Software Review: Promethean's ActivInspire

ActivInspire is downloadable of software for a Promethean Board, but can be used without a board as well. The setup in my classroom consists of a big screen television, my computer hooked up to the television, and my Qomo tablet that is wireless capable. I can write on the tablet, which goes to the computer, and eventually ends up on the television for classroom viewing. The system works well, and quite honestly, I do not know how I ever managed with just a regular white board. My back was always turned to the class...what a mess.

Even though this process is effective, I am always shopping around for new interactive displays in order to find the best available. I started the process with RM EasiTeach, which seemed to work fine. This was actually a case of not knowing what was available. I could do a software review of RM EasiTeach, but I will save time and just invite you to pass if you are met with a decision to use this product. It looks nice in the video, but the number of problems far outweighed the positives in my mind.

Enter Promethean's ActivInspire. The first nice part of ActivInspire is the price. Most of the items that are made from Promethean are free (not the hardware but the software). This is a great bonus because not only do I use it, my students have access to it on their own computers. My students each have a graphics tablet so they can essentially use what I use anytime to show work and understanding, or to just take notes.

The display on ActivInspire can be used in many ways. I can write in real time for the students to see. I can also type up items beforehand to show the class. I use different math symbols, lines, and tools (like a protractor) with a simple touch of an icon. The interface is easy to use and allows me to take a screen shot of something, and then write directly over the top in seconds. This is the feature I use the most. The transition from picture to writing is smooth.

While I believe ActivInspire to be the best interactive writing tool I have come across, there are some negatives that I would like to see fixed in future versions. First off, while the system seems friendly enough to me, my students often have a tough time catching on and remembering how to do everything that ActivInspire includes. My students are handy with technology, so when I see them struggle, I know improvements could be made in order to make ActivInspire more intuitive.

The other negative I see if the lack of colors and options. This seems like more of an elementary problem, but when you are a math instructor, having a different color for everything is important. Other writing software that I have used also has had the option to change your writing to text on the go. This was always a nice feature (because my handwriting is sloppy), but did not always work the way I wanted it to (because my handwriting is sloppy). I hope that Promethean can come up with a more effective way to use technology to transfer writing into text than other companies.

Overall, I have used ActivInspire for an extensive amount of time, and while improvements need to be made, it is the best of what I have found. I am always looking for the next best item that will make my job more streamlined, so any suggestions in the comments section would be welcome. I am sure that a company as progressive as Promethean will improve on future versions of ActivInspire. I will also check into the Google drawing tool as they expand. If there is anything better available, please do not hesitate to comment!

Credit given to the following: http://browardpromethean.pbworks.com/

An Attempt at New Technology in the Classroom: Twitter

In all honesty, I signed up for Twitter a year or so ago and sent a few Tweets. I found this new tool to be the biggest waste of space that I had ever used. People were Tweeting about their day and when they were going to the grocery store... as if anyone would care. I was boggled as to why it was catching on and what the fuss was about.

Fast-forward to a technology class I am taking for my Doctoral program....

I am willing to try most anything in my classroom to get my students interested in exploring mathematics. Here are my initial ideas for Twitter...

1. At the conclusion of class, students write a short reflection on what they got out of the current session. A different hashtag would be produced for each class for easy access for my students and myself to all reflections. TweetDeck would be needed for easy organization.

2. With each student having a computer to take home each night, I am going to have students watch a preview video at home as to what we will be doing the next day. After students watch the video, they can Tweet as a summary of what they learned. All responses will be sent to the same hashtag. I can use this information in determining who needs more instruction and who would be eligabe to start right away when the students arrive the next day.

3. I would like students to follow different Twitter users to gain a larger prospective on what jobs are available that have a mathematical emphasis. I feel that most student do not have a concept of the different jobs that are available to them, and I would hope that this connection could open some eyes as to what is available.

During the final week of school, I asked a few students to give some of this a trial run. For the most part, signing up and Tweeting worked fine. I will have to ensure that TweetDeck is on the toolbar in Chrome or in some other capacity for easy access. One problem I ran into was that some parents did not want their students to have an account (which is understandable). This is one obstacle that I will have to work around.

Please leave comments on ways that you use Twitter in the classroom. Also comment with ideas that you have always wanted to try but never have.

Credit given to the following: http://lavrusik.com/