Two Months in Quick Thoughts on My iPad

Quick Thoughts on the iPad

I have spent two months with my new iPad and can say that the experience has been superb with even more expectations as clever apps continue to be designed by inventive people (refer to related links at the end of this post for examples of innovative, unexpected uses of the iPad). I have used the iPad at work, at home (everywhere except ...), outdoors, in coffee shops, and at conferences. Below are quick thoughts categorized under what I really like, what needs improvement, and disappointments (so far). In the beginning I missed having the convenience, typing angle, and protection of the Apple iPad case, which arrived as a backorder one month later. If the iPad in some future version becomes a possible laptop replacement, then I might consider using a keyboard.

What I Really Like

• Magic comes to mind when tilting, rotating, and touching the iPad. One should not underestimate the attraction of elegant design, near instant responsiveness, and attention to detail. A quibble - the volume control button could be easier to adjust.
• Sure it's obvious but often not stressed enough how important instant access to information can be not only for the techno-savvy and impatient but also for people unnerved by technology in general - immediate feedback is important. For example, NPR Music online takes several clicks and fussing with browser windows before your are ready to play and switch between programs. On an iPad it's a couple of swipes and presses. NPR Music is one cool app.
• The USAToday Reader is one of my favorite iPod touch apps and it is fantastic on the iPad. I can quickly look up the weather, news, scores, and share articles by e-mail, Twitter, and Facebook. The design is beautiful, evidenced at its best with Day in Pictures, information is easily retrieved, and yes it is free.
• I am not bothered by the lack of multitasking and in fact would argue that less distraction is an advantage when reading, listening, and taking notes. Read this interesting article Understanding Multi-tasking on the iPad: What is it really? Exception: Apple apps such as iPod can play music in the background but 3rd-party apps such as Pandora and RadioTime cannot. The iOS 4 upgrade for iPad when released in late Fall should address this issue.
• Dropbox is an essential app, which is available as a share when your iPad is connected to a wireless network. Dropbox displays iPad compatible file formats (e.g. images, music, Office and iWork documents, rtf, and html) stored on your share and provides tools to open them into apps such as GoodReader, Keynote, and Pages.
• One of the reasons I purchased an iPad was to read rich content PDF's such as the Horizon Report, Educause publications, The Amazing Web 2.0 Projects book, and the Pew Report. Although the newly updated iBooks app can now handle PDF's, GoodReader is the best available document reader and recently added displaying double-pages, horizontal page-turning, and VGA output.
• Keynote for iPad easily and quite accurately imports PowerPoint (Windows or Macintosh) and Keynote (Macintosh) presentations, especially when used with the Dropbox app. From your PC or Mac save your PowerPoint or Keynote presentation to a Dropbox folder (e.g. presentations), open Dropbox on iPad, load the presentation, and choose Open In Keynote, which automatically imports the file. The optional iPad VGA adapter allows you to project your Keynote presentation, although it must be in play mode.
• With Netflix for iPad subscribers have essentially the same functionality as the full web browser version (manage your NetFlix DVD and Instant queues, view Recent activity such as when your next DVD's will ship, etc.) and can instantly watch TV episodes and movies streamed from Netflix on their iPad in full screen. The quality is excellent and the experience is superb.
• Finally! The new version of iBooks adds a note taker to its built-in dictionary, search, bookmarking, and multi-color highlighting tools. The bookmark index can be synchronized with the same books on your iPhone or iPod touch running iOS 4. I am currently reading The Heart of Darkness and taking advantage of these features.
• It’s a social device! It's rare to pass around a laptop or netbook for sharing such as browsing photo slideshows and listening to music but an iPad, yes. Think social and collaboration when using apps such as SonicPics for Creating Collaborative Audio Slideshows.
• With the excellent built-in speakers, the iPad is the best multipurpose, portable music player ever! You can play iPod music, NPR Music, Pandora mixes, RadioTime radio stations, and much more! The experience is fantastic.

