Saturday, September 03, 2011

QR Codes in Education

In July, I had the great pleasure of being one of the judges for the Microsoft . Judging the projects was a true challenge since they were all of such high quality. It was such an honor to be among so many enthusiastic educators and to see them be recognized for their efforts, which many will agree does not happen often enough. One of the projects that really stuck with me, that can easily be replicated in any classroom is the project from ( on Twitter), who won the Educator's Choice award. Her project involved using QR codes:
"Students create a video podcast about an attraction, business, or organization of their choice within a 15-mile radius of their school. They research the history of their choice, plan the podcast (including media, prose and narration) develop a storyboard in Microsoft Word and then create their podcast using Microsoft Movie Maker. The students then put on their marketing hats and generate a QR code (or “tag�) for the “customers� of their chosen establishment, so people are able to access their video podcast on-demand for their PC or mobile device, while also including the podcasts in their class wiki."
To view one of Melanie's , download a for your smartphone and scan this code:
History Of The Hershey Factory
You can make your own QR code with Google! Go to  and enter the URL where you want your QR code to go. Click SHORTEN, then DETAILS and there you go! You can even track using Google's analytics. Try mine! 
GeekyMomma's Blog


If this is too geeky or you're wondering what's the big deal with QR codes, I recommend you watch this new video from on QR codes:



What are some innovative ways you've seen QR codes used in education?


4 comments:

said...

We used QR codes in our annual art show last year. Grade 5 students wrote an About the Artist (them) blurb which they turned into a QR code, printed and then literally cut and paste it on the border of their mounted art work. Parents and students alike used their smart phones to read the codes on the night of the show. Additionally some students created podcasts about the creative process used when making the project. These were also turned into QR codes. Instead of visitors having to download the podcasts into iTunes, they were able to listen immediately through their phones.

said...

Is it just me, or might we be excluding some students (and others in the greater community depending on the scope of a project) if we HAVE to get to information via a QR code? I have an "older" iPod Touch without a camera and a cell phone without Web access. While this may put me behind the times a bit in the edtech community, aren't I still ahead of some students and many of their parents?

said...

I recently posted about QR codes too (check it out here: http://teachbytes.wordpress.com) and I think that addressing QR codes is important - its such a great way to incorporate smartphones in the classroom!

said...

Thanks for the info, was trying to understand what QR codes are and why they are appearing in ads. This answers all my questions.