The Virtual Staffroom

Our first episode features a conversation with Anne Baird from Wedderburn school in Victoria.  Anne talks about the role of ICTs in today's classrooms, the changing nature of learning and the importance of the teacher's role in learning. Originally published October 2, 2006 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/virtual-staffroom/message

Kathleen McClaskey and Barbara Bray take a special interest in personalised learning, differentiated instruction and the whole concept of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). In this episode we dig into many of these concepts to learn more, including the sharing of some useful apps for personalised learning. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Personalized Learning Toolkits: Designing New Pathways for Each Child https://sites.google.com/site/personalizedlearningtoolkits/ Kathleen’s links: Kathleen’s website:  www.edtech-associates.com Kathleen’s Scoop.it topics: Personalized Learning:  http://www.scoop.it/t/personalized-learning-plearningUDL:  http://www.scoop.it/t/udl-universal-design-for-learningUDL, Math and Technology:  http://www.scoop.it/t/math-technology-and-udl-closing-the-achievement-gapLeveling the Playing Field with Apps:  http://www.scoop.it/t/leveling-the-playing-field-with-appsBlog:  http://udlmobileapps.blogspot.com/ Twitter:  khmmc Facebook: kmcclaskey Linked-In:  kathleenmcclaskey LinkedIn Group on Personalized Learning: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=4218860&trk=anet_ug_hm Barbara’s links: Barbara’s Website and Blog: http://barbarabray.net Scoopit: Apps for the Student-Centered Classroom: http://www.scoop.it/t/apps-for-the-student-centered-classroom Scoopit: Making Learning Personal: http://www.scoop.it/t/making-learning-personal My eCoach: http://my-ecoach.com LinkedIn Group on Personalized Learning: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=4218860&trk=anet_ug_hm LinkedIn: barbarabray Twitter: bbray Skype: bbray27 Facebook barbarabray What the United States could learn from Finland about education reform http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/82329/education-reform-Finland-US

Like most teachers, Brett Moller, Bruce Fuda, Ashley Proud and Carolyn Foote all have to deal with the realities of filters and blocks on their school Internet connection, although they all experience this reality in slightly different ways.. In this episode we talk about web filters, the need to keep kids safe online and try to balance the argument with good old fashioned some common sense. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Ashley Proud- @ashleyproud http://www.iamoneofthosepeople-ashley.blogspot.com Bruce Fuda - @Bruce1979  http://fuda.me/ Carolyn Foote - @technolibrary  http://www.futura.edublogs.org Brett Moller -  @brettmoller   http://www.brettmoller.com Links: National Computer Science School - http://ncss.edu.au/ Children’s Internet Protection Act  http://www.fcc.gov/guides/childrens-internet-protection-act Tennessee-ACLU case  http://www.aclu.org/free-speech_lgbt-rights/tennessee-schools-and-students-reach-settlement-internet-censorship-case Sample Library Materials Selection policy/procedures for complaint about sites/materials  http://tinyurl.com/6qol5a8 A Sticking Plaster mentality to Open Web Access in Schools http://edte.ch/blog/2012/01/11/a-sticking-plaster-mentality-to-open-web-access-in-schools

Michael Graffin is a young relief teacher from near Perth, Western Australia who has never had his own classroom but has still managed to discover the joys of working across the Internet on global projects. In this episode, Michael is joined by one of his collaboration partners Theresa Allen from Chicago, and also Lisa Parisi from New York, as we discuss the wonders of learning using online collaborative projects. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Michael Graffin - @mgraffin mgraffin.edublogs.org Theresa Allen  - @tdallen5  techcsrn.edublogs.org Lisa Parisi  - @LParisi  www.thelisaparisi.com The Global Classroom Project: 2011-12 Blog - http://theglobalclassroomproject.wordpress.com Wiki - http://globalclassroom2011-12.wikispaces.com Email - globalclassroomorganisers@gmail.com Edmodo:  Global Classroom 11-12 Teacher Skype Group - contact mgraffin on skype Facebook - facebook.com/groups/globalclassroom Global Classroom Contacts Deb Frazier - @frazierde (Global Classroom Creator) Michael Graffin - @mgraffin (Global Classroom Coordinator) Theresa’s Global Projects presentation:  http://bit.ly/projectsglobal (over 15 projects) Theresa’s project in Global Classroom wiki:  http://globalclassroom2011-12.wikispaces.com/Hero+Voicethread+Project Global Collaboration survey answers:  https://docs.google.com/a/csrn.org/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ahfh6ZcGBvi-dFFlQUJIenFOQnZXRDl3eGVGQ00wN0E&hl=en_US#gid=0 Some examples of projects from Lisa http://poetrycollaboration.wikispaces.com/ - won award http://timezoneexperiences.wikispaces.com/ - won award http://energizingenergy.wikispaces.com/ http://geographyandus.wikispaces.com/ http://readacrosstheglobe.wikispaces.com/ http://pointofviewwritingproject.wikispaces.com/ - This one is just starting http://comparinghemispheres.wikispaces.com/ - won award http://historymysteries.wikispaces.com/ http://classroombooktalk.wikispaces.com/Mysteries+of+Harris+Burdick- won award http://virtualusa.wikispaces.com/ - in progress and still taking participants - really about the globe not the US http://westernhemisphere.wikispaces.com/ http://energizingenergy.wikispaces.com/

