SCRIPT ALERT!! formLimiter!

One of my favorite little scripts is formLimiter.  Have you ever given a Google Form quiz or test and ended up screaming at your students who refuse to turn in the damn thing at the end of class because they want more time? Have you ever sent a link of that Form to a student who missed the quiz/test and it takes them two weeks to a month before their responses end up in your spreadsheet because the student knew there would be no time limit to handing it in?  Have you ever used Flubaroo to batch grade an assignment only to have that one student tell you they just handed it in after you have already sent student scores back?  The reinforcement of deadlines in a Google Forms can be ever annoying. Well, with formLimiter, reinforcement of submission deadlines just got real.

Unlike most scripts, formLimiter is easy to set up for beginners in script using. It is pretty straight forward. After you install the script, select how you want to limit the responses to the form by time limit, total number of responese or spreadsheet cell value.   For me the time limit is most useful. I can select a date and time to set for deadline submission.  After set, the form will no longer accept submissions.  This is great mostly because it will train students to respect deadline submission time and allow the teacher to stay better organized.  You can even send a notification to editors when the time limit is reached.  For more on formLimiter or more scripts in Google Forms, check out http://cloudlab.newvisions.org/

Best,
#mrford#techsavvyteacher

3 Ways To Use Google Forms in Your BYOD ESL Classroom

3 Ways To Use Google Forms in Your ESL Classroom

• Tests/Quizzes
• Surveys
• Progress Check-Ins

Tests and quizzes. Google Forms is the easiest way to create online tests/quizzes for your BYOD or m-learning classroom. Choose from many colourful backgrounds and after naming your form, start creating right away.  Originally designed for surveys, using Google Forms as a test/quiz creator allows you to input videos, images, headers, and page breaks to make your form more interactive for your students.

Surveys.  Surveys are a great way to conduct peer evaluations on BYODs. Google forms lets you easily create evaluation surveys that are perfect for Public Speaking or Presentation classes.  Share the survey link via G mail or cross platform sharing apps like Whatsapp.  Surveys for peer evaluations allows students the power to critique their classmates and give valuable feedback.

Progress Check-Ins.  Using Google Forms to create survey Progress Check-Ins helps the teacher stay updated on the progress of student essays, presentations, or term papers.  Google Forms lets teachers create some pretty cool and personalized progress check-in forms that can easily be shared ans collected by Google.

Best,

#mrford#techsavvyteacher

Techsavvy Tips for BYOD (Bring Your Own Device)

There are literally hundreds of articles about BYOD in the classroom, so I thought I'd throw my hat in the ring and share my experiences with you. As a paperless educator, BYODs are the common core for my flipped ESL classrooms as they are already common use and practice in the business world both domestic and foreign.  Employees of big companies and adult learners carry their personal devices into the boardroom and the classroom.  BYODs were first shunned from big companies and businesses for the obvious lack of control and security issues, but as more and more companies are taking advantage of secured cloud storage; school systems public and private are beginning to accept the idea that students can be responsible for their own devices and conduct in the classroom. Though the most popular BYOD is the smart phone, laptops and even the handheld gaming console are also popular BYOD devices.

I first employed BYOD when I was expected to deliver quality ESL material to a large group of students with very little or no technology.  During my interview with my first ESL company, they boasted to me about their use of technology in their classrooms. They even showed me a room with a whiteboard and overhead projector; only to find out that was their ONLY room with a whiteboard and projector and you had to reserve the room a week in advance.  I also got tired of standing in long lines to use the crowded copy machine or have my printed documents disappear into thin air after I sent them to the printer.

Though I have successfully managed to flip my classroom by way of BYOD, it doesn't mean that I haven't been met with obstacles along the way.  I have been met with resistance by both administration and my own students when I first implemented using smart phones in class.  I had challenges trying to share information to all students with different devices.  Poor Internet connection always ruined my day. And you can only imagine how I felt when a student just forgot to bring their device to class.  

So if you are thinking about starting your own BYOD classroom, or already have started yours, here are a few tips I would like to share with you from my experience.

