Module 2 Assignment Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality allows each individual to interact and connect in their own personal way with more depth and breadth of content. There is also a level of proficiency developed due to the real time, real world interactions (Lee, 2012) Although there is confusion for some about the difference between augmented reality and virtual reality it a a matter of real versus simulated worlds. Virtual reality doesn't need to in any way connect with the real world and is imagined. Augmented reality operates in real time and involves superimposing an image, video , or other enhancement over a real object. Augmented Reality displays can include projections, handheld, head mounted, glasses, contacts or retinal displays. The most appropriate for an educational setting is probably projection or handheld. In a Bring Your Own Device(BYOD) educational environment handheld displays are the most logical as it will allow students to engage with the content at their own pace. For whole class instruction projections seem to be the most logical display method. 

• Obsolete
• Accountability for bullies
• There is the potential for displaying information about a victim without it being visible to anyone who doesn't have a cell phone. Information could include pictures or even a "Kick me" sign.This is a similar concern to the new After School app that allows students to anonymously post anything about their schools including disparaging information about other students with no repercussions or oversight.
• privacy when utilizing facial recognition
• Depending on the display method used by looking at someone a full profile could be viewed which has potential safety concerns especially for youth who are not always good about controlling what they put out about themselves.
• one on one job coaches for people with intellectual disabilities (Qualcomm, 2015)
•  AR technology can potentially  allow people with intellectual disabilities to access videos with steps for assignments. I see this as beneficial when I look at the students I work with who often can't remember lists beyond the second step. With an immediately accessible video they could be more independent and by extension develop a better sense of self.
• Reverse
• learners being able to only see 1 dimensional artifacts
• Augmented reality enables students or anyone in the audience to see different views of an object and experience depth that they previously would not have been able to access without physically being in a museum or holding the artifact.
• insular existence of people with disabilities 
• People with disabilities such as deafness could for example wear glasses that will project captions.(Wassom, 2012)
• wear and tear on items
• If the items do not need to be touched than they can be preserved for longer periods of time. One of the struggles of sharing historical artifacts is that they can be affected by light and the oils in our hands. This technology allows for the artifacts to be shared without those concerns. 
• Enhance
• schools and locales with limited budgets can still interact with museum objects
• As budgets are continually cut 
• ability of people with physical disabilities to be independent (Wassom, 2012)
• ARapps created by the Vodaphone Spain foundation include EasyUse, Who is Who, and Follow My Steps. EasyUse provides simple instruction manuals to run machines and equipment that Is part of their work environment. The apps can be accessed by job coaches through a web based editor to incorporate new equipment, update information about old equipment, or add more detailed graphics if necessary all aiding individuals in becoming more self sufficient. Who Is Who is a superimposes pictures of employees, names, and their titles over the work spaces that they are connected to. Follow My Steps aids in the commuting process of getting from home to work with step-by-step directions.(Qualcomm, 2015)
• Rekindle
• interactivity in education
• Future applications for education include the use of augmented reality to create interactive literary works. Through a mixed method study the researchers engaged audiences in the creation of a visual poem that imposed digital artwork onto literary works. (Lin, Hsieh, Liu, & Chuang, 2012)  Solak & Cakir, (2015) conducted a research study that supported second language learning through the imposing of sound animation, pictures.

Brown, P. (2015, November 2). How to transform your classroom with augmented reality. Retrieved December 24, 2015, from edSurge: https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-11-02-how-to-transform-your-classroom-with-augmented-reality

Lee, K. (2012). The future of learning and training in Augmented Reality. InSight: A Journal of Scholarly Teaching, 7, 31-42.

Lin, H.-C. K., Hsieh, M.-C., Liu, E. Z.-F., & Chuang, T.-Y. (2012). Interacting with visual poems through AR-based digital artwork. The Turkish Journal of Educational Technology, 11(1), 123-137.

Perez-Lopez, D., & Contero, M. (2013). Delivering educational multimedia contents through an augmented reality application: A case study on its impact om knowledge acquisition and retention. The Turkish Journal of Educational Technology, 12(4), 19-28.

Qualcomm. (2015, July 10). Entrepreneurship- Augmented Reality Assists Workers with Intellectual Disabilities. Retrieved December 24, 2015, from Qualcomm Web site: https://www.qualcomm.com/company/wireless-reach/projects/spain-augmented-reality

Solak, E., & Cakir, R. (2015). Exploring the effect of materials designed with augmented reality on language learners' vocabulary learning. The Journal of Educators Online, 13(2), 50-72.

