Russell's Top Technology Tips

Russell's Top Tips for Emerging Learning Technologies for 2011

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Technology Podcasts for 2011

Toontastic is a brilliant animation for the iPad.  I don't know if animation and storytelling could be any easier.  At only £1.59 from the Apple App Store, it is inexpensive  and easy to purchase.  Danny Nicholson @dannynic told me about this application and I purchased it immediately.  I am showing it to all of my infant and primary educator audiences at the moment, I just love the incredibly simple UI and way in which your voice can be recorded directly into the application to add to your onscreen animation sequence.  This is so much better that C21st Fuzzi-Felt and offers a huge selection of ready drawn backgrounds.  Rated for children about 4 years, Toontastic works well with children on their own or in group or family settings.  Making cartoons with Toontastic is as easy as putting on a puppet show, once your done you can share with friends and family and others around you.  You will require iOS 4.2 to use this application.  Toontastic is made by Launchpad Toys to visit their website just go to http://launchpadtoys.com/toontastic/


 

tunein radio now available on the App Store.  This is a brilliant radio listening tool for the iPhone.  This is a collaboration between RadioTime and Tunein Radio and together they bring you over 40,000 stations including local AM/FM and our very own Anderton Tiger Radio channel.  The application is so easy to use and offers simple easy searching of stations and a bookmarking facility.  You can listen over a 3G network connection as well as wi-fi.  You can also you your GPS location settings to scan for stations broadcast in your locale.  There is an Alarm Clock, Sleep Timer, and also the ability to display station artwork/logo or Artwork from the track being played.  Jon Moore from Matrix told me about this at the E2BN event this year and I immediately purchased the app for £1.19 and I think that this is excellent value.  The current version is 1.6.1 and has some new features to take advantage of the new iOS 4.0.  You can record off-air in real-time and pause live radio too.  It is everything you could want with an Internet Radio Listening Application and have I tried a few in the last couple of years!  This one is highly recommended by me and iTunes reviewers scoring 21 Five Star reviews with an average rating of 4.5 that is about as good as it gets.  Check out the provider's website here.  It is also easy to add your own school radio station to the bookmark list, making it even easire to listen to live school radio.

The Roberts Stream 202 is the world's first truly portable Wi-Fi Internet Radio that also combines FM and DAB in one fabulous unit. Mine arrived this week-end and I am completely in love with it.  The sound is fantastic and there is something quite real and different that this traditionally looking "Wireless" offers for Internet Radio.  This is the perfect device to use to listen to your own Live School Radio broadcasts, and being battery operated (6 x LR20/Size D) it can go anywhere and tune into almost any live MP3 stream, WMA or RealPlayer content and is very easy to setup and connect to your network.  The Stream 202 also has a CAT5 UTP connection too, just in case Wi-Fi reception is an issue or your over zealous network administrator has a fit over you attaching a RADIO to "their" network.  The multi-line display is a joy to look at and a rotary button allows you to access system settings and tune into stations.  Why would you consider Internet Radio?  With over 10,000 stations world-wide to choose from you are sure to find something interesting.  500 of these stations are broadcast from within the UK including my regular Anderton Tiger Radio Live Show.  Without an Internet Radio you traditionally would have to use a computer to listen to a live stream.  The the Stream 202 puts a whole new proposition forward for listening to audio content.  This device can also offer the listener access to the BBC's Podcast service, without a computer, it accesses all of the Beebs listen again services, truly outstanding.  Each show is listed on the display and I was listening to the Chris Evans highlights from last week within a few seconds.  You can add your own stations online using the access code that is assigned to each radio and to do this you will need to register with the specific Internet Radio Database provider in this case the company is Frontier Silicon.  Their website is incredibly simply to use and I had all of my Anderton Tiger Radio broadcast streams up and running within a few minutes.  DAB support also comes with pause control, there is an AUX input and 3.5mm headphone socket.  List price is £153.27, I paid £149 from Marks & Spencer, I did go to John Lewis but they had no stock and said the product was being discontinued.  Wrong!  This is brand new and is highly recommended to colleagues for work and home.  At work, The Stream 202 transforms your live School Radio into something real and extends listening opportunities.  At home, you can discover the pleasure of listening anywhere to some cracking audio content from around the world or listen again to Terry Wogan.  FM reception (whatever that is) I understand is also very good!