Needs Improvement

• The Dock Connector to VGA adapter works with Keynote presentations in play mode, iPhoto slideshows, and iTunes movies that are not protected. There is no audio output. Read a C- review by iLounge. I would put this in the Disappointments list but find it useful for Keynote presentations and am optimistic that more apps such as GoodReader will support VGA output.
• I used Pages to take notes during a conference and the process was cumbersome. An efficient note taker that includes a built-in web browser for bookmarking would be better. I am also considering using NoteTaker HD with a Pogo stylus.

Disappointments

• Apple did not include its built-in iPhone apps Weather, Clock, and Voice Memos. They are simple, fast, run in the background, and free. For example, it is not possible to set a third-party alarm unless the app is running, which renders it near useless. The lack of Apple's Voice Memos is especially disappointing because no app can match its feature set: simple, elegant design; .m4a compressed file format; built-in trimmer; background recording; and iTunes file conversion. The $1.98 Voice Memos app by Kenditech comes close but does not support backround recording and does not include a trim editor.
• Apple does not support enhanced-chapter podcasts (.m4a format) on iPad by design. The full audio of an enhanced podcast plays, but only first the slide displays. This is a setback because enhanced podcasts, which are essentially slideshows played in sync with audio recordings have signficant potential for learning, especially when played on a larger screen such as an iPad. I have submitted feedback to Apple hoping that a change will be made in the future.

Related Links

• Delicious bookmarks categorized by iPad and lifestyle
• NoteTaker HD with Pogo stylus
• Finger Painting on the Apple iPad from the live model
• Photo editor: Photogene for iPad

Creating Collaborative Audio Slideshows

Creating Collaborative Audio Slideshows

One month ago I received my new iPad and immediately scoured the App Store for interesting free or low-cost apps. I downloaded the usual arsenal: GoodReader, iBooks, Twitter client (Twitterific), Amazon Kindle, and USA Today. Then I happened on SonicPics, which I discovered in my search to determine why enhanced (chapter) podcasts do not correctly display on an iPad. (I have reported this issue to Apple.)

Computer software provide tools to create audio slideshows typcially requires several steps: organizing the images, setting up a microphone, narrating while the slides displays, exporting the file, and then finally publishing it to a web site. The process is cumbersome and portability is limited. In contrast SonicPics for iPod touch, iPhone, and iPad (although not yet native) is an elegantly simple, all-in-one mobile solution for creating audio slideshows — still images synced with audio as they relate to each image — that provide enhanced online and mobile learning opportunties for students as compared to audio only media. The slideshows can be exported as QuickTime chapter videos or uploaded directly to YouTube for instant sharing! SonicPics requires a microphone and imports images from your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad's Photo library.

Tip: There are a number of iPod touch microphones available, varying in quality and price - some up to $40 each. I have tried these low-cost mics with good success. For under $5.00 on Amazon the Mini Capsule Microphone is of surprisingly high quality, although it is really small and easy to misplace.

Even though the app is not yet native, SonicPics runs without issue on an iPad, which is a natural for annotating audio to images because of its larger screen and built-in microphone. In addition the iPad Camera Connection Kit allows direct transfer of photographs from a digital camera to an iPad Photo library. Consider these uses to assist with your personal recording, notetaking, and tour guides:

• Lecture recording - Use a set of related images or export a series of JPEG's from a PowerPoint or Keynote export and record notes as you touch drag through each image.
• Conference notes - Take photographs during the conference and then record your notes and reflections.
• Photo tours - take photographs of tours such as hiking and then record your experiences as they relate to each photograph.

The Real Excitement: Collaboration!

I look forward to creating audio slideshows on my own for instruction, sharing experiences, and exploring new ways for engaging learners. However, imagine the possibilities when audio slideshows are created in collaboration, especially on an iPad. Students can create group recordings by touch dragging through images, recording their reflections either spontaneously or by reading from prepared text, and passing the iPad on to the next person. Projects can can be uploaded to YouTube for sharing or exported as an.m4v chapter video, which can be played standalone in QuickTime or Windows Media Player or embedded in a web page. Can you add to this sampling of project ideas?

