Richard D. Solomon's Blog on Mentoring Jewish Students and Teachers: How Scribblar can be used to facilitate online collaboration in the blended learning classroom

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

How Scribblar can be used to facilitate online collaboration in the blended learning classroom

When mentoring our pre-service and in-service teachers we need to describe and model both research-based and clinically tested best practices, and demonstrate how these best practices can be applied in the real (i.e. physical) and virtual (i.e. online) classroom for both teaching and teacher training. The combination of face to face instruction in a physical setting and online learning is called blended learning. In this section of the blog we will describe how the internet can serve as a supplemental resource for instruction and the mentoring of pre-service and in-service Jewish educators. In this post we will continue our discussion on how Scribblar can be used in a blended learning classroom.

Assumption: The teacher or mentor teacher has a interactive white board (i.e. SMART Board, Promethean, etc.), a Tablet PC (also called a Slate or Blade), a computer presenter or computer with internet access attached to an LCD projector in the classroom. It would be ideal if students or mentees had access to their own laptop computers or Ipads. Given parental and school approval, and the development of specific guidelines, smartphones can be used to enhance instruction as well.

Note: Although Scribblar can be applied in the Judaic Studies blended learning classroom, they can be also be used for training pre-service and in-service Jewish educators for professional or staff development. It is our hope that Jewish educators around the globe will form an online community of practice, a CoP, a group of people who share an interest, a craft, and/or a profession, to enhance the delivery of instruction and training of Jewish educators. For example, here is a CoP you might want to join.

Note: Scribblar can be used in a face to face and virtual classroom.

What is Scribblar?

According to http://www.appappeal.com/app/scribblar/,

Scribblar provides users with an easily accessible, collaborative white board tool. The application allows users total freedom in creating a chart, diagram or other tool to help with a project or other tasks. Multiple users can access and edit the white board so collaboration is streamlined and everyone can get involved in the process. Scribblar also allows users to use text chat for instant questions, answers and input. Live audio offers another layer of options to work on a project quickly as a group. Updates are made in real time so everyone sees the most recent version of the white board. There are no session limits and Scribblar works great for online tutoring, artwork revisions, creative brainstorming, interviews, tests, and product demonstrations. By working online, users can make it easy for anyone to access their white board and provide input, even while at home in their pajamas or traveling for business.

Where is Scribblar located on the web?

http://www.scribblar.com/

How Scribblar can be used to facilitate collaboration as an online whiteboard in the blended learning classroom

Click on the links below to find resources describing how Scribblar can be used to promote online collaboration in the blended learning classroom.