Author: kfedoruk

Design Thinking

image retrieved from Pixabay, no attribution required

In this 44 minute presentation for EdmodoCon 2018, Shelley Goldman speaks on three major topics: 1. What is Design Thinking? 2. How does it apply to learning?, and 3. Why this could be the key to transforming our teaching practices and thus our learners and classrooms for the 21st Century. As a professor at Stanford University in the graduate program of education, Shelley is a former elementary and middle school teacher turned educational anthropologist and is passionate about broadening participation in STEM learning and in researching design thinking. The strength of this resource is that I get to hear directly from someone on the cutting edge of the topic of design thinking in an educational setting.

Goldman, Shelley. (2018, August, 21). Keynote: Why Design Thinking and Why Now? Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nikShdb_0E8

This website, although designed for business professionals, does an excellent job of outlining and explaining the key features and considerations for the Design Thinking Framework. This comprehensive and well-designed site lays the groundwork for understanding the importance of each stage of the Design Thinking Framework and the necessity of the process in our world today.

Interaction Design Foundation. (2019). What is Design Thinking and Why Is It So Popular?. Retrieved 29 September 2019, from https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/what-is-design-thinking-and-why-is-it-so-popular

This very concise video by “Sprouts” outlines the 5-step design process in an easy to understand way. I like its simplicity in taking a very complex idea and explaining it in a way that even my students could follow. I was also intrigued by other videos done by “Sprouts” including such topics as growth mindset, the scientific method, study tips, and so much more.

The Design Thinking Process. (2017). Retrieved 30 September 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_r0VX-aU_T8

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ePortfolios

This year, I am one of 9 teachers using ePortfolios for the first time in my classroom. Even though different districts use different platforms, the goals are the similar.

The following two videos (focussed on the FreshGrade platform) give information on how ePortfolios are being used in the classroom and their impact on student learning and parent interactions and connections.

FreshGrade: Coquitlam’s Story
ALCDSB’s FreshGrade Journey

SD38 (Richmond) ePortfolio Information

image of the Qualitative Formative Assessment Toolkit

SD38’s (Richmond) ePortfolio Page gives an overview of ePortfolios including 1. Multiple ways to document work, 2. ability to capture to process, 3. seamless communication between the school, parent, & teacher, and 4. Formative assessment. Here is the link to the SD38 Guide for Documenting Student Learning. The following is a list of links to informative sites on important ePortfolio topics listed within the SD38 ePortfolio pages:

Here is the link to Portfolio Guidelines, and the link to the Scholantis Student Portfolios Online User Guide. (Please note that some of these links may not be accessible for those who do not work for SD38).

The Portfolio Guidelines site also provides links to the following topics:

Building Powerful Self-Reflections

image of examples of student reflections from Building Powerful Reflections (Tale of Two Teachers)

In the blog post Building Powerful Self-Reflections by Victoria teacher Meaghan Abra (Tale of Two Teachers), she outlines ways she is helping her grade 6 students create powerful self-reflections in their ePortfolios. Meagan provides helpful commentary on how she is building self-assessment and reflection skills and expectations with her students as she moves to an alternate reporting system.

The (Nearly) Invisible Portfolio

image from the blog post, The (Nearly) Invisible Portfolio

In the blog post The (Nearly) Invisible Portfolio author George (The Principal of Change) offers interesting discussion points of the “near invisibility” of the student ePortfolio (seen mainly by students, teachers, and parents). George asks his readers to think about the possibilities of using ePortfolios beyond the school to help students learn how to share their learning to the wider world (thus creating a positive digital footprint).

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AR/VR and 3D Printing

Why teach using AR?

“Augmented Reality, or AR. It’s just like it sounds: a bit “techy”. It can scare you a little bit as times changes rapidly. As a teacher, you have to learn how to handle new things and tools every year, and it’s not going to stop. Who knows what “next big thing” is going to take over education next year?

Let’s just say that augmented reality in education is becoming more and more present, whether you like it or not. You better learn about it and realize the change AR may bring to your classroom or lessons” (Renard, 2018).

What is AR?

