541 – Back to the Basics: Calendars & Tasks

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WELSTech’s “back to the basics” March focus continues with a look at two favorite tools – calendars and task managers. Perhaps tips shared for each will unlock listener’s super powers! And you won’t want to miss the lively discussion of technology in worship based on a recent article by Pastor Caleb Bassett.

The discussion:

Trusted systems – At the center of personal and professional productivity are two basic tools – calendars and task managers. Martin and Sallie share their recommendations for each as well as ideas for churches and schools to capitalize on the power of these basic tools.

WELS now:

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

Print My Cal

Community feedback:

Let’s rethink how we think about technology in worship

Featured video:

Watch Pastor Caleb Bassett’s Worship Conference presentation, Screens in Worship: Dos and don’ts – but mostly don’ts

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 542 – Jason Schmidt helps Martin and Sallie close out “Back to the Basics” month with a discussion of Presentations. Release date: Wednesday, March 28.

Get involved:

540 – Back to the Basics: Document Management

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WELSTech continues the “back to the basics” theme as we discuss technology that has a lengthy life-span but is still very relevant today. The week we look at document management. Plus, the community feedback mailbag is overflowing with WELSTech goodness from listeners & viewers.

The interview & discussion:

Best practices – Knowledge workers are in the business of creating and collaborating on documents, which makes the need for document management policies and training important in our churches, schools, and personal lives.

Drew Willems, Technology Director at Lakeside Lutheran High School in Lake Mills, WI, talks with Martin and Sallie about how they use G Suite for document management at Lakeside. Plus Martin and Sallie explore the topic further with a discussion of other solutions, use cases, tips, and questions to consider.

WELS now:

Calling all presenters!! Submit your ideas by May 31 for a session at #EdTechLead19, WELS Education, Technology, and Leadership Summit, happening June 25-27 at Kalahari Resort in WI Dells – welsedtechlead.com/call-for-presenters

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

Visit the WELSTech Photo Challenge Album on Flickr for royalty free seasonal images including …

Community feedback:

Featured video:

Check out the translation work at StoryWeaver and an overview of Google’s involvement in the project in our video of the week.

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 541 – We go back to the basics of calendaring and task management. Release date: Wednesday, March 21.

Get involved:

539 – Back to the Basics: Email

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WELSTech is going “back to the basics” in March and tackling old technology that is still very relevant today. Email is one of those oldies but goodies. You might be surprised what email can do for you today. Tune in for that plus a BIG announcement about next summer’s EdTechLead Summit and how you can earn a free night at Kalahari Resort!

The discussion:

Email for the win – Email has been around since we began using the Internet (way back when!), and despite the multitude of communication methods available today, email is still the right tool for the job in many instances. Brush up on your knowledge of email as Martin and Sallie share their preferences and reference resources for administrators.

News in tech:

WELS now:

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

National Day of Unplugging – March 10

Community feedback:

Lesley Bergemann reports that teachers at Good Shepherds in West Allis, WI are using FastDirect for parent communication, but that doesn’t mean they can leave their classroom web pages empty.

Featured video:

Check out the full complement of Drafts screencasts, including this Overview.

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 540 – Martin and Sallie talk the basics of document management with Drew Willems from Lakeside Lutheran High School. Release date: Wednesday, March 14.

Get involved:

538 – Training Techies: School Websites

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The last WELSTech episode in February finishes off a month-long focus on training. Today we are joined by MLC Professor Rachel Feld to discuss school websites and how to approach training faculty members who are already stretched too thin. An interesting challenge, but there are tools and techniques to help. Rachel talks about a $99 pencil, Sallie brings some plugin goodness, and Martin finds his “waze.”

The discussion:

Websites for classrooms – Martin Luther College Professor Rachel Feld joins the conversation with tips for training teachers to manage classroom web sites. It’s not always about tech savvy teachers switching to the latest shiny technology. Instead, adopting tools school wide and committing to long-term usage, ongoing training, and support may be the wiser strategy.

WELS now:

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

InsertLearning.com

Community feedback:

Joe Dexter from Emanuel in New London, WI shared information on the pending demise of 600 MHz wireless microphones.

Featured video:

Appropriate for the season, check out Koine’s Lenten Hymns and Music playlist including this week’s featured video, O Dearest Jesus.

