Storytelling for impact — from nationalgeographic.org; a collaboration between National Geographic and Adobe Visualize and communicate powerful stories that inspire change
Excerpt:
Stories can change the world. Learn from world-class National Geographic photographers, videographers, and visual designers in a series of Storytelling for Impact online courses. Created in partnership with Adobe, this series will teach you how to use compelling photography, video, graphics, and audio to tell stories in the most impactful ways to inspire change.
Offered for both educators and youth ages 16–25, these short, free, self-paced online courses are designed to guide learners to visualize and communicate powerful stories that inspire action.
Best Video Editing Software for Mac— from futurism.com by the editorial team at Recurrent Media, Futurism’s owner Must-have software for creators in the age of YouTube.
Excerpt:
— Best Overall: Apple Final Cut Pro
— Best for Professionals: Adobe Premiere Pro 2022
— Best Budget: iMovie
— Best for Speed: Adobe Premiere Rush 2022
— Best Mid-Priced: Adobe Premiere Elements 2022
From DSC: I appreciated the Specs, Pros, and Cons sections for each of the tools that made their cut. I also appreciated that they covered tools that could address a variety of audiences and budgets.
WeVideo Classroom is the education spin-off of the famous video editing platform that is specifically aimed at teachers and students.
WeVideo is a very simple to use yet powerful [cloud-based] video editor which can be used by teachers to help students learn the art of video editing. Until this latest release, that meant using external tools or in-classroom teaching to get projects set and marked.
The idea behind WeVideo Classroom is to integrate all the tools into the editor itself so that teachers can set project assessments, monitor them, comment and ultimately mark them for student feedback.
The internet can be an ugly place, but you won’t find bullies or trolls on Stuart Duncan’s Minecraft server, AutCraft. Designed for children with autism and their families, AutCraft creates a safe online environment for play and self-expression for kids who sometimes behave a bit differently than their peers (and who might be singled out elsewhere). Learn more about one of the best places on the internet with this heartwarming talk.
Below are two excerpted snapshots from Stuart’s presentation:
With the start of a new year, it is always a great time to explore new ideas or try some new methods that may be a bit different from what we have traditionally done. I always think it is a great opportunity to stretch ourselves professionally, especially after a break or during the spring months.
Finding ways to boost student engagement is important, and what I have found is that by using tools like Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), we can immerse students in unique and personalized learning experiences. The use of augmented and virtual reality has increased in K-12 and Higher Ed, especially during the past two years, as educators have sought new ways to facilitate learning and give students the chance to connect more with the content. The use of these technologies is increasing in the workplace, as well.
With all of these technologies, we now have endless opportunities to take learning beyond what has been a confined classroom “space” and access the entire world with the right devices.
Ask people working in higher education what they expect will happen in the new year, and the outlook is filled with visions that build on what we’ve been experiencing on college and university campuses for the last two years: a major focus on learning formats; continued exploitation of new technology; and the use of new digital models that move users “beyond Zoom.” Here we present the collective predictions of 14 IT leaders, instructional folks and a student about what they anticipate seeing in 2022. As one put it, “Let’s go, 2022! We have work to do!”
From DSC: I’d like to thank Dian Schaffhauser, Rhea Kelly, and Mary Grush for letting me contribute some thoughts to the various conversations that Campus Technology Magazine hosts and/or initiates. I inserted some reflections into the above article and I hope that you’ll take a moment to read my and others’ thoughts out there.
Surveying the animation boom and its effects on the creative industry — from itsnicethat.com by Dalia Dawood and Alex Moy “We’re seeing animation go into spaces that it’s not been in before” – leading studios shed light on a transforming industry and what it means for our screens.
Excerpt:
While kids’ animation remains popular – India-based children’s studio Toonz saw increased demand not only for feature films but “edutainment”, especially “social and emotional learning, an area kids missed out on when schools were shut,” says CEO P. Jayakumar – adult long-form animation has flourished. Such shows have evolved beyond slapstick humour to meet contemporary audiences’ interests, exploring serious issues such as mental health.
