Web 2.0 Tools in the Classroom
Name of the tool: Text Compactor
Web address of the tool: www.textcompactor.com
Brief Description of what the purpose of the tools is/what it does: This free online tool helps students extract the meaning out of a bunch of text with distracting text. It is a great tool to provide a summary without some of the distracting fluff in text.
Short description of how it can be used in education: This tool can be used in education to help any struggling readers process large amounts of information in less time and weeds out some of the less important factors by creating a summary. Helps to extract important content for learners that may not have strong comprehension or for students who may not be fast readers. This works best with expository text and reference material.
Short description of how this tool could remove or reduce barriers for certain learners:
This tool can remove barriers for certain students who get distracted easily such as students with Attention Deficit Disorder or learners who may be struggling readers. For those with ADD/ADHD it may be more difficult for this student over others not to get sidetracked from what is meant to be derived by the text this tool will help them focus on what is meant to be extracted from the reading.
Statement about the required age of users if any according to the tool’s terms of service:
This tools usage does not have a minimum age requirement.
Name of the tool: Head Magnet
Web address of the tool: www.headmagnet.com
Brief Description of what the purpose of the tools is/what it does: This tool helps you memorize facts quickly and maintain what you have learned based on the brain “memory decay” model of learning. It uses the learning method of “compaction” by eliminating material you know or have learned. The more you use it the better it gets at modelling what is going on in your head. Based on memory and cognition research it helps you learn what you need to learn eliminating what you have already learned.
Short description of how it can be used in education: This tool can be used at any grade for learning by “compaction” by eliminating the information you have learned and need to review based on the well known “memory decay” model of learning.
Short description of how this tool could remove or reduce barriers for certain learners:
As the sample illustrates it is also useful to scaffold ESL learners. The user for example can type in the english equivalents of numbers or words to their language and be quizzed at different predicted intervals of the users choice. The words that are learned are eliminated for efficiency of learning. Great way to learn equivalent words/numbers of another language.
Statement about the required age of users if any according to the tool’s terms of service:
This tools usage does not have a minimum age requirement.
Name of the tool: Prezi
Web address of the tool: www.prezi.com
Brief Description of what the purpose of the tools is/what it does: This is a presentation tool. It uses templates that you can modify to present your content in a classroom or online and colloborate with up to 10 people or groups simultaneously.
Short description of how it can be used in education: This tool can be used in education for students to give presentations on what they have learned in class.
Short description of how this tool could remove or reduce barriers for certain learners:
This tool can reduce barriers for students who may have difficulty speaking in front of people online through video conferencing or online. The student can create the presentation with their voice and replay the presentation. This scaffolds the student with difficulty in public speaking so they can first get used to standing in front of people and answering questions on their previously prepared presentation. This tool can also help students who have difficulty reading (it would be even more difficult to read in front of a group of people for most students.) By using Prezi you could gradually require the students to publicly speak more in future presentations. (For example, the first presentation could be all voice over with the student answering any quesitons, the subsequent presentation they may also be required to summarize their presentation verbally and so on.)
Statement about the required age of users if any according to the tool’s terms of service:
This tools usage does not have a minimum age requirement.
