Thursday, April 7, 2011

Distance Learning Solution on the Cheap (FREE if you have a Mac)


We have been looking for a cost effective solution for Distance Learning equipment in our district.  @jdbells60 recommended XMeeting.  I downloaded the Open Source software and after about five minutes on the phone with our network engineer setting it up on our gateway we called a cart  on the network and it worked like a charm.  The video quality was good, but not as crisp or clear as a unit, but I was connected via wireless.  

The coolest feature of XMeeting  is that it can format the video screen at an angle, so it give it the feel that you are talking face to face instead of picture in picture.

If there is a school out there that does not have the money to buy a unit or would like to experiment I would highly recommend XMeeting for the Mac.





Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Creating Self Grading Quizzes Using Google Forms & Flubaroo

Google makes it easy to build and grade quizzes using Google Forms and an add-on script called Flubaroo. Flubaroo will also graph your scores for easy analysis, itemize questions, and email students with their scores.  Watch the videos below to create a quiz and insert the Flubaroo script to auto-grading your quizzes.  For additional information go to the Flubaroo website.


Step 1: Create a Quiz Using Google Forms



Step 2:  Insert Auto-Grading Script Flubaroo