• Tours or field trips - students take photographs, which are uploaded to the iPod touch or iPad using Apple's Camera Connection Kit.
• Create audiobooks - students create their own digital image (photograph, drawing, scan, downloaded file) and then upload them to a Drop.io or Dropbox share. Using Dropbox or Droppler app upload the images from the share directly to an iPhone, touch, or iPad Photo library. Students can record poetry or sing songs as they relate to each image.
• Language instruction - Using the same scenario as an audiobook expect that students record in a foreign language that they are studying.
• Digital Story Telling - Students take their own photographs and then record a story, slide by slide.

In the recent time that I have been using an iPad, I would say that SonicPics has been unexpectedly one of my favorite and most useful apps. I wait in anticipation for the iPad native version.

Improving SonicPics

I have written to the publisher of SonicPics with the following recommendations:

• Create an iPad native app, which would improve the interface, add new features such as App sharing and of course improve the resolution.
• Provide an option to export slideshows as enhanced podcasts so they can be played back on a mobile device.

Currently iPhone OS 3 does not allow third party apps such as SonicPics to directly transfer media content to iTunes, which would eliminate the currently cumbersome process of file export, Wi-Fi sharing, entering a URL, downloading, and copying to iTunes.

SonicPics Tutorial

E-Portfolios with Google Sites EDU

It has been generally acknowledged that e-portfolios are primarily developed for ongoing learning, showcase, and assessment and that one e-portfolio system does not fit all purposes. Full abstract below slide presentation ...

E-portfolios for Learning with Google Sites EDU from Joe Fahs

Abstract

It has been generally acknowledged that e-portfolios are primarily developed for ongoing learning, showcase, and assessment and that one e-portfolio system does not fit all purposes. If we are interested in the academic success and co-curricular accomplishments of our students through self-motivation, engagement, reflection, and ownership, then a learning portfolio nurtured over time has significant potential in being developed for life after graduation.

There are many e-portfolio tools and systems available, none of which provides the perfect solution to all institutional assessment and student learning needs. Google Sites for Education has only recently been considered for portfolio development but offers promising solutions to effectively build learning and showcase portfolios including artifact storage, privacy control, collaboration, reflection, and ownership. Although orientation, training, and ongoing support is strongly recommended, Google Sites is easy-to-use and provides built-in tools to insert evidence of extended learning from sources such as social media sites.

SUNY CIT 2010: E-portfolios for Learning – Google Sites for Education

Where: SUNY Plattsburgh, Yokum 201

When: Friday, May 28 9:15- 9:45 am

Assistive Mobile Technology to Help Students Succeed

Title: Assistive Mobile Technology to Help Students Succeed

Format: Poster Presentation PDF of actual poster

Where: SUNY Plattsburgh, Angell College Center

When: Wednesday, May 26, 6:30 - 7:45 pm

The iPod touch is a multipurpose mobile device that provides easy access to text, images, media, and an enormous library of free and low-cost educational apps. The mobility and relative affordability of an iPod provides opportunities for students with assistive learning needs to succeed in the classroom using technology that was previously limited to a computer, was difficult to use, and expensive. The iPod's touch screen interface reduces anxiety for students by empowering them to quickly master essential tools that facilitate learning and engagement.

Using a combination of free or low-cost applications the iPod touch can be transformed into a video player, audiobook player (with or without text), voice recorder for recording lectures, specialized e-text reader, text-to-speech converter, speech dictation device, sound amplifier, and online reader of reference materials. Aside from its obvious use as a stand-alone mobile device, the iPod is an ideal companion for a laptop or desktop computer because of its portability, touch screen interface, and on-the-go access. Listed below are a number of scenarios that provide opportunities for students to improve their success in the classroom.

Scenario - PDF's to Audiobooks

For many students comprehension of printed text materials depends on reading and listening to the text at the same time. Although it is possible to scan printed materials into electronic format the process is tedious and inaccurate. Read more ...

Scenario – Recording Class Lectures

A number of instructors are recording their lectures for course casting that provides opportunities for students to review materials for reinforcement or that they missed. If course podcasts are not available, then students can request permission from their instructor, especially if they are registered through their office of accessibility services. Read more ...

