Lasso That Screen - Develop Fantastic Teaching and Learning Tools

Image via CrunchBaseBy Mary M Hobbs

How many times do you wish you had the time to go over material for students who may not have been in attendance or have learning difficulties or disabilities? It is these defining moments in teaching that are frustrating to both teachers and students.

Giving students the opportunity to catch up at their own pace, in a non-threatening environment and probably familiar context, will enhance their learning and give you precious time to support them and others.

Using a video screen capture tool gives you enormous scope to demonstrate specific concepts and processes ad nauseam (and you're not even in the picture). I've only recently been introduced to this tool, and I can see numerous applications.

1. Demonstrate how to access programs or tools in Word, Excel or whatever program you are using.
2. Applying a literacy or numeracy concept or process e.g. showing addition process.
3. Accessing the internet to open and complete a task or game.
4. Constructing sentences.
5. Proof reading and editing.

How do you access these programs? An internet search will deliver a plethora of sites where you can purchase a program, get a free demo or access a free option.

Initially, I used a free screen capturing program and it served its purpose for the basic videos I developed. However, since then I have updated to a pro version to have access to more options and a higher quality output. A few tips before embarking on this new learning adventure.

• Write a script prior to starting.
• Create a story board.
• Ad libbing can be very tricky, unless you are using previously presented information.
• Change the option buttons for recording and pausing to keys you want to use on the keyboard.
• Use PAUSE often! This helps with the flow of your video and you are less likely to become flustered or lose the plot.

Why not share this device with your students? In the area of literacy and numeracy, where I work with adults, to achieve their assessment outcomes they may need to present information to the group. Using the above mentioned strategies i.e. story board or script can also be used by students to achieve assessment outcomes.

Previously I had students present information using PowerPoint, but this tool in my opinion, can be more effective. Screen capturing will allow a student to demonstrate, first hand, the process they implemented to complete a task and solutions they have used to solve problems.

These programs have an audio option. Using an inbuilt or good quality microphone will enable both yourself and students to deliver a neo-professional video.

To incorporate title and credits to the finished product I've used Microsoft Movie Maker. This program also enables me to edit the video. One word of advice, always save the video you create to a specific folder. There are still a couple of my videos floating around the ether of the Universe.

MazioCreate develops literacy and numeracy resources that can be used with a range of learners. These resources have successfully been used with students ranging in age from 16 to 64. The contextualized format is designed to engage adults and youth in real life learning opportunities where they can develop and apply their literacy and numeracy skills. If you need material that covers a specific topic, contact MazioCreate info@maziocreate.com.au and we'll work with you to achieve a high quality learning resource.

Register NOW for our monthly e-newsletter and free resource at http://www.maziocreate.com.au.

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Is Creativity Valued in Schools?

Image via CrunchBaseBy Amanda Rodriguez

So, Steve Jobs has no doubt impacted society in many ways. What about Apple's "Think Different" ad campaign, which promotes creativity, innovation, and that the "crazy ones" who succeed and break down barriers?

Masters in creativity and thinking outside the box ultimately are the forces behind innovation and progress, but it seems that this is really only a facade, a mirage, and emulation of our society.

Just look at our educational system and teaching methods. Do they really reflect the importance of creativity? Do they hold thinking abstractly, not logically in high regard? Why doesn't our educational embrace this perspective of thinking, and how will this affect innovation in the long term?

In my opinion, and based on my years in the educational system (I currently hold a bachelor's degree in urban planning), creativity is not valued. I say this because our educational system is based on conformity and acceptance of everything that is in textbooks and theories. There are few courses that really push out thinking beyond what is "already accepted" or known to be true.

In fact, when teachers were asked to describe the characteristics and qualities of their favorite students, the results of the study showed personality traits correlated negatively with the traits that creative students had, like being individualistic, less outgoing, more impulsive, and outspoken and emotionally charged. Teachers instead reported that they preferred conformity and basically students who did not question authority.

In reality, when teachers say they want students to develop their own consciousness and have their own voice, indirectly, they do not prefer it. This shows that creative students are not celebrated in our educational system, which cannot be fully efficient with students who go against the status quo. The idea of creativity is always encouraged, but as far as its actual manifestations, proves to be more disruptive than accepted.

So, do we really value creativity in schools? It depends on who you ask and what their motives are. If you ask some preschool kids, they want to believe that there are many colors to the rainbow, many colors to flowers, but teachers will teach according to a set of accepted facts held true. Roses are red and leaves are green. There is no gray area for discussion. Some people believe that creativity should be taught at a young age, when the child still is their own person, relatively unchanged from society.

Nurturing creativity and abstract thinking should be encouraged in schools and higher education institutions. It is the backbone of innovation and progress. If everyone thought the same way and believed the same things, we would remain stagnant at best. Instead of offering different perspectives, schools only reinforce primary beliefs, and facts established by the status quo.

Could our educational system add on another dimension to our curriculum? Yes. But we are restricted by a tight federal budget and increasingly, programs like music, art, and dance are being cut because in the eyes of administrators, they are lower prioritized and not needed. This is where students lack creativity because from the get-go, they are not exposed to another outlet to express their individual thoughts and artistic means.

The best colleges will offer creative courses and online creative degrees, which is a great supplement to our traditional educational curriculum.

Free-lance writer with a passion for Writing and Research.
Amanda Rodriguez
Creative Degrees Online

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