My Pod-Cast Self-Assessment EDLD 5363

Wow, a pod-cast can be a big challenge when you’ve never done one before! I hunted around online looking for the perfect video editing program that I could pod-cast a mini tutorial on and I did, that program being Screencast-O-Matic.  It is a simple enough program that you can literally be up and running in less than a minute if you know what you want to record.  What would prove to be a challenge for me was the fact that my software choice used your computer screen to record whatever it is you wanted to show off to your audience.  Being that I was doing strictly audio on my pod-cast I had to be simple in descriptions, to the point but maintain my audience with my tone and pace.  I didn’t want to rush, but at the same time I wanted to give the most effective step by step description that I could, keeping it all within a two minute time frame.  After learning how to use Audacity, as well as convert and export my pod-cast as an mp3, I was ready to go.  It took me five complete takes before I was able to record what I felt was the best recording I could possibly produce.  I don’t think there is anything I would change except maybe do a visual walkthrough of a “vod-cast” of the tutorial. 

Going off of rubric, I feel that I met the criteria and did the work necessary to make this pod-cast happen.  I also ran the mp3 through iMovie and from there was able to add titles, as well as my Creative Commons Copyright that I created from creativecommons.org and applied it to not only my pod-cast, but also the script that I published online. All in all, I put no less than 10 hours into a pod-cast that lasted 10 minutes.  That includes composing the script, collaborating, editing, learning to use Audacity, recording, then recording again 5 times, uploading to iMovie, editing, and sharing.  If anything my voice was not 100% simply because I recorded this pod-cast late in the evening after a full day of conducting Spanish classes as well as coming off a nasty head-cold and sore throat so for what I was able to produce, it was the best job I could do!  I give myself 100%! And I look forward to using these pod-casts in my class, if anything as a way to communicate the work for the day with my students.

Minutes take hours...The Podcast for EDLD 5363

OK, so let's check out what it took for me to get that podcast on Blogger...

I started out by downloading and learning how to use Audacity, a free audio recording program.  This would be the program that I would be using to record my voice.  From there I needed to install a LAME mp3 encoder that I would use to convert the Audacity file to an mp3.  My Audacity program refused to convert due to an unknown error.  After further research I discovered an alternative LAME encoder file, at audacity.com, that I was able to use in order to convert the file.  After that, I discovered that you can't directly upload mp3's to youtube so I opened iMovie and began my next project.  I created a simple background for my iMovie with the name of my video as well as my own name that would be displayed for the majority of the podcast.  The last 8 seconds or so of my podcast show off the Creative Commons Copyright information that I created at creativecommons.org that I would use to copyright my podcast.  I copied and pasted that information into my final frame of my iMovie podcast.  The program I decided to give my tutorial on was called screencast-o-matic and it is a program you can use to record live whatever you are doing on the desktop of your laptop.  I composed a script to read for the podcast.  Took me 5 takes to get it right.  Then I exported the audio recording from Audacity to my laptop desktop and from there loaded it into iTunes so that I could add it as the soundtrack to my iMovie.  I kept things simple but I could have added captions or animations but what i was doing but for now, the basic podcast was my goal.  After I finished editing my iMovie, I exported the video to the desktop of my computer and uploaded it to you tube.  I also included all Creative Commons Copyright information in the description of the video.

After that, I copied the embedded code from youtube in an html view of my blogger blog entry and pasted the code into it.  Reverted back to my compose view of blogger and hit "publish".  After that I noticed my video was a bit large so I went back in and bascially winging it, re-wrote the html code by manually changing the size of my video.  Sure enough, by cutting out 40 pixels of width, I was able to get the video to fit and look good in my Blogger blog.

I also did the same on my google sites website but I used an embed gadget on a page I created specially for my podcast.  Included my Creative Commons information again and saved all of my work.  I also added the script of my podcast just in case anyone would need a hard copy of what I say.

I've spent around 8 hours on this project total from start to finish but will still go back and will tweak a few things.

These podcasts are great because just like my iMovie project, I could record lessons that I could (thanks to all of my practice now) quickly upload to youtube or my google site for students to download and listen to.

Here is my first podcast for EDLD 5363!

Enjoy...(Embedded, non the less!)  All Creative Commons Copyright information will appear below.




Screencast-O-Matic Tutorial by Travis Patocka is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at screencast-o-matic.com.

My first podcast script...

Below you will find the script for my first podcast, a set of instructions for an introduction to screencast-o-matic.  It has taken more than just composing a script.  I needed to research various open source video editing programs and it was during that search that I found screencast-o-matic.  I am also collaborating with my group in sharing my script and it may vary slightly in the end from what you see below.  What is great about screencast-o-matic is that I can use it to record tutorials that can be one-click uploaded to youtube! (Creative commons will also be applied once I have received the coding from creativecommons.org.

