What an incredible journey this course has been. At the beginning I felt like I was riding a three-wheeled tricycle down the freeway and then at some point, with out even noticing, I realized I was striving for the finish line in a Smart Car. And then it hit me. No, nothing physical, just the realization that there isn’t an actual finish line. New web 2.0 technologies are being developed on a daily bases (perhaps even every hour, minute or nanosecond) and that means that there isn’t an end to this journey in the traditional sense. As I was speeding along in my Smart Car, it occurred to me that I was no longer learning about web 2.0 for my students, I was learning for myself and have come to embrace this learning as a part of my everyday life. Web 2.0, in all of its glory and misery, is here to stay and if you want to be, or remain being, a contributing member of society, it is necessary that you familiarize yourself, not with the future, but what is in the present. Even the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has had to accept that the way people protect themselves is changing. Thus, we too must embrace this change and potentially even begin preparing ourselves for web 3.0, 5.0 and so on.
With that said, the entire field of education also needs to grasp the present and move forward utilizing web 2.0 technologies in order to create capable, contributing and connected 21st century learners. It is upsetting to report that many schools simply don’t have the pertinent technology, educators who are familiar with web 2.0 enough to use these tools in the classroom and/or are restricted in the use of web 2.0 tools due to sites being blocked. As an educator who has taken the personal time to familiarize herself with web 2.0 technology, I now feel a sense of moral responsibly to share my knowledge and skills with other educators and even family and friends. And just to be clear, I fully acknowledge that I am not cruising down this freeway in a Ferrari, but hope to steadily continue this experience by following the web 2.0 gurus in their sports cars, with a few passengers and perhaps even towing a trailer full of other eager learners.
Highlights and Lowlights
My highlights of this course have been, umm, let me think for a minute here…. Everything? Other than using Facebook, YouTube (which I didn’t realize was part of all this web 2.0ness) and the creation of one Glogster poster, I honestly knew nothing about web 2.0 anything. In fact, I couldn’t have even explained what the term meant. Now I dream about it! Beyond a doubt I would have to identify Animoto as my favourite, most useful, easiest to use and ‘gotta sign up to it today’ web 2.0 tool. From the minute I learned about Animoto, I began creating music videos both personally and professionally and I probably won’t stop for some time (even thinking of using their new Christmas card feature!). Delicious, my social networking bookmark, certainly earns the runner-up position, as I save new websites to it every couple of days and often refer to it when I’m not on my home laptop. However, I am disappointed that the site is still boring to look at and I really must dish-up some tasty cupcake photos to the owners in hopes that they’ll add a dollop or too of colour to the site. Honorable mention goes to the many widgets that I took time to ‘play’ with, some of which I added to my blog, but I didn’t specifically write about them. And lastly, in a class all on their own, are the educational Ning sites of which I became a member. With taking this course and working full-time there just weren’t enough hours in the day to really delve into these, but based on the professionally relevant e-mails I periodically receive from Classroom 2.0, EFL Classroom 2.0, Flat Classrooms, and OZ/NZ Educators, I can see that I’m going to be able to connect with other professionals to continue learning about web 2.0. This, folks, is the very core of what web 2.0 technologies are all about!
Along the freeway of learning, there are inevitably a few potholes that are either hit smack on, painstakingly swerved around or, with the support of a few friends, almost avoided altogether. The first major difficulty that I experienced was setting up my blog and if it wasn’t for a technologically savvy friend who pointed out that I was signed up to Blogster.com while most of my classmates were using Blogger.com, I may not have even really begun this course! There are some pretty distinct differences between the two programs and Blogster is certainly designed for experienced bloggers. My next three hours of frustration occurred when I couldn’t seem to figure out how to link or embed my podcast into my blog. Fortunately this was resolved when a fellow classmate (who appeared to be experiencing this predicament on a much larger scale) posted for help on the e-class site and we were all directed toward a plausible solution. Now I must be honest here and admit that I did encounter another pothole in my learning, but this time it wasn’t a manageable pothole – it was massive sink hole! This it totally embarrassing to share, but I’m afraid that if I don’t I may never receive the necessary support to get back on the freeway. You see, I spent a very long time (a whole week in fact) trying to learn to use or at least understand this web 2.0 tool and if it wasn’t for the fact that people often recommend this tool for division one students, I might not feel so dim-witted… but really it is true… I have no idea how VoiceThread works! There I’ve admitted my inadequacy – now I’m hoping that somebody can help me out! But really in the big scheme of things, I think things went pretty smoothly considering the fact that I came into this with little background knowledge. I knew I could do it!