1. Slowly impliment BYOD into class. Sure, your excited  about BYOD, but not everyone else is. You'll be suprised to see how your  admin, co workers, and students will show resistance towards BYOD.   You'll definatly want to be ready to answer a bunch of questions and face criticisms. Your best bet is to create a policy for BYOD in your classroom, register your students for a Google account if they don't already have one, and create a classroom circle for your students in your Google Hangouts account for sharing.  
2. Create your own BYOD policy for your classroom. I'm very liberal with the use of BYOD in my classrooms, but establishing a policy for using BYOD, like a class syllabus, makes it clear and cut what is expected/tolerated of the students use of BYOD. If you don't already have one of your own, here is a link to a nice list of sample BYOD policies. 11 Sample Education BYOT Policies To Help You Create Your Own
3. Use cross platform sharing applications. Cross platforms are ideal for sharing links, documents, audios, videos, and messaging. Apps for phones like Viber, Tango and Whatsapp are popular with smart phones, but not compatible with many pads, notebooks, and laptops.  Your best bet is to utilize Google. Not only is its messaging system, "Hangouts" available on Apple and Android products, you do not require your student's personal phone number to register. You simply use their Gmail address.
4. Take advantage of cloud storage accounts. Once again, Google folks! Cloud storage systems like Google (Drive) and Dropbox allow your students to pull their work from any device and free themselves of hefty laptops and those easy to lose jump drives.  
5. Don't be afraid to use social media. Social media outlets like FB, Twitter, YouTube, Blogger, and Glide are great tools for creative assignments and finding resources outside of the box. Use blogs as a place to display student writings.  Share or make YouTube videos to help students understand grammar points,  Have your students create a survey with their FB friends. Use Glide for a one-on-one video debate. Use Google Hangouts for a video conversation and then make it a YouTube video on your YouTube page. There are so many ways you can use Social Media in your BYOD classroom. Get creative. Here's a link to my current class blog via Blogger.  EF Atlanta B2.1
6. Be ready for things to go wrong. With technology, things WILL go wrong. Sometimes,  emails won't get delivered. Some devices just won't be compatible no matter what you do.  Internet connection will be slow. And yes, some of your students will spend more time on their own social media sites rather than their classwork. Be prepared by using alternative resources, and if worse comes to worse, there's nothing wrong with making paper copies of resources before class starts if you can foresee the problem ahead of time. 
7. Be consistent.  Start with one aspect of BYOD and stick with it.  The worst thing you can do to your class is start them out with the idea of BYOD and then two weeks later, bring them back to paper and pencil.  Pace yourself and stay consistent. You as the instructor are their key to success. No computer, smart phone, or Mobile device can replace the leadership of an instructor.

Best,

#mrford#techsavvyteacher

Top 10 uses for the smartphone in the ESL Classroom for an ESL Instructor

Top 10 uses for the smartphone in the ESL Classroom for an ESL Instructor

1. Dictionary/Thesaurus- This is so obvious, but necessary for anyone working with international students. Apps like Dictionary.com and Oxford Dictionary of English are among the most commonly used.
2. Attendance- Apps like Foursquare an even FB are awesome for check in.  My favorite app however is Eval Safety Attendance which creates a specific QR Code for each student as you scan their phone to take attendance.
3. Quizzes- Using Google Forms is a great way to deliver quizzes to your students on their devices. Use a script/extension like Flubaroo to grade them and email scores to students.
4. Platforms for sharing-Whatsapp, Viber, Line, and even FB Messenger. These platforms are a great way to share pages, videos, photos, documents, etc.
5. Video conferences-Google Hangouts can be installed on both Android and Apple devices and is the best video conference sharing app on the market. Have up to 10 people in one conference.
6. Paper scanner- This is great not only for scanning pages of school books with very limited supply, but I can't tell you how many times students have asked to use the facility scanning machines to send something to their embassy.
7. ESL Podcasts-Podcasts are a great way to help lower level learners increase their vocabulary and listening comprehension skills.
8. Gradebooks- Engrade is a great way to enter grades while you are on the go and not in front of a laptop or desktop. Other apps like QuickGrader are just as good.
9. Scorative- Socrative is a killer app that makes your classroom more interactive for learning.  Assign  your quizzes as a team race game and watch how students get excited as their team scores and their rockets move forward in a 'Space Race".
10. Note Card Maker- There are several versions of note card makers available on the Android and Apple market. Have your students make note cards of their vocabulary words to help them study for their tests. Just remember to have them put away their phones during a test to ensure no cheating.