New to the market in 2010, The Anderton Tiger Broadcaster has challenged and revolutionised School Radio,  and priced at £10,995.00 plus VAT, school radio has never been this easy or such good value for money.  This is a digital solution and with that comes with many benefits, and one of these allows audio routing and a level of simplicity that simply can't be found with older analogue audio systems.  The Anderton Tiger Broadcaster has been created by me, fed up with promoting over-priced and under specified systems, I thought that it was about time that the education market got the chance to buy something specifically created with learners in mind. The control software has been written by us after listening to what young people told us they wanted to be able to do in their live school radio shows.  There is provision for users in wheelchairs, height adjustment for very young users and many more properly thought-out ideas that enhance live radio experience.  With more students taking "Media Studies" than Physics courses, there has never been a better time to get into School Radio. I have been regularly broadcasting live during the last two years and running live school radio workshops in education establishments and can say that there is nothing like real live radio.  With Live Radio there is no opportunity to go back and do it again, the emphasis is clearly on preparation, thinking and problem solving skills.  All good skills to have in a C21st technology-rich world that our young people need to survive in.  The Broadcaster comes on wheels and in three easy to carry sections, it is simple to connect together and moved around.  It has dual 19" touch screen control with one touch "auto-fade" as well as a traditional flying fader control deck.  All on-screen fader controls are copied in real-time by the traditional faders and you can see them physically moving as you use the touch screen control. The system has a RAID backup Hard Disk Array making it simple to backup, keep and store different music libraries.  Based around the real needs of learners, this system is exactly what you need to broadcast regularly in a professional manner delighting your audiences with live interactive programming.  The system comes with a one day live radio workshop with your learners delivered at your establishment by me, followed on the same day by a twilight training session for educators.  .  More details of this product and how to reserve a free demonstration workshop with your learners visit, www.andertontiger.com/broadcaster


Apple's New Tablet Computer the iPad -  This is getting closer to the ubiquitous hand-held device that we will all use, 16GB entry model priced at £429.00 and the 64GB Wi-Fi & 3G  is available for £699.00.  It doesn't stops there, you will also need a pouch, a dock and probably either a wireless keyboard or a keyboard with a dock.  You may like to consider these essential extras, the VGA adapter for external output to a projector, (only outputs Videos, Photos, Youtube, Keynote and Safari).  External VGA does not display the iPad home screen.  Also consider a pouch or case and AppleCare Protection Plan at £72.34 plus VAT for two extra years of warranty cover and tech support.  This is what Tablet PC should have been 10 years ago.  The screen is 9.7" diagonal LED backlit glossy widescreen and is of course multi-touch as one would expect.  Screen resolution at 1024x768, Wi-Fi is included on all models with wi-fi and 3G model availably separately with a data air-time package.  I would recommend the O2 pay as you go, offering up to 500Mb over a 24 hour period for just £2.00, and you don't pay if you don't need it!  Up to 11 hours of surfing and video watching are being quoted from the onboard lithium-polymer battery.  The selection of Apps is amazing too.  With the beautiful Apple styling and clean sleek lines this is one of the most delightfully looking devices I have ever seen.  I am totally in love with mine, as Apple have said, the iPad changes everything, and they're not wrong.  Thoroughly recommended for immediate evaluation by every educational institution, pending further deployment.  Also recommended is the iBooks App, Free to download it is a lovely way of  using the iPad as an eBook reader.  There is also a Kindle App from Amazon that allows the iPad to access all of the eBooks that Amazon has on offer for its Kindle device.  Our recommended Apple Education provider is MCC Group in Warrington they can be contacted on 0870 444 4990 or by visiting www.mccdigital.com
 

From Fitness Gaming Ltd this is the amazing Dancetown, designed for older dance mat users, it iisn't just a mat with a support frame, there are different and adapted activities too.  The music is different, with lots of show tunes, country and western music as well as some great rock and roll tracks.  All designed to be familiar to an older dancer.  The on-screen graphics are clean and un-cluttered, other dance games are typically designed for teenage audiences with bright busy and distracting screen layouts this is often confusing for people unfamiliar with that culture.  The software supports easier dance levels too, some of the steps are at the intensity of a slow walking pace, Dancetown does have six levels so that once a skill has been mastered at a lower level there is some progression.  Useful too when playing with mixed aged groups.  The dance mat is of a heavy duty construction and comes from the professional arcade gaming market in the USA.  The software has performance tracking with user logons, this provides feedback and the possibility of using the system for proper assessment data for professional medical purposes.  The Tinetti Balance and Gait Tests and the Senior Fitness Test are supported with he software as well as, the TUG Test and the 6 Min Walk Test.  The software supports two simultaneous players on two mats for that competitive edge.  Complete with over 40 songs from the 50's 60's 70's rather than the usual trashing Euro-Electro-Pop stuff.  With the Senior fitness market expanding, I am so pleased that technology has been able to offer something specific.  Available from Fitness Gaming Ltd who are based in North Yorkshire www.fitnessgaming.co.uk, both Duncan Black and Martin Wild who are company founders are terribly helpful and a delight to work with.

