My Voki

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This is my voki, this is the first time I have used a voki, it was quick and relatively easy to make and upload, I found it at http://www.voki.com/create.php . I have previously had experience with marvin at
http://www.marvin.com.au/ which seems to have the same qualities as voki. Marvin however, allows the avatar to move around the page and background area and gives the options of where to look when saying words, and has a wider use of backgrounds and landscape scenes.

PLUS

1. Voki was quick and easy to make.
2. Good choices of avatars and ease of personalisation.
3. Choice of voice or text option for students.
4. Engaging characteristics removes the 'teacher' from teaching aspect.

MINUS

1. Limited in its options to 'engage' for a sustained period.
2. Probably would not suit a long re-tell or sustained monologue of information.

INTERESTING IMPROVE IMPLEMENT

I found the voki quick and easy to make - honestly I thought it might take forever, that is why I put off doing it. I would use a voki as an introductory figure to maintain interest or focus in a webquest or similar. I think that students would respond to the visual and auditory stimulation as a form of information rather than the standard instructions of a teacher.

Students would be able to use a voki easily by recording their voice (for younger students) to do a short re-tell or express an opinion as a form of assessment. It is quick enough to download information that it would be able to be used everyday to introduce the days activities or announcements in the class.

If I was wanted students to do a sustained piece of assessment using an Avatar however, I would lead them towards the Marvin characters where there is wider scope for change of scenes and movement of the Avatar to keep the engagement of students longer in the information that is to be presented. Marvin would be a better option for a sustained activity expressing information.

WHAT I THINK

Voki is quick and this would be more use on a daily basis, where as Marvin would be the Avatar set that is created and re-used because it takes longer to make. Again, the time factor comes in to play, and because voki is quick to make is could be used more often and for different types of information. I would use Voki in the classroom, at present, I think the best option would be as stated on a webquest style inquiry, or on an IWB to introduce the routine for the day. In the later case, I would give the students the information and ownership of the class voki to create the daily routine voki.