Best,

#mrford#techsavvyteacher

Google's Chromecast vs Samsung's AllShare Cast aka 'dongle'

Samsung AllShare Cast Dongle

So earlier this year I purchased a 'dongle' from Samsung in order to reflect images from my phone to my TV. I spent around $100 for a device that did exactly what it was advertising.  I was so impressed by it, that I HAD to bring it to work the next day and show it off. I actually brought my own 32 inch TV with me to work in order to show off how my 'dongle' worked.  My students and colleagues were not as blown away as I was, but they were nonetheless impressed. Seeing how I was then already on the verge of completely giving up on cable, I thought my 'dongle' would replace Comcast and I could spend all day watching YouTube and Netflix from my Note 2. And for a long time, I did just that. I let my cable bill go and I spent my free time watching The Young Turks and music videos on YouTube.  If I wanted to watch a movie, I hit up Netflix.  

Since I move around a lot, my 'dongle' was the perfect solution to entertain myself as I could plug it into any TV; and from my phone entertain myself.  So when a few months back, Google was advertising a similar device known as Chromecast for $10-$15 dollars, I scoffed at it. I mean, I already had a 'dongle' and it worked flawlessly.  I soon learned that the orders for Chromecast were set back for months and that it was damn near impossible to get one in a store.  

Recently, I had seen  a commercial for Chromecast again, but for $35.  And again, I scoffed at it. That was until someone got a hold of my phone and broke it. I was forced to spend $175 in replacement fees just go get another phone of the same model (Thank God I pay the insurance on it). 
Unfortunately, after I received my new replacement phone, it refused to connect to my 'dongle'.

Google Chromecast

 Forced to live a day or two with no way to reflect my phone to my TV, I caved in and bought a Chromecast from Best Buy mainly because of its cheaper price. Even though the 'dongle' price is now reduced by $30, it is still not as cheap as Chromecast.  I was also impressed by one or two features that Chromecast held vs. Samsung's 'dongle'. For example, with Chromecast, I can multitask; such as remain streaming live videos while taking phone calls or surfing chrome from the same phone.  You can't do that on Samsung's device.   On the other hand,  it appears that Chromecast does not feature HD options on Youtube videos, something that Samsung 'dongle' does very well.

So at the end of the day my good persons, Chromecast is cheaper, works with multiple phone brands, and allows you to stream videos and make phone calls at the same time; as compared to Samsung's 'dongle'.

And there you have it. I'm #mrford, your #techsavvyteacher!

 



                                                  



APP ALERT!! ESL PODCAST

     Are you a student looking for a great way to enhance your ESL/EFL listening skills? Are you an ESL Instructor who needs a quick listening activity to fill that missing gap in your syllabus? Check out my good friends Dr. Jeff and Dr. Lucy out in LA. ESL Podcast is the leader in podcasting for ESL/EFL students and instructors. Their podcasts are among the most popular and readily available online and on NOW your smart phone! 


     A lot of people are unfamiliar with podcasting.  Podcasting is basically a recorded dialogue that is intended to help enhance listening and reading comprehension skills.  They rely on a large variety of topics and many of these podcasts contain videos. A short quiz is usually given or listeners are asked to write a brief summary following the listening to test their comprehension. 

     I currently use this app in my Level 5 course at my institute as an instructor.  After playing the podcast via my phone and speakers, I ususally distibute a self generated worksheet that asks seven to ten questions and a brief summary of the listening.  I also request that my students download the app so that they can read along the second time the podcast is played for revision.

     Go to your Google Play Store and download the app today.  Let me know how it works for you.

                                                         


Best,
#mr.ford

Atlanta Arab Festival 2013 at Alif Institute!

    
     I went last year and had so much fun meeting the local Arab community. I ate good and spent a lot of time inside the Institute. I will def. be there again this weekened and am bringing some students with me! www.alifinstitute.org if you want to find out more!