John Warnken is a good guy. He's 58 years old, lives in Florida and is not officially a teacher. However, John has been voluntarily working with students from all over the world to help them improve their English and broaden their view of the world. He's now on a mission to help other seniors do the same. Using the power of Skype, John has spent the last 4 years Skyping into classrooms all over the world working with kids that want to talk with a native English speaker. It's a short podcast, but a great story. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Links for this episode John's blog - http://itutorforyou.com/News article about John  - http://www.chronicleonline.com/content/inverness-man-rock-star-overseas-english-studentsAnd another one - http://www.chronicleonline.com/content/small-world-eccc-teacher-becomes-international-tutorStory from Endang Palupi's blog - http://endangpalupi.wordpress.com/2011/04/09/siapa-dia/Story from the italki blog - http://blog.italki.com/2009/07/john-warnken-and-teaching-english-online-to-schools-in-indonesia/italki website - http://www.italki.com/John's profile - http://www.italki.com/T000849184.htmSkype for Educators - http://education.skype.com I think this is a wonderful story about how people can connect globally in ways that make each others lives richer. Drop a comment below with your thoughts, or visit John's blog directly and say hi.

Deon Scanlon, Andrew Churches, Allanah King and Amanda Marrinan are leading Australian and New Zealand educators who use iPads, iPods (and even iPhones) in their work with kids. In this episode we share 48 of our favourite and most useful iOS apps… some fun, some silly, some educational, some serious; but all amazing! If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Deon Scanlon - @deonscanlonAndrew Churches - @achurchesAllanah King - @allanahkAmanda Marrinan - @marragemThe 48 Apps Sonic Pics - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sonicpics/id345295488Reel Director - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/reeldirector/id334366844Splice - http://itunes.apple.com/app/splice-video-editor/id386894062iTimeLapse - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/itimelapse-pro-time-lapse/id335866860Frog Dissection - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/frog-dissection/id377626675Puppet Pals HD - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/puppet-pals-hd/id342076546SlingNote - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/sling-note/id385068849Evernote - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/evernote/id281796108iThoughts HD - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ithoughtshd-mindmapping/id369020033Earthquake - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/earthquake/id304483984Zapd - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/zapd/id426955081GoodReader - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/goodreader-for-ipad/id363448914DropBox - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/dropbox/id327630330TypeDrawing - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/typedrawing/id314072879HDR Pro - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/pro-hdr/id347104281Photogene - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/photogene/id287273856Camera+ - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/id329670577Photoshop Express - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/adobe-photoshop-express/id331975235Slow Shutter - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/slow-shutter/id340712897Printopia - http://www.ecamm.com/mac/printopiaeClickerHost - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/eclicker-host/id329199509QuestionPress - http://www.questionpress.com/Student Response Network - http://studentresponsenetwork.com/downloadNeoReader - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/neoreader/id284973754QR Reader - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/qr-reader-for-iphone/id368494609Live Mathletics - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/live-mathletics/id299596224iSwifter - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/iswifter/id388857173Talking Tomcat - http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/talking-tom-cat/id377194688SmackTalk! - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smacktalk/id306752436Pages - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/pages/id361309726Numbers - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/numbers/id361304891Keynote - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/keynote/id361285480Bento - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/bento/id314638461AudioNote - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/audionote-notepad-voice-recorder/id369820957SolarWalk - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/solar-walk-for-mac-3d-solar/id413570629StarWalk - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/star-walk-for-ipad-interactive/id363486802Comic Touch - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/comic-touch/id284959707ComicStrip - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/comicstrip-cs/id392197108Marvel Comics - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/marvel-comics/id350027738PlayTime Theater - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/playtime-theater/id411289693Bump - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/bump/id305479724iBeer - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ibeer-5-beers-coffee-milk/id283914070Real Racing HD - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/real-racing-hd/id363998989MathBoard - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mathboard/id373909837TED Talks - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/ted/id376183339i-Prompt Pro - http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/i-prompt-pro/id377363375SoundAMP R - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/soundamp-r/id318126109Rory's Story Cubes - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/rorys-story-cubes/id342808551Happy downloading. Enjoy!

