Having just made my
first Voice Thread, I don’t feel like I understand it enough quite yet to say
whether or not I like it. I can say that making it was rather fun, however. My
one complaint would be that Voice Thread does not give users enough information
on what they are doing on the site. I apologize if I sound too complaining, but
I feel the need to address why this Web 2.0 tool would be difficult for
teachers to utilize before I talk about all the possibilities it has. So, I was given a link for basic information
and tutorials but could find neither. There were disjointed “FAQS” that allowed
me to figure out how to add a voice recording, but I do not know if that is the
only way to do so or if I even did it right. The site seemed more interested in
corporate, licensing, money-making ventures than being usable.
However, all of that
aside, Voice Thread does seem to be a valuable tool. I am not sure what
different types of media you can upload, but pictures seem to be the most used.
I think Voice Thread would be a great way for teachers to post presentations
online. Many post presentations on YouTube for students to watch outside of the
classroom, but with YouTube there isn’t a way to have a real discussion. There is
only the comments section. On Voice Thread, however, a teacher could post text,
pictures, etc. along with an audio commentary and students would be able to
comment and ask questions via audio as well. There are many benefits to audio
discussion; when communicating via text a lot of things are lost, such as voice
inflection. You can also comment with a video on Voice Thread, which would add
body language to the discussion. Voice Thread allows you to comment on
individual slides, so the discussion is neater and more organized.
Using Voice Thread made
me a little nervous, because I wasn’t really sure what I was doing. I was also
nervous about recording myself talk about my standard’s topic, because I didn’t
want to sound stupid. I think for that, Voice Thread is good because it forces
you to put yourself out there and forces you to contribute something. A lot of
places on the Internet allow you to hide behind text and avatars, but Voice
Thread takes that away to a certain extent and makes communication more open. I
think Voice Thread would be great for teachers to use to get more lecture in
outside of class time so that class time can be used for activities and
discussion. I think it also allows teachers to teach students who are not able
to come to the classroom for one reason or another. Also, it could be a project
for students to do as a way for them to show what they know; teaching others is
a great way to learn information yourself!
As with all technology tools however, it should not be used for the sake
of using it; it should enhance the learning experience, as Rea and Harris
stated (2009), and not interfere with the teaching (139).
Reference
Link to my first Voice Thread on Colonial Georgia click here
Very good job
ReplyDelete