Some of the problems, illustrated nicely: I’ve talked recently to quite a few of you in person about this video and we were unable to access it, so I thought I’d post it here in hopes that you will be able to watch it. It demonstrates very nicely, the problems with printed textbooks and linear reading.
Text To Speech Options:
Most of you know how I feel about text to speech in that for those it works for, it works very well for. But for any students with breath support or articulation issues, speech recognition has a long way to go yet. However, I’m also firmly planted in the belief that it rarely ever hurts to try! A couple weeks ago Tina shared with us these links, which are incredibly useful for comparing the speech recognition options available:
- http://www.consumersearch.com/voice-recognition-software/review
- Nice grid layout:
http://www.pacer.org/stc/pubs/VoiceRecComparison_CTG_checks2009.pdf - Comparison of Vista’s to Dragon:
http://www.direct-laptops-guide.com/vista-vs-dragon-naturally-speaking-voice-recognition.html
Jumpstart 3D Immersive World now on the Wii: True story: Tuesday night my 7 year old told me that Jumpstart World (the online 3D immersive world like Second Life) would be coming to the Wii gaming system. I, shamefully, sort of blew her off. I mean, how could this 7 year old possibly know this information before I did, and I’d not heard this. Well, Wednesday morning I receive the email from Jumpstart announcing this! Wednesday night, I told my daughter how smart she was and thanked her for keeping her father current on this sort of information. 
If you are new to this blog or haven’t talked to me in the last 3 years, Jumpstart World is an 3D immersive space for THREE YEAR OLDS! Just another reminder for me that our children are learning differently, using an expanded vocabulary and expecting the adults in their lives to keep up. This is also the world we claim to be preparing them to live and work effectively in. Yet, for many students, their school requires them to ‘power off’ when entering. They get through the school day so they can ‘power back on’. I recently heard someone compare this to getting on an airplane. Sitting in rows, all facing the front and being forced to turn off all electronics and restrict their normal activities, their normal personal and professional learning and social networks, their audio and video content, their access to more efficient ways of performing. ….an uncomfortable necessity in order to get from one place to the next. …just something to consider.
Virtual Authors: This morning we had a staff meeting on our Second Life Island and Vicki introduced us to this blog for improving reading, writing and communication skills. This is great because she’s doing it with students with more severe disabilities, giving them an authentic purpose for writing and allowing others to comment on their writing without the fear of correction from their teacher, which really isn’t authentic. This makes absolute sense to me as it is pretty much what I’ve been doing with my daughters since they were about 4 years old. I can’t say for sure why, but they do love to read and to write now at 6 and 7. Blogging is FREE by the way.
Learn WITH The World Webinar: This one is not free unfortunately, but looks really good and certainly supports the concept of removing barriers between the real world and the school environment.
Learning WITH the World: Using Technology to Connect Students Globally in Project-based Learning is an ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) webinar happening Sept. 9 at 4pm EST. More info here: www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/ProfessionalDevelopment/WebinarSeries/20092010Webinar/Learning_with_the_World.htm
PATINS Project Island Main
PATINS-Project Island Open House! The PATINS PROJECT will be hosting an open house for most of the day and a portion of the evening on October 20th on our Second Life Island. Watch for more information on this to come in the next several weeks. There will be PATINS Staff Avatars available to give tours of the island, answer questions and help you out! You will need to have an avatar created and Second Life software installed ahead of time. See the PATINS website’s 5- Video Tutorial series on getting started in Second Life and creating your avatar. …or contact me for help!
