The EdTech Connection

I shared this last year and I will probably share it again next year (in fact, I briefly shared it already this year!) - Awesome Screenshot is my FAVORITE way of grabbing quick online screenshots, especially ones that need to be edited with arrows or boxes. Even better, I can save them online if I need, blur out faces/names/IDs, and do all of those same things while doing a screencast!

I am still a huge fan of Screencastify if I need to edit the screencast, but for just a quick record-and-share, Awesome Screenshot is perfect, because the recording is available to view IMMEDIATELY (whereas Screencastify often has a processing delay).

As I shared in an earlier newsletter, I love this extension so much that I've chosen to pay for it, but there is also a free version that is pretty darn cool.

Now that we are basically "back," I thought I'd share some of the blogs I've read recently about the lessons we've learned from online times and how we can improve blended learning in our face-to-face classrooms.

• Blended Learning: 4 Models That Work: Cult of Pedagogy, with Jennifer Gonzalez, is one of my favorite blogs to follow. This entry features Catlin Tucker who literally wrote the book(s) on blended learning. BONUS: She also has a podcast, so you can listen to it instead of reading it, if you prefer!
• I’m Still Using Blended Learning Because It Allows Me to Be a Better Teacher in Three Ways: Yes, it's a long title, but I personally know BOTH of these people and they are worth the long title and the listen! I met Carl Hooker at GaETC and Michele Eaton at ISTE - they are both incredibly intelligent and passionate about what they do. Michele also wrote the book on blended learning, so she knows what she's talking about!
  
• Roadmap to Student Engagement: OK, to be honest, this is an interview, not a blog, but it's still great! Weston Kieschnick is an educator, TEDx speaker, and author. His most recent book, ATLAS, is all about student engagement. One of the most provocative statements? “Long live the lecture.” Check it out to learn more!

For years and years, the only (easy) way we had to share information in itslearning was by adding a Page with a variety of content blocks. Recently, we could add a Google file and that file would just be embedded...but it took SO LONG that many people didn't switch to that instead of Pages (myself included, in many cases).

With our move to Canvas, it's important to start thinking about the BEST and MOST efficient way of sharing information, as well as why we are sharing it in a certain way. If the reason is just because "well, that's how we've been doing it in itslearning..." then that isn't good enough!

There might be better ways of sharing straight up "info" if the idea of creating a Page in Canvas is overwhelming at this point.

Consider instead:

• a Google Doc (this can be added as a File or published to the web & added to a Module as a Link)
• a Google Slide (good if you are including video; this can be added as a File, or published to the web & added to a Module as a Link)
• a Google Site
• a Microsoft Word file
• a Microsoft PowerPoint file
• a Microsoft Sway

Of course, you can also just create a Page in Canvas! If the "design" element is overwhelming, just add your content! You can always find design "templates" in the Canvas Commons. If you want to find out more about the Canvas Commons before we get there next semester, check out Module 10 in our FSC Growing with Canvas course (sorry, only available to FCS employees).