Character Education for the Digital Age (quote from Jason Ohler)

I just read the article that @NikPeachey tweeted about and I just love this paragraph:

If we want to pursue a future that celebrates success not only in terms of abundance but also in terms of humanity, we must help our digital kids balance the individual empowerment of digital technology use with a sense of personal, community, and global responsibility. School is an excellent place to help kids become capable digital citizens who use technology not only effectively and creatively, but also responsibly and wisely. But we can only do that if we help them live one life, not two.

from: http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb11/vol68/num05/Character-Education-for-the-Digital-Age.aspx

#ililc Links into Languages ICT conference a huge success!

I've just come back from a truly inspiring conference in Southampton organised by @Joedale and the South East Links into Languages team.

I have uploaded my pics from the conference here on Picasa and will write about some of the things I learnt in the next few days.
Watch this space!

Vol

ker

Bing Maps for Teachers - a very interesting 3minute video

Bing Maps has really got a lot to offer for teaching and learning, especially the Map Apps section on the US version of the site - I know, why only there?
Anyway, I pointed out the Today's Front Pages Map App a few days ago but there's so much more! Just check out the video and then visit www.bing.com/maps to explore more for yourself - you won't regret spending that time playing around with it!

Skype now offers group video calling!

Now you can do video conferencing through Skype5.1!

Free tool for recording screen instructions as a video

Microsoft Research Community Clips

Record what you’re doing onscreen with this free Microsoft tool: http://www.officelabs.com/projects/communityclips/Pages/Default.aspx

Create a video on How to use a specific software feature or How to write a formal letter in Spanish or How to search effectively for information on Bing or Google with a Spanish search engine.
A video guide will be more accessible than reading lengthy instructions with screenshots! Check it out - it's really easy to use - although you've got to have a good script ready to make sure you don't hesitate and get confused about what to do next!

Dr Ertzberger's Microsoft Office Games collection

Check out this collection of free games templates in MS PowerPoint, Excel and Word:
Jeff Ertzberger Microsoft Office Games PowerPoint Games
There are many more available on the premium site and a single license comes with the pdf e-book "A teacher's guide to customizing games for any curriculum" which costs £17.99 at the moment. Well worth it! Just check out the list of video tutorials on YouTube

Enjoy! Volker