Google Data

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Source: Google Blog

Source: Google Blog

Google Drive is an online storage space provided by Google. It allows you to store Google Documents (spreadsheets, presentations, word processing documents, etc.) as well as other files (such as videos, music files, etc). People who remember the early days are often confused about Google Drive. You can think of it as an online hard drive with added functionality of being able to create files.

I use Google Drive daily. A quick search reveals many tutorials of how to use Google Drive. Here are some of the ways that I use it:

  • give students feedback on work that they have shared with me in Google Drive
  • create itineraries for trips with friends and have them add to it/comment
  • save large files that cannot be sent by e-mail and share them with the recipient
  • share a folder or zip file of images with friends that I traveled with
  • store files that I want to access/modify on the go (iPad, iPhone, other computer)
  • save a backup of an important file  (e.g. essays while completing coursework)
  • create surveys and share them with others
  • create graphs to analyze surveys
  • present a presentation in full screen mode right in Google Drive

Google has added better integration of tools so that it’s easier to add a Google document into an e-mail, to add images to forms, and to access storage. Currently, users have 10 GB for Gmail and 5 GB for Drive and Google+ Photos. Google will be integrating storage so that users will have 15 GB distributed amongst Google products. This is exciting for me because as I keep most of my files in Drive, I have a greater need for storage space there rather than in Gmail.

Slip off the Digital Leash

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Do you drive your technology or does your technology drive you?

Do you feel a little lost when you forget your cell phone at home or in the car? Could you navigate through a city if all you had to depend on was a map (and speaking to locals)? I’m the first to admit that I have a close relationship with my electronic devices. There is usually one hour each day when I don’t have my cell phone within easy reach. What are the effects of this type of attachment? Well one of the effects is a propensity to multitask, a habit that’s difficult, if not impossible, to turn off. Another effect is the impact of being leashed, even if it’s self-imposed rather than forced upon you..

A Challenge For Greater Balance – 5 Things

  • Don’t check e-mail within one hour of heading to bed. Do something else during that time (preferably something that does not use electronics).
  • Turn your phone on silent, not vibrate, once in a while and give your full attention to the moment.
  • Slow down. Don’t overwhelm people with multiple modes of communication about the same topic. Choose the method based on urgency. If it’s not urgent, relax and wait for a response.
  • Every once in a while (say once a day), when you’re tempted to send an email to someone nearby, get up to find them for a conversation instead.
  • Don’t get swept in the flow. It’s okay to say No. This means that you don’t have to immediately respond to e-mail, or even pick up a phone call. You get to CHOOSE. Just because people can reach out to you doesn’t mean that you have to let them interrupt you.

Some ideas from the web

Slip off the Digital Leash

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Do you drive your technology or does your technology drive you?

Do you feel a little lost when you forget your cell phone at home or in the car? Could you navigate through a city if all you had to depend on was a map (and speaking to locals)? I’m the first to admit that I have a close relationship with my electronic devices. There is usually one hour each day when I don’t have my cell phone within easy reach. What are the effects of this type of attachment? Well one of the effects is a propensity to multitask, a habit that’s difficult, if not impossible, to turn off. Another effect is the impact of being leashed, even if it’s self-imposed rather than forced upon you..

A Challenge For Greater Balance – 5 Things

  • Don’t check e-mail within one hour of heading to bed. Do something else during that time (preferably something that does not use the Internet).
  • Turn your phone on silent, not vibrate, once in a while and give your full attention to the moment.
  • Slow down. Don’t overwhelm people with multiple modes of communication about the same topic. Choose the method based on urgency. If it’s not urgent, relax and wait for a response.
  • Every once in a while (say once a day), when you’re tempted to send an email to someone nearby, get up to find them for a conversation instead.
  • Don’t get swept in the flow. It’s okay to say No. This means that you don’t have to immediately respond to e-mail, or even pick up a phone call. You get to CHOOSE. Just because people can reach out to you doesn’t mean that you have to let them interrupt you.

Some ideas from the web

Information at Your Fingertips

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I found it interesting, in light of the graphs by http://website-monitoring.com, to consider the habits of people, and our use of the extraordinary access that we have to technology. Does it surprise you that Facebook was the most searched for term in Google Search during March, 2013 and Google is the 2nd most searched for term? Would you have guessed that the top 25 sites would contain sites of various country domains, including Japan? Examine the infographic below. What conclusions do you draw from it about society, culture, economics?

en_03_2013_gif

I’ve watched my students Google Gmail, Youtube and Facebook and wondered, “Why don’t they just put in in the address bar with .com?” I’ve actually tried to ask some of them that and they say it’s easier their way. They perceive some advantage to searching for the term and clicking on the link rather than just typing in 3 more characters in the address bar; this baffles me. Is this one of the things that distinguishes them (digital natives) from me (digital immigrant).

Threes Tuesday

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1.     http://storybird.com

What is it? Collaborative story-telling website

Use it:

  • create a story

Integration: Any subject but especially language arts

Purpose: Students can work with each other to create a story. If the focus is on storytelling and not drawing/artistry, this tool is useful in that it provides students with images to use.

