My father in law recently passed away and while discussing funeral arrangements, the funeral director asked if we would like to create an online obituary and blog. My first thought was shock - why would this be an option? He explained that the obituary would be online and that visitors, especially those from out of town, could share a story or simply write a message of condolence for the family. My mother in law had no idea what a blog was, but my 18 year old son leapt on the idea. His suggestion was to combine the family photos, and the blog as well as the comments in the funeral guest book - and blurb, a site that allows you to create your own photo book - and create a memory book for his grandmother. He knows she's not computer literate and would never look at a blog, but would appreciate a book of family photos for the coffee table.
My point here is that people are using blogs in some amazing ways. The people at the funeral home got the idea from one of their younger employees. Also, if we teach our students how to use the basic technology in class, either the DE or the face to face classroom, they can use that as a jumping off point - and share knowledge and information in ways that we might not previously have thought about. These two young people took a basic knowledge of web 2.0 technology and came up with the idea of a personalized photo and memory book that can be created at the funeral home, or by any family member with internet access.. even if those wishing to contribute are spread across the world. . What a wonderful idea... ...and great proof that if we teach our young students about the available technology - they will take the sharing of knowledge and information further...
As a military wife, I have attended the funerals of many of our soldiers over the last 20 years.... What a wonderful way to share those memories with the extended family who are often geographically separated not only from the service member, but from the spouse, the grandchildren and the friends that the service member spent so much time with. Thankfully, we have educated teens to share their ideas to promote the common good.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Blogs and wikis for the classroom....
I keep hearing the buzz amongst teachers about blogs and wikis. Some love them, many don't know what they are and most are adamant that it's just something else they're supposed to learn about but don't have the time. I'll use this post to explain what they are - and hopefully, how they could potentially be used in the K-12 environment.
A Blog - short for weblog - is very basically an interactive journal stored on the internet. It is accessible by anyone who has the link, or who can search for it.. The writer posts a new note often (or not) and these are archived. The author can upload videos, pictures and even multi-media presentations in addition to text. People reading the blog can comment on it, and everyone can read the comments. Readers can also search for specific topics. The writer of the blog can "moderate" the blog, which means that any comments go first to the writer for approval. The writer can also allow any comments to be made with no moderation.
Wiki- most of us are familiar with the term "wikipedia" - this is an encylopedia that is created and edited by anyone who wishes to add to it. The term "wiki" is simply an interactive website where those who are designated as "editors" have the right to add to or change the content. The wiki creator has the ability to decide who can join - it can be everyone, or it can be a limited few. The editor can also decide who can view the wiki and who cannot. It is possible to allow a few people to be editors, and yet still have the site be available to the general public.
So -why the buzz in education? After all, our students already write journals and essays in school. How does writing them online actually improve education? I just read an interesting book called "Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other powerful webtools for classroom" by Will Richardson. I read the 2nd Edition copyright 2009) on my kindle, but there is a more recent version available from Amazon.
Richardson discusses a wide variety of possibilities for use of the blog and the wiki. Of course, our students are often asked to keep "reflective" journals in today's classrooms. As a teacher, I wondered how a blog can be an improvement on the old fashioned paper journal. I can see the initial advantages... Students enjoy computers and writing on the computer is more fun ... Students love spell check - and as a teacher, I'd rather read a typed paper than a handwritten one... I spend a lot of time grading... and reading handwriting in a world where neat handwriting is not highly prized, takes time and patience. I also have to admit that the idea of logging on to evaluate a blog seems so much easier than lugging home all of those papers. I always had my students write their reflective journals in a composition book - so that they could see their own improvement over the year.... but grading was time consuming - and with an average of 130 students, too much to take home to grade. But, are there any other advantages? According to Richardson, a blog should not simply be a digitized version of the written journal if the students are to gain the most benefit from the conversation that can be created with the readers of the blog. Why use a blog? Students of the 21st century will be exposed to all sorts of technology outside the school - so why not teach them the rules of appropriate use in school?
When a student writes a journal in the classroom - it will probably only be read by the teacher... Richardson (2009) points out hat when a student writes on line, the possibility for interaction with other students in class, and in other classrooms across town and even across the world, exists. When students interact with other students, they are engaged and enjoy their work. A classroom of students in a school in England could read a book at the same time and share their opinions easily with an American class. Imagine reading about the American Revolution and sharing that with a group of students from the UK via a blog.... Students can also share work with their parents at home - and even get parental comments on the work completed. What if students wrote a class blog about a book and the author made comments on their interpretation? As Richardson points out, the possibilities are endless.