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 539 – Tune in as WELSTech goes back to the basics, exploring the nuances of the tech tools we rely on daily to get our jobs done. Release date: Wednesday, March 7.

Get involved:

537 – Training Techies: Social Media Ambassadors

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February, designated as “training techies” month on WELSTech, continues as Martin and Sallie discuss training social media ambassadors. See how those folks can provide great channels for the message of the gospel to reach people your church can’t. We also received some excellent first-hand feedback on the Livestream MEVO camera.

The discussion:

Click image to view larger

Image courtesy of Alyssa Bream https://alyssabream.com/free-resources/ Click image to view larger

Social training – Martin and Sallie discuss ideas for coaching members of your church to expand the reach of church social media communication by liking, sharing, and commenting on posts.

News in tech:

Samsung unveils world’s largest SSD with whopping 30TB of storage

WELS now:

Register for the Lutheran Women’s Missionary Society (LWMS) 2018 Convention happening June 21-24 in Green Bay, WI. Early bird registration savings ends April 1.

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

Learn more about Summer continuing education classes offered at Martin Luther College and get registered!

Community feedback:

Featured video:

Tune in to the latest Together Video Update to learn about WELS Home Missions from Pastor Jared Oldenburg and Nicole Balza.

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 538 – MLC Professor Rachel Feld joins the conversation about training techies to manage your church and school website. Release date: Wednesday, February 28.

Get involved:

536 – Training Techies: Church Management Software

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February, designated as “training techies” month on WELSTech, continues as Martin and Sallie are joined by Peter Frank of Concordia Technology Solutions to discuss church management software. Their picks of the week have a Google theme including timers and calendars, and there’s some great community feedback.

The discussion:

Working with the church database – An important function of the church (and school) office is maintaining information on members and prospects. This is typically done using a database with a special name … Church Management Software (CMS). Most CSM solutions allow for multiple users to enter data, which is both a blessing and a responsibility for those who oversee the CSM. Martin and Sallie share tips for maximizing the effectiveness of the volunteer’s work in the CMS.

The interview:

Peter Frank from Concordia Technology Solutions shares insights on working with volunteers and Church Management Software. Peter heads the team behind two popular CMS tools – Shepherd’s Staff and Church360º Members & Ledger.

News in tech:

WELS now:

Upcoming Men of His Word Conferences

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

Concordia Technology Solutions Resource Center

Community feedback:

Featured video:

New this week from the Concordia Technology Solutions YouTube channel is The Value of Tracking Church Attendance (and How to Do It!).

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 537 – Tune in for tips on equipping members to be church social media ambassadors. Release date: Wednesday, February 21.

Get involved:

535 – Training Techies: Worship Projection

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February is “training” month on WELSTech as Martin and Sallie dedicate each show to discussing ways to train your volunteers for those important tech tasks like worship projection. Kristen Tetteh also joins the show to talk about Faithlife’s Proclaim software. She brought with her a special discount code!

The discussion:

Worship projection – Volunteers are key players when it comes to the work to be done in churches and schools. This week we look at one important “techie” role volunteers play in worship – controlling the worship projection. Martin and Sallie share tips for equipping volunteers to carry out their duties with confidence and without errors.

The interview:

Meeting the unique need – Kristen Tetteh joins Martin and Sallie to share an overview of Faithlife Proclaim Church Presentation Software, including the history of how the software was born to meet the needs of congregations. She gives us a behind the screens look at the software screens and the vast Pro Media library included with Proclaim.

Kristen also shares a special offer for WELSTech listeners. Visit proclaimonline.com/welstech for a three-month free trial of Proclaim with the promo code WELSTECH.

News in tech:

WELS now:

The current Interactive Faith online Bible Study, Isaiah: God confronts and comforts his people, with Pastor Daniel Habben from St. John’s, Antigua wraps up this week, but you can still enjoy the video archive and downloadable study guides.

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

Worship projection media

Community feedback:

  • Shelley Karstens is using Google Hangouts to connect her students with other classrooms, and she’d like to connect with yours! Details on the WELSTech Google Group.

Featured video:

Learn more about Faithlife Proclaim from the large selection of videos on their YouTube channel including this week’s addition to the WELSTech instructional video playlist, How to Use Proclaim Church Presentation Software.

