Archive
Favorite Open Educational Resources
I’ve been using free educational resources in my presentations for a few years. Several professors have asked me for a list of Open Educational Resources (OER) that I have shared in various workshops. Here is a list of ten of my current favorites:
- EveryStockPhoto.com – Search engine that can be used to find free images on the web. http://www.everystockphoto.com/
- Incompetech is a collection of Creative Commons licensed music. http://incompetech.com/m/c/royalty-free/
- iTunes U is a collection of audio and video content from higher education faculty around the world that can be freely used for educational purposes. http://deimos3.apple.com/indigo/main/main.xml Many SPU professors are freely sharing their work in iTunes U. You can find it at: http://deimos3.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browsev2/spu-public
- Khan Academy provides 800+ YouTube tutorials covering math, science, and finance problems. http://www.khanacademy.org/index.html
- MERLOT is a peer-reviewed searchable collection of online learning materials. http://merlot.org
- Search by Creative Commons provides a convenient way to access search engines that include CC licensed materials. http://search.creativecommons.org
- Webcast.Berkeley is a collection of podcasts and webcasts from the University of California Berkeley. http://webcast.berkeley.edu/
- Wikimedia Commons is a media repository for public domain and freely-licensed educational media content (images, sound and video clips). http://commons.wikimedia.org
- YouTube EDU is a collection of videos and channels from higher education institutions http://www.youtube.com/education?b=400
- MIT OpenCourseware is a website that contains almost all content from MIT courses. http://ocw.mit.edu/
Free Rice
Free Rice (link to site)
This free-to-use website can help children study topics such as vocabulary and multiplication tables by answering multiple choice questions. While there are many sites like this, Free Rice provides students with extra motivation to get correct answers. For each correct answer, a small amount of rice is donated to help feed people in developing countries. The project partners with the United Nations World Food Programs.
Ten Free Web-based Alternatives to Photoshop
10 Free Web-based Alternatives to Photoshop (link to site)
Here’s a list and quick review of ten web-based programs that can be used to edit digital images. I’m a big fan of Picnik but I’m looking for a program that does a better job with red eye. Anyone have a favorite?
Help for confusing words
Confusing Words (site link)
Here’s a link to a great website for writers of all ages. The site was created by teachers with the goal of helping their students better understand groups of words often confused for each other in student writings.
Taking a “lit trip” with Google Maps
http://www.googlelittrips.org/
Here’s a link to an interesting mashup idea where great literature is combined with Google Maps to provide students with a reading road-trip. The site contains resources for both K-12 and Higher Ed.
About
David Wicks
Educational Technology
I have been active in the instructional technology world for over 20 years. My previous positions include: high school teacher, university lecturer, school district technology facilitator, multimedia author, and project manager for an educational technology company. My current position is Director of Instructional Technology at Seattle Pacific University. As Director, I regularly consults with faculty on effective uses of technology. I have been involved in the development of numerous online and blended courses. In addition, I have taught face-to-face, blended, and online courses in the School of Education for over ten years.
Recent projects include: developing a Web 2.0 electronic portfolio system based on WordPress, creating a feature-comparison matrix for lecture capture solutions, and leading SPU’s iTunes U project. I am an Associate Editor for MERLOT’s Teacher Education Editorial Board. I served as program chair for the 2013 International Symposium for Emerging Technologies in Online Learning, and will be the conference chair for the 2014 conference. Currently, I facilitate faculty learning communities on topics such as learning spaces, active learning, blended learning, and mobile learning.