Scenario - Listening to Blogs

Blogs provide important opportunities to reflect and write in an open environment for learning through feedback, revision, and sharing. Converting a blog to spoken text provides many opportunities for students to reinforce learning. Read more ...

Scenario – Mobile Text-to-Speech

Although desktop software such as Flame Reader and iSpeak It! provide more features, control, and organization of text-to-speech recordings, they typically require a three-step process: convert text to speech, copy the recording to iTunes, and copy the spoken text to an iPod touch. Read more ...

Scenario – Reading E-books

Electronic readers provide students access to an enormous library of free and electronic books, periodicals, and newspapers that can be directly read on an iPod. Although the use of e-books is already growing, there is expected to be a substantial impact when the iPad and other touch screen tablets reach the market in early spring. Read more ...

Scenario – Speech Recognition

The potential for speech recognition is significant and already practical with new apps such as Dragon Dictation and Dragon Search, although the free version has limitations. Human speech is processed and recognized through online servers that provide opportunities for inputting text without having to type. Read more ...

Notes

Except for the lack of a built-in camera and cell phone capability, an iPod touch connected to a Wi-Fi network and equipped with an optional microphone is closely functional to an iPhone — without the monthly wireless costs. Refer to the section Microphones for a listing of recommended iPod microphones.

Microphones

There are a number of iPod touch microphones available, varying in quality and price - some up to $40 each. I have tried these low-cost mics with good success.

• For under $2.00 at Amazon the Mini Capsule Microphone is of surprisingly high quality, although it’s really small and easy to misplace. Buy more than one.
• The $8.00 Headset Adapter + Microphone includes a 30" cable and clip-on mic that claims to work with the 1G iPod Touch in addition to the newer 2G-3G models. Plug in a stereo headset and you have a hands-free speaking and listening device - really handy when carrying on phone conversations with Skype.

Resources

• iSpeak It: http://www.zapptek.com/ispeak-it
• Stanza: http://www.lexcycle.com
• Enhancing Audio Podcasts for Online and Mobile Learning: http://www.slideshare.net/mpondu/enhancing-audio-podcasts-for-online-and-mobile-learning
• Assistive learning tools: http://atmac.org
• Touching student lives in the classroom:
• http://edcommunity.apple.com/ali/story.php?itemID=16472 - choose iPod touch for Meeting the Needs of Special Learners.
• The Assistive Technology Blog: http://www.assistivetechnology.vcu.edu
• Assistive Technology in Education -iPod: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Assistive_Technology_in_Education/iPod

My Collection of iPod Touch Apps

iPod touch sales skyrocketed the last quarter of 2009, far surpassing the iPhone in sales towards the end of the year. Except for the iPhone's built-in camera and the obvious advantage that it is a cell phone (and therefore always connected to a network), an iPod touch 2G or 3G connected to a Wi-Fi network and equipped with an optional microphone is closely functional to its more expensive cousin.

There are a number of iPod touch microphones available, varying in quality and price - some up to $40 each. I have tried these low-cost mics with good success.

• For under $2.00 price on Amazon the Mini Capsule Microphone is of surprisingly high quality, although its really small and easy to misplace. Buy more than one.
• The $8.00 Headset Adapter + Microphone includes a 30" cable and clip-on mic that claims to work with the 1G iPod Touch in addition to the newer 2G-3G models. Plug in a stereo headset and you have a hands-free speaking and listening device - really handy when carrying on phone conversations with Skype.

Additionally, strategies and features that allow off-line reading and browsing of documents that typically require a network connection. And let's not forget that iPod touch users do not have to pay a monthly $100 wireless carrier fee.

Dragon Dictation - Converts what you speak into surprisingly accurate text. You will need a microphone for your iPod Touch of course. The process is simple: press Tap and dictate and start speaking - slowly and distinctly with minimal background noise works best. After 30 seconds Dragon Dictation will process your speech through online servers and display the converted text on your iPod screen, which you can either edit, copy, or e-mail. Although a bit cumbersome you can speak in segments of 30 seconds, appending your text each time so you can dictate for longer periods of time. Although the app is free for now, there is bound to be a paid version with more features.