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 536 – Training techies on church and school management software. Release date: Wednesday, February 14.

Get involved:

534 – #trackhopper

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This week on WELSTech, we finish off our month-long focus on professional development by talking to Jason Schmidt about his approach to conferences, advanced degrees and helping others “sharpen” their tech skills.

The discussion:

Formal education – Just back from the Future of Education Technology Conference 2018 in an unknown destination, semi-regular education co-host Jason Schmidt shares his thoughts on certifications and advanced degrees as well as church and school financial support of staff professional development. He also shares his favorite “shiny” tech he observed at the conference – the Sharper Origin, a hand-held CNC machine (video).

News in tech:

WELS now:

  • Interactive Faith online Bible Study – Isaiah: God confronts and comforts his people – Pastor Daniel Habben from St. John’s, Antigua leads the study on Wednesday’s now through February 7 at 6 pm and 8 pm (central).
  • Mark your calendars for WELS Education, Technology, and Leadership Summit – June 25-27, 2019 at Kalahari Resort, Wisconsin Dells, WI – Sign up for information

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

MathCounts – Middle-school Math competition, club and video competition

Community feedback:

Daily video devotions from Peace in North Mankato, MN are reaching 2,000+ subscribers. tune in on Facebook (facebook.com/PeaceDevotions) or at peacedevotions.com.

Featured video:

This week’s WELSTech double feature kicks off with a sample instructional video from our Ministry Resource discussion – MathCounts Mini #77 – More Counting Using Cases.

And, new on the WELSTech Vimeo “Likes” List is WELS Year in Review.

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 535 – The February WELSTech focus on training volunteers kicks off with a discussion of worship projection and an interview with Kristen Tetteh from Proclaim software. Release date: Thursday, February 8.

Get involved:

533 – Skills Sharpening Survey

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Skills Sharpening January continues on WELSTech! We were excited to see great participation in a survey of faculty and staffs from around the country sharing what they are doing for professional development. Tune in to see how you or your organization compares.

The discussion:

The survey says – We asked WELSTech-ers to share their church and school professional development experience and learned a lot in the process!

WELS now:

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

5 Google Tools You Should bE Using on Your Church Website

Community feedback:

Allan Bundt from Good Shepherd Church and School in Wisconsin Rapids is looking for advice on Chromebook management because their school is not accredited and, therefore, doesn’t qualify for Gsuite for Education.

Featured video:

Get creative with Kahoot by using this technique – What is a Blind Kahoot!? – a new addition on the WELSTech Instructional playlist.

 Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 534 – Jason Schmidt shares his perspective on formal skill sharpening – certificates, advanced degrees, etc. Release date: Wednesday, January 24.

Get involved:

532 – Sharpening Your Bible Study

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If there is one skill you want sharp, it’s Bible Study. Today’s technology tools make that easier than ever with online bibles, bible studies, tools, and more. Today’s picks are “google-centric” and there’s a great interview with Pastor Brock Groth, the man behind understandchristianity.com.

The discussion:

Rooted and built up – The topic of “Sharpening Your Skills” naturally leads the Christian to consider ways to grow their knowledge of God’s Word. Martin and Sallie discuss digital Bible features, resources from WELS and Northwestern Publishing House (NPH) for being in the Word, and ways to incorporate Bible study into meetings, journaling and social media.

The interview:

Understand Christianity – Pastor Brock Groth from St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Citrus Heights, CA shares the story behind his website, UnderstandChristianity.com. What started as a book effort is now an informative site, featuring notes from Pastor Groth’s Seminary studies transformed into informative posts on Bible teachings and popular Timelines.

WELS now:

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

Shepherd’s Staff 2018

Community feedback:

Featured video:

Minnesota District President Charles Degner’s sermon on 1 Peter 1:10-12 is a great encouragement study God’s Word, our great heritage! Watch the archived live stream of the MN District Reformation 500 service from the The Chapel of the Christ at Martin Luther College. The sermon begins at the 1:02:00 mark in the video.

 Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 533 – Helping others sharpen their skills can be a challenge. Tune in for a WELSTech discussion on the topic. Release date: Wednesday, January 24.

Get involved: