Hypermedia: The Future is Here!

Hypermedia

It's difficult to pin down exactly what "hypermedia" means; in a general sense, it is a vast array of interlinked multimedia content through which users can navigate at will. The internet is supersaturated with various hypermedia systems, and modern classrooms are beginning to catch up. And the outcome has been undeniably positive: from interactive tutorials to virtual laboratories,  hypermedia content helps students develop "meta-cognitive skills, problem-solving strategies, creative freedom, and self-awareness of individual learning styles" (Roblyer & Doering, 2013, pg 176).

Commercial hypermedia products take many forms, such as instructional software, reference materials, or development resources  (Roblyer & Doering, 2013).  One reference material I believe can be very useful for students is Wolfram Alpha.

Wolfram Alpha contains several "Easter eggs," such as this

 graph of Dr. Zoidberg from the show "Futurama."  It even 

gives you the mathematical function that produces the graph!

Wolfram Alpha describes itself as a computational knowledge engine; it takes input in the form of keywords or plain English, and provides the user with knowledge about whatever topic they choose.  While many use it solely for its ability to interpret, solve, and rearrange complex math problems, it also serves as a top-tier reference material.  Its database ranges from advanced physics to pop culture, and all of its content comes from reputable sources (rather than user additions, like Wikipedia).

Ideally, hypermedia reference resources are built with search tools that "[make] searching for information in the application both easy and efficient" ( (Roblyer & Doering, 2013, pg 176). Wolfram Alpha accomplishes this with ease. For example, if a student needed to know the molar mass of carbon, she would type "molar mass of carbon" into the search box.  The engine would output the value in multiple unit configurations, along with comparisons to other common substances to put the value into context.

Multimedia Authoring: Virtual Environments

Producing multimedia content requires a multimedia authoring tool (Roblyer & Doering, 2013). Authoring tools can take many shapes and produce many different types of content. As a programmer and amateur game designer, one particular authoring tool I hope to apply in my classroom is called Unity. This free software can be used (along with a knowledge of OOP coding and a 3D modeling program such as Blender) can be used to create educational, interactive environments which students can explore.

Interestingly, Unity can be used to create content for the Oculus Rift, a new and unparalleled virtual reality headset which places users inside of 3D environments.  This technology can bring students to a new level of engagement with classroom material; virtual reality can be used for presentations, virtual field trips, and many other applications ( Roblyer & Doering, 2013).

The following video shows how the combination of interactive 3D environments and the Oculus Rift can be used in the classroom.  In it, a child takes takes a field trip through a virtual model of our solar system, and learns about the scale and organization of stars and planets:

References:

Roblyer , M. D., & Doering, A. (2013). Integrating educational technology into teaching. (6th ed.). Boston, Massachusetts: Pearson Education, Inc.

Classroom Tools: The Digital Triumvirate

Write with Style!

It's hard to imagine the modern world without Word Processing Software. As an educator, being proficient at word processing is no longer just valuable; it's essential. 

From the easy modification of older documents, to rapid and Eco-friendly distribution of information to an entire class (e.g., an online syllabus), the beneficial uses of word processing software are limitless. With the dawn of cloud computing, one useful feature of online word processors (such as Google Docs) is the ability to share and edit documents in real-time (Doering & Roblyer, 2013, p.119).

However, there are caveats: the increasing use of word processors has led to decreased legibility in the handwriting of modern students. Many elementary schools don't bother teaching cursive anymore (Doering & Roblyer, 2013, p.120). The eventual effects of this chicken-scratch epidemic on students has yet to be seen, but the art of hand writing isn't likely to become obsolete.

Crunch the Numbers

Spreadsheet software is the great divider: you either embrace its glorious powers of computation, or it haunts your professional life with mysterious symbols and unfathomable errors.  We are all familiar with the obstacles in learning to use spreadsheet software, and in the classroom these obstacles are amplified.  As our textbook states: 

"Teachers who would employ this versatile software must first address students' tendency to fear mathematics. They are not afraid to process words, but processing numbers is quite another matter." (Doering & Roblyer, 2013, p.125)

 If this gap can be bridged, there waits a multitude of benefits on the other side.  As our education system focuses more on STEM subjects, the importance of being skilled with spreadsheet software (a crucial tool in all scientific fields) will grow. With the ability to quickly crunch mathematical formulas, and to organize/visualize data, programs such as Excel are invaluable to any scientific classroom.

Presentations: The Do's and Don'ts

The combination of relevant images and text can give a lesson a powerful punch that it would have otherwise lacked, and can make the difference between a student sleeping through a lecture versus remembering it forever.
However, teachers must exercise caution with presentation software; students can become bored easily while viewing a poorly structured presentation, and some critics believe that presentations act as poor substitutes for an actual lecture (Doering & Roblyer, 2013, p.130).

An Example

According to our textbook, one useful aspect of spreadsheet software is the ability to pose "what if" questions (Doering & Roblyer, 2013, p.122).  But what does this mean?  In a physics class, I may share an interactive Excel document with my class that contains built-in operations to simulate kinematic motion over time.  Students could input variables such as mass, velocity, and gravitational strength, and the document could automatically adjust to these changes, producing numerical/graphical representations of the results.

In this sense, students could "play" with the physics, and learn on an experiential level what roles these variables play in the world around them.

I've made an extremely basic sketch-up of what such a spreadsheet might look like, for anyone interested:

Gravity Grapher

References

Roblyer , M. D., & Doering, A. (2013). Integrating educational technology into teaching. (6th ed.). Boston, Massachusetts: Pearson Education, Inc.