Collaborize+Classroom



=What is Collaborize Classroom? =

Collabrize Classroom is a website that teachers can use to increase student participation and collaboration. It provides a platform for discussions, student voting/ polling, debates, practice tests, and student-created projects. It also has a library of ideas, topics, and lessons that are peer-reviewed that teachers can use, all for free! There is even a free iPhone app that students and teachers can download to participate in class discussions from anywhere and at any time. Below are two images of the free iPhone app that is available from Collaborize Classroom. (Democrasoft, 201) It took me about 2 minutes to create an account and it provides a print-out or email instructions for students to join a class page.

=media type="youtube" key="gd0MZd88rcg" height="315" width="560" align="right"How can Collaborize Classroom be used in a = =classroom? =

Teachers can use Collaborize Classroom in many different ways across grade levels and content areas. Teachers can set up classrooms where students have their own accounts within about five minutes. Students can have structured conversations that teachers can monitor within teacher-created differentiated groups. Teachers can also upload videos, documents, and PDF files for students to view and then discuss. Teachers can receive detailed reports on student participation and understanding that they can use to plan re-teaching or further instruction. Collaboration is the future of education and teachers must use websites such as Collaborize Classroom to prepare students for 21st century careers and skills. To the right is a video on how Collaborize classroom is beneficial and how it can be used in a classroom. (GoodMagazine, 2011)

=Advantages and Disadvantages = 

Advantage
 * Free
 * Free iPhone app
 * Free library of materials for teachers
 * Takes about 2 minutes to set up an account, 5 minutes to set up an entire classroom
 * Students can collaborate at any time and from anywhere
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Teachers can poll students and monitor discussions
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Teachers can collect data on students over time for meaningful discussions with parents
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Teachers can easily create discussion forums (see screen clipping to the right)
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Teachers can group students for discussions however they see fit

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Disadvantages
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Teachers can't view reports on the iPhone app- they can only be viewed on a computer
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The website itself is a little bit busy so it is slightly difficult to find and track information visually (see screen clipping below)

=<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">How can teachers hold individual students accountable? =

<span style="display: block; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: justify;"><span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: left;">Teachers can receive detailed information on individual student participation, scores on practice quizzes, and student answers from the polls. Teachers can also keep track of individual students to track the data over time. This allows teachers to have more meaningful discussions with parents on student progress and is also helpful with differentiating instruction or creating Response to Intervention data points. Below are two images from the Collaborize Classroom website that show data and reports that teachers can generate. (CollaborizeClassroom, 2012) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">

=<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Navigation =

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Check out the next collaborative tool, CrocoDoc.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Chapter 4 Introduction || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Bubbl.us || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Collaborize Classroom  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">CrocoDoc  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Edmodo  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Google Documents  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">KidBlog  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Skype  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">VoiceThread  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">WikiSpaces  || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Chapter 4 Conclusions ||

=<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">References =

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">CollaborizeClassroom. (2012). //Features (Report Images)//. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from http://www.collaborizeclassroom.com/features

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Democrasoft. (2012, February 27). //Collaborize Classroom iPhone App//. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from Apple iTunes Store: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/collaborize-classroom/id497540468?mt=8

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">GoodMagazine. (2011, December 7). //Future Learning: Richard Lang//. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd0MZd88rcg

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Ray, S. (2011, March 30). //Collaborize Classroom Logo//. Retrieved January 27, 2012, from Democrasoft: http://www.pitchengine.com/democrasoftinc/collaborizeclassroommakesfreelessonplansavailabletoteachersonscholasticcom