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Google docs tips and tricks

The seven question types to use on a Google form

Google forms - so easy to use

*When you create and or store files in your Google Documents account, those files are available from wherever you go, through any computer with an Internet connection. This means that you don’t have to send file attachments to yourself via email, carry a flash drive, or worry about file compatibility.

*Google Docs can have a multitude of people writing on the same document at the same time – it’s great for collaboration.

*I love the fact that you don’t have to save – it saves everything automatically.

*You can easily share documents with others even if they don’t have a Google account. Once a document is shared comments suggested edits can be placed in the margins of the document, which is great for marking purposes.

*Google Docs have a web link so they can be shown as webpages when you want to show someone somewhere else something.

*Google Docs is now integrated into Google Drive which means you can now install Google Drive on all the computers you work on and work offline. It will sync everything just like Dropbox does.

*Google Docs gives you 5Gb of free space which won’t take all your photos etc – but it is big enough to be very useful.

*You can keep your documents in folders.

*Google forms have so many amazing uses. You can set tests on them etc.

*You can upload AND download easily to Microsoft Office.

 

Once you have joined Google and you want to explore Google Docs, well, why not create a Google document while you are about it? Here is a Slideshare with some pointers if you need them.

How to create a new Google document

SchoolNet SA runs a multimedia programme for Adobe, for South African teachers, called Adobe Youth Voices. We would like to announce their upcoming webinar on June 28th. If you are interested in joining this webinar which is given in US time, please go to http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html to convert the webinar time to your time zone. 

We're writing with a special reminder about the Webinar on Working with Special Populations coming up this Thursday, June 28.  (Please note slight time change.)

Title: Working With Special Populations 

Time: June 28 - at 8am PST / 10am CST / 11am EST US

Presenters: Presented by Lead Educators Justin Warren and Hank Machtay

Information: Adobe Youth Voices programs exist in many different contexts connecting with lives and experiences of youth from all over the world. How are the unique needs of youth addressed in these programs? Join AYV Lead Educators Hank Machtay and Justin Warren as they share their approaches and insights on working with the youth in their programs.

To join the meeting, Login as a Guest here: http://edc.adobeconnect.com/ayvweb/

Note: If you have never attended an Adobe Connect meeting before:
Test your connection: http://edc.adobeconnect.com/common/help/en/support/meeting_test.htm
Get a quick overview: http://www.adobe.com/go/connectpro_overview

Submitted by Fiona Beal

Imagine receiving a phone call on the morning of the totally booked-out TEDxCapeTownED event on 16 June and being asked, “Would you still like to attend TEDx – we have a ticket for you?” Well, it happened to me, and I got there at lightning speed as excited as a kid in a candy store! What a worthwhile day it proved to be – with the words of movers and shakers in education pounding at one's heart and leaving their mark. 

Let me explain what a TEDx event is. The famous international TED talks are riveting short talks given by remarkable people on relevant topics. The TEDx program is designed to give communities, organizations and individuals the opportunity to stimulate dialogue through TED-like experiences at the local level. This particular event centred around education – 19 twelve minute talks by innovative thinkers in South African education.

There’s no doubt that education in South Africa has a long way to go and many of the speakers echoed this feeling. Solly Philander said of his now grown-up children, “I had to apologise to my children for sending them to school.” Now that might be taking things a bit far, but then Dr Mamphela Ramphele, who was introduced as someone who ‘says it like it is’, said our failed system has only one competitor… At that point she placed on the screen a picture of the sinking ship ‘Costa Concordia’. “Our education system is on the rocks,” she said. Sam Paddock painted a gloomy picture of Unisa’s distance education saying that it is ‘too distant'. Out of 300,000 enrolled students only 9% graduate. Professor Ian Scott from UCT gave alarming statistics of our Higher Education drop out rate. “Higher education has not come to terms with the needs of students”, he said.  

But TEDx wouldn’t be TEDx if speakers left us drowning in the pool of doom and gloom. The picture IS marred, and many, many children have been lost to a poorly managed system but the innovative solutions that were offered by the speakers planted seeds of hope. 