Best,
#mr.ford

APP ALERT!! NOTE TO GDOCS

     Confession; if you have read a lot of my posts here or on FB, you can tell that I'm not really that great of a typer based upon my spelling. I mean, in H.S. I totally sucked in typing class and to be honest, I still look at the keyboard when I type and still make simple mistakes in spelling. Transferring those skills to a smartphone keyboard is even worse for me.  It blurts my mind to see how some people can use a swipe keyboard or how kids today can text a paragraph on their smartphones with one hand. It makes me yearn for the good old days, when pen met paper, and excellent penmanship was more valuable than typing wpm.

      So with the S Pen for Samsung's Galaxy Note2, writing has returned.  Using it in The Google Search option is perfect for me and anyone else who can scribble twice as fast as they can type for very short messages, searches, or notes.  It also does a great job distinguishing my plain hand and cursive penmanship. The option on Google is very responsive and I usually don't have to write more than three to four letters on the search pad before my correct search request pops up in the search window. 

     But what about jotting down quick notes and storing them? Samsung provides a great note option installed on the Galaxy Note2, and it's very UI friendly! Easy to access as soon as you pull the pen from its port behind the phone, but it's a Samsung note, not really effective for me if I want to use it later on in Google Drive where I can share it with others or print my notes from a cloud.  So for a while, I felt I was stuck in a one sided dilemma until recent app developer, SmokyBob, fixed that for me! (Yes, SmokyBob is his real name.)

     Note to GDocs is fast, simple, and does exactly what it was created for; click, write, and close. I use it for what it is really. I share and print quick notes, lists, or even ideas with my students via Google.  Now remember folks, it is a note app, so don't expect to write a book with this thing or create fancy artwork. Like I said, it does what it is created for, and that's taking down quick notes, lists, or ideas that you can share on the fly with anyone you wish. 
    
     My only hang up with this app is that you can't name your note. It is just based off the date and time.  So if you write a bunch of notes in one day, you have to list through them to find the one you are searching for. 
    
     Download the app today in Google Playstore and see if it works for you!

Best,
#mr.ford

Use Your Samsug Smartphone to Give Class Lectures and Presentations Via Your TV!

Samsung's Allshare Cast "Dongle" $99

 

 

     Imagine giving ESL PowerPoint Presentations or lectures to students wirelessly via your Galaxy S3. Samsung's Allshare Cast "Dongle" lets you connect your Allshare Cast enabled device wirelessly to any HDTV or HDMI! So what does all that mean? The hub mirrors your phone screen on the display allowing you to share pictures, videos, games, presentations, YouTube Videos, Netflix and more while controlling all of the action from your Samsung phone. This device is compatible with Galaxy S3 and S4 as well as Note2; sorry iphone users:(

 

   Sure, $99 is a little expensive, but it's TOTALLY worth not having to move all those wires around. As someone who gives constant presentations, trust me when I tell you that this device is a GO!! Extremely light and small, it hides perfect behind a TV or your PC.  

 

     Installation is easy as 1, 2, 3.  Plug the adapter in to your wireless device, turn on the Allshare Cast option in your settings and BOOM; you're set!  The screen will even rotate with your Samsung phone or tablet. As a side bonus, the hub's charger doubles a phone charger! If you are a tech savvy teacher like me, then this device is a great addition to your aresenal. Check the video below to see how it all works!

 

Best,

#mr.ford

Samsung Chromebook (Google) is a GO for $250!

     Look, I know I've been talking a lot about Samsung lately, but I can't help myself. Do you see this? A Chromebook for $250! I checked one out this weekend at Best Buy and told myself I have to get one!

    It seems nowadays there is a race to the bottom price market outfit in mobile technology.  Today, more than before, you can find Smart phones, tablets, and even notebooks for under $100. Samsung's Chromebook is priced higher than $100, but at $250, it is affordable access to a top quality product.  Backed by Google, Chromebook isn't a 'show boat' of laptops, but that's the point; netbooks like Chromebook are nothing more than segues from your tabletop to the internet.  Complete with all the regular Google goodies, Samsung's Chromebook is compatible with cloud printing, boasting available offline capability for Google Drive, and holding an HDMI plug in for TVs.

    
     Not one, but two USB ports makes this device a great value because you have external hard drive capability that you usually don't get in most netbooks. A small, but noticeable, feature is that finally, someone decided to place the power plug in the back of the device, so one won't have to stare at that annoying power head while typing or giving a presentation. You also gain about another two inches of freed up moving space when your device is plugged in.