Future Professional Plans
Throughout the course I have been introducing a few web 2.0 tools to my students. They have enjoyed using Glogster and they love to watch YouTube and TeacherTube videos. Animoto has been a class favourite, highlighting class photos and videos. In January, I plan on introducing wikis and blogging into our weekly class routine. I want my students to be engaged 21st century learners who are learning for a purpose with an authentic audience. Web 2.0 technologies utilize the assessment for learning strategies that I use with my students, as they encourage self-assessment and provide a forum for peer feedback. They can also be used as an online portfolio to capture their learning over time. But most importantly, and perhaps more specifically, I refer again to Lorrie Jackson (2005) who writes the following in an Education World post explaining the benefits of having students blog: “Blogs, because of their ease of use, and because of the context of news and editorial column writing, have become a highly effective way to help students to become better writers. Research has long shown that students write more, write in greater detail, and take greater care with spelling, grammar, and punctuation, when they are writing to an authentic audience over the Internet.” Research shows that web 2.0 tools can be used to assist English Language Learners in their quest to learn the English language in an authentic setting (Campbell, 2003). Web 2.0 tools can also be used to encourage greater participation and excitement from all students and in particular shy or reserved students (BBC, 2005). Now all I need to do is teach the necessary skills to be online readers and how to safely use the internet. Fortunately, I’ve recently solved the problem (via a g-mail account) of web 2.0 tools that require the user to be a least 13 years old.
Due to a wide range of abilities and interests, it is going to be challenging to convince my colleagues to openly accept and use web 2.0 tools in their practice. However, I hope that my classroom practices can be used as an illustrative example as to how this can be accomplished in a step-by-step format. I’m also hoping to assist in ironing out some of the technical difficulties, privacy issues and blocked sites, before my colleagues discover them and become frustrated. I’ve volunteered to be a part of the technology portion of our school’s instructional leadership team and have had the opportunity to co-present the very basics of web 2.0 during our professional development day. It is my hope that this session will be the catalyst for some amazing work with our 21st century learners. By remaining up to date on current trends, via blogs and Nings, I anticipate that I’ll have much to share in the future with my colleagues. However, in order to encourage them to merge onto the web 2.0 freeway, I’ll first introduce them to multimedia sharing sites (specifically Animoto, Glogster, and TeacherTube) as these sites are easy to use and students find them engaging. Perhaps by the end of the year, there will be another class or two using blogs and wikis (both personally and professionally) to enhance their literacy skills!
Additional Learning
Along side this impressive blog (ok, I’m biased) I’ve been participating in a number of discussions related to various web 2.0 topics. Here is a brief summary of what I’ve learned from these discussions from my classmates and through research:
- The three Cs - Capable, Connected and Contributing, are concepts at the heart of teaching. By integrating web 2.0 technologies we are allowing our students to make and retain connections and demonstrate that they are capable learners, who can be contributing members of society. Web 2.0 technologies allow for our students to learn in a style that they are familiar with, however, that doesn’t mean that we need to bombard them with every web 2.0 technology available. Teachers need to carefully select and know how to use the web 2.0 technologies that are most relevant and beneficial to their learners, otherwise we are contributing to information overload.
- Research shows that web 2.0 technologies, such as Facebook, Twitter and Flickr, may help to foster community and communication, but they are also adding to information overload and possibly health problems (Schiffman, 2008). It is reported that there is an increase in health problems that include internet addiction, sleep deprivation, obesity, carpal tunnel syndrome, and headaches. This is not an exhaustive list and many of these conditions are impacting teenagers, who seem to be on the computer or phone (texting) 24/7 (Lang, 2009). Research also shows that advertising is another contributing factor to a person’s information overload (Atkinson, 2005). This is a reminder that we need to educate our students about the adverse effect of always being connected and how it is healthier to maintain a balanced lifestyle.
- Based on research and personal experience, blogs, wikis, social bookmarks, and RSS feeds help with information overload by aiding in the consolidating and prioritizing processes. One way to help control the problem via my Google Reader is to constantly review the content that I am receiving and to follow only those people who remain up to date on topics (citymark, 2008). Web 2.0 users should also evaluate websites to determine their usefulness and to avoid using those that are of minimal or no benefit to them.
- In regards to wondering, “what is being done with the information that people use to portray themselves on social networking sites,” the following information was found on the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s website: a) they have received many complaints about social networking sites, “packaging user data into trends and patterns and breaching privacy laws” (Privacy Commissioner, 2009); b) identity theft is becoming more prevalent (Spam Laws, 2007); and, c) social networking sites “represent a dramatic shift in the way people communicate, and their use raises interesting questions about long-held views on what it means to have a private life or a sense of “privacy” (Denham, 2009). Research taught me that the internet should be viewed as a public domain and that users should use it in a professional manor and be aware of privacy settings.