“Augmented reality or AR is a visual and sometimes interactive experience in a real-world environment where the objects in the real-world are “augmented” by computer-generated perceptual information. These virtual enhancements in the real world can appear as something visual and auditory”. (Renard, 2018).

Why teach using 3D Printing?

In the article How to use 3D printers in the classroom, the author outlines the benefits of using 3D printing in the classroom including:

  • make learning active
  • encourage real-world understanding
  • augemnt the educational process
  • fire imaginations
  • instil spacial intelligence
  • boost digital engagement
  • help students prepare for the future
  • boost computational thinking
  • create new learning materials

(“How to use 3D printers in the classroom | Promethean Blog”, n.d.)

The Periodic Table of iOS Apps for AR and VR

image from the ICT Evangelist

The Periodic Table of IOS Apps for AR and VR includes a compilation of 82 apps that reflect some of the best that AR and VR have to offer on iOS in 8 separate categories:

  • STEM
  • Creativity
  • Geography
  • Story Telling
  • Art
  • Teaching
  • Science
  • History

(Anderson, 2018)

10 Fun AR Apps for the Classroom

image from BookWidgets

BookWidgets Teacher Blog also put out a list of 10 Fun augmented reality apps for teachers to use in the classroom with descriptions including:

The author also includes lesson plan ideas to use with AR.

TinkerCad

image from Tinkercad

Tinkercad “is a free, easy-to-use app for 3D design, electronics, and coding. It’s used by teachers, kids, hobbyists, and designers to imagine, design, and make anything!” (“Tinkercad | From mind to design in minutes”, n.d.)

The following video describes some of the key features of Tinkercad.

video from Tinkercad

CoSpaces Education

image from CoSpaces Education

“Adaptable to any subject and grade, CoSpaces Edu lets students build their own 3D creations, animate them with code and explore them in Virtual or Augmented Reality. Designed for schools that want to empower their students to become creators and prepare them for their future, CoSpaces Edu develops 21st Century learning skills and digital literacy, enhances creativity and fosters collaboration in the classroom” (“CoSpaces Edu: Make AR & VR in the classroom”, n.d.).

This basic product is offered for free with Pro pricing available for individuals groups, classes, and schools. Key features include a creation toolbox, coding, physics engine, AR & VR Modes, MERGE Cube Mode, and Classroom management.

The following is a video outlining the features of CoSpaces Edu.

video from CoSpaces Edu

Merge

image from Merge

Merge develops “award-winning augmented and virtual reality products that enable experiential learning and content creation at home, in the classroom and in the workplace. Our products transform learning in schools, libraries, museums, universities, healthcare, environmental science, and other industries around the world”(“MERGE | AR/VR Learning & Creation”, n.d.).

The Merge website includes resources for all including resources for educators to use in the classroom (including lesson plan), with the Merge Cube being a key tool. “MERGE enables active learning by enabling students to learn and create in entirely new ways while giving teachers simple AR/VR tools that increase student engagement, intellectual curiosity and classroom achievement. At the core is the MERGE Cube – a mixed reality school supply that extends learning beyond the limitations of device screens by giving students the ability to interact with virtual objects” (“MERGE | AR/VR Learning & Creation”, n.d.).

AR Makr

AR Makr is a creative toolbox for augmented reality. Sketch, scan, and snap the world around you. Transform your creations from 2D to 3D virtual objects. Place your creations anywhere in your environment. Record, save, and share your scenes with friends. (“AR Makr”, n.d.).

The following video from Children’s Technology Review shows the basics of this app.

video from The Children’s Technology Review

Tinkerine U

image from Tinkerine U

Tinkerine U “is a creation system driven by 3D printing. Our mission is to provide a foundational understanding about Applied Creativity. At its core, Applied Creativity enables the curious to convert ideas into the tangible and the unimaginable”(“Tinkerine | 3D Printers for Education”, n.d.). Tinkerine offer online courses, experiments, design challenges, and stories of how 3D printing is changing the world.

How to Use 3D Printers in the Classroom

The article, How to Use 3D Printers in the Classroom, outlines the benefits of using 3D printing in the classroom as well as ideas for creative application.

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