Dragon Search - Processes search results based spoken text with impressive accuracy, although certainly not perfect. As with Dragon Dictate you will need a microphone for your iPod. The process is simple: press Tap and Speak and say your search phrase distinctly with minimal background noise for the best results. Press the Done button and your phrase will be searched by Google, Wikipedia, YouTube, iTunes, and Twitter. For example, I spoke "Marcellus Shale" and Dragon Search found my tweet sent only minutes before - amazing.

You can edit spoken text in the search box if Dragon Search does not interpret the search phrase as you expect. For instant answers dictate terms according to Google Search features http://www.google.com/intl/en/help/features.html, although the results are mixed depending on phrase syntax. For example say "72 inches in centimeters" or "2 tablespoons in ounces" triggers Google Calculator, which immediately calculates the results. However Google Calculator does not recognize terms such as "square root of 987", although other web sites such as WikiAnswers will provide the answer once you open the page.

Voice Memos – Apple provided this app as part of iPod Software Update version 3.0, which requires a 2nd or 3rd Generation iPod and a microphone with a 3-ring 3.5mm connector. Voice Memos allows recording, trimming, saving as a voice memo, and sharing as an e-mail MPEG-4 (.m4a) audio attachment.

Urbanspoon - Look up area restaurants based on location, type of food, and cost. Selection of restaurants is better than most apps and includes reviews, maps, pricing, and time of day menu offerings. Although Urbanspoon is most effective when searching ethnic cuisines in college communities or larger cities. If you sign up for an Urbanspoon account you can add restaurants and reviews.


Skype – Assuming that you have a Skype account you can use the iPod touch with an external microphone to talk to other Skype users. Although a microphone inserted in the iPod's audio port shuts off the internal speaker, Skype's Speaker button allows you to re-enable the speaker, which obviously is required for two-way voice communication! If you use the "Headset hands free 3.5mm adapter + microphone for Apple iPod Touch" with headphones, then you can communicate hands-free because the adapter includes audio pass-through. The adapter is currently available on Amazon for $7.00.

USAToday Reader. USAToday Reader is specially designed browser that allows you to easily read the latest in USA News, Sports, Money, Technology, Life, and Travel. When you open each category Reader, the information is updated locally on your iPod. You can then take these stories with you to read off-line - simply ignore any not-connected error and continue reading.


Stanza - An electronic reader that has access to a library of more than 100,000 free and commercial book, periodicals, and newspapers that you can read directly on your iPod. Using the Windows or Mac desktop application you can convert PDF, Word, and HTML text into eReader format and share the document with your iPod. The Stanza app allows you customize the fonts, color, layout, and brightness of your books for a decent reading experience on a small screen. You can search, bookmark, and organize your books by category for quick retrieval.

Phone Flicks If you have a NetFlix account, then you can manage your NetFlix DVD and Instant queues, view Recent activity such as when your next DVD's will ship, Recommended movies based on your viewing and rating preferences, and reviews that you may have added. A handy tool to build your queue on the fly!

Photoshop.com Mobile. Open iPod photos into Photoshop Mobile with this simple and easy-to-use app. You can crop, adjust hue, exposure, and saturation, apply a number of effects, and undo-redo changes. The edited photo can be saved to your iPod's Save Photos Library or uploaded to an account space on Photoshop.com.

Epicurious – This beautifully designed app allows you to search and browse by category through 25,000 professionally tested and reviewed recipes. Reviews are useful because they not only rate the recipe but provide useful suggestions for improvement. You can mark favorite recipes for easy retrieval and add ingredients to a shopping list. I can't wait to try out the apple crisp recipe with dried cranberries!

NPR News – The recently recently NPR News app allows you to browse the latest news in text format, many of which are recorded from recent radio broadcast, and share them through e-mail, Facebook, or Twitter. At any time you can search through NPR radio stations by region and play them live if marked on air. Stations also provide a recent archive of recent on demand local performances. Browse through selected NPR Programs by such as All Things Considered and play recent broadcasts or subscribe to the iTunes podcast.

Flixster - Search for box office flicks, movies on DVD, and upcoming films that are still in production. The movies are rated and include a QuickTime video trailer, PG rating, length, and theatre show times in your area. Flixster is well-designed and integrates nicely with other apps. For example, movies are released as DVD's you can rent or purchase them from iTunes or add the DVD automatically to your NetFlix queue.

Mint - Sign up for an account on Mint.com and connect to your online banking, investment, loans and credit card accounts for a quick check of recent transactions and balances. You authenticate through secure login credentials and then establish read-only access to transactions - money cannot be moved or transferred. Mint provides optional online money-management tools and options to send alerts based on transactions and status such as an account that is running low.

Evernote If you have not already done so create a free Evernote.com account and download the Windows or Mac desktop application. (The web browser works well enough when the full application is not available.) Use Evernote to create notebooks of just about anything digital that you can imagine: images, audio uploads, PDF's, web clippings, and of course your text formatted notes. The Evernote apps allows you to access your notes online and add text, voice notes, and images from your iPod Photo library.

Who is Hot - With this app I can quickly look up friends and family and determine how far away they live and what the current weather is. It's January and at over 2,300 miles away my son is enjoying California weather that is 70 degrees warmer that where I am at! Maybe I don't like this app after all.

Pandora - Most likely you have an Internet radio account such as Pandora so this app will be familiar to you. You can browse through current stations, create new stations, and bookmark your favorites.

Dictionary accesses the Random House Unabridged Dictionary online providing basic definitions with sentence example and word origin. The audio pronunciation tool is embedded in the definition and plays in the background while you read. Dictionary includes a Thesaurus and the Word of the Day.

Google Mobile App for iPhone – Blue icon with small g – This gives you

access to all of your Google apps such as Mail (although the ActiveSync for Gmail is more efficient for mail and calendar), Google Apps, Google Reader, and Latitude (http://www.google.com/latitude/intro.html).

Lose-It! Expert will tell you that keeping track of your calories consumed and burned is a useful strategy for losing or controlling your weight. COMPLETE THIS.

DropBox – Go to http://dropbox.com and create an account. Install the software on your PC or Mac and place documents that you want to sync to your server account (2GB) into the Dropbox folder. When you edit a file locally it syncs to the server. If you install DB on another personal computer, then it will sync from server to the DropBox folder on that computer. Use the App to read your files off the server. One of my favorite apps! Read these top five uses of Dropbox including copying PDF documents to a special folder (e.g. ebooks) and then marking them as favorites for off-line reading.

Super Search – You can search items quickly by categories such as IMDb, Google Images, Twitter, Snopes, and WebMD without the fuss of starting up the Safari iPhone browser.

Walk Score – Click the Location icon so the app can map where you your iPhone (anywhere) or iPod Touch (has to be on a WiFi network) is located currently. Click the List tab to get a listing of area businesses. You can a walk score based on density of businesses.

Yelp – Something like Walk Score but slicker and a far larger database. Includes reviews for restaurants and if you have an iPhone can automatically call the number in the business’s contact.Something like Walk Score but slicker and a far larger database. Includes reviews for restaurants and if you have an iPhone can automatically call the number in the business’s contact.

For Twitter folks there are the free Twitterific, Tweetdeck, and Tweetie ($2.99) apps.

Speak-It! Type or copy and paste text in the "text to say" window and have a synthesized voice speak back to you. You can choose from two American voices (good quality) and two British voices (better quality), increase or lower the volume, and adjust the playback speed. There are a number of application for Speak It! including hands-free listening of online news, playing back text for those who are unable to speak, and assisting auditory learnings with reading text. The app currently cannot upload files nor export spoken text as mp3 files. Speak It! lacks the ability to remember current playback position and does not allow scrolling of recorded spoken text. For long text such as chapters and books, I recommend a solution such as iSpeak It and iTunes.

WordRefer – Web app that accesses the http://wordreference.com web site. Excellent resource for translating words between languages (e.g. English, French, Italian, Greek, Spanish, and Japanese), providing many example idiomatic expressions based on the word, and conjugating verbs. Users can also join a Discussion forum to pose questions about word usage in a given language. The app's design is mediocre but still provides an excellent reference and communication tool for language learners.