The script...
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Hello everyone and welcome to my very first podcast!  Today we are going to talk about screencast-o-matic which is a free program you can use to record live what is happening on your computer screen.  We will also briefly discuss editing options, uploading and sharing the videos you make.  So…without further adieu, let’s get started!

The first thing you want to do is open your web browser and go to screencast-o-matic.com.  To get started recording go ahead and click on the blue box on the upper right corner that says “start recording.”  A box may pop up in the middle of your screen requesting access to your computer, go ahead and click the button in that box that says “allow”, as it is the only way to continue.  From there, the program will install itself and will automatically start.  Then, take the black and white checkered box in the middle of your screen, that being your screencast-o-matic recording box and put into it whatever you would like to record.  You can also grab a corner of that checkered box and stretch it out to fit whatever you want to show off on your computer.  So let’s try it! Go ahead, open a blank word processing document and pull the screencast-o-matic box over that blank document.  Click the record button, the red one, on the lower left hand corner of your screencast-o-matic box to begin recording.  Type something, anything on your word processing document.  Click the pause button to stop recording when you have finished typing on your document and finally, click the button that says “done” just off to the right.  From there you will have the ability to publish directly to youtube via your youtube account!  You will need to login to youtube, through screencast-o-matic, in order to upload your video.  Remember, your audio will also be recorded, including your keystrokes of your keyboard. You also have full editing capabilities of your video, but in order to utilize them you will need to upgrade to a screencast-o-matic pro account which costs $15 per year.  The applications for this program include not just showing off what you are doing on your computer, but if you are an educator, you could lead students in instruction with a video recorded from your own computer.  Thanks for joining me and I hope you have enjoyed this brief introduction to screencast-o-matic!

Screencast-O-Matic Tutorial by Travis Patocka is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at screencast-o-matic.com. The ISTE Technology Facilitator Standards and Performance Indicators for this activity include TF-I.A.2, I.B.1/TF-II.A.1, II.B.1, TF-II.C.2, TF-III.B.1, III.C.1.

Another web conference down (#2 or 3)...and some other random thoughts.

I have learned so much this week about iMovie, youtube uploads, more on embedding, I am really starting to like the multimedia opportunities my laptop and the internet have to offer!  At today's web conference we talked about our upcoming work on testing out various audio and video capture software.  And ironically enough NPR this morning was talking about how universities are now starting to offer their lessons online to the world, for free, for anyone to end.  At some of the universities you can even get a certificate for completing the online course, just for fun, whether you paid tuition or now.  I think it is great how as teachers we can get out of our shells and stop being to secretive about what goes on behind the walls of our "castle".  Heck, even as my self I am just now getting used to presenting my classes or even how my class works to the public as I have so little practice.  I am still a bit scared about the comments that might get posted or the number of dislikes that could pop up on my first uploaded iMovie on youtube but the who experience has gotten me so much more comfortable with presenting to those not in my class.  I can even see how I could record one of my classes or even the work from class and post it online so my students could view it if they weren't in class or if I wasn't.  I have some tech conferences coming up here in the spring that I would like to attend I am thinking about recording the lesson so my students could click on the link and I could run them through the work on their classes.

I'm hoping after this weeks lesson that I will learn a lot about Audacity and some of the live video capture out there so that I can start teaching the other teachers out there just what they can do with their laptops.

As for the conferences, it is awesome that my EDLD professor offers multiple session offerings for me to attend and while I would like to attend them all, it is good to be able drop in when I need to, to ask questions.  I love my Lamar masters program but one item that always stresses me out is  the limited time frame and after homework is submitted, I check, then double check my assignments before sending them just to be sure and so far, I've done really good on everything.  Actually, the rigor of this program and made me grow in the classroom as I find myself being able to tackle large projects and be a better leader from each class I have studied.  Almost like a "boot camp" for the regular ed. teacher!

And now, from the not-yet-Oscar-nominated director, writer, and producer Travis Patocka, I proudly present...

¿Hablas español?  Welcome to my Spanish class!

Here is that address, just in case the link above doesn't work...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1WfzUeYaQE&list=LLJ3Q_IfIbhd_Qsj1pT5BTCQ&feature=mh_lolz

Please forgive me in case it isn't as mind blowing as some of the other videos that you can find on youtube.  You would think that with the countless hours my friends and I spent on making movies for our classes and for fun in high school with the old camcorder and VCR, that this would just come naturally to but, but it took alot of work.  As I watch the video, it is amazing how much I have picked up in a little over two days of playing around with iMove.

