it with access to the Skype client.

A podcast (or non-streamed webcast) is a series of digital media files (either audio or video) that are released episodically and often it's downloaded through web syndication. The word replaced webcast in common use with the success of the iPod and its role in the rising popularity and innovation of web feeds.

REFERENCES

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/about/

http://voipcallrecording.com/MP3_Skype_Recorder

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast

http://ipecista.podbean.com/

Wikis

Wikis

            Class 5

In this class we discussed about wikis and here we have a definition provided by Parker, K and Chao, J (2007) in his work, Wiki as a teaching tool, they define wikis as a “way of communication and collaboration tool that can be used to engage students in learning with other within a collaborative environment. In this research, they state some theoretical and practical elements that make wikis an alternative to be used in the teaching and learning process. They based the use of wikis in the paradigm of constructivism, since by using wikis; students construct their knowledge by interacting with the elements involved in the learning process.

                Additionally, these authors based their work on the Cooperative and collaborative approach. They declared that the main tenet of this approach is make the learners work together and support themselves during the process, but at the same time, creating and self dependence behavior. In other words, students are able to support their classmates and ask for help when it is needed, and also, they recognize their own strength to face their responsibility in the learning process.

                Parker, and Chao affirm that wiki has many uses in the educational context, they say wikis has been mainly applied to develop and reinforce the reading and writing skills, and to develop collaborative work in class and also to develop research projects. Another use of wikis, according to the same authors, is its application as a tool in the distance education or better known as online education.

                According to some information found in Educause Learning Interactive, wikis emerged at the middle of the 90s, at first they were used by engineers and scientists to develop dynamic knowledge bases. In the same page, it reads that wikis are described as a web page which can be modified by different people who access them. Also, it reeds that wiki is a tool to promote the cooperative work. Here we have a technical definition of wikis provide by Educase Learning Interactive:

Wiki is a combination of a CGI script and a collection of plain text files that allows users to create Web pages “on the fly.” All it takes is a connection to the Internet and a Web browser. When you click a wiki page’s “Edit” link, the script sends the raw text file to your browser in an editable form, allowing you to modify the content of the page. Pressing the “Save” button sends the modified text back to the wiki server, which replaces the existing text file with your changed version for all to see. When you request a wiki page, the script gathers the corresponding text file, changes its marked-up text into HTML, turns user-selected words into hyperlinks, inserts this information into a page template, and sends the result to your browser.

REFERENCES

Parker, K. and Chao, J. (2007), Wiki as a Teaching Tool. Interdisciplinary Journal of Knowledge and Learning Objects Volume 3. Idaho State University. Pocatello, Idaho, USA.

Educause Learning Interactive (2005) 7 things you should know about Wikis

Blogs

Blogs

Class N° 4

               

In this class we discussed about Blogs and its different uses and features. A definition of blog found in Wikipedia establishes that “Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. Blog can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog”.

In this class, we learned that blog is an example of a Web 2.0 since users can interact there, share information and send messages among them.

Most blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to leave comments and even message each other via widgets on the blogs and it is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other static websites. Blog can be used for different purposes; here you will find some links to learn more about Blogs and also a guide to create your own blog.

http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog

https://www.google.com/accounts/ServiceLogin?service=blogger&passive=1209600&continue=http://www.blogger.com/home&followup=http://www.blogger.com/home&ltmpl=start#s01

http://www.google.com/support/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=41345

Web 1.0, Web 2.0, Web 3.0; definitions and uses today. e-Portfolios

Web 1.0, Web 2.0, Web 3.0; definitions and uses today. e-Portfolios

               

In this class we discussed about Web 1.0, Web 2.0 and  Web 3.0. In this respect, we talked about their origins and differences, and also we talked about how these technological tools have changed our world. To summarize this class, it is advisable to provide a definition these three technological tools.

According to some information found in Wikipedia, Web 1.0 is the most basic form of internet. It emerged in 1993 for public access, but with some limitations. That is to say, with Web 1.0. Users were only able to reed information from web pages. There were not allowed to interact with the information in the pages, with the owner of the page or other users. One example of Web 1.0 could be the “Real Academia Española” web page. There you can find information, but you are not able to modify it.

According to Dean Clark`s In 2005, Internet faced a new change, at that time; Dale Dougherty came out with a revolutionary technological tool, it was Web 2.0. With this new innovate alternative, users were, by the first time, allowed to participate, freely, on the development of information. In other words, now, users not only could read, but also, they could add and share their ideas and information with others about a common or individual topic. One example of Web 2.0 could be Wikipedia, wikis, facebook and blogs where users are allowed to interact with information and other people.

About.com provides us with a comparison among Web 1.0 and Web 2.0: “Web 2.0 is an interactive and social web facilitating collaboration between people. This is distinct from the early web (Web 1.0) which was a static information dump where people read websites but rarely interacted with them.”

Dale Dougherty in his blog, gives us a definition of Web 3.0, the latest one. He says: “Basically, Web 3.0 is a location where web pages are read by machines just like humans read them. This is also a place where search engines abound. Looking at it on a layman’s perspective, it simply means a single database for the whole world (well, this is not quite simple when you begin to fathom the work it’s going to take to make this happen)”.

