Hey I just discovered this cool timeline tool which I intend to use next year with my History classes. It is called Dipity and allows the user to create timelines over any period and to post events with multimedia embedded. There is even a function which allows for the presenting of timelines in a “flipbook” format.
This was clearly made as a free social software tool for people to share their travels with each other. I could just imagine getting students either individually or in groups to present a historical topic to the class or via their blog etc. Of course it can be embedded. Here is a sample one that I found on the History of Technology:
Well my year long elearning fellowship has finally come to an end and I will be back into regular teaching alongside my role as eLearning Director at Wellington College starting next year.
This year has seen me test and research a model of learning which I had used previously with a Year 11 History class. The research explored how student interactivity can be enhanced through the use of a blended learning approach and sought to discover how students could become more engaged in their learning when offered an environment that encouraged interaction and collaboration.
I used a Moodle LMS where students prepared for upcoming classes by engaging with online readings, quizzes, forum discussions and a variety of other resources and activities. They would then come to class and participate in activities including discussion around the content that had been covered. I found that the students were interacting with the content, me and each other with a deeper understanding than they might have previously. One of the most significant findings was that engagement equalised, that is to say that lower ability students became more engaged in discussion now that they felt more confident in their knowledge of course content. I finish my report with a discussion about how I believe that emerging technologies will impact on the future of blended learning and high schools in general.
My completed research report is available for download in PDF format here (2.14MB). It will be made available on the efellows site shortly.
I have also discussed my research project and year in general in an edtalks video which can be viewed below (approximately 7 mins):
"Schools should explore not only how ICT can supplement traditional ways of teaching but also how it can open up new and different ways of learning" -The NZ Curriculum (p36)