Blogs are also useful for teachers.... A class blog can keep the parents (and administrators) up to date with what is going on the classroom and allow for interaction. Suddenly, asking for volunteers for field trips becomes a little easier. Richardson also suggests that a teacher can start with a class blog - where the posts are teacher written, but comments made by each of the students. This also opens the possibility for students to comment on other student's writing/opinions without having each student create their own blog.
Disadvantages: Many school districts are beginning to embrace the use of web 2.0 technology but if you are the first in your school, you may have to fight through some administrative red tape. Richardson points out that the most important thing is to ensure that you have parental and administrative permission and to ensure that your students are taught the basics of web safety before you even get started.
Wikis: These can be set up by the teacher and allow the students to work in groups.... Designated editors can be the group members. They can easily add to the content and discuss their work - and of course, all edits can be viewed, making it much easier to see who added what.... A huge improvement on traditional group work in the classroom. This type of work also makes it easier to use a smaller number of computers in the classroom.
Wikis for teachers: This is a great way to plan lessons communally. Teachers rarely have planning time together and allowing everyone on the team to add asynchronously will make planning easier. It also allows the ESL teacher and Special Ed teacher to assist with specific modifications... and best of all, the lesson plan is stored and can be added to each year...or downloaded by the principal in an emergency for use by a sub.
This post has just barely touched the surface of how to use blogs and wikis in the classroom. I would recommend reading Richardson's book - it's packed with great ideas... and workable ideas from a real teacher...
So - how does this all transfer to the online classroom? Or does it?
Whether you are teaching online or in the physical classroom - student interaction and engagement is vital to learning. Creating an online sense of community is important for students. (Collison et al. 2000 p.2) point out that the ability to reflect at the students convenience encourages more thoughtful interaction.) Working together on a project as a group using a wiki should encourage the same interaction. A blog allows the DE student to reflect on what has been studied in the class, and to connect it to his or her own life and background. The constructivist theory of education (Piaget, Bruner and Vygotsky) and the socialist constructivist theories encourage the sharing and discussion of information to enable/encourage learning. both wikis and blogs have a relevant place in the classrooms of today.
References:
Collison, George et. al., Facilitating Online Learning: Effective Strategies for Moderators. Atwood Publishing, 2000.
Richardson, Will., Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other Powerful Webtools for Classrooms, 2nd Ed. Corwin Press, 2009
A Blog - short for weblog - is very basically an interactive journal stored on the internet. It is accessible by anyone who has the link, or who can search for it.. The writer posts a new note often (or not) and these are archived. The author can upload videos, pictures and even multi-media presentations in addition to text. People reading the blog can comment on it, and everyone can read the comments. Readers can also search for specific topics. The writer of the blog can "moderate" the blog, which means that any comments go first to the writer for approval. The writer can also allow any comments to be made with no moderation.
Wiki- most of us are familiar with the term "wikipedia" - this is an encylopedia that is created and edited by anyone who wishes to add to it. The term "wiki" is simply an interactive website where those who are designated as "editors" have the right to add to or change the content. The wiki creator has the ability to decide who can join - it can be everyone, or it can be a limited few. The editor can also decide who can view the wiki and who cannot. It is possible to allow a few people to be editors, and yet still have the site be available to the general public.
So -why the buzz in education? After all, our students already write journals and essays in school. How does writing them online actually improve education? I just read an interesting book called "Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other powerful webtools for classroom" by Will Richardson. I read the 2nd Edition copyright 2009) on my kindle, but there is a more recent version available from Amazon.
Richardson discusses a wide variety of possibilities for use of the blog and the wiki. Of course, our students are often asked to keep "reflective" journals in today's classrooms. As a teacher, I wondered how a blog can be an improvement on the old fashioned paper journal. I can see the initial advantages... Students enjoy computers and writing on the computer is more fun ... Students love spell check - and as a teacher, I'd rather read a typed paper than a handwritten one... I spend a lot of time grading... and reading handwriting in a world where neat handwriting is not highly prized, takes time and patience. I also have to admit that the idea of logging on to evaluate a blog seems so much easier than lugging home all of those papers. I always had my students write their reflective journals in a composition book - so that they could see their own improvement over the year.... but grading was time consuming - and with an average of 130 students, too much to take home to grade. But, are there any other advantages? According to Richardson, a blog should not simply be a digitized version of the written journal if the students are to gain the most benefit from the conversation that can be created with the readers of the blog. Why use a blog? Students of the 21st century will be exposed to all sorts of technology outside the school - so why not teach them the rules of appropriate use in school?