Helen Otway is an assistant principal and Ultranet Coach in Victoria, Australia. She is passionate about ICT, professional development and developing a school culture of continual learning. In this episode we talk about a range of topics including sharing to build  school culture, learning through failure, and developing a more thoughtful approach to teaching and learning through reflective practice. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here We also talk about the Victorian iPad Trial and where iPads might fit into education in general, as well as some pontificating about Apple and their iOS platform. Blog - http://helenotway.edublogs.orgTwitter - http://twitter.com/helenotwayVictorian iPad Trial - http://www.ipadsforeducation.vic.edu.auDouble your Dropbox - https://www.dropbox.com/eduDiffendoofer day - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hooray_for_Diffendoofer_Day!

Apple's iDevices are gaining lots of traction in the education sphere lately, and with good reason. They have many of the characteristics of an almost perfect learning device, so it's no wonder so many schools around the world are trying to work out how they might best fit into the learning process. Rob Newberry, Tyler Sherwood and Brett Moller all work in schools that are exploring ways that the iPad, iPhone and iPad touch can be leveraged for greater learning. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here In this episode we hear some of the successes and lessons learned about deploying iDevices, we hear about an app written for Brett's school in Queensland, as well as a quick round of app recommendations at the end. Rob Newberry -  @robinthailandTyler Sherwood - @tsherwoodBrett Moller - @brettmollerApps mentioned in this episode Doodle Buddy - More than just drawing, shared whiteboards, etcSliceIt! - Create shape puzzles by carving up shapes into smaller partsSonicPics - Create digital stories and slideshows on the goWheels on the Bus - Get the littlies to make their own storiesSoundNote - Recorder for taking audio notesStoryboard Composer - Build complex storyboards with photos, SFX and timingDragon Dictation - Speech recognition softwareNanostudio - A full recording studio on the iPhoneKings Christian College - The app Brett got developed for his school

Tim Kong, John Pearce, Britt Gow and Leigh Zeitz get together to chat about science education, but we soon get carried away talking about some of the bigger, broader issues of teaching in general. In the end, we cover a whole lot of different stuff.  This was another podcast organised over Twitter at short notice. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Links for this episode John Pearcehttp://johnp.wordpress.com @mrpbps Britt Gowhttp://brittgow.globalteacher.org.au @brittgow Tim Konghttp://continue.edublogs.org @timoslimo Leigh Zeitzhttp://drzreflects.com @zeitz

When it comes to blogging with students, Linda Yollis and Kathleen Morris know what they're talking about. In this episode they share some of their wisdom about getting very young students to blog effectively. Some great tips and advice on blogging.  Both Linda and Kathleen had their blogs nominated for the 2010 Edublog Awards, and Linda was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award. If you're looking for great advice about student blogging, this is the place! If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Kathleen Morris (nee McGeady) Integrating Technology in the Primary ClassroomMy professional learning blog where I share ideas and discuss issues surrounding ICT in the primary classroomhttp://primarytech.globalteacher.org.au 2KM BlogMy Grade Two class blog at Leopold Primary School 2009 and 2010http://2kmblog.globalstudent.org.au Diigo SiteThis is where I store my favourite websites.http://www.diigo.com/user/kathleenmcgeady Twitter: kathleen_morris Skype: mrs.kathleen.morris Linda Yollis Mrs. Yollis' Classroom Blog (3rd grade classroom blog) http://yollisclassblog.blogspot.com/ Reading Round-Up! (shared collaboration blog w/Jonah Salsich / literacy blog) http://thereadingroundup.blogspot.com/ Yollis' 365 Project(class project / learning about digital photography and creative commenting) http://yollis365project.blogspot.com/ Educational Blogging Wiki(resources for teachers who want to have a classroom blog) http://educational-blogging.wikispaces.com/ Twitter: @lindayollis Skype: lindayollis Class Twitter: @MrsYollis Shared Projects Collaboration Corner Shared collaboration blog with Linda Yollis http://collaboration-corner.blogspot.com/ Ugandan Global Project2010 global project across four continents http://ugandanglobalproject.blogspot.com/

