WELSTech Video

This week on WELSTech we get serious about a variety of tech-driven security risks that have the potential to harm churches and schools. In addition, we share ministry resources, concert announcements and a helpful infographic about creating passwords.

Imagine the worst, and take steps to prevent it – Silicon Valley WELSTech-ers and members of Apostles in San Jose, CA, Mike Klebig and Jas Lonnquist, talk with Martin and Sallie about some of the potential dangers for churches and schools that come along with the use of technology. Who would think a copy machine could be a security risk or stored documents were in danger of being lost? Listen for recommendations in these areas and more.

This week enjoy a free Easter music download from WELS artist Michael Schroeder (www.michaelschroeder.com and on Facebook) – Jesus Christ is Risen Today (right-click to save MP3) or download the music video

Episode 339 – Next week promises to be lively as we host a round table discussion with several school tech directors on the topic of infrastructure for 1:1 implementation. An added bonus will be an overview of the upcoming KML Tech and Teach event with James Carlovsky. (Broadcast date – 04/29/14)

WELSTech viewers will enjoy this week’s inaugural do-it-yourself challenge as Martin and Sallie share their homemade smartphone stands and vie for points in all sorts of imagined DIY-er categories. To balance out the intense competition, Laura Harstad from Kingdom Workers shares the joys of being a mission volunteer.

Winner! Winner! – Build your own smartphone stand with ideas from today’s WELSTech. Martin shares a quick and easy technique for folding a plastic card. He even goes all out and makes an engraved version. Sallie demos a stand made from cardboard and a little fancy cutting. And if that wasn’t enough DIY goodness for one show, Sallie shares a bonus project that every Catechism instructor could make use of … the Win-O-Rama 3000!

Kingdom Workers – Laura Harstad, International Volunteer Coordinator and Project Developer for Kingdom Workers, chats with Martin and Sallie about the volunteer cycle and how technology assists throughout the entire process.

Episode 338 – Tune in for a discussion of the dark side of the internet and ways to protect yourself, your church and your school, with special guest Jas Lonnquist. (Broadcast date – 04/22/14)

This week enjoy a free Good Friday music download from WELS artist Michael Schroeder (www.michaelschroeder.com and on Facebook) – The Nails

On this week’s WELSTech we welcome someone new – Grandpa Martin! The discussion takes a deep dive into Google Forms for gathering data for churches and schools. We share our first ever video listener review and announce a “Tech and Teach” event coming up soon on the WELSTech event calendar.

Gathering information – Martin and Sallie demonstrate the capabilities of Google Forms (plus discuss various Forms add-ons and scripts), and share examples of several forms for churches and schools.

Episode 337 – Martin and Sallie square off in a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) challenge. Who can build the best smart phone stand? Plus Laura Harstad from Kingdom Workers will share her experience with coordinating mission volunteer opportunities. (Broadcast date – 04/15/14)

There’s no foolin’ around on this week’s WELSTech Podcast, as Martin and Sallie share the events of the recent Christ In Media Institute Conference on Mobile Phone Outreach. Sallie’s practicing karate, and Martin has a surprising (controversial?) tip of the week. There’s even a little document camera demo to round out the fun.

Cheerleading for Mobile Missions – Sallie was on-hand for the recent Christ In Media Institute Christian Mobile-Phone Project Conference which brought together high school and college-aged students and a “rock star” cast of missionaries from all corners of the world to present ideas for using the now ubiquitous technology of mobile phones to share the good news of Jesus Christ. We share multiple interviews to give WELSTech-ers a flavor of the excitement that the conference generated.

Registration is officially open for summer FinalWeb training with Martin and Sallie at the Center for Mission and Ministry. Learn more and sign up at bit.ly/fwtraininginfo.

This week only, download a free music single from the Wisconsin Lutheran College Choir – Softly and Tenderly

Episode 336 – Join Martin and Sallie for a discussion of creative uses of Google Forms for gathering school and church data. (Broadcast date – 04/08/14)

On this week’s episode, Sallie and Jason Schmidt hold down the WELSTech fort with a lively discussion of Minecraft gaming in the education setting. From self portraits to roller coasters to models of famous locations, the platform all but guarantees student engagement and collaboration.

Creative Building – Jason Schmidt, Tech Coordinator for Bennington ISD and WELSTech’s semi-regular classroom technology correspondent, educates Sallie on the educational side of the popular video game Minecraft.

Registration is officially open for summer FinalWeb training with Martin and Sallie at the Center for Mission and Ministry. Learn more and sign up at bit.ly/fwtraininginfo.

Episode 335 – No fooling … Next week we’ll be talking about the recent Christ In Media Institute Mobile Phone Conference. (Broadcast date – 04/01/14)

Today on WELSTech Martin and Sallie, along with special guest, Steve Zambo, share the tech side of live video streaming and some helpful tips (enhanced with visual aids) to take your video production to the next level. Find out about the electronic version of NPH’s Meditations, and be amazed as Sallie shares not 2 but 7 tips and picks! Jackpot!

Go Live – Martin and Sallie share the technical side of live video streaming with a behind the scenes look at YouTube’s streaming video service, and an overview of FinalWeb and LiveStream options plus information on encoders, bandwidth, and more.