Dale Dougherty also provides us with an example of Web 3.0. He states: “The technology of Web 3.0 is evident in Google Gears which allows users to create web applications even when offline. The Adobe Flash player lets application developers have some access to the microphone and webcam. Pretty soon, it would be possible to drag then drop files from the desktop all the way to a web browser”.

For further information, I recommend to you to follows these links where I found the information previously discussed. I hope you enjoy.

http://formacionbiblioteca.udea.edu.co/moodle/mod/resource/view.php?id=15651

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_1.0

http://webtrends.about.com/od/web20/a/what-is-web-30.htm

http://deanclarke.wordpress.com/2008/03/23/web-30-and-the-features-that-wow-many-users/

Class N° 2

Basic concepts of ICT used in education. Current situation of ICT in TEFL

Information and Communication Technology
(ICTs)

In this class, we had a general discussion about ICT, its meaning, origin and different stages through history. We also talked about its relevance in teaching, and our perception of incorporating ICTs in our classrooms, and the way to do it.

                Some questions, related to ICT and education, e-learning, distance education, online classes, were asked to the audience. To answer them, we conformed four teams of three people to work on it. Then, we all, the teams and the teacher, discussed in class our responses. Finally, the teacher, after listening to us, added more information to complement our answers.

                After that, another topic was introduced by the teacher: next generation of internet: native and immigrant. In this respect, we identified ourselves as immigrant in this area and then, we talked about our current scenery and other three sceneries: a) World context, b) Latin America context, and c) Venezuela context.

                Later, we talked about our real knowledge in ICT, the way we use it to teach, and the ICT tools we incorporate in our teaching. Finally, we were asked if we use ICT with our students and the frequency we do it.

                As homework, we were asked to summarize this class and describe the local context in our work place, focus on the ICT current situation.

Porf. Héctor Escalona

Here you have three interesting links related to ICTs. I hope you like them:

 http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001390/139028e.pdf

http://www.dest.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/C251724A-1E09-4954-BFBE-FDA5836375E3/4508/technology.pdf

http://ec.europa.eu/education/policies/lang/doc/ict.pdf

Exploring the local context at Universidad Simón Bolívar-Sede Litoral

on the ICT current situation

I work as an English teacher at Universidad Simón Bolívar-Sede Litoral, this university is located in an isolated mountain in Camurí Grande, Estado Vargas, Venezuela. It is far away from the city, the closer town is a small one called Naiugatá, it is a 10 minutes from the university.

            One decade ago, this university had an amazing infrastructure, but in 1999 rained a lot on Vargas State, and a watercourse destroyed the university completely, in an event well known as “La Tragedia de Vargas”. Since then, the university has been rebuilt, but the process has been too long and it has not finished yet. So this university has many weaknesses, one of them is the Internet access.

            In theory, the English Department at the Universidad Simón Bolívar-Sede Litoral has 5 English laboratories; all of them with the required equipment and system to teach English as a foreign language, at least, it is hypothesized at the university. But this true does not match reality. These laboratories are just like common classrooms, but with more limitations. All of them have static big desks and computers, but teachers and students are not allowed to use or move them. There is not a specific reason for this situation; people in charge state different versions when they are asked.

            This condition makes difficult to incorporate internet into the English classes. There is a room with Internet access, it is known as “Sala OPSU”. In this room, all the students can check their e-mails and consult some web pages, but they are no able to listen to any audio or watch any video there. That is a rule in that room.

            So, it is difficult for the students to get Internet access out of the “Sala OPSU”, since many of them are from different areas of the country, so the live in a hall of residence in the small towns nearby the university, where internet access is not efficient, either. Therefore, to surf the net they have to go to the closer city, La Guaira, which is about one hour from the university.

Digital Literacy

Digital Literacy

Class N° 1

This was our first class. So we met the teacher and talk about the way the class was going to be. Even though, we had an overview of the content we will handle during this trimester, we made emphasis on a specific topic. This topic was: Digital Literacy.

In this term, we will have to handle different elements and tools related to digital literacy, so it is advisable to list some definitions of this topic from different sources.

According to Gilster, (1997) digital literacy is the “ability to understand and use information multiple formats from a wide range of sources when it is presented via computers” p1.

Dalziel , (2007), defines digital literacy as “the ability to use digital technology, communication tools or networks to locate, evaluate, use and create information”.

“Digital literacies' are the constantly changing practices through which people make traceable meanings using digital technologies” Gillen & Barton, (2009) p,1

REFERENCES

Gillen, J. & Barton, D. (2009). Digital Literacies. A discussion document for TLRP-TEL (Teaching and Learning Research Programme - Technology Enhanced Learning) workshop on digital literacies. Lancaster University 12-13 March 2009. Retrieved 29 December 2009, from http://www.tlrp.org/tel/files/2009/02/digital-literacies-gillen-barton-2009.pdf

Dalziel, K. (2007) Information, Media, and Digital Literacy. Taken from: http://nirak.net/2007/09/information-media-and-digital-literacy/ on April 28^th 2011.

Gilster P. (1997) Digital Literacy. New York. Wiley Computer Publishing. http://www.slideshare.net/verzosaf/information-literacy-and-digital-literacy-l-life-long-learning-initiatives/

Interviewing professor Adenis Raga

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