So, I finally made the jump from traditional HTML, XHTML & CSS to Joomla! and now to WordPress for my website. The traditional HTML website consumes too much time to maintain, while the Joomla! is great for large content sites, I found it more involved than I was looking for. WordPress on the other hand gives all the bells and whistles as well as the ease that I need and want.
Being a computer science teacher, there are times when I feel like I’m drowning in technology even though I love it. Anything that makes interacting with the web is magic to me. Getting what you want for free is always a great thing, thanks, WordPress!
The day started out with keynote speaker, Marco Torres, a highly animated practical minded educator who understands and practices in-depth fusion of integrating technology into education. Here are a few of Mr. Torres’ quotes:
- “Schooling and learning are not always the same thing; they can get in the way of each other.”
- “Stay in the question…if the question is a ‘how-to’…look it up before you ask…problem-solve.”
- “It’s not teacher and students; it’s all learners.”
- “What’s your B side?”
The last statement is out of context. My understanding is that its purpose is to get an individual to think about what makes them passionate. One’s side A is what everyone sees, while side B may typically hides one’s passions. Mr. Torres challenges one to create a video that shares that passion without directly telling what the passion is; allow passion to become the focus of the video rather than the object of that passion.
During the keynote Mr. Torres shared a quote from Eric Hoffer, an American philosopher, that truly reflects the evolution of education today: “In times of change learners inherit the Earth; while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”
Tags: actem09, education, Marco Torres
Having a great time here at ACTEM’s Google Workshop for Educators. I’m learning lots of cool features about Google Maps and Docs.
In Google Maps one can add links and images to their pins within the map. How cool is that! Did you know that there are map plugins? There are hundreds of plugins such as distance tool, find anything around you, real estate search, and dig a hole through Earth just to name to a few. Want those maps in 3D? There’s a link to “View in Google Earth” which pulls that created map into Google Earth which allows one to view interactive 3d maps. Side note: To create 3D maps use Google SketchUp. Create a 3d model of a house, city, region, etc in Google SketchUp, submit it to Google and if it gets approved they’ll add it to Google Earth! Sweet!
In Google Docs one can create a “template”. It’s not a traditional template that creates a new file from the template, rather the creator shares the file either a document, spreadsheet, presentation with a collaborator that then “make[s] a copy” of that file. If the collaborator maintains the creator’s sharing settings, it can still be accessed by both creator and collaborator, yet the creator’s original file remains the same – the template. So, a faster and easier way for template making than Adobe. It does not have all the features of Adobe, but for something fast and quick it’s great!
Tags: actem09, education, google workshop for educators, web2.0