Tips from a pro – Steve Zambo, President of Salty Earth Pictures and Instructor of Digital Cinema & Media at Wisconsin Lutheran College, shares tips to improve video quality including framing the shot, lighting, audio and more.

Meditations from Northwestern Publishing House is now available for iOS and in Kindle and Nook eBook format.

Registration is officially open for summer FinalWeb training with Martin and Sallie at the Center for Mission and Ministry. Learn more and sign up at bit.ly/fwtraininginfo.

Episode 334 – Jason Schmidt from Omaha, NE joins Sallie for a MineCraft EDU discussion. (Broadcast date – 3/25/14)

This week enjoy a free music download from WELS musician Pat Watson (www.reverbnation.com/#!/patwatsonproject) – Borrowed Time

What is WELSTech without a lively book discussion? Even though Martin is traveling, he manages to join Sallie for the conclusion of the sometimes contentious book discussion of The Shallows. He brings along a tip and pick as well, and Sallie shares some interesting community feedback. Listen up!

Book wrap up – Apps for speed reading, such at Spritz, promise to lower reading time while increasing comprehension. But are these digital enhancements taxing our overloaded brains even more?  Martin and Sallie conclude their discussion of the current WELSTech book selection, The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing To Our Brains by Nicholas Carr. In chapters 9 and 10, the author drives home his point that the electronic smorgasbord of the Internet does have an effect on our brains ability to store information in long-term memory. We need “down time” to allow our brains to process and store memories.

Registration is officially open for summer FinalWeb training with Martin and Sallie at the Center for Mission and Ministry, July 29 – August 1. Learn more and sign up at bit.ly/fwtraininginfo.

Episode 333 – Video is the focus of the next WELSTech episode. Specifically Martin and Sallie will discuss considerations and mechanics of live streaming worship and WLC Prof. Steve Zambo will share techniques for enhancing video production. (Broadcast date – 03/18/14)

This week only, download a free music single from Cross To Glory (www.facebook.com/crosstoglory) – My Grace Will Do

The world is going mobile and Martin shares “how-to” ideas for becoming a mobile app developer. Sallie may be enjoying warmer climates this week, but she gets her 2 cents in the tips, picks and feedback conversation. As a matter of fact, Sallie’s pick of the week may be so anti-tech that it jeopardizes her co-hosting seat!

DIY Mobile – Martin is just back from the BrainStorm K20 Technology Conference and shares tips and tools from his “Build A Mobile Web App in 2 Hours” presentation.

Subscribe for e-mail delivery of WELS’ latest devotions, news and more – wels.net/subscribe

Registration is officially open for summer FinalWeb training with Martin and Sallie at the Center for Mission and Ministry, July 29 – August 1. Learn more and sign up at bit.ly/fwtraininginfo.

Episode 332 – Martin and Sallie wrap up the discussion of the current WELSTech book selection, The Shallows by Nicolas Carr. Tune in for chapters 9 & 10. (Broadcast date – 03/11/14)

This week only, download a free music single from a Japanese WELS artist, Kaori Egawa – Call Out To Jesus

This week the WELSTech web site is all new, after a major upgrade and relocation, and the WELSTech goodness abounds. Guest host Gail Potratz, along with Tyler Shadick, bring us up to speed on the emerging trend of digital badges for assessment in education. We even dole out a few of the first-ever WELSTech badges. FinalWeb training registration is unveiled, plus much more.

Endorse, Honor and Certify! – Badges in education are changing the way teachers assess and motivating students to achieve. Gail Potratz, WELSTech’s semi-regular classroom technology correspondent from Emanuel in New London, WI and Tyler Shadick, Online Learning Systems Analyst from Concordia University, Wisconsin, talk with Martin and Sallie about the reasons to consider badges as part of your assessment strategy and the tools to help you get started.

Check out the new WELSTech Badges

Registration is officially open for summer FinalWeb training with Martin and Sallie at the Center for Mission and Ministry. Learn more and sign up at bit.ly/fwtraininginfo.

Episode 331 – Martin flies solo and shares secrets for building web apps. (Broadcast date – 03/04/14)

This week only, download a free music single from WELS musician and staff minister Benhur Khamrang (Reverbnation) – Brothers, Sisters, Let Us Gladly

This week’s WELSTech focus is on the necessary but formidable topic of copyright as it relates to all types of intellectual property – audio, video, images, music and lyrics – used in church and school settings. Martin and Sallie are joined by Northwestern Publishing House copyright expert Kristine Laufer for the discussion. Also this week we learn about video resources for youth ministry, canned responses in Gmail and a creative way to keep fit.

Copyright answers – Kristine Laufer, Rights and Permissions Coordinator for Northwestern Publishing House, talks with Martin and Sallie about copyright issues including various use of Christian Worship and Christian Worship Supplement.

Doing copyright right – Martin and Sallie share resources to assist churches and schools with their compliance with the complex issue of copyright law.

Royalty-Free Image Resources:

With special thanks to WELSTech’s very special anonymous contributor …

Episode 330 – Gail Potratz from Emanuel in New London, WI joins Martin and Sallie as we talk about the latest technology trends in education. (Broadcast date – 2/25/14)

This week enjoy a free music download from WELS praise band Koine (www.koinemusic.com | Facebook)- Lord Jesus, You Have Come In Love