ePaLs

ePaLs is a excellent website which can be used by both teachers and learners as a communication and collaboration tool. These are many useful features provided that you can benefit from it.

• It's a vast information bank that you can find whatever educational information you want from 'collaborate' forum.
• You can search any classrooms of different subjects around the world, and find descriptions and course information about that class. Besides, you can also contact with that teacher directly via messages if you really feel interested in it.
• You can use 'advanced search'  to narrow your search ranges to specific country, langaue, category, class-size etc.
• You can also send and check your e-mail conveniently with other teachers and students.
• You can also make a address book as a contact/friend list, and send e-mail to a group or several individuals.

   
    It's really a easy way to communicateand collaborate with educational people online.  You can contact with people no matter which countries they live or what areas they majored in.

Publish a book for your teaching and learning

  

This is a book of a story talking about American Tour which is published by me online. I made it through the website Bookr which is a digital tool to tell stories using photos.

   I can use this video to in English as a second-language classroom. The level of the students will be Grade One children of elementary school. With such a book, can not only teach students some vocabularies, but also make students enjoying and having a further understanding of the knowledge. Through this, they will have an impressive memory about what the teacher is talking about.

   For those higher level students, I can show this book as a model of small project. I can let students to make their own books. It might be homework or notes or something else. They can make it by themselves or work as a groups, and for each person has a different role.

   It's a good way to teach and learn by digital materials like this way.

Digital storytelling

Everyone has his/her own stories, and everyone has their own way to tell their own stories. Today I want to introduce you a newway to tell stories which is called Digital storytelling. In the Educause article of 7 things you should know about Digital storytelling, the writer describes it as follow: "Digital storytelling is the practice of combining narrative with digital content, including images, sound, and video, to create a short movie, typically with a strong emotional component."(Educause, 2007)

    In the modern society, it's adapted to education and used as a teaching method. in the UH article called Educational Uses of Digital storytelling, it said that, "The topics that are used in Digital Storytelling range from personal tales to the recounting of historical events, from exploring life in one's own community to the search for life in other corners of the universe, and literally, everything in between."(UH, 2011)

     Moreover, both of the teachers and learners can get profit from Digital storytelling program. Teachers can present a theory or give an instruction with Digital storytelling to create an audio-visual classroom. In this way, it makes courses more understandable and more interesting. In addition, 7 things you should know about Digital storytelling also said that, "Digital stories let students express themselves not only with their own words but also in their own voices, fostering a sense of individuality and of owning” their creations." (Educause, 2007)

    Furthermore, through completing Digital storytelling, storytellers can be given an opportunity to learn and improve own technological skills. Besides, it's a good way to connect content with realistic practice.

  by  BryanAlexander 

For searching more information, please refer to following links:

 7 things you should know about Digital storytelling

 Center for Digital storytelling

Educational Uses of Digital storytelling