So far, I have learned how to write a script, create a layout/storyboard, insert photos and add sound captions as well as do some basic editing as well as editing individual frames for video and audio.  It is amazing just how much control you have over the video production process in iMovie, and while I was a bit scared initially, especially when it came to the audio portion, it really wasn't that bad.  Still, I've put close to 12 hours total from start to finish in just a 2 minute clip and I still am thinking about releasing a "directors cut" with a soundtrack.  Like I said, I'm gonna stay humble and say that while the video doesn't knock your socks off like something Spielberg might make, but at least I know understand the program and can use it more (or have my students use it more!) in my own classroom.  My students are already iMovie experts but now that I get this program and what to do, I see it isn't that daunting and I am excited to do more with it!

Something else I should add was that this evening I also got a little practice with creating links to my video as well as inserting a youtube device in my google sites page for viewing the video directly on my google site e-portfolio.  Good stuff!

My first iMovie script for EDLD 5363

Title:  "Hablas español? Welcome to my Spanish Class!

¿Hablas español? Welcome to my Spanish class!  ¡Buenos días! My name is Travis Patocka and I’m a Spanish teacher here at Lexington High School in Lexington, Nebraska and I’d like to share with you just what I do.
     My day starts around 5:15 every morning and I usually get to class around 6:30 AM or sooner.  I teach three different levels of Spanish, but with the help of my colleagues Juan and Socorro, we are able to offer a total of six. This is my class, and what it looks like every morning before my students arrive. Don’t worry, before you know it, it will be full! Here at the high school we have a ton of technology we use and all of my students have their own laptops.  I use my LCD projector, laptop, and the Internet to bring the world of Spanish to my students. One of my favorite pieces of technology is my Lightspeed microphone system.  It allows students to hear me speaking at the same volume regardless of where they sit. I do find that by being early I have plenty of time to read e-mails, grade homework assignments, and double check to make sure my lesson plans and class website are all set to go.      

8 AM and the students are here. We typically start class with a game, as it is a great way to wake everyone up.  This game is called “Matamosca” and helps students learn class vocabulary.  We then move on to a grammar review of the past tense. Students do most of their work on their laptops and maintain a digital portfolio that they submit at the end of the year. From there, the students work with their partners on their weekly conversations.  We have a different topic each week.  Once the students have had a chance to work on their conversations we go online and investigate a different Spanish website each week.  This week, Spanish poetry! We typically finish class with a learning game and today we are playing “Rags to Riches”.  After that, the bell rings and the students move on to their next class. My school day usually ends at 3:30 but today I’m working with one of the afternoon clubs that I sponsor, the high school game club.  I return to my class and around 5 PM and gather a few things before I head home. Tomorrow, I’ll come back and get ready to do it all again, and I love it.  Thanks for joining me.  

Ya move 16 tons, and what do ya get...(EDLD 5363 video blog)

...a sweet iMovie, that is!  I have never before worked with any multimedia production software band while I've always had a nack for technology and gadgets, I had yet to actually produce anything on the iMovie software that has been on my Mac's since the early 2000's.  I can handle web publishing, technology in the classroom, e-mail, etc. but iMovie seemed easy considering how many hilarious yet pointless videos my friends make for our classes in high school and for fun right?  Wrong!  iMovie and multimedia is a whole new ball game.  In EDLD 5363 my first multimedia project was to produce a digital storytelling project.  To guide us along the way we had two excellent online articles that helped us understand just what "multiple" media and story telling was all about.  The first article, entitled Think Tank, helped me understand how the human mind worked and in a nutshell (because you could take an entire graduate course on the material in this article alone) helped me understand how many multimedia elements needed to mesh as well as the environment to create in order to help my students learn.  Technology in the classroom should mean way more than just a repository for curriculum delivery.  The second article, entitled, The Digital Storytelling Cookbook, helped me understand the process that one could follow in order to choose an idea to tell a story.  In the end, my choice fell under the "what I do" category of stories to tell and I began my process of script composition.  I answered several questions about myself, and submitted the same questions to my partner so that he could do the same to help shape what I would write about.  Since I incorporate technology in my daily classroom lessons, I wanted that to be a large portion of my story as shifting from paper copies of everything and going digital with email, a wiki with class work, interactive websites for my students to use, etc. marked a shift in my teaching style.  I went from how I was taught Spanish to how my students were actually learning now with technology.  My script will be in my next post.  After my script was written I shot photos over the course of the day and used those to put together my iMovie.  I though I would like music but in the end decided to leave it out as I didn't want it to be a distraction to what I was saying.  Speaking of the script I am currently collaborating with four other Lamar students and we are reading each others first drafts to give suggestions an ideas and so far, so good! The web address for the video will be posted in an upcoming blog, shortly.

EDLD 5363--Hit the ground running! Web conference #1

We started our class this evening, literally with a web conference!  I have come to enjoy the web conferences over the last few months as they give me a chance to ask questions and get answers in a hurry.  There were around 30 students in our web conference and one thing that is different about the layout of our conferences vs. the other two Lamar courses that I have taken is that this professor will be hosting conferences several times this week, but only requires us to attend 3 over the course of 5 weeks.  What is great about this is that these conferences are almost like office hours where I can come in and get help on something if I get stuck.  There are four times that I can attend this week and I may drop in tomorrow, or maybe Friday morning to share how my personal digital story is coming along.

