Tech Play 3 - Creativity Tools

It used to be that students were either creative or academic, but I think as time goes on those boundaries are blending. Many schools are already discarding the ‘one-size-fits-all’ model of teaching and are beginning to use technology to facilitate learning. However, the presence of computers, mobile phones, iPods, cameras etc in schools may not necessarily imply technology integration in education. The major question that schools and educational planners need to ask themselves is how best those technologies are being used to enhance learning.

Since my content area is science I chose to focus on presentation tools that could help students at the science fair. When I was in school, all my major presentations were submitted on a poster board. With the help of technology, presentations have reached new heights. Presentation tools will allow students to create projects that are more polished and accessible than your average poster board display. There are no materials to buy and you don't have to waste time carrying the board around.

The first tool I tried was Keynote by Apple. There are a lot of schools that have integrated Apple products, specifically the iPad, into the classroom. Keynote is a powerful presentation app designed for a mobile device. The app is compatible with iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch . I think this is definitely a good tool to use with younger students because as simple as touching and tapping. I also like the ability to save the presentation in different formats. You can choose from Keynote, PDF or PowerPoint. This will enable the user to present on any device available.

The second tool I tried was Prezi. At first I thought it was going to be just like PowerPoint. When I really started looking at my design option I noticed the difference. PowerPoint is great tool if you are looking to tell a story using the basic slide format. PowerPoint is not easily adaptable to an audience when needed. Getting to a specific slide, once the presentation has begun, can sometimes be difficult. Prezi is a whole new concept on the take of visual aids. Prezi gives you an unlimited canvas on which to layout your ideas and lets you seamlessly integrate images, text, videos, animations, and sounds. The feature I liked the most is the ability to collaborate online. Students can share presentations online with up to 10 other classmates which make collaborating on projects extremely easy. While it is possible to save your Prezi on your desktop I don't think it is necessary. Your Prezi will always be accessible online and this will make classroom sharing a lot easier and more exciting.

I think students can also use Prezi to make note-taking more exciting. Students can focus on key areas and download video examples to help them retain the information. If a teacher used video as part of instruction, the student can use the Prezi to store all related videos in one place. I think Prezi will make note taking interactive and fun.

It is important to use creative tools because a deep understanding of technology is needed to use technology for effective classroom instruction, communication, problem solving, and decision making. To enhance learning in science, teachers need to have a focus on the relationship that exists between the educational task, the scientific concepts and technological tool that students use in responding to the task.