Entertaining Education

I've been catching up on reading blogs in my Google Reader and a few blogs have caught my eye; especially, after checking out Google Earth.

One of the features of Google Earth was that you could create your own virtual tour. If you don't want to do that, there are already websites out there that have done just that and would be great additions to a lesson plan.

Trans Siberian Railway, Russia

http://www.flickr.com/photos/yeowatzup/ / CC BY 2.0

One that I found that was personally and particularly interesting to me was a virtual tour on the Trans Siberian Railway. I've been studying Russian for almost four years now and I'm going to study abroad in Russia this summer; unfortunately, I won't be traveling on this infamous railway. Nevertheless, I can still experience the train ride without leaving my apartment; even though watching it from my room is nothing compared to the real thing. This site can be used in history, geography, and literature classes when studying that part of the world. 

Another place students can explore from the classroom or at home is by the NOVA program's, Volcanoes Above the Clouds; students can watch climbers and scientists ascend Africa's Mount Kilimangaro. The website provides a lot of video, as well as teaching materials and guides for the classroom.

Besides these two websites, there's so much more out there that could make learning more fun for students, using technology. I'll definitely add on to this list and post links as I discover them. 

Google Earth

So I was looking through the list of technology suggestions for this week's task and I had to check out Google Earth. Google is amazing in every aspect and this was something I had not looked into before.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/axel/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

I mean, what is there to say? Google Earth is pretty cool. 

This is an interactive technology, a virtual globe. I've dipped and dabbled in it a bit, but I haven't thoroughly explored half of the features yet. The user can view every place on our delightful planet Earth, as well as places outside of our atmosphere. Here are just some of the things you can check out:

• Sky Mode: View stars and other celestial bodies
• Historical Imagery: Go back in time, see and study earlier images of places
• Record a customized tour
• Explore the ocean, the moon, and Mars
• Get a view of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics

These features would be automatic student attention grabbers. It's also a perfect example of the TPaCK framework (the integration of Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge). This technology could be particularly useful in social studies, geography, and science classes, for obvious reasons. Students can explore space sitting at their desks, research the geology of the Earth from different periods in time, etc. In order for this to be worthwhile and helpful to students, the teacher would have to know his or her way around the Google Earth features, be able to use it and explain it to students successfully.

All in all, it's an awesome technology, but I am glad privacy is kept in check. It's amusing to be able to see my house from the satellite, but comforting to know that users can't see every little detail.