Bookmark/Favorite Serivces

I really cannot imagine using the internet for school work or for personal enjoyment without also using bookmark/favorite services. Bookmarking a site or setting it as your "favorite" means essentially saving the link to it onto a tab in your web browser so that it can be accessed later on. This tool is very useful for doing research projects where multiple websites need to be accessed multiple times. Instead of writing down each individual link and retyping it every time you wish to visit it, a simple click of the mouse will take you to the desired website. This feature also comes in handy when simply surfing the web for sites that look interesting. When you find a website that you would like to further look into but at a later time, bookmarking it can be a very convenient way to save the website, continue surfing the web, and return to it when you want to. One can also bookmark a site that they visit often, so as to avoid having to retype the website each time. Whether if be for work or for pleasure, Bookmark/Favorite Services make navigating the internet very fast and convenient.

PDA's- Personal Digital Assistants

I recently found an article that discussed the benefits and new found popularity of using Personal Digital Assistants (PDA's) in the classroom. PDA's, which range in price from $100-$500 are starting to be integrated into college classrooms across the country. Some of the main features of PDA's are that they can be used for storing phone numbers and addresses, checking email, keeping schedules, and playing games. Now, PDA's are becoming more and more useful for classroom use because of their new, expansive features. New technological features such as miniature keyboards can turn your PDA into a miniature word processor. Other features include wireless modems that can connect you to most college networks, and infrared ports that allow for shared data from one PDA to another. Use of PDA's on medical school campuses is much more widespread than regular college campuses due to the incredible availability of medical software. However, many major univerisities have started to use PDA's in their classrooms and I think that the trend is just beginning.
http://chronicle.com/free/v49/i07/07a03301.htm

Using Digital Images and Video in the Classroom

What kid doesn't love to watch movies or look at pictures? I know that when I was younger, I used to love when my teacher would use videos or pictures to teach a lesson because visual aids always helped me gain a deeper understanding of the material. Integrating video projects into classroom content keeps student engaged and interested in what is being taught. This process has become easier with the increased availability of low cost video cameras, video editing software tools, and digital cameras. Visual aids do not only need to be used to teach lessons, they can also be used as projects for student assessment. I found one website <http://www.teachingk-8.com/archives/how_to/how_touse_digital_images_and_video.html> that mentioned certain examples of projects for students to complete and listed some different websites for even more options. These projects emphasize the importance of group work in the classroom in addition to individual work. The student must fulfill his or her task while still working with others to collaborate the final project. Although there are a lot of really good aspects of assigning digital projects to students, there are also some negative aspects of it. Some of the negative aspects are that each assignment takes a lot of time to create and that there is always the possibility of having the equipment or technology break down before the project is completed. Despite these problems, I think that integrating video and other visual aids into the classroom can teach students in a more interesting and entertaining way.