Also from Fitness Gaming Ltd, a brilliant School Dance Mat system that uses a Nintendo Wii, saving you the cost of a bespoke or additional computer system.  Again using professional high quality mats that one can drive a bus over, this is really great kit.  I have had a mat for a couple of weeks now and I am in no doubt that it is going to last a significant time due to the robust construction and great design.  What I also like and haven't seen anywhere else before is the concept of practice mats, available with each kit are a set of practice mats.  These ensure that while the active mats are being used for competition and assessment other classmates can practice their skills in preparation for their go.  I am pretty sure that this is unique as I haven't seen this being provided elsewhere, and its a brilliant idea!!!  I also like the fact that the solution uses Wii technology, and supports off-the-shelf dance games that young people often have at home.  I have been using Dance Dance Revolution's Hottest Party 2 for several months albeit with the very flimsy plastic mat that accompanies the HMV supplied boxed product (£39.95), the mat isn't going to last a terms with normal class use, but the point here is that your young people will no doubt have some experience of the concept and operation of the software.  Fitness Gaming can supply the whole package or just component parts if you already have a Wii at school with the software.  Great concept gents, I love the whole idea focussed around building on what the school or establishment already has.  To see the whole range, visit their website and request a free demonstration, www.fitnessgaming.co.uk again lovely people to deal with.

 

THe Elmo i-Pochette caught my eye at the Education Show this year, it was launched at BETT but I didn't see it there.  Clearly visualises are either making a come-back or they never went out of fashion, I am not sure which, but I do know that there are some pretty expensive brands available and that's what has put me off, until now.  The i-Pochette is small extremely cute and at around £370 fits my pochette nicely too!!  Not only is it small, it is very easy to use and setup, the manufacturer has lots of pictures of children using them in class in their brochures.  I like this and have always been a firm believing of giving the learner more centric use of ICT.  The i-Pochette has a 2 mega pixel image sensor, auto focus and a 6 X zoom.  It connects to a VGA monitor and offers a VGA through feature allowing the device to sit in-between your laptop and projector as well as a USB interface for direct connection to a laptop for image acquisition and digital features.  The i-Pochette will also capture movies at 15 frames per second perfect for simple movies or recording experiments.  The camera also has a microscope attachment for seeing down a standard classroom microscope.  The device is simple to operate and looks stunning when setup.  If Apple had made a Visualiser then I am sure it would look like this.  There is also a substantial higher specification range on offer too, do visit their website for a refreshingly superb selection of worksheets and classroom visualiser activities, www.elmo-visualiser.co.uk  Thanks very much Gary Trotter of Elmo for bringing this product to my attention and his time at The Education Show.
 

This is a new Innovative Free Service for colleagues looking to Innovate their School.  Innovate my School is a brilliant new free comparison website designed to impart new exciting ideas for schools.  Everything is ordered very nicely into categories and with ideas and subject areas already in place, looking for new innovative ideas has never been this easy.  Run by teachers for teachers, I love the concept and the professionalism behind the service.  The website is easy to use, and visitors are encouraged to evaluate and rate products and services.  I can think of some other sites that have attempted this and having charged companies for their listing have monetised the solution very well.  However, only those that can afford to be listed ever get listed.  Therefore only large, corporate companies that have the budgets are listed.  And who ever ends up paying for this?  Yes the customer does!  This is different, it is free to list one's own products and services and the this is made easy with a simple to complete wizard form.  Recently updated and new to the site are categories in which visitors can find new content, subject areas also have a focus.  www.innovatemyschool.com is worth a visit.  Check out the School Radio section and quickly compare what is what and who is who with one simple click.  Clearly this is the age of the Comparison Site, and this contender does not disappoint.  Good luck to the brilliant Michael Forshaw for this amazing concept.

There has never been a better time than right now to look at this iPhone App, Number10.gov.uk has created an iPhone Application to keep you updated, and do we need this right now, you bet we do!!!  Never before will we see a Government ducking and diving and there is now a very good reason to keep up with everything.  The Official Number 10 iPhone App offers some great content, Youtube video, flickr galleries and access to Number 10 TV, I think that is Television rather than anything else!!!  This is an excellent behind the door look at Number 10, lots of GB content as well as carrying the new PM's speech almost as it happened on Tuesday 11th May 2010.  Lots of reviews saying how surprised they were, and with a 3.5/5.0 rating this is sure to be a great success.  Great also to see the Government machinery waking up to new C21st technology and getting on with it big time.  With this much change on the political front you really need to keep on top of everything Number 10, who knows perhaps we will also see some other changes in the education landscape too.  Some great explanations too about how today has panned out and all of the tradition and constitutional affairs associated with the post of PM.  I am really impressed, launched on 19th March, current version 1.0.1 size 0.9Mb, seller HM Government, it would be rude not to!!

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