- Blogging to ‘earn’ a grade can stifle creativity. This is partially why our school board is focusing on Assessment for Learning practices (Alberta Assessment Consortium). By providing the students with feedback rather than a grade, they can more readily progress as learners. Although blogging for a course may have restrictions, students (of all ages) will have the opportunity to learn about this web 2.0 tool and may go on use in their personal life. It is essential to note that becoming a complex blogger takes time to develop (Richardson, 2009).
- Regarding the differences between reading online and reading a tangible book. I found that internet readers must be able to handle large volumes of text, evaluate eye-catching graphics/information, comprehend expository text, and learn to collaborate with others. Reading on the internet involves using traditional reading strategies, with an additional strategy that requires the reader to not only make meaning from text but to also locate the information within the internet (Schmar-Dobler, 2003). Additionally, Educators must also be aware that Web-based texts are typically nonlinear, interactive, and inclusive of multiple media forms (Coiro, 2003). When comprehending online text, students need to make decisions regarding the validity of the text, thus this is another skill that must be taught (Coiro, 2003). Not surprisingly, I found research that supports the fundamental premise of web 2.0: “Immediate feedback from peers and opportunities for sharing with real global audiences can promote higher level thinking, communication skills, and deeper understandings of text (Coiro, 2003).”
- Web 2.0 technologies may provide a safe forum for shy/reserved students and/or English Language Learners to feel more comfortable expressing their thoughts and opinions – particularly because small group work and anonymity is possible (Nilsson, 1998).
Before I pull over for a quick pit stop, I just wanted to thank those who’ve assisted me along this never ending journey that has changed my life forever! I encourage you to follow my progress in the months ahead, as I develop my web 2.0 skills as Canadanz!
References
Alberta Assessment Consortium. (N/A). AAC everyday assessment tools for teachers. Retrieved October 28, 2009, from http://www.aac.ab.ca/aboutqa.html
Atkinson, C. (2005, May 3). Information overload makes you dumb. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from http://www.beyondbullets.com/2005/05/information_ove.html
BBC, British Council. (2005, March 6). Blogging for ELT. Retrieved December 4, 2009, from: http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/think/articles/blogging-elt
Campbell, A. (2003, February). Weblogs for use with ESL classes. Internet TSOL Journal 9. Retrieved December 4, 2009, from: http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Campbell-Weblogs.html
Citymark (2008, November 11). Managing social media overload. Retrieved September 28, 2009, from http://markfaul.ca/2008/11/11/managing-social-media-overload/
Coiro, J. (2003, February). Reading comprehension on the Internet: Expanding our understanding of reading comprehension to encompass new literacies [Exploring Literacy on the Internet department]. The Reading Teacher, 56(6). Retrieved November 8, 2009, from: http://www.readingonline.org/electronic/elec_index.asp?HREF=/electronic/rt/2-03_Column/index.html
Denham, E. (2009, July 22). Report of findings into the complaint filed by the Canadian internet policy and public interest clinic (CIPPIC)against Facebook Inc. Under the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act. Retrieved October 10, 2009, from http://www.priv.gc.ca/cf-dc/2009/2009_008_0716_e.cfm
Jackson, L. (2005). Blogging? It’s elementary my dear Watson! Retrieved December 4, 2009, from: http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech217.shtml
Lang, M. (2009, August 13). Too much texting can be harmful to teens. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090813/FEATURES/908130312/-1/PARENTING
Lang, M. (2009, September 7). Too much texting for many teens, messaging a 24/7 activity. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from http://www.allbusiness.com/medicine-health/diseases-disorders-neurological-sleep/12864554-1.html
Nilsson, B. (1998). Some students consider how we might help students talk. Retrieved November 26, 2009, from: http://www.jstor.org/pss/40172957
Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (2009, October 1). What does a friend of a friend of a friend need to know about you? Retrieved October 8, 2009, from http://blog.privcom.gc.ca/index.php/privacy-on-social-networks/
Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Second Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Schiffman, B. (2008, April 21). Web 2.0 Expo preview: Torture by information overload. Retrieved September 28, 2009, from http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2008/04/web-20-expo-pre/
Schmar-Dobler, E. (2003, September). Reading on the Internet: The link between literacy and technology. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 47(1). Retrieved November 8, 2009, from: http://www.readingonline.org/newliteracies/lit_index.asp?HREF=/newliteracies/jaal/9-03_column/
Spam Laws (2007, November 21). Identity theft in Canada. Retrieved October 11, 2009, from http://www.spamlaws.com/id-theft-can.html
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