Melinda Alford is a teacher who cares about design. From the design of her classroom, to the design of her school, to the design of the work she expects from her students, design plays an important role in the things she does.  In this episode we talk to Melinda about her classroom, her school, her city and a bunch of other things. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Melinda is from Atlanta Georgia in the USA, but teaches at Concordia International School in Shanghai China, where she's lived with her family for the past 7 years. As well as talking about education issues we also chat a little about life in China. We also ask the controversial question, "do teachers who have done things outside of teaching make the best teachers?" Melinda's Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/melindaalfordConcordia International School Shanghai - http://www.ciss.com.cn/Learning 2.010 Conference - http://hosted.ciss.com.cn/learning2010/ Also, don't forget that the Virtual Staffroom has been nominated (again!) for an Edublog Award in the Best Educational Podcast division.  If you'd like to cast a vote our way, feel free at http://edublogawards.com/2010awards/best-educational-podcast-2010 PS: In the podcast I accidentally attributed the "Did You Know?" videos to Michael Wesch.  While Michael has made some amazing videos about Digital Ethnography, I should correct myself and say that Karl Fisch is generally considered to be the originator of the "Did you Know" videos.

In this episode I get to have a fun chat with three highly connected educators about the value that being connected brings to them. Chrissy Hellier is a New Zealander working in Bangkok; Amanda Marrinan teaches in Brisbane Australia; and Paul Wood works in Dallas, Texas. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here We talk about the idea of connectedness, the value of what it means to be a connected educator and the opportunities it can open for your classroom. We also talk about Skype, Twitter and other tools of connectedness, as well as the value of actually starting the recorder when recording a podcast! Enjoy! Mentioned in the podcast... Skype - www.skype.comBlogger - www.blogger.comClass Blogmeister - classblogmeister.comSkype the Vasa Museum - vasamuseet.se/en/About/News/Skype-visits/Amanda Marrinan 2mgems.blogspot.com@marragemamanda.gem Chrissy Hellier teachingsagittarian.com@nzchrissynzchrissy Paul R Wood whatisyouritvision.blogspot.com@prwoodprwood50

Mark Osborne from Albany Senior High School in NZ joins us to talk about the way his school leverages the power of Open Source software, cloud computing and hosted servers. We are also joined by Australian teachers Roland Gesthuizen and Peter Ruwoldt. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Albany Senior High School - ashs.school.nz/Mark's Blog - theopensourceschool.blogspot.com/Roland's Blog - plakboek.livejournal.com/Peter's Blog - waraku.blogspot.com/Other resources mentioned in the podcast The OpenDisc - http://www.theopendisc.com/Software Freedom Day - Annual international event to celebrate free software and help communities to become aware and better informed.  Look for an event near you or host one of your own. - This year it is on 18SEP2010 - http://softwarefreedomday.org/Ubuntu - http://www.ubuntu.com/Open Office - http://www.openoffice.org/Richard Stallman on why schools should exclusively use free software - http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/schools.htmlEnjoy!  Comments welcome as always.

After rustling these guys up on Twitter at short notice, Rob Newberry, David Wees, Linda Pilkington, Britt Gow and Suzie Vesper join us to talk about copyright, iPads and iPods, and pretty much anything else on their minds! If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here Suzie Vesper - @suzievesper Britt Gow - @brittgowLinda Pilkington - @linda_pilkoRob Newberry - @robinthailandDavid Wees - @davidwees Copyright Linkshttp://www.tineye.com/http://www.p2pu.orghttp://www.smartcopying.com.au iPods in Education Links http://web.me.com/jenashby/iPodTouch_Project/iPodTouch_Project.htmlhttp://slidetolearn.ning.com/http://ipodtouchclassroom.ning.com/ Suzie's Wikishttp://educationalsoftware.wikispaces.com/http://learningweb2.wikispaces.com/http://sharetheaddiction.edublogs.org/

During the recent Australian ITSC Conferences run by Apple Australia, Chris Betcher gave the keynote address called This is Not Amazing.  This podcast is a recording of that keynote. If you cannot see the audio controls, listen/download the audio file here The ITSC Conferences took place on the Gold Coast, Adelaide, Sydney, Perth and Melbourne, and contained a significant unconference component that allowed participants to play and explore ideas rather than just get talked at.  However, there were still a few "talks", and this keynote was one of them.  It's based on the idea that, 10 years into the 21st Century, we need to stop being so amazed at things that ought to by now just be part of the way things are. Apple ITSC site - http://www.apple.com/au/education/itsc/Betchaboy's original blog post - http://chrisbetcher.com/2009/11/this-is-not-amazing/