When a student writes a journal in the classroom - it will probably only be read by the teacher... Richardson (2009) points out hat when a student writes on line, the possibility for interaction with other students in class, and in other classrooms across town and even across the world, exists. When students interact with other students, they are engaged and enjoy their work. A classroom of students in a school in England could read a book at the same time and share their opinions easily with an American class. Imagine reading about the American Revolution and sharing that with a group of students from the UK via a blog.... Students can also share work with their parents at home - and even get parental comments on the work completed. What if students wrote a class blog about a book and the author made comments on their interpretation? As Richardson points out, the possibilities are endless.
Blogs are also useful for teachers.... A class blog can keep the parents (and administrators) up to date with what is going on the classroom and allow for interaction. Suddenly, asking for volunteers for field trips becomes a little easier. Richardson also suggests that a teacher can start with a class blog - where the posts are teacher written, but comments made by each of the students. This also opens the possibility for students to comment on other student's writing/opinions without having each student create their own blog.
Disadvantages: Many school districts are beginning to embrace the use of web 2.0 technology but if you are the first in your school, you may have to fight through some administrative red tape. Richardson points out that the most important thing is to ensure that you have parental and administrative permission and to ensure that your students are taught the basics of web safety before you even get started.
Wikis: These can be set up by the teacher and allow the students to work in groups.... Designated editors can be the group members. They can easily add to the content and discuss their work - and of course, all edits can be viewed, making it much easier to see who added what.... A huge improvement on traditional group work in the classroom. This type of work also makes it easier to use a smaller number of computers in the classroom.
Wikis for teachers: This is a great way to plan lessons communally. Teachers rarely have planning time together and allowing everyone on the team to add asynchronously will make planning easier. It also allows the ESL teacher and Special Ed teacher to assist with specific modifications... and best of all, the lesson plan is stored and can be added to each year...or downloaded by the principal in an emergency for use by a sub.
This post has just barely touched the surface of how to use blogs and wikis in the classroom. I would recommend reading Richardson's book - it's packed with great ideas... and workable ideas from a real teacher...
So - how does this all transfer to the online classroom? Or does it?
Whether you are teaching online or in the physical classroom - student interaction and engagement is vital to learning. Creating an online sense of community is important for students. (Collison et al. 2000 p.2) point out that the ability to reflect at the students convenience encourages more thoughtful interaction.) Working together on a project as a group using a wiki should encourage the same interaction. A blog allows the DE student to reflect on what has been studied in the class, and to connect it to his or her own life and background. The constructivist theory of education (Piaget, Bruner and Vygotsky) and the socialist constructivist theories encourage the sharing and discussion of information to enable/encourage learning. both wikis and blogs have a relevant place in the classrooms of today.
References:
Collison, George et. al., Facilitating Online Learning: Effective Strategies for Moderators. Atwood Publishing, 2000.
Richardson, Will., Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other Powerful Webtools for Classrooms, 2nd Ed. Corwin Press, 2009
Monday, October 11, 2010
Web 2.0 --- What is it anyway?
Way back in the 90's when the web was in it's infancy - those who knew html (hypertext markup language) were able to create web pages to share information with the world. The information was static.. it was there, but couldn't be changed by anyone but the web master. There was no way to interact with the information, or with others who read the information.
The introduction of Web 2.0 changed all that. So - what is web 2.0 exactly?
According to Wikipedia, the term was coined by Tim O'Reilly, as a way of differentiating between the initial static web pages and the new potentially interactive sites that were appearing in the first part of this decade.
Web 2.0 is the term generally used to describe the up to date web applications that allow us to interact with the information on the web, with the author and with each other. Today, there are very few websites that don't have some sort of space for interaction... a place to leave a comment about the topic, or a response to another reader's topic. A review of the product - or even a complaint. This technological step has taken the initial sharing of information to a whole new level. No longer do we just read the info - we have the opportunity to write our own websites, blogs, create videos and post them to you tube. We can create our own podcasts.. or we can comment on the work of others. We can create wikis to share info with others - with Wikipedia being the most famous of those.. but certainly not the only one. There are myriad pros and cons to this mass of interactivity and it although it is easy to be jump in and start sharing of info, I can also see some pitfalls and traps that should make us wary... as educators and as parents and even as school adminstrators.
Businesses have hopped onto the bandwagon -making sure that they are talking with their customers to improve customer service, product design and ultimately sales.
Sites such as Myspace and Facebook have embraced this technology to allow us to link with everyone we know, and many people that we don't - We have made connections across town and across the world...and in doing so have seen much information being made public that perhaps ought to have remained private...
