Here's what I think about photo-sharing...
Before I tried to do any research on the educational uses or benefits of photo-sharing websites, I sat down and made a list of all of the things I could see a photo-sharing site used for within a school setting. This is what I came up with:
1. Science experiments: kids could do things at home and post their results for the teacher and fellow classmates to see.
2. Weather events: students could capture local weather events and/or experiences and post them for the class to see.
3. Home Ec./Foods classes: students could cook things at home and share recipies and pictures of their completed creations.
4. Cosmetolgoy: students could share the work they have done outside of schools; things they have done for special events or just for fun.
I used my own professional setting to come up with these ideas and I thought about the classes that were offered at my school.
After I made this list, I went on the internet and did a Google search to see what kind of ideas, research and literature there is on this tool. I found a terrific site that talked about promoting "visual literacy". http://www.zardec.net.au/keith/digcam.htm It is a website that has so much information about the use of digital cameras in the classroom and it would really help both student and teacher. The site includes directions on how to use a digital camera, possible uses of cameras in the classroom, pros and cons of using digital photos, cost, buying tips and accessories. There was not much information on using photosharing sites specifically, but it does mention publishing photos to websites. Even though it not really about photosharing, I found it to be a great website for information purposes in getting started with using this technology in the classroom. It discussed using photo-sharing sites in art (I can't believe I didn't think about that one!), social studies, computer science classes (too obvious for my list), english (as a way to start a creative writing piece) and just about every subject taught in school today.
I also stumbled upon a University of Florida site that talks about many of the Web 2.0 tools mentioned in Joyce's podcast from the beginning of this course. One of the links lead me to a discussion of the use of Flickr in the classroom. http://www.citt.ufl.edu/toolbox/toolbox_photoSharing.php This site focused more on the uses for teachers. I was mostly focused on uses for teaching and student learning, but I never really thought about the uses for sharing resources with other teachers. The site had links to discussions about teachers who were looking for class room posters and science experiements. I think that photo sharing sites could be awesome for teachers to exchange and/or request information from other teacher throughout the world.
The last site that I went to was a wiki called Teaching Hacks; http://www.teachinghacks.com/wiki/index.php?title=Photo_Sharing_in_Education this site had heaps of information for teachers. It discusses why and how to use photosharing sites; again Flickr seems to be the site of choice. It also had links to elementary, high school, administrators and higher educational Flickr accounts. I found this to be really interesting because you could look around and see what other teachers are doing. If you have time to look at this site it is very interesting- in respects to both the information and the links to the teachers' sites.
After I did my search, I went back to the information on Topic One in the class notes. I was struck by the quote from Teaching and Learning in the Information Age that said, "Educational telecommunications offer powerful teaching and learning tools that can reshape the educatioal process in classrooms and demand a new set of skills from educators. This technology multiplies the power of modern computers by the power of connectivity, creating as a result, a potentially new approach to teaching." I think that because I have only been teaching for six years, I forget how much technology has changed how we do things in school. Even when I think back to my own educational experience. We use tools such as PowerPoint, digital projectors, DVD's, email, wesites, etc. without really even thinking about it. These are just part of what we do on a day-to-day basis. I think that we, as educators, are on the brink of a technological revolution in education and it is going to be a quick one. Some of us will be ready and some will resist and be afraid of it- I see this in my own school. Photo-sharing sites are only one of these new tools that we can use to enhance our students' learning and I believe soon, everyone will be using the Web 2.0 tools- like PowerPoint et al- without even thinking about it.
In terms of my own teaching, I plan to use this tool more, specifically with my grade 10 science class. This is the only class I teach, so I will be using it for most of my personal veiws and uses for the upcoming tools. There is a weather dynamics unit that I will use a phot-sharing site to illustrate weather events. Right now, I have a collection of pictures that I have taken with my digital camera, such as cummulus clouds taken right before a thunder storm, lightning, etc. that I use a digital projector to show students. Many of my students live on farms or in different areas of the city and many of them travel. I would love for them to be able to take digital photos of weather phenomena and post them to a site with comments. I think that I could get quite a collection and also I think that students would be in to it because it would be their own- they could take ownership.
My Experiences with a Photo-sharing Site
So, I actually went and signed up for a Flickr account. As I mentioned in the previous post, I do have a Ringo account, but I couldn't seem to access it. I did have to create a Yahoo account, but it didn't take long. My only problem with it is now I have another email address, username and password to remember. I uploaded two pictures from my computer and typed some text to describe them. It was relatively easy and I think the whole process only took 10 minutes- including signing up for the Yahoo account.
I think that I will use the Yahoo account and Flickr for the assignment I described above, but only for school purposes. I think that for personal photos, I will stick with Facebook and then my friends can see what I want them to see and my students don't have access to my personal photos.
If any one is interested, my yahoo and flicker account is: bell.katie48.
That's what I think about photo-sharing! Katie
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6 comments:
Katie, I like your suggestion of teachers using Flickr to share ideas and resources. I didn't even think of that. Arlene
Woah, I’d be weary about the Facebook/personal photos thing, given all of their privacy issues. The only site I trust for sharing photos is Pixamo. The only people who can see your personal photos are the people you invite to see them. They can’t forward the invitation to anyone – it basically gets deactivated once they’ve opened it. I moved all my Snapfish and Facebook photos there (Pixamo has a nifty importer tool that will take your photos and their tags and move them to Pixamo). You might want to check it out too – www.pixamo.com. Best of luck!
You make a good point, Katie, one that Jennifer and I have been talking about a lot. I/We really think that people need to use these web 2.0 tools for personal reasons before they start to see the potential for using them with students. I learned how to create a podcast by having my son record Happy Birthday for my father-in-law...then, once I saw how easy it was to create a podcast, I used it as an assignment for a course I taught last summer.
Joanne
I like your ideas of how to use Flickr in teaching Science. The weather photos would make something typically "dry" quite interesting and tons of fun.
Hi Kaie:
I like the idea of using photosharing for work done outside the classroom. It allows a whole new dimension of learning that doesn't have to take place between 8:45 and 2:45. I also like the idea of having some work available for parents to visit at thier convenience. This allows interaction between the parent, teacher and student, accountablility on the students part for doing their best on the assignment and a good way to see who is using web 2.0 tools at home.
Professional Development via photosharing is a great idea. I can see that as a valuable tool for TL's. I liked the flickr slideshow of the EduCon 2.0 conference in Philadephia.
Great work Katie.
Val
Hi Katie,
The ideas you came up with before beginning your inquiry into photosharing are great! Have the teachers in your school tried using photosharing this way, such as your Home Ec. suggestion? I might have to borrow that idea and pass it along to a Home Ec teacher I know. She'd love that idea!
Ronda
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