I have compiled a list of resources (online and software) for Distance Educators. This is for the Wyoming Distance Education Consortium Conference, which was held in Casper this week. Thank you to Liz for her help in developing these resources.

Resources for Navigating the “Sharky” Waters:
Successful Surfing of the Learner-Centered Wave

Presentation by Keri Bjorklund and Liz Skrabacz Dzabic WyDEC 2009

Web Resources

www.universityreviewsonline.com/2005/10/100-most-inspiring-and-innovative-blogs-for-educators.html A review of the 100 best education sources on the Net.

http://teachingcollegemath.com/ A blog on teaching college math using current technology trends.

http://msprofessorb.blogspot.com/ A blog on teaching composition and literature—keeps track of current technology trends & discussion on instructional technology.

www.sightspeed.com A free video conferencing site by Logitech Inc. similar to Skype.

www.edutopia.org “The George Lucas Educational Foundation.” Free lesson plans and material—advertises for public education, but there is still some useful material here.

www.gabcast.com Free voice recording using toll free numbers. Great for students lacking high tech recording systems and needing to create sound files.

www.polleverywhere.com An answer to the expensive classroom clickers. Students respond to polls, discussion questions, etc. using texting, twittering, and other devices.

www.blogger.com A site to create your own educational blog. It can be an addition to lectures or additional resources or discussion for students…and it can be reused.

http://cla.calpoly.edu/~jrubba/policies/Grdg.standards.html A site through California Polytechnic State University that explains what a grade means as a way to fight grade inflation.

Software

http://exelearning.org SCORM creation software.

www.techsmith.com (Jing & Screencast) Jing is a free screen capture software. Created by the makers of Camtasia, it is a stable option for when Camtasia is outside the budget. It does the same thing and a screencast membership comes free with Jing. Screencast is a way to easily store and share screen capture videos and images.

www.skype.com The free long distance phone service using the computer. This can be a way for students to contact their instructors without incurring long distance charges. Can also be used with video and conferencing software.

http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Download (Freemind software) Mind mapping software: an option other than Power Point for presentations, and a useful study tool for students.
www.mindomo.com Mind mapping software that is completed online and is not software you download. Has direct online links and set up.

www.twitter.com A social networking site that can be useful to maintain contact with students and for them to communicate with each other while being monitored.

www.simpsonizeme.com Want to stay anonymous, but still want a picture of you on your site? This is a fun way to do it: create a cartoon character of yourself in the Simpsons’ style.

http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/11-sites-to-create-cartoon-characters-of-yourself/ Don’t like the Simpsons, but like the idea of creating a cartoon version of you? Visit this blog for a list of free sites to do just that!

www.fix8.com Animating software using this software and a webcam. Be yourself or an alien!

www.visuword.com A visual word dictionary that not only defines words, but connects them to other words.

http://download.cnet.com/windows/ From CNET, this site provides a list of freeware that is useful for professional and personal lives.

http://www.reallusion.com/crazytalk/ $ Face puppet animation software. Turn any still photo into a moving, talking, interactive image

www.sitepal.com $ For a minimum fee, you can create moving, talking avatars—most useful for brief eye-catching announcements.

Insight Media $ Educational and training videos for the classroom: DVDs and other visual media for university and secondary classrooms.