Moving Forward

A booming success are the comments we here. Sessions were varied, presenters prepared and new ideas were shared. The 13th annual technology conference, held Dec. 6-7 had over 300 participants registered with 51 presenters. On Thursday night, principals were invited to a reception to learn about the technologies offered at the exhibit hall. Dr. Terri Evans won another Smart Board, making this the second year in a row in name was drawn. There was envy in the crowd when her number was called and she quietly went to the front of the room. If you missed the conference this year, come next year for move learning as we move deeper into the 21st century and the digital world our students live in daily. Be part of the changing tides and move into new methods or teaching and learning using wonderful new tools.

Have you been to Meoshpere? Here you can make lists for almost everything. Lists for things you’ve done, things you want to do, things you’d never do and more. Here’s the top 1oo lists.

Take a look at my US cities I have visited.
Here’s a list of books Dragonriders of Pern Books You’ve Read

Have you thought about where we will be going with the collaborative look and feel of the web, commonly known as Web 2.0?

Web 2.0 is considered by many to be a new era of Internet use, an improved version. One where social networking, wikis, podcasts, RSS feeds, weblogs, and collaborative data drive what’s happening on the web.

Have you created a blog? or a moblog? Have you used Wikipedia for information or added to the collective knowledge? Have you visited craigslist or eBay? Have you tried working with a group at wikispaces? Or how about Skye and internet phone conferences. There’s lots out there to make communicating across the world more fun. Give some new tools a try but before you do try looking at the video at YouTube about Web 2.0

In the April 2007 issue of Technology and Learning, Jeff Utecht talked about blogs and why educators aren’t using this tool as a way to enhance learning, thinking and conversation. You can find the article at techlearning.com
Jeff discusses how blogs should be used as a continuing conversation with students from your own classroom and beyond. This perspective can capture the attention of your students. With a little guidance on how to post to a blog geared for educational topics, kids can show off what they think, ask questions to clarify their understanding, and perhaps gain a global perspective on the issue within the conversation.

As educators we should be latching onto the tools of today to harness the abilities known and unknown to our students. We must meet them where they are in the world of today. That world includes blogging, instant messaging, cell phones, social networking and Second Life. Every chance I get I introduce the idea of blogging to teachers but many are just not there yet. I don’t post enough myself but we must get in and get going. We must realign how we work with students so they are motivated and intrigued. Today’s students want more than a lecture. They need multiple ways to get at what we are trying to teach. It is up to us to learn new things and work in new ways with them. A blog can open the doors to learning if used as a place for commenting, discussion and conversation about specific issues and topics. Give it a try. The kids will respond.

Posted by Linda at 2:08 PM 0 comments

Monday, February 26, 2007

More about Web 2.0

In the world of education and social networking Web 2.0 tools are powerful assests. I discovered an article that address some of the ups and downs of where Web 2.0 is headed. Take a gander at what Michael Rogers has to say in Can Web 2.0 Change the World?

And from Wired News reporter Ryan Sigel learn more about the buzz of people and Web 2.0 in his article, Are You Ready for Web 2.0?

Still not sure about this new buzz? Then take a look at Tim O’Reilly’s, the one who coined the term, Web 2.0:Compact Definition?

Being that I am an educator I’m interested in where this will go in K-16 classrooms. How, what and when will these tools impact teachers in k-12, university professors,and school district administrators? Don’t we in the digital immigrant world need to be considering the ways in which we will use these tools to reach the students who are digital natives? Think how we can bring cultures and learning together. Here are two teachers thinking on the cutting edge in Flat Classrooms These teachers are using Wikispaces, blogs and Skype to move learning to a new level. Too bad these tools are blocked for many school districts.

What fun we had this morning experimenting with the Airliner and wirelessly connecting to the SMART board. Smart technologies also has software that connects to a variety of curriculum areas. Teachers can find lessons to make interaction teaching easy and fun.

What’s hot in technology and gaming could be the next best thing for learning too. Video games can be powerful tools for learning if the content speaks to traditional subjects in fun ways. World of Warcraft is one such video game that is referenced by John K. Waters in T.H.E. Journal, October 2007 issue. Online role playing games provide a virtual world for players to learn and explore places and times never available before. These role playing games, known as MMORPGs, could help Asian students learn English if the games were house on English as a Second Language servers and sold as tools for learning as they play. Just think of it. Playing a great game while learning to speak better English. What a concept. As educators, we know children learn best while playing. Why not bring this into our classrooms? Why not push for games for education that have these realistic graphics? Why not learn about history and science while playing in the imaginative design of games?

Have you seen the Web 2.0 clip from YouTube? It touches the elements of the future of learning and how the digital generation learns and questions how society may or may not react. If you’ve seen it, try revisiting. If not it may help educators move toward rethinking what and how they can attack instruction for the generation in their classrooms.

In the April 2007 issue of Technology and Learning, Jeff Utecht talked about blogs and why educators aren’t using this tool as a way to enhance learning, thinking and conversation. You can find the article at techlearning.com
Jeff discusses how blogs should be used as a continuing conversation with students from your own classroom and beyond. This perspective can capture the attention of your students. With a little guidance on how to post to a blog geared for educational topics, kids can show off what they think, ask questions to clarify their understanding, and perhaps gain a global perspective on the issue within the conversation.

As educators we should be latching onto the tools of today to harness the abilities known and unknown to our students. We must meet them where they are in the world of today. That world includes blogging, instant messaging, cell phones, social networking and Second Life. Every chance I get I introduce the idea of blogging to teachers but many are just not there yet. I don’t post enough myself but we must get in and get going. We must realign how we work with students so they are motivated and intrigued. Today’s students want more than a lecture. They need multiple ways to get at what we are trying to teach. It is up to us to learn new things and work in new ways with them. A blog can open the doors to learning if used as a place for commenting, discussion and conversation about specific issues and topics. Give it a try. The kids will respond.

So you graduate from high school and then what. Some go to a four year college, others go to work and still others go to a community college or trade school. Does that mean the learning ends? We learn all the time. We learn either formally in a classroom somewhere or informally over dinner and drinks or in a chat room online. Learning comes in many forms from many places.

New employees learn how to do pieces and parts of their new job in training. So learning continues to be part of one’s life long after formal schooling. What will school look like in the future? How will new technologies impact the art of teaching? How will students use technologies in formalized learning? How will assessments need to change for future? All these questions and more stand in front of education today. Will educators be ready?

Learning can be challenging, exciting, fruitful, enjoyable. It can also be frustrating and difficult. The adventure of learning brings fresh ideas, rigor of content and encourages the imagination. Learn, live and laugh as your journey continues down the path of learning.

In the world of education and social networking Web 2.0 tools are powerful assests. I discovered an article that address some of the ups and downs of where Web 2.0 is headed. Take a gander at what Michael Rogers has to say in Can Web 2.0 Change the World?

And from Wired News reporter Ryan Sigel learn more about the buzz of people and Web 2.0 in his article, Are You Ready for Web 2.0?

Still not sure about this new buzz? Then take a look at Tim O’Reilly’s, the one who coined the term, Web 2.0:Compact Definition?

Being that I am an educator I’m interested in where this will go in K-16 classrooms. How, what and when will these tools impact teachers in k-12, university professors,and school district administrators? Don’t we in the digital immigrant world need to be considering the ways in which we will use these tools to reach the students who are digital natives? Think how we can bring cultures and learning together. Here are two teachers thinking on the cutting edge in Flat Classrooms These teachers are using Wikispaces, blogs and Skype to move learning to a new level. Too bad these tools are blocked for many school districts.