Book Discussion in Voicethread

Coauthored writing

Is language developed as a symbol system to express knowledge acquired through interaction with the physical world? Is thought essentially internalized speech that emerges in social interaction? or is it both? The struggle between Piaget's and Vygotsky's theories that is going on in my head was sparkled by my some what frustrating experience when participating in a collaborative writing exercise.It took me a while to find a connection with the prompt, so I waited for someone else to start.Once I felt I couldn't wait anymore ,I decided to take one element from the lead, and go with it. At times, I thought to go with the flow of the writing was the responsible thing to do, but then after a long day's work, the need for a laugh was more powerful than the sense of duty. I wasn't satisfied with the result, and felt guilty.Since the activity had the option of editing someone else's work, I waited to see what would happen.Finally someone was brave enough to give it a twist and the result was great. The experience made me aware of how our students feel when they are asked to write about something that they have no idea what it is or have no connection to.The value of using the collaborative writing technique is what the authors can learn from each other.It gives the learner a better look into the writing process.
Listen to this interview from NPR about an author's experience with Coauthored writing .It is really interesting.

Using Voicethread

In my search for the most didactic voicethread tutorial, I found some that were interesting but dull, others fun but too simple.(Others had been already taken)
These had the most profesional and enjoyable presentations of all.Although I feel that effective learning takes place when there is more face-to-face interaction, the use of voicethread can allow those that cannot be physically present, to participate and be heard. This makes a good tool for distance education.

My first Prezi !

Pause and Ponder on Prezi

After struggling for several hours I finally managed to finish my first presentation using Prezi. This is a more dynamic way of combining words and images than power point, the tool I use on a daily basis.I might have missed some editing, but I feel good knowing that I am one more step ahead on the path towards Digital Literacy Land.

Ahchoo!!

Trial and error