Photography and imaging
Gimbals are also used to mount everything from small camera lenses to large photographic telescopes.
In portable photography equipment, single-axis gimbal heads are used in order to allow a balanced movement for camera and lenses. This proves useful in wildlife photography as well as in any other case where very long and heavy telephoto lenses are adopted: a gimbal head rotates a lens around its center of gravity, thus allowing for easy and smooth manipulation while tracking moving subjects.
Very large gimbal mounts in the form 2 or 3 axis altitude-altitude mounts are used in satellite photography for tracking purposes.
Gyrostabilized gimbals which house multiple sensors are also used for airborne surveillance applications including airborne law enforcement, pipe and power line inspection, mapping, and ISR (intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance). Sensors include thermal imaging, daylight, low light cameras as well as laser range finder, and illuminators.
Gimbal systems are also used in scientific optics equipment. For example, they are used to rotate a material sample along an axis to study their angular dependence of optical properties.
As a training manager, you need to step up your game to cater to the corporate training needs of these thinkers. Functional and creative instructional strategies should be used to engage learners and offer sticky learning, in the classroom and online. The strategies need to involve learners emotionally, offer an experiential set up, and appeal to their creative side.
WWF Free Rivers puts an entire landscape in your hands. Through this immersive, augmented reality experience, you’ll discover a river that flows through the lives of people and wildlife, and how their homes depend on those flows. Dam the river to see what happens, and then try different options for sustainable development that keeps the river healthy and flowing. Collect stories of people and animals along the way!
Features
In-depth, educational storytelling experience for environmental science
Stunning, animated, augmented reality model users can interact with and learn from
Five distinct habitats based on real places: the Himalayan mountains, tropical jungles, African savannah, South American grasslands, and Southeast Asian deltas.
Opportunity to get involved and help protect rivers, and the people and wildlife that depend on them
An augmented reality map of the world’s rivers—and some of the biggest threats and opportunities they face.
Podcasts can be used in the classroom for a variety of purposes. They are great for practicing listening skills, listening to stories, building a classroom community, and reinforcing academic content, among many others.
…
Teachers can access podcasts via websites, Apple apps, and Android apps.
hoopla digitalis a digital streaming service for library users to access eBooks, eAudiobooks, music, movies, and TV shows using portable devices like smartphones and tablets.
From DSC: I downloaded this app yesterday and borrowed a classical Christmas album on the spot. Our local library gives us 10 items per month:
Books are available for 21 days
Videos are available for 72 hours
Music titles are available for 7 days
NOTE: hoopla is available on desktops, phones, tablets, Alexa devices, Rokus, Apple TVs, Fire TVs, and Android TVs.
Welcome to day 21 of the 2021 Appvent Calendar. It’s been so much fun sharing all of these amazing tools each day across the month so far. With Google featuring twice already on the calendar, it’s great to share again the awe and wonder of human history in the arts and within our cultures with the sharing of this amazing free app. Thanks to Gustavo Calderón De Anda for suggesting it!
Also see:
14 measurement apps for teaching math & science — from teachthought and Glenda Stewart-Smith Glenda Stewart-Smith of Surrey School District #36 in Canada, along with TeachThought staff, helped put together this collection of iPhone and iPad apps that offer all of these measuring abilities and more.
Historically, Adobe’s software was made for the pros. Applications like Photoshop, Illustrator and Premiere Pro all require a paid Creative Cloud subscription and a certain level of expertise. But with Monday’s launch of Creative Cloud Express, Adobe is targeting anyone who might find graphic design useful: small businesses, students and social media influencers.
I had the honor of interviewing celebrated author Antonio Sacre on the power of storytelling in education. Check out the podcast below.
Born in Boston to a Cuban father and Irish-American mother, Sacre is an internationally touring storyteller, author, and solo performance artist, based in Los Angeles. He has performed at the National Book Festival at the Library of Congress, the Kennedy Center, the National Storytelling Festival, as well as museums, schools, libraries, and festivals. Deemed “a charismatic, empathetic presence” by the Chicago Tribune, his stories have appeared in numerous magazines, journals, and on National Public Radio.
