Emerging Technologies #2 - MindMeister

Name:  MindMeister.com

Summary:  MindMeister is an online brainstorming (mind mapping) emerging technology.  Mind mapping can be used for any type of educational purpose, business purposes, and individual use such as scheduling and organization.  MindMeister allows any individual to brainstorm and create a mind map online, but it also allows for collaboration between multiple people who use MindMeister.  Students can use mind mapping for note-taking, research, interactive presentations, or for simple organization and academic planning.  MindMeister.com claims that students who use mind mapping to study display greater memory retention than through the use of traditional study techniques.  Click this video for the MindMeister tutorial below:

Personal Testimony:  To begin using MindMeister, I first watched the tutorial video posted above.  I signed up for the "basic" account, which is free.  Signing up includes entering a username, password, and an email address. After signing up, I looked at the default "sample mind map" to see what it looks like.  In order to learn how to format the mind mapping web, I clicked on the "Help" tab.  In this section, there are instructions detailing how to format the page, how to add ideas (nodes), sub-topics (child nodes), and so-on.  There are keypad shortcuts for most of the formatting options.  Without the help section and the tutorial video, it could be pretty confusing to make a mind map for the first time.  Once I found out how to use the basic options, I created my first mind map with the subject "Behavior Modification Program".

My First Mind Map:  

Tips/Suggestions:  When you sign up for a free account, you have a limited number of mind maps that you can create.  Be careful about creating a new mind map and deleting it, because I do not know if that counts as one of your free mind maps.  Learn about how to create all the categories and subcategories before diving into a brainstorming session.  If you do not know how to format the mind map "web", it can slow down and hamper your "brainstorming flow".  I believe that when you are researching or creating a project, the rhythm and flow of brainstorming is very important.  This rhythm can be interrupted if you have to spend time figuring out how to organize your ideas.  After all, the purpose of this emerging technology is to help organize your thoughts.

Emerging Technologies - Polldaddy.com

Name:  Polldaddy.com

Summary:  Polldaddy.com is a website people can use to create all kinds of surveys, polls, tests, or quizzes, very quickly and easily.   Polldaddy.com claims to be a trusted survey provider for many Fortune 500 companies including Microsoft, CBS, and IBM.  Polldaddy.com can be used in education for pop quizzes and for gathering student feedback after exams.   Polldaddy.com can also be used for event planning, gauging customer satisfaction, and obviously for advertising and market research.

Personal Testimony:  To begin my exploration of this website, I had to create a free user id and password (you can also choose a $200/yr "pro" account, or a $899/yr "corporate" account, each having more and more options available).  Signup was quick and easy; you are only required to type your name, a username, your email, and a password.  I decided to create my own survey, titled "w200" that closes on April 11 at 8:00PM, has a limit of one response per computer, and a maximum quota of 1000 responses.  I created a survey for anyone who has taken w200.  I didn't include a section for names, as I wanted it to be anonymous.  I included 2 multiple choice questions and 3 free-response questions.  All are mandatory except for the suggestions/constructive criticism section.  My survey is linked below

My Survey:   w200 Survey

Tips, Suggestions, Etc:  When you choose the free account, you are limited to a certain number of surveys /polls/quizzes you can do.  So, choose carefully when you begin. Explore all of the options, formats, and styles you can use in a survey or quiz BEFORE posting the survey.  This can be a very useful tool and it is extremely fast and easy to create.  Try it out!

My SchoolTube Glog

Creating this Blog

Creating this blog was actually pretty simple, easy, and fun to do.  Blogger walks you through the steps quickly and easily.  I've never created a blog before and I didn't know what to expect.  I thought it would be a lot more complicated, but I was relieved to discover that it was a fun and interesting process.  Making my first post was simple and the preview button was very convenient.  I discovered how to add gadgets, including a picture of myself to my blog.  I'm looking forward to adding more things to my blog soon.

For other students in this course, I only suggest that everyone play around with all of the editing options with your blog.  There are tons of gadgets and cool things you can do, so just exploring all of your options makes the blog even more interesting.

My Bio

My name is Jon Clark, I'm 22 years old, and I am a sophomore at IUPUI.  I'm majoring in elementary education, and I'm interested specifically in special education.  I work at College Wood Elementary in Carmel, Indiana, as an instructional assistant.  I work with students who have emotional disabilities, in a full-inclusion program that aims to modify the behavior of our students.  I'm very passionate about elementary education and my job, and I'm excited to continue to learn at IUPUI and also through experiences at work.

I currently live in Noblesville, Indiana.  I love being around my friends, whether they are people I've known for a while or people I meet at IUPUI or at my work.  I'm a pretty active person, and I enjoy my busy life.  I'm a huge University of Michigan fan and a big sports fan overall. Thanks for reading about me!