Integrating the use of Maple with the collaborative use of wireless tablet PC’s (Maple/maplenet is a computer algebra tool, and the aim was to integrate this with DyKnow)
Would be like to do things in the external software and then send this to the students. This gives the students a permanent record. This also means that the students don’t need to know the specifics of the external software from the start.
The school is a laptop school, but has two permanent tablet rooms with DyKnow. Joshua has found that DyKnow was just a tool that allowed him to do what he has always done, but easier and more efficiently.
The solution used was to use the external software to create java applets and live web pages, and then utilise the file deploy component and embedded webpage in Dyknow to deploy these things to the students. This means the instructor can push out the content to the students, and the students then interact with this. This takes away the need to students to “know” the other software, and can instead deal with the lesson/skill being taught.
Java applets can be embedded in DyKnow using the embed live webpage – this is deployed to the students, and the student and the instructor can interact with this – independently – this is a very very cool idea! (I think anyway). This would mean having a website where the applet is stored, then this is linked to using the URL of the applet. I think I need to learn how to do this, so I can show people how to do this when I run the DyKnow training at BBC later in the year.
Bandwidth can be an issue for large animations/applets – but if this is stored on the local server, less of an issue. With the new wireless/internet backbone we are getting at BBC, this should mean only good things!
I also learnt something cool with DyKnow – as an instructor, writing in purple doesn’t show up on the student tablet! That means you can write an answer without it “wrecking” the students deployed slide…
Josh also said he loved DyKnow because he can fix a typo on the fly with the students – compare this to the “old days” when the copied sheets would go out with a typo and either all have to be corrected, tossed, or the “tour to be sure” the students have actually fixed the mistake! Now once the instructor fixes it on Dyknow, it is fixed at the same time with the students!
He also said the students take the technology for granted – its what they expect, so its normal.
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