Wassom, B.(2012, March 29) Will the law require Augmented Reality for the Disabled? Wassom.com. Retrieved December 24, 2015, from http://www.wassom.com/will-the-law-require-augmented-reality-for-the-disabled.html

Module 1 Assignment Identifying an Emergent Technology

16mm Filmstrip Reels to YouTube

Is Youtube a learning tool?

When many of us were in school if we needed to learn new content or even share an instructional video with a friend or family member it was a little complicated.  It tended to require expensive equipment, 16 mm filmstrips with their reels and postage. We now live in a time where content can be shared instantly.

Problems/Challenges

 YouTube's greatest challenge is also its strength. Anyone is able to create an account and post content allows for sharing literally all over the world. But this also makes it easy for radicals to proselytize and amateurs to present themselves as credible sources. If anyone can post anything it means that students are sometimes exposed to content created by people who are passionate but not always objective and not necessarily experts.

Societal Needs and Benefits 

 In our global society we benefit from being able to share content globally instantaneously. This has created a smaller world and allows people who were previously disenfranchised by location to access anything. In terms of the population of students with which I work YouTube has allowed Deaf people living in rural locations to stay in contact with family and friends all over the world. This has opened up the possibility for more community development and lessened the need for the Deaf to stay confined to one locale their entire life. 

The plethora of resources available on YouTube also allows for new information and content to be learned. Prior to the invention and implementation of YouTube the only place other than school, or a mentor to learn new ideas was the library. Now experts are able to share new ideas and new techniques instantaneously and the videos can be rewound and paused as many times as needed to get a quality understanding of the information.  Parents can now go to a teacher’s YouTube channel and learn the lesson that their child is struggling with in order to help with homework. Professionals working in remote areas have access to cutting edge information as long as they have internet access thereby providing better service to clients.

Digital natives as those students who prefer

 receiving information really fast. They like to parallel process and multi-task. They prefer their graphics before their text rather than the opposite. They prefer random access (like hypertext). They function best when networked. They thrive on instant gratification and frequent rewards. They prefer games to “serious” work.” (Prensky, 2001 p 2)

These digital natives are the students who we are currently teaching and the ones who are currently coming out of teacher preparation program. By studying preservice teachers in educational technology courses Dreon, Kerper, & Landis (2011) proposed that digital storytelling connects to todays generation of learners through the methods that they access information. Students are able to access, share, and comment on both their personal work and the work of others as they engage in learning tasks that correlate to them as digital natives.

Pitfalls

 One approach to dealing with the plethora of questionable content is doing serious lessons with students about reliability and accountability and what that means when using a resource. Years ago in one of my educational journals and I now can’t find the article there was reference to an elderly Auschwitz survivor who was told by the teenager living next to her that the Holocaust never happened. His argument supporting his opinion was based on an online resource posted by an English teacher who claimed that it was all a hoax. This survivor was understandably upset by being told that something for which she still carried not only the memories but the number printed on her arm didn’t happen. She lobbied for internet usage to be banned. While this is an extreme case of inappropriate content and response to it, it does highlight the need for teaching students about reliable sources. Last year middle school students were given a critical thinking assignment in which they were to argue if the Holocaust ever happened based on the beliefs of some that it was a political propaganda tool. (Yarborough & Wong, 2014) Many students completing this assignment came away denying a historical event that affected millions of Jewish people. 

An additional approach to dealing with the pitfall YouTube and easily accessible questionable content was the creation of TeacherTube. TeacherTube and an education channel on Youtube's regular site.

 YouTube Education

Works Cited

Burke, S., Snyder, S., & Rager, R. (2009). An assessment of faculty usage of YouTube as a teaching resource. The Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice, 7(1), 1-8.

Dreon, O., Kerper, R., & Landis, J. (2011). Digital storytelling: A tool for teaching and learning in the Youtube generation. Middle School Journal, 42(5), 4-9.

Fleck, B. K., Beckman, L., Sterns, J. L., & Hussey, H. D. (2014). YouTube in the classroom: Helpful tips and student perceptions. The Journal of Effective Teaching, 14(3), 21-37.

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-6.