Sunday, December 4, 2011

Voice Thread



Voice Thread is a web based program that you can run on any computer through your browser (ie: Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox), but there is also now an app.  According to the Voice Thread website: “VoiceThread … allows you to place collections of media like images, videos, documents, and presentations at the center of an asynchronous conversation. A VoiceThread allows people to have conversations and to make comments using any mix of text, a microphone, a web cam, a telephone, or uploaded audio file.”  Does that sound like a lot of mumbo-jumbo?  Sorry.  Maybe I could show you one easier than I can describe it...  Here’s my first try:

http://voicethread.com/?#u2210871.b2483951.i13152664

I created the above voice thread using my pictures of concentration camps, then asked 2 students in my Aventures in World History class to comment on a few of the images.  They came up with the idea of making it “like a radio show” - their words, not mine.  It wasn’t my intention to have them do it that way, but they were excited about it and were willing to spend more time with it than they have wanted to spend on any one thing all semester.

You can see that there are various options for posting comments - text, audio record, webcam record.  Just like the Show Me app, you can write on the images as well.  If you use video in your voice thread (instead of a still image or text), people commenting on the video can pause it to comment, or to draw on the still image to point something out.  Very cool.

Here is a voice thread example of video commenting use a road runner cartoon:  http://voicethread.com/?#q+voice+thread.b21651.i122786

So, what could you do with this in class?  These are just brainstormed ideas.  
1) You could post a power point and talk about the slides on voice thread if you were going to be away from class for a day.  You could pose critical thinking questions that students would respond to through Voice Thread.  I believe there is a way to fairly easily convert ppt to voice thread (at least the images), then you just add your audio/comments for each slide.
2) You could post a series of images and ask students to respond to the images.  How does each image relate to the course/unit big idea for the course?  What does the image demonstrate about the big idea?
3) You could have students submit images or quotations that they’ve found that best represent a given topic/idea.  Post those in the voice thread and require students to respond to each others’ ideas.
4) You could put debate topics or arguments on slides and have student argue each side through the voice thread.

You can choose to moderate the comments that people put on the Voice Thread if you are concerned about student putting appropriate things up.

 
Here are the draw backs I’ve seen so far.  You have to create an account. When you create a free account, it is just good for you.  Then, to comment, all your students need to create a free account as well.  Not the end of the world, but I would prefer not to ask all my students to have to create accounts for things.  You can create an educator’s account that gives you 50 student accounts attached to your account, but you have to pay for it.  I’m not into that.  (May be able to create a department one, and pay for it with the p-card?) It is possible with your 50 student accounts to use them with more than 50 students if you create, then assign generic ids to students.

6 comments:

  1. Cool! I think for Greenhouse the simplicity of the original app (can't remember the name off hand) would be ideal. So in a 'logging my work' type setting that's probably what I would use. The video feature here, ability to pause, etc. might work well for a summative project in Greenhouse.

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  2. The other app was called "show me". I think you are right, for what you are talking about in the greenhouse course it is better. I think another use that I didnt talk about originally might be formative. The teacher puts together examples OD something and students comment on it. Ex: examples of pests in garden, students comment on what they are and how to fix them; or soil problems students identify problem and solution.

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  3. Just read this about ways to use voice thread as thinking prompt
    http://eastech.blogspot.com/2011/12/thinking-routines-ipad.html

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  4. Hi Lisa,
    I put a screencast 'how-to' on my Voicethread page that your folks might like: http://tech2learn.wikispaces.com/VoiceThread

    Although it's easy to do, sometimes it's nice to have a walk-through in case one forgets!

    Brenda

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  5. Thanks Brenda! I will remind people of this as they try it.

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  6. I agree with Mike regarding Show Me. I found Voice Thread to be overwhelming compared to Show Me.

    I think both Voice Thread and Show Me can be used for formative and summative assessment. It would probably be a good idea to have the students use it in a formative manner first, though. That way they can get used to the technology before having to create something that will be evaluated. Some students may be overwhelmed by new programs and need time to figure it out and become comfortable with it before their work "counts". (Because formative work doesn't count...ha.)

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