This course is centered on multimedia and technology and while I consider myself a fan of technology and gadgets, I have very little experience on the production end of multimedia production, editing, presentation, etc.  This class opens the world of multimedia up to me by offering me useful websites I can go to in order to view what is out there for multimedia production, without having to spend hours hunting online.

I also read an absolutely fascinating article by Patti Shank entitled "Think Tank" which talks about the psychology and learning process required to do good multimedia.  I almost feel like an entire course on the design of a learning website could be taught from this article alone!  It also has me thinking about my own website and how much I need to change it.  Right now, my Spanish class website is mostly used for curriculum instruction but I would like to construct a new one that not only delivers instruction of the class work but also interacts and creates an environment my students can use to truly learn.

I plan to post the link to my digital story as soon as I get it up on teachertube.com.  I love youtube but it can be a very cruel place to post just about anything so at least on teachertube I can expect some professionalism and I might even open up my video posting for comments.

As for my actual personal digital story, I'm going to use imovie for the first time in my career.  I know, I know, it is sad considering it has been on every Mac I have owned since about 1999! But I have been a consumer of its videos and not a producer...until now.

Hang tight and I'll get that video URL posted by the end of this week!

Harvestin' time!

OK, so I'm not a real farmer but I am currently gathering, organizing and storing data for my action research project.  I am gathering attendance data from the prior school year and entering it on my google docs spreadshseet, as well as attendance data from the start of this school year up until now to run a comparison of pre and post PlascoTrac integration.  PlascoTrac is the program being used by our administration to generate up to the minute reports of truancy and absences and while it promises reductions in those numbers of students that are gone everyday, when followed as instructed. Time will tell (or the data will show) the impact the program is having overall.  I have calculated the results from last year and last year our average daily attendance was around 94.7% in a school of a little over 800 students.  This year I only have the first 60 days recorded but at the end of the year, the overall attendance will tell one side of the story. The other side of the data collection story is the qualitative, that being the effort our administrators and front office put every day in creating the reports and reaching those students that are absent each class period to find out what is going out.  Regardless of what my research says, our administrators and teachers work hard to make sure as many students are in the classroom as possible every day.  Stay tuned for more updates.

So where do we go from here?

Actually, that is a pretty simple question to answer...to work, on our action research project and internship tasks.  This week I plan to use my week off of my classes to get a jump start on doing some investigative research on my action research project.  I have data to plug in, interview questions to write and literature to continue to accumulate  that will assist me in understanding the impact our computer attendance program, PlascoTrac is having on our students.  I will do my best to follow my time frame and stay on task but it will be no easy chore. Staying focused with the load of responsibilities that this course and my additional responsibilities with my job teaching Spanish (oh yeah, I should probably mention that, too!) will push me to my limits of work.  With enough organization and a pace that my previous two Lamar U courses have established for me, I'm sure I will be alright.  Now that I am able to catch my breath for a few days I'm going to continue updating my google spaces page as well as get our Teach Leadership facebook page going. 

Get ready for liftoff!! (My week 5 analysis/reflection on 5301)

I have to say that these last few weeks have been some of the most challenging from my graduation class so far.  I've been working like mad the last two months in an effort at preparing my internship plan of activities I hope to complete, as well as prep the action research project that I will be focusing on between now and May.  This last week was very nice as it taught me how to stop, take a look at what I've done, reflect, consult with my site mentor and make sure everything is a-go before I begin my project.  I feel like I've found a good balance between work and play and I'm thankful I have a wife that understands my commitment to this program. It also helps that she is a masters student in a different program but is just as busy as I!

I love to teach Spanish but one thing that has really become evident to me is how much more I enjoy being in the class and working with my students now that I am so committed to so many projects at one time.  Teaching Spanish and doing everything I do as a Spanish teacher IS RELAXING for me!!  I feel that because of the rigors of the work I have put into my graduate classes that I can handle just about any project or extra challenge that has arisen in my daily job.  I also feel like I am a more patient person in school, with my students and colleagues as I try to make the most of the time I can dedicate to them in class.

Finally, I was made a member of our high school core technology team last Monday and already, five days later, I was presenting to our faculty a very useful app for the iPad that makes working with MS Office on the iPad so much easier.  I also learned lessons about pre-planning and how it is important it is let faculty know ahead of time, that yes, they will need their iTunes usernames and passwords to use this project!!  Out of 12 applicants from our building, four were selected for this position.  It has been an exciting and yet, humbling experience at the same time.  Oh well, back to the Week 5 work for EDLD 5301!!