     I got a chance to check out a Netflix film on the device and was satisfied. Surfing the web was just as fast as if on a hard top.  My only hang up with the device is that it does have poor screen resolution while working on offline documents. The contrast is low and from a distance looks very dark. Other than that, if the netbook came with an S Pen I would be super satisfied!

     In closing, for $250, Samsung's Chromebook is def. worth the money and syncs with other Samsung devices, including S4 and Note 2 to maximize Samsung's sharing capabilities.  That being said, don't be surprised to see Chromebook popping up in school districts across the country that can afford them as means of integrating technology. The future looks bright, and it looks like it belongs to Samsung!

Best,
#mr.ford

APP ALERT!!! Cloud Print My Gmail

     Want to print from your students' assignments from your Smart phone? Check out Cloud Print My Gmail from Google Play and see how easy it is to print messages and attachments in your Gmail account from your Samsung S3 or Note2. Though there are already a few Cloud Ready to Print printers available, you don't necessarily have to own one to print from your phone. Check the video below and try it yourself! 

Best,
#mr.ford

APP ALERT!!! Quizmo

    












     There are only a hand few of multiple choice Quiz Creating apps in Google Play for tech savvy teachers, and Quizmo is the newest.  Quizmo has only been out for two months, but already has 1000+ downloads in Google Play thanks to its ability to easily incorporate personal photos into your quiz via your camera or image gallery.  Quizmo also lightens you up on having to type all possible answers for your questions as the answers are taken randomly from other questions in the quiz (this saves HELLA time). If you are like me, you use the text to speech option and damn near never have to type a thing except minor mistakes made by Google Voice.

     The ability to create multiple choice quizzes and share them via smartphones is not new, but in the past, it has been very difficult to connect photos to your multiple choice questions without risking the coding when sending them via email to your students. When compared to similar apps like Quiz 'n Poll, Quizmo definitely looks better, but is not as simple to share.  Sending your students a quiz on their phones using Quiz 'n Poll is much simpler and doesn't require you to memorize any codes and enter them. Though the concept seems easy, it is really annoying when having to deliver your quiz in class.   For more on Quizmo, check out my review in Google Play and see if it's right for you.

Best,
#mr.ford

Samsung Galaxy Note 2

     It's here; the future of m-learning that is. Actually, it's been here for a few months now, I just picked mine up on last Friday. The Galaxy Note 2 from Samsung takes m-learning to the next level for teachers and students. This is it guys, everything a m-learner could want. It's a phone/tablet with a stylus air pen and more. Some cool features include a bumping app that allows you to share music and videos, and a dual screen option which allows you to split your phone screen in half and work on two seperate options at the same time. Yes, some would argue that the screen is too big, but after a day or two you get used to it and have to squint your eyes to look at any other phone with a smaller screen.

     Ok, apps. The Samsung Note 2 with it's air S pen is perfect for apps like ezPDF Reader which allows the user to upload a document from the web and Google Docs, edit it with the air pen, and send it back to your Documents or email. This is a DREAM COME TRUE for teachers who wish to reduce paper waste and keep their students' work in the palm of their hands. The air pen is also great for doodling and scratching down quick notes. In apps like Evernote you can write, record, and share notes from lectures. Samsung also has several of their own apps ready on the phone like S Note and S Suggest. For those of you who would rather not deal with the pen, the speak to text format here is perfect. The words appear on your screen just as fast if not faster than they come out of your mouth.

     Ok, size. People will ask you if the Note 2 is a tablet or a phone. Then they will ask you if it fits in your pocket. Yes, it's a phone with a large screen, and no, it doesn't fit in my pocket, I have to put it in my mom's purse and force her to lug it around for me while we go grocery shopping! Of course it fits in my pant pocket. All of them to be precise. I really believe that people will have to get over the size issues with the mobile devices if they want the best out of them. This thing is great to watch Netflix on and the sound is far better that the LG or Window phones, so I really don't see why people are complaining over it. Just stick some earbuds in it and look even more stupid so people think you are talking to yourself.

     Closing.  This phone is the best on the market today and is a tablet and a phone at the same time. Once everyone else gets on board, I-Pads and tablets will soon be a thing of the past. And I mean VERY soon!

Best,
#mr.ford