FTT - uBlock Origin

Decommercializing the Web for the Classroom (and Maybe Home, Too)

@joe_edtech/@LisaBerghoff

Today's FTT is a throwback to my first contribution to this blog as a guest contributor in 2016. How things have changed! 

I had always considered myself to be a price-savvy, prudent consumer who wasn't susceptible to the same greasy advertisement schemes, ploys, and tactics that suckered the rest of society.

And then I began shopping for an engagement ring.

One of the best and worst parts of planning a proposal is the immense pressure of creating that perfect moment of astonishment and surprise.The mental gymnastics involved in somehow discretely acquiring a person's ring size, or moving the little ring box from its original hiding place in the bathroom closet, into a much safer, much smellier left tennis shoe in the middle of the night, speaks volumes of the necessity for discretion.

You could then imagine my horror when after a few nights of researching engagement rings online, my browsers were now full of engagement ring related ads and pop-ups basically screaming at my girlfriend that things were about to get real.

Now if you've done any amount of online shopping, you will either find it creepy or helpful that firms will often keep tabs on your search history to populate relevant ads on your websites. Led by internet giants like Google and Facebook, ads have become more and more sophisticated and pronounced.

IMBD Site WITH Ads

This is where a neat, light-weight Chrome Extension called uBlock Origin comes in. uBlock Origin will filter and block the majority of ads that you see and experience on the web. Without going too deep into the ethics of ad blocking, it is safe to say that ads are detrimental to the classroom environment.

IMBD Site WITHOUT Ads - uBlock Origin

Ever try to show a YouTube video in class that was preceded by an inappropriate, awkward, and unskippable commercial? Or see a popular website taken over by large, obnoxious advertisements? uBlock Origin can help.

Perks of uBlock Origin:

• Websites will load faster
• Mobile users won't have to waste data on bandwidth-hogging commercials or advertisements. 
• Filters advertisements that contain viruses, malware, and phishing messages.
• Block all ads on YouTube

Once installed, users will not have to do anything to enjoy the benefits of uBlock Origin. It's a simple plug-and-play extension that works so well that at times I forget it’s even installed!

Now there are a few things to consider once the extension is installed. Some websites have caught on to ad-blocking, and will not allow users access to their sites until the ad-block is disabled. Users can simply pause uBlock Origin by clicking on the giant power button on the menu on the top right corner of your browser.

Are ads disrupting your online educational experience? Feel free to post comments below!
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Gotta free tech tool you'd like to share? Contact Lisa or Joe to be a guest blogger!

FTT - TedEd: Lessons Worth Sharing

TedEd: Lessons Worth Sharing

@LisaBerghoff/@MrKimDHS

Can you remember the first Ted Talk you ever heard? I can and it's still one of my all time favorites. It's called Embrace The Shake. I have forwarded it so many times and to so many people, you would think I was getting some sort of profit share from Phil Hansen, the speaker. Ted Talks are not flashy. They consist of a lone speaker on a plain stage. There really isn't much to a Ted Talk, just someone with an incredible story to share. Ted stands for technology, entertainment, and design and the talks are filled with interesting and important messages. 

What began as one conference has expanded immensely with TedX talks and Ted Ed clubs. Everyone seems to connect with these talks because the ideas and stories that are shared are so fantastic and the speakers are polished and interesting. Teachers have really embraced Ted Talks in the classroom because they often convey a message or an understanding that we hope our students are able to take away and connect with as they continue to learn in our classes. But then what? So you watch the video and then have a discussion? Maybe answer a few questions? 

Ted has created an answer to this issue with the Ted Ed lesson platform. 

The platform, which can be found at ed.ted.com/educator, allows you to give your students one video and then embed questions, provide additional information, and have an online discussion. 

Here's how it works:

Go to the site and either click Discover Lessons that have already been created, or create a lesson by clicking Try It Out.

When you create a lesson, you will be prompted to either search for a video or enter the url for a youtube video. When you find a video that fits with your lesson, click continue and you can add your questions. The questions are categorized as: Let's Begin, Think, Dig Deeper, Discuss, And Finally. 

