Continuing
with last week’s blog, a couple of other technologies that are available at
Mercy College include Soft Chalk and Voice thread. Soft Chalk is a learning
tool that makes content more interactive. The educator can use this tool to
make interactive lessons or assessments. Soft Chalk also has a “cloud” that you
can use to find lessons or assessments. Teachers can also use the cloud to
store and share their content. Soft Chalk is compatible with most learning
management systems (LMS). The other thing that I appreciate about soft chalk is
that upon completion of any assessment, soft chalk grades and records the score
into the grade book of the LMS. When Soft Chalk was first implemented in my
online course, the students did struggle a bit with completing the assessment,
but we found that the issues were due user error. I believe what has helped me
the most with learning how to implement this technology are the webinars that
are located on the website and our faculty resource page. Also, as I mentioned
before our distance education provides monthly technology workshops. The topics
of the seminars range from academic integrity, best practices, and innovative
teaching strategies. Attending those workshops have been helpful because
faculty can ask questions and interact with the technology.
A
second technology that I have utilized in my online courses is the Voice
Thread. Voice Thread allows the teacher or the students to present a power
point online with adding a voice and video. Each student in my online course
has to complete a research project, and they use Voice Thread to share their
findings. Each student posts the link to the presentation in the online
discussion forum and then the students access the presentation. This technology
has been beneficial because it gives the student the opportunity to complete a
project and share their findings in the online environment. Many of the
students that enroll in online classes do so for the convenience and
accessibility, and Voice Thread helps maintain the convenience and access for
the students. I would recommend that Mercy College continues to invest in
products like Voice Thread and Soft chalk because they are interactive and
student-centered. I believe that having
the distance education department offer monthly professional development
opportunities for faculty, is crucial for improving online learning
experiences. I have included several links below that discuss the different
online tools available for educators. I also added websites that introduce Soft
Chalk and Voice Thread.
References:
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