So- as an educator - the question begs to be asked... Can this amazing interactivity improve teaching? If so, how? If not, why not? What are the reasons for embracing the interactive web? What should I avoid and why? Do parent's have concerns and fears - and can I as the teacher allay those fears? Is it worth it for an increased, heightened educational experience for their students? Or is this just a cool way of doing exactly the same thing that I'm doing now? What concerns do principals have about this technology and its use in the classroom? According to our readings this week, we should be "creating learning opportunities for our students" (Bates & Poole 2003). Is the use of blogs, wikis, web site creation and commenting etc really an improved learning opportunity for all of our students? Or is it just a way to get our students excited about coming to class without any additional learning...?
What are our students doing on their own time? Are they using the web 2.0 applications? Is our goal simply improved reading, writing and comprehension skills? Or is our goal also to teach them to use the technologies that will very obviously be a part of the 21st century?
I have always believed that if true learning is taking place in the classroom, the exam scores will take care of themselves.... Over the next week or two, I'll look at the different types of web 2.0 applications and how they can be used in the classroom to improve student learning. I'll try to examine how they can help the student, how they can help the teacher become a better teacher... and how administrators can support the teacher/parent and student. I'll also try and be honest about the fact that something may be not be appropriate for the K-12 classroom in it's present form.
Bibliography
Bates, A.W. and Gary Poole. Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education. CA, Jossey Bass. 2003. p41.
The introduction of Web 2.0 changed all that. So - what is web 2.0 exactly?
According to Wikipedia, the term was coined by Tim O'Reilly, as a way of differentiating between the initial static web pages and the new potentially interactive sites that were appearing in the first part of this decade.
Web 2.0 is the term generally used to describe the up to date web applications that allow us to interact with the information on the web, with the author and with each other. Today, there are very few websites that don't have some sort of space for interaction... a place to leave a comment about the topic, or a response to another reader's topic. A review of the product - or even a complaint. This technological step has taken the initial sharing of information to a whole new level. No longer do we just read the info - we have the opportunity to write our own websites, blogs, create videos and post them to you tube. We can create our own podcasts.. or we can comment on the work of others. We can create wikis to share info with others - with Wikipedia being the most famous of those.. but certainly not the only one. There are myriad pros and cons to this mass of interactivity and it although it is easy to be jump in and start sharing of info, I can also see some pitfalls and traps that should make us wary... as educators and as parents and even as school adminstrators.
Businesses have hopped onto the bandwagon -making sure that they are talking with their customers to improve customer service, product design and ultimately sales.
Sites such as Myspace and Facebook have embraced this technology to allow us to link with everyone we know, and many people that we don't - We have made connections across town and across the world...and in doing so have seen much information being made public that perhaps ought to have remained private...
So- as an educator - the question begs to be asked... Can this amazing interactivity improve teaching? If so, how? If not, why not? What are the reasons for embracing the interactive web? What should I avoid and why? Do parent's have concerns and fears - and can I as the teacher allay those fears? Is it worth it for an increased, heightened educational experience for their students? Or is this just a cool way of doing exactly the same thing that I'm doing now? What concerns do principals have about this technology and its use in the classroom? According to our readings this week, we should be "creating learning opportunities for our students" (Bates & Poole 2003). Is the use of blogs, wikis, web site creation and commenting etc really an improved learning opportunity for all of our students? Or is it just a way to get our students excited about coming to class without any additional learning...?
What are our students doing on their own time? Are they using the web 2.0 applications? Is our goal simply improved reading, writing and comprehension skills? Or is our goal also to teach them to use the technologies that will very obviously be a part of the 21st century?
I have always believed that if true learning is taking place in the classroom, the exam scores will take care of themselves.... Over the next week or two, I'll look at the different types of web 2.0 applications and how they can be used in the classroom to improve student learning. I'll try to examine how they can help the student, how they can help the teacher become a better teacher... and how administrators can support the teacher/parent and student. I'll also try and be honest about the fact that something may be not be appropriate for the K-12 classroom in it's present form.
Bibliography
Bates, A.W. and Gary Poole. Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education. CA, Jossey Bass. 2003. p41.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Reading around the topic!
One of the most important things to do when learning is to read, read, read.... And that's what I'm up to this week. Although Web 2.0 is relatively new, there is already a lot of research and writing out there....So this week, as I read, I'll add a brief synopsis of the main point of each article/book and my thoughts. I'll also use this to keep a list of useful words...There's a lot of new ones that I've never come across......
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