Free Documentaries for Your Classes

From time to time, I receive catalogues from companies providing DVDs that might be of interest to my students.  I usually find a few titles that I'd like to order, but the costs, especially with budget cuts, are prohibitive. 

An online resource that provides documentaries at no cost is Snag Learning.  This site prides itself on providing high-quality documentaries for niddle school through college.  Teachers are encouraged to upload lesson plans for the documentaries, and there is a forum for discussion.  Snag Learning adds a new documentary each week, and gets them from such places as PBS and National Geographic. 

Some of the topics available on Snag Learning documentaries include Darfur, domestic violence in the Artic town of Iqaluit, historical events,  Madagascar, therapeudic cloning, the National Museum of Women in the Arts, and many others.  The webpage of each documentary includes questions that draw your class into meaningful discussions about the topic.  The length of the documentaries vary.

Once you find a documentary you want to share, you can send to someone via e-mail, post it on Facebook, save it to as Google bookmark or Windows "favorite," or many other options.  Some of the documentaries have sponsor ads, but that's a small price to pay for this great collection. 

If you want to add a little bit of multi-media into your classroom, take a look at Snag Learning.  You won't be sorry!

Second Life-An Educational Journey?

Thanks to Leilani Benoit, from Dona Ana Community College, and her presentation at this year's Border Learning Conference,  I spent most of one day in Second Life.  Granted, I spent the majority of that time making my avatar look good, but I did learn to fly here and there.  Think of Second Life as a universe that doesn't require transportation (except a high-speed computer) and unlimited locations.  You, as an avatar you create, can visit places to learn, play, shop, and much more.

Second Life Logo

According to the Second Life Education Brochure,

Second Life is the leading 3D virtual world filled with user-created content and immersive experiences. In Second Life, Residents meet and interact with friends around the world, enjoy entertainment from live music to roleplaying games, explore unique environments and communities, and much more. Residents can also create, buy, and sell anything they can imagine, participating in the world’s largest user-generated virtual goods economy.

 As I wandered around the Second Life universe, I had to ask myself if it was something that would be a great avenue for educational purposes, or if it would consume too much time to be effective.  As I researched the topic, though, I realized that many colleges and universities have used it successfully.

There are hundreds of educational institutes using Second Life.  Local Second Life sites include Aggie Island,  used by Dona Ana Community College, and EVE Galapagos, used by UTEP's island to study natural selection.  UTEP's  Instructional Support Services provides hands-on training for faculty to create avatars and to develop virtual islands for educational use, and UTEP has funded three islands with a grant.

I found my first visits to Second Life interesting, but not easy.  As a person who is, well, let's just say older than most of the twenty-somethings in my classes, I did not grow up playing video games.  Even getting Mario to jump up and hit the boxes to get coins was somewhat difficult.  So learning about a virtual world isn't second nature to me.  Many of our students and faculty, however, are much more computer savvy and would find it fun and easy to get to different islands to learn and play.

If you're a Second Life resident, let us know about your educational experiences.  If you haven't flown in to the world of Second Life, give it a try.  Create your avatar and see what you can find on the islands.  Do you think it's something we at EPCC should pursue?

Thoughts, please.

Drop Box

I learned about DropBox from one of the attendees at the Southwest Seminar in October.   DropBox is an online storage site that lets you sync your files so you can get to them from any computer.  This means that you are able to get to your documents without mailing them to yourself or carrying a USB memory stick.  The video below gives you some general information about DropBox.  If you want more details, you can go to the website or additional YouTube videos.

DropBox gives you 2 GB of storage space, but you can add more storage, either by purchasing storage or by referring others.  Dropbox allows you to have a public folder, which can be shared with others.  Those looking at your public folder do not have to have a DropBox account.  Students can use a DropBox account to collaborate on assignments.

Although I've just started using DropBox, I think it will be a great benefit.  Every once in awhile, I forget my USB memory stick, so now I won't be lost without my files again!  It will also be useful to have access to my files both at home and at work.  I think DropBox will become one of your favorites.

 Note:  I can't find the name of the person who suggested this site, so if it's you, please let me know!