Here are just a few of the highlights that I noted. Brent van Rensburg spoke on ‘Your failures are our superstars’ and stressed how important it is for teachers to go with their students’ strengths rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. Students from his Zip Zap circus show illustrated his point with their amazing expertise and skill. Steve Sherman, the MD of Living Maths, related how a teacher once said to him as a child, “I think you should drop Maths". Fortunately he didn’t listen!  Richard Malholland spoke about the different kind of career paths that await our students. ‘They will resemble mindmaps’. He caused a reaction from the audience when he suggested that degrees have a sell-by date of maybe five years unless certain requirements are met in professional development! Tim Noakes urged  teachers to become like coaches who “generate belief in themselves in the students we teach".

John Gilmour encouraged us to concentrate on producing good mothers and fathers for the sake of society. At least two of the speakers suggested that  all graduates spend two years in community service teaching before continuing with their own career paths. Christopher Hagspihl has been doing just that, teaching Maths in a township school before continuing with a career in banking, and he spoke of the rewards of such an experience. Leigh Maynert who co-founded a business university at age 25 with no educational background spoke of nurturing the souls of students. TSiBA Institute has produced four Nelson Mandela Rhodes scholars in the last few years. Each and every speaker added their flavour to the pot as the day progressed.

Judging by the tweets on the Twitter stream we all left inspired and refreshed by the ideas of others put forward during the day. It was the kind of day one wouldn't want to have spent in any other way! It was also a day of connecting with old friends (like my TeachMeet buddies from Somerset West pictured above), and making new ones. But the question always is…What now? Inspired as we are by events like this, is it going to lead to any major change anywhere? Is government likely to listen? I guess the conclusion we are forced into adopting is that WE have to do our bit in society as transformative agents. It is actually up to us! Dr Mamphela Ramphele left us with these words, "We are ALL responsible for improving education." 

Note: If you would like to listen to any of these talks, the videos are now available online at http://www.tedxcapetown.org/videos

SchoolNet SA has been commissioned by the Vodacom Foundation to train staff
who will be based at the Centres in resource centre management. SchoolNet is
also training trainers at each Centre to be able to offer the Sizanani ICT
Skills for Community Members course, the Microsoft ICT Skills for Teachers
and HelpDesk courses, as well as the Intel Getting Started course.

Click on http://www.digitalclassroom.co.za for more information

ConnectivityManager conMgr;

NetworkInfo netInfo;
WifiManager wifiMgr;

conMgr = (ConnectivityManager) getSystemService(Context.CONNECTIVITY_SERVICE);

netInfo = conMgr.getActiveNetworkInfo();

        {

            if (wifiMgr.isWifiEnabled())

            {

                //WIFI ENABLED

            }

            else

            {

                //WIFI DISABLED

            }

        }

        else

        {

            //NOT AVAILABLE

        }

Go to http://e-classroom.co.za/category/competitions/ for more details plus the entry form

Note that if you haven't listened to a webinar before using Lync you will need to download Lync attendee. In the discussion forum referred to above you will find a PDF with detailed instructions on how to join a Lync webinar

Angela Scheaerer, Microsoft's APM from South Africa, says about the first webinar on 18 July: "We are looking forward to hosting the first LEAP21 webinar on Wednesday 18 July. Here's how it will work:
1. Download the lesson plans and rubrics so that you have these available during the webinar - it will be an interactive session with activities using these resources.
2. Follow the the directions in the document "How to join a Lync conference call". We recommend you do this ahead of time as you need to download and install an attendee client the first time you join.
3. Click on the link called Join the online meeting in "related content" above or from the Word document. Try and join a few minutes early in case you have any problems.

Following along using Twitter

If you are a teacher that loves project-based teaching and connecting with classes around the world you'll know that Wikispaces is the perfect platform to use.  But did you know this? Wikispaces has added an amazing new feature to their free education version platform called Projects. This new feature allows you to create a special place for your project within your classroom wiki. In other words, you don’t have to create a separate project wiki for your classroom projects.

How to set up a project using Wikispaces

Set up a project in Wikispaces using a template

I can really recommend that you give this a try. Global projects are on the increase and Wikispaces is an excellent platform to use.