Let's Begin: 

This is where you can enter information about the lesson. Set the tone for where you want your students to be while engaging with this topic. 

Think:

Here, you can enter multiple choice and/or open ended questions.

Dig Deeper:

Want to give your students additional resources or information at this point? Enter it here.

Discuss:

Enter discussion questions here.

And Finally:

Have some closing thoughts to wrap up the lesson? This is the place to put them. 

After you create your lesson, you are given a link so you can easily share it with students so they can access it. You have the option of allowing them to join as a guest or having them make an account. 

The Teacher Dashboard:

When you log in, you are able to see all of your lessons. Click on a lesson, and you can see your students' work. Right on the dashboard, you can see how many students have logged in and the number of discussions completed. 

When I click to review student work, I can see all of the students who completed the lesson. I can click to view their responses and offer feedback. The discussion responses show up in a thread. Students can chime in and offer responses to other students' comments in the discussion section. 

As a teacher, I can review work by student and I can download all of their work to a csv file.

Like most systems, TedEd will send you notifications if you want them. You can receive an email to let you know that a student responds to a question or to your feedback. You can also receive notifications on discussion threads. 

I have been using the TedEd platform with my students and, while they needed some explanation at first, they are engaged with the videos and we are able to have a much richer conversation when they come to class

Have you been using the TedEd platform? How else do you utilize Ted Talks in the classroom?

Feel free to post in the comments below. 

FTT - Virtual Reality in the Classroom

Get your VR goggles ready!

@LisaBerghoff/@MrKimDHS

OK so I'll admit, I lost a few years of my life in college to a massive online multiplayer video game called World of Warcraft. I used to be rather proud of my ability to get 6-10 glorious hours of gaming in without needing food or drink or respite (my record was 13 hours, don't tell my parents). While I spent many a night, alone and attached to my computer, I was actually being quite social. I interacted with my guild mates through the game-play, and communicated with dozens of people through my headset. I actually got to "know" some of these guys closely, and became "friends."


Now in hindsight, I would probably tell college me to STAY AWAY from it all, but I am still amazed at the complexities and allure of virtual reality. Because at a basic level, that's what video gaming is: direct interactions with a virtual world. So the hierarchy of VR goes something like this:

• Non-Immersive - computer screens and video games
• Augmented Reality (AR) - graphics on top of the real world
• Immersive System - VR Goggles and simulators

Believe it or not educational researchers have considered VR to be just another natural evolution of computer-assisted instruction and training, and have been studying its benefits since the early 60's (Pantelidis). The US Military is one of the first institutions to utilize VR through its immersive flight simulators to train their fighter pilots. So how do we use it in our classrooms?

Explore

Bring your students on a virtual field trip to places that would be otherwise inaccessible. Thinglink, Roundme, YouTube VR, and Google Expeditions are some excellent resources filled with virtual tours and destinations for your students. Many of the world's most prized museums like The Louvre and the Metropolitan Museum of Art have created interactive virtual tours. Thousands of historic landmarks, cities, and even historical events have been recreated virtually. 

Simulate Experiences

Like the fighter pilots and their flight simulators, teachers could use VR to give students "hands on" experiences with real life processes. Labster is a firm that has developed virtual lab experiences for chemistry, biology, ecology and more. While a bit down the line, medical schools and hospitals have begun utilizing VR for training, surgery, and patient therapy.

Access

Most educators (85%) believe that VR technology could benefit their students, but only 2% of teachers are actually using it in their classrooms. A whopping 28% of educators polled believe that VR technologies will never catch on in their school or district. I think a lot of educators are worried about access to the technologies and programs available. Fortunately, Google et al have really paved the way for educators by developing enough free programs and curriculum in educational VR. Their relatively cheap ($15) Google Cardboard relies upon the power of our own cell phones to bring our classrooms into the virtual world. 

Interested in using VR in your classroom? Need some support? Comment below!