BT Nguyen reflects on using various digital tools for a research project on schizophrenia. Symbaloo helped organize research but was initially confusing. An RSS feed quickly provided up-to-date information. Scoop It was also initially confusing but became helpful for collecting websites. YouTube videos provided interesting insights into the illness. A wiki and WordPress blog helped track progress but were not essential. Voicethread was an engaging way to present research and overall the process was educational in learning new digital tools.

1. BT Nguyen
Summative Reflection
PLE:
For this project, I used a Symbaloo instead of a Netvibe. At first, I was a little confused
on how to use it and what its purpose was. But after playing around with it for a while
and with an explanation from Mrs. Host, I quickly learned how to use it to my advantage.
I got rid of all the miscellaneous tiles and set up my own tiles, which included a few
websites and my RSS feed. I believe that the quality of the information that I received by
using Symbaloo was acceptable for my project on Schizophrenia. In the future, if I
remember how to use it, I can definitely see myself using Symbaloo again for other
projects. For future classes, if this project is to come up again, a PLE is probably
essential.
RSS feed:
The RSS feed was one of my biggest helpers. It allowed me to find good information
and quickly too. With just a click of a button, my RSS feed was easily set up. With
another click, it was easy to see the updates on my Symbaloo, where the RSS feed was
put. It gave me valuable information because most, if not all, of the sources on there
were up to date. An RSS feed makes everything easier because instead of going on a
search engine to look up more things on Schizophrenia, all I had to do was go to my
RSS feed to look for a few new ideas. In the future, an RSS feed should absolutely be
used. It helped me a lot more than I thought it would and it’s fast and easy.
Scoop it:
To be honest, Scoop It was a little more confusing to me than any of the other ones
websites that we used. I wasn’t sure how to use it at first, and I wasn’t completely sure
of its purpose. But once I learned how to use it, it was helpful to me in several ways.
The Bookmarklet was fairly simple to set up and once it was set, I “scooped” websites
and articles very easily. I liked how Scoop It took all the websites that I scooped and put
it all in one place for me to see. It made it easier to keep track and use my sources.
Scoop it was incredibly helpful. All I had trouble with about this was how to set it up. In
the future, it should definitely be used.
Videos/Interviews/Documentaries:
I actually used YouTube to look for videos for my project. I didn’t know that Voicethread
didn’t take YouTube videos, otherwise I wouldn’t have used it. But either way, the
videos that I got my hands on were very informative and helpful. I thought it was a very
interesting way to learn about my topic and the fact that I could use it in my project

2. pleased me. It’s great to see an interview of someone who has Schizophrenia and to
put that in the project helps to explain the illness. I put the links of the videos on the
comments for the Voicethread. In the future, a better explanation on where to find
videos or how to put videos onto the voicethread or prezi would be a lot more helpful.
Audios:
I didn’t use any audios in my project because I found videos to be more useful and
helpful. I’m sure audios would have been fine too, but I didn’t put any in my project.
Wikispace:
The Wiki was a neat idea and I liked how all I had to do was put everything up on there.
I also liked the fact that I was able to see my other classmates’ Wiki’s because it
informed me on what I needed mine to look like and what I was missing. The Wiki is
probably not that essential in that it doesn’t help a whole lot with the project, but the fact
that we had it to keep everything organized helped. In the future, this is probably not
needed as much as websites like Scoop it or the RSS feed.
Wordpress:
The Wordpress was probably the easiest for me to use only because I have a Tumblr.
Tumblr is also a blogging site so since I’m used to using that, it was easy for me to
figure out how to use Wordpress. I liked blogging on it and using that as a meta-
cognition to keep track of where I was. It helped me see what I already did and what I
needed to do. In the future, I don’t think a Wordpress is completely necessary, but it did
help.
Prezi:
I didn’t do a Prezi, so I didn’t touch this at all. I did a Voicethread instead.
Voicethread:
The Voicethread was one of the coolest projects that I’ve ever done. I’ve made videos
and powerpoints in the past, but it was nothing compared to this. I liked this because I
was able to speak while my viewer was able to see what I wanted to show them. It was
easy to figure out because the website had thorough explanations and examples on
how to use it. If I get the chance to, I will definitely make a Voicethread again. I think in
the future, other students should get a chance to make a Voicethread as well because it
was different and very amusing.

3. This whole process was something different, but it was a good experience. I liked how I
could update something and blog about my progress and my teacher could read it and
comment on it on right away. It was very convenient and helpful to me because if I had
a question, I didn’t have to wait until the next day to ask. I could either message my
teacher, or go on to a classmate’s blog to see what they did. The process of doing a
regular, self-guided research paper would probably have been easier, but I definitely
enjoyed this process a lot more.
I also learned so much from this. I learned how to use a handful of different websites
that I never even knew about before. This will definitely help me in college too when I’m
asked to do a research project. I’m very glad that I got the chance to do this and learn
the things that I did.