Wordling conference and chat tweets

When I was browsing through Twitter the weekend before Thanksgiving, I was surprised at how quickly Gardner Campbell summarized key points in presentations at the 2009 Lilly International Conference into a steady stream of meaningful tweets. Relatively new to Wordle, (but not to word frequency analyses, which have fascinated me ever since my students used statistical tests of authorship in determining whether Quintus Curtius Snodgrass was really Mark Twain - he almost certainly was not) I decided to create a word cloud of his tweets based on the hashtag #lilly09. The process involved:

• Copying all the tweets from Gardner's Twitter page during the time period of the conference


• Pasting the results into Word and applying a find-replace to surround #lilly09 with tab characters


• Copying and pasting the Word text into Excel for quick column manipulation, including sorting and removing the conference hashtag and unrelated tweets


• Copying the text-only results into Wordle and creating the final word cloud, which is posted on Gardner's blog post: Extreme Tweeting Yields Wordle: More on Lilly 2009

The algorithm was relatively straightforward but there were too many steps to generate the final results. Hopefully tools such as Wordle and Tweet Cloud will evolve by providing options to generate word clouds from filtered tweets using search terms such as hashtags.

I applied a similar technique to create a word cloud of the December 16 Edchat session on assessment and sent this tweet: "http://twitpic.com/ttvn2 - Wordle of Formative and Summative Assessments transcript #edchat". Almost immediately a response tweet correctly pointed out that the Wordle missed the conversation (and follow-up reflections such as Greg Thompson Thoughts on Assessment: A Conversation). A quick look at the cloud shows RT as the "word" most often used and a LOT of @user replies. There were approximately 1068 replies and 699 retweets in the session's 1181 tweets - that is indeed conversation!

Created with http://wordle.net

Practical and Educational Uses of Wordle

Since Wordle was introduced in 2008, there has been no shortage of educational uses of creating word clouds. Below is a list of recent and popular blogs that have published their favorite uses of Wordle in the classroom. If you are new to Wordle, refer to the section below "What is Wordle?" and the useful frequently asked questions page maintained by creator Jonathan Feinberg.

• ProfHacker published an article on Using Wordle in the classroom to analyze poetic diction.
• The SlideShare slideshow Forty-Three Interesting Ways to use Wordle in the Classroom includes a wealth of ideas for teaching. One of my favorites is Guess the French fairytale.
• Rodd Lucier summarizes a few of his clever ideas in the Top 20 Uses for Wordle, including condensing survey response data into a word cloud.
• Jennifer Wagner hosts a Monday-Friday Daily Guess the Wordle.
• Bill Wolff's Teaching Students How to Write Meaningful Tags explains strategies that help students break down blog posts to write more descriptive tags.
• Jamie Keddie describes A Really Useful Wordle Trick on how to include phrases such as "once a upon a time".
• Author Scott Westerfeld's interesting blog on eliminating overused words includes a word cloud of his novel Leviathan after the first draft.
• Wordle creator Feinberg uses statistical analysis to generate word cloud visualizations comparing Presidential Inaugural Addresses.
• Keri-Lee Beasley describes a simple but clever use of Wordle in first-grade poetry writing with a summary of what students learned.
• I published a post on Wordling Conference and Chat Tweets.

Wordle Nonsense

Despite many possible educational uses, it is still important to ask why Wordle should be used in the classroom and what are the expected goals for students. Without carefully defining these expectations, Wordle can end up being a new technology toy, resulting in generating nonsensical data without a purpose. What better way to demonstrate Wordle nonsense than creating a word cloud of a passage generated with a Lorem Ipsum generator as shown below?!

Created with Wordle.net

What is Wordle?

With Wordle you can easily create a visual word-frequency cloud of any copied text, blog site, or tags from a Delicious site. In a matter of seconds your beautiful graph can provide information that is educational or useless, but regardless of the result it is fun and quite stunning to look at. Below is a Wordle of President Obama's speech on racism.

Created with http://wordle.net