Tigers and Monkeys

This week's assignment was to post photographs on a photo sharing website, then provide a link to those photos so that others may view them. I chose Bubbleshare as my photo sharing website, and the link to my photos can be found on my class wiki page.

Photo sharing of this type provides a valuable tool for use in the virtual classroom. Although not as versatile as last week's podcast, photo sharing on the web can enhance the learning experience between students and their instructor.

Instructors can use photo sharing to document and demonstrate. Perhaps students are studying the American Civil War in a history class, and their instructor has traveled extensively to battle sites to build a photo collection from those locations. The instructor could easily post his photo collection on a photo sharing site to provide students with visual aids to enhance their readings and studies. Or maybe an instructor teaching a class on health and safety would like to show students the steps to donning a level II hazmat entry suit. This instructor could document the steps of the procedure with photos and post them for his students to view and study.

Students can also use photo sharing to document their knowledge of a particular subject. An instructor could assign students to visit a location and students could verify their completion of the assignment with photos. Perhaps a student is given an assignment to construct or build something by following certain specific steps. Photos could be used to document the student's progress and show the instructor that the student has followed the directions.

These are only a few examples of how photo sharing can be used to enhance the virtual classroom. Photo sharing is a valuable tool that both instructors and students have at their disposal to make the online learning experience more valuable.

After briefly exploring the various examples of web-based photo sharing services, I chose Bubbleshare to post mine. For me, this was probably the easiest assignment so far. After choosing the photos I wanted to post, it took me about five minutes to upload them and post a summary of the photos. I definitely see the advantages, both personally and educationally, of using a site like Bubbleshare. This will definitely be another example of something I will continue to use in the future!