Great Tools to Help Teachers Keep Track of Online Educational Content

January 13, 2015
RSS readers are tools that allow you to track new released content and updates of the website you are subscribed to. They aggregate content of your favourite websites into a single platform accessible across various devices. Every website or blog has an RSS feed that is automatically generated for it the moment it goes viral. There are actually three ways to keep track of new online content: The first one is through social media such as Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google Plus...etc. But this only works when the content publishers have a presence on these social media sites and keep posting there regularly. The second way is through email subscription but this too is not  very practical as it could flood your inbox with too many emails especially when you are subscribed to a blog that publishes a lot. The third and most practical way to read new online content of  your favourite websites is through RSS readers.

 Below are some of the best free RSS readers out there. I have been using these tools since the demise of Google Reader and I found them really wonderful. These tools provide you with a platform where you can customize the look of your feeds, organize your feeds into categories, tag content for easy access and many more.  For more options, check out this list instead.

1- Feedly: Web, iPad app, Android app, kindle app

This is my favourite. Feedly is an open system: you can add any RSS feed to your feedly and easily read the content of that feed on the go. Just enter the URL of that feed in the search bar. Feedly integrates seamlessly with Facebook, Twitter, Evernote, Buffer, OneNote, Pinterest and LinkedIn so that you can easily share the stories you read in your feedly with your friends and colleagues. Fee

2- Digg Reader: iPad app, Android app

This is my second in line. Although it is not as powerful as Feedly, Digg Reader remains a decent tool compared with the rest of other RSS feed readers, Digg allows you to find and follow your favourite online publishers, writers and blogs.You can also share your favourite stories on popular social media (Facebook, twitter) or through email or save them to read later on Digg, Instapaper, Pocket, or readability.


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5 Effective Ways to Search for Educational Web Tools and Apps Online

January 6, 2015
Content curation is something I have been doing for five years now and all along the way I developed an arsenal of useful strategies that enable me to better search, access, evaluate and share content that you read in this blog. Curating educational content is a time-consuming task because it entails a lot of searching and reading but it does not have to be a strenuous task if you are doing it  only for professional development purposes or for seeking out educational tools to use in your instruction. Here are some time-tested tips and tools to help you better search for and access educational web tools and apps.

1- Twitter hashtags
These are my favourite tools to look for trending educational content. There are several hashtags that you can use as a teacher to search for web tools and apps to use in your class. The top ones I would suggest here are: #edtech and #edchat. You can also use topic specific hashtags to look for content for instance: #arted for art education, #elt for English language teachers/teaching ...this list features all the hashtags you might need in your  search for educational content.You can also check this guide to learn more about how to search Twitter for educational content.

2- Graphite
I first learned about graphite from Steve Anderson almost a year ago and have been using it since then. Graphite is a platform created by Common Sense Media to make easier for teachers and educators to find the best apps, tools, games and websites to use in classroom.

3- Google Plus
Google Plus is another powerful platform for searching for educational web tools and mobile apps. There are three ways you can search Google Plus: The first one is through the feeds of the people you follow. This entails that you follow people who curate and share Edtech content. The second way is through the use of communities. There are several Edtech communities on Google Plus that you can join examples include: Education Revolution  and Technology in Education.

4- Pinterest
The power of Pinterest in content curation is uncontested. More and more teachers and educators are taking to Pinterest and there several Pinterest boards you can follow to stay updated about the recent Edtech releases . Check out this list for some examples of boards to follow.

5-Scoop.it

This is my favourite digital content curation tool. I have created a specific board on it for Educational Technology and I am also following several other interesting boards. Once you subscribe to the boards you like, you will start getting updates about anything added to them.


Other tools I use for content curation include: Feedly, Edshelf, Tweetdeck,  Diigo and many more.

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