2.     http://www.bibme.org/

What is it? A bibliography creator 

Use it:

  • easily create a bibliography using MLA, APA, Chicago or Turbian using online databases
  • view citation guides

Integration: All subjects

Purpose: This tool accesses online databases to automatically complete some of the required information for your bibliography. The citation guides also teach students about methods of attribution.

3.     http://www.wordle.net

What is it? World cloud creator

 Use it:

  • artwork
  • spelling/vocabulary
  • data/literature analysis
  • poetry

Integration: Any subject

Purpose: Create a graphical representation of the relative frequency of each word in a list/paragraph. This may be useful for analyzing texts, or for emphasizing meaning.

Tip: Try double clicking, right clicking on a word, and advanced options

Perfect for Happiness

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When we aim for perfect, what compromises are we making in the process? Who are we leaving out of the single perfect. I’m reminded me of a recent conversation at dinner with friends. I like hearty muffins; others like light and fluffy ones. I don’t think that oatmeal belongs in desserts; many of you disagree. My concept of a perfect dessert is different than that of many of you.

One of my students shared a TED talk video on his blog this week. He made the point that perfect is not well defined because different people have different concepts of what perfect is. Perfect is ambiguous. Malcolm Gladwell presents Howard Moscowitz’s concept of many perfects, not just one perfect.

As a person, do you engage with others according to their individual needs, or do you have a single concept of engagement? How can we change our relationships and our connections by recognizing that it’s not about a single perfect, but many perfects?  How can we use this broader concept of perfection to share and find happiness.

App Spotlight

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The list of currently free apps is updated each week. Highlights this week include Purple Frog to teach social skills including caring, DoReMi 1-2-3: Music for kids which focuses on music, Mathzilla for elementary Maths. Cookie Next Door which encourages creativity through Storytelling, and PixStop for Stop Animation. Please visit the web page for additional apps that are currently free.

For more recommendations and reviews of apps for iDevices in the classroom, see http://tips2012.edublogs.org/category/app-recommendations/ and http://teachwithyouripad.wikispaces.com/Blooms+Taxonomy+with+Apps.

Looking Good at 40

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Cell phones, like most technology, show the trend of sleeker, thinner, lighter, more powerful. They’ve been getting smaller and more powerful, another fine example of progress over time. Wednesday marked 40 years since Martin Cooper made the first cell phone call.
Happy 40th Birthday Cell Phone!
Infographic by Visual News

I have no doubt that some of you will tell me about the downsides to cell phones. I’m well aware of them: less mindfulness and more distraction; anytime anywhere access makes it harder to get away; more access to distractions such as Angry Birds and Scramble, etc. One infographic that I saw says that cellphones used to be for making calls and now we use it to avoid making calls. I chuckled as I read it because I can relate.

According to the latest PEW study on Teens and Technology, a majority of teens (93%) in American households own a computer or access a family member’s. Girls tend to use the Internet from their cell phones more than boys. In general, teens have embraced mobile technology and tend to be trendsetters in the world of electronics.

Keeping Safe, Wirelessly

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Children are brought into the world of technology even before birth, with ultrasounds posted on Facebook, and baby names crowdsourced online. Is it no doubt then, that the wireless spans the whole family?

Image courtesy of CTIA-The Wireless Association. Click to see the whole info graphic.

Image courtesy of CTIA-The Wireless Association. Click to see the whole infographic.

Wireless is wonderful in that it allows anytime anywhere connections and learning. These affordances come with (the usual online) dangers and it’s important for adults and children to take steps to mitigate these dangers.

Before giving a wireless device to a child, explore the available parental restrictions and other safety settings available. You may find helpful resources at http://www.growingwireless.com. I’m most familiar with the restrictions available in iOS because I’ve set those up at my school.

It is important to enable restrictions on mobile devices, especially when you will be using them with young children. Apple iOS allows you to restrict applications, content, privacy, and game center. Get help for setting up these restrictions at http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4213. I think that turning In-App Purchases off and Requiring Password Immediately are important to prevent children from (even accidentally) making purchases. I also turn off Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, Game Center, Bluetooth Sharing, Location Services, and all explicit content, disable account changes, and disable deleting apps whenever my nieces and nephews are playing with my Apple devices.

Sample settings for content restrictions.

Sample settings for content restrictions. 

Who Are You?

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Who's behind the mask?

Image source: Behind the Mask by Chris Martin Sudios, CC BY 2.0

I recently read an article on the CTV website about a study that shows strong correlations between liking something on Facebook and a myriad of personal demographic information including racial identity and political affiliation. Google personalizes results so that we are liable to get caught in our own filter bubble. Our engagement in social media and social networks helps us define our identity, but it also shapes our identity. When you do a search about yourself in Google, the results you find are who you are, or at least dimensions of who you are. The danger of identity in the online world is that it is difficult to authentically and honestly represent yourself. On the flip side, it is challenging to get the complete picture of who a person is. Yet we feel that we know someone after having interacted with him online. However, the snapshots that we get when we interact with someone online or learn about them through search are just that, snapshots. If you engage in the online world, recognize the challenge that you have to represent yourself. Get out of your close knit, comfortable space sometimes to allow other dimensions of your personality to show. Acknowledge the difficulties of getting to know someone online. Be careful not to fill in details from your own imaginations/expectations.