Interactive and Engaging Design- Easy Research Starting Point
Community Review for Histography - Timeline of History
My Take
My overall opinion can be summarized in these three words; vivid, subjective, and foundational. This app is vivid and designed to catch the user's eyes. Students and teachers alike enjoy using applications that are eye-catching and aesthetically pleasing. This app is also subjective, the source being Wikipedia, the information stored within this system can often times be written under biases, however, events that are recorded are still true. Students must take it as a starting point. This app is foundational because it is a place to begin projects, conversations, and creations. I liked the way the app is laid out, and how easy it is to run, and navigate. No account is needed, it is simply a well-trained website that is a good tool for students to be aware of. I do not like that it's main source of information is Wikipedia. However, as stated before, Wikipedia can often be a good starting point.
How I Use It
I would use this tool in a lesson that is student-led by giving them this resource as a starting point for their own research or creative project in Social Studies 9-12. I believe this tool is very useful in the modification aspect of the SAMR framework because it removes textbooks, and initial research by giving the students a creative look at history so that they may develop their own critical thinking skills beyond the event shown on screen. Since this application was created through Wikipedia I would direct my students to use it only as a starting point, not as a grounds for research. Because the interface of this app is so aesthetically pleasing, students will find it easy to find a historical event within a certain period of time that interests them.