Thing #11

Having established my Google Reader account, it was time to find more subscriptions.  Fortunately a few sites have taken it upon themselves to help we humble RSS users navigate the vast sea of the internet to find what we’re looking for.  First, Google Reader has a search function built into its RSS program, or offers several pre-made bundles for people who are interested in getting into a topic for the first time.  Alternatively, Google offers a website for searching blogs (google.com/blogsearch) which allows users to search by keyword.  A major advantage of this site is that it allows advanced searching in which you may exclude certain terms or limit to specific words.  However, the crowning jewel of this search engine is that the user can sort by creative usage rights, limiting results to free to use and share, to use, share and modify, and whether the results can be used commercially, which can be a major advantage for students and artists alike.

Technorati, another website which allows users to search for blogs and posts takes a slightly different approach.  Here users can begin searching from subject areas as opposed to bundles or keywords, which is a useful tool for those who are looking to find new topics or do not know what keywords to use to find what they need or are looking for information from a general field without specific guidelines. One can also search by keyword.  However this is not as efficient as Google and does not have nearly as many options for sorting the results.  The major advantage that Technorati offers over Google is that results are not only sorted by relevance to the keywords or in the subject but, by “authority” which is mostly a ranking of popularity of blogs and posts either by content area or several subjects.

Finally, Topix takes a different approach, offering local information in place of general blogs searches.  This is not as useful to someone looking to begin a search for specialized knowledge but, can be immensely useful for keeping a community connected with local events.

In terms of ease-of-use, Technorati is by far the best engine for me.  I do not have as much use for local news though, I can see the appeal, and the rating system makes it superior to Google’s immense database and sorting system.  Additionally the ability to start with a subject area which has top-rated blogs and posts readily available is more appealing to me than starting from scratch.

Thing #12

Google has come a long way since I first started using the internet.  What was a popular search engine supported by ads has become a dominant multi-media player supported by ads in Web 2.0-world.

            One of my favorite tools is Google Translate.  This is in part because I often find myself at a loss for what a word left in its original language means on a website or need to find some clever way to make fun of someone without their knowing. Though, perhaps the crowning achievement of this technology is that it allows for the translation of entire websites, creating a more universally-friendly webspace.

            For my second tool examined for this “thing” I looked into the Google Calendar system. I was a little disappointed in this system given the point-and-click style of other Google system.  Though, it is worth noting that this may be because it took me more than ten seconds to figure out what I was doing wrong when I entered the date range for an event (putting in the correct month helps, for those who may be struggling here as I was). For my money, I think I will always prefer a good paper calendar or personal planner but, can see the appeal of the Google Calendar for spreading a schedule of events to a large number of people such as letting students and parents know the itinerary for a field trip, or keeping the class aware of when assignments are due.

            My Google Calendar , for anyone interested in my class schedule for the next few weeks.

Thing #10

The RSS format is an incredibly useful play off of e-mail notifications/subscriptions.  It allows people to stay current with their favorite sites without having to go to each one individually to find out if anything new has been posted, saving valuable time.  I personally like that it organizes the websites and updates you to the number of new posts available at each site.  Additionally, the layout of the Google Reader makes it exceptionally easy to add subscriptions and search out new feeds to follow.

In my personal life, this has the potential to be useful, as it make connecting to my favorite humor or recipe sites much easier.  Professionally, this has the potential to keep educators connected to websites dedicated to education (such as Education Week and Ed.gov) and bloggers such as the Cool Cat Teacher.

In the classroom, this seems to be pretty limited.  I can see some uses in classrooms which are either entirely online or run alongside the internet to save time/resources as a way to keep students informed of assignments as they become available or to post lectures as they’re created.  For students, this could be useful to begin keeping track of professional websites/blogs. 

Thing #9

The following images (from ImageChef.com/ic/Word_Mosaic) took about five minutes to create and post (and that long only because I had to register with the site to save images).  Creating the images involved selecting a shape to form the words into, selecting a text and background color, font and hitting the generate button which produced the pictures you see before you. 

The simplistic layout makes it an quick-and-easy extra piece of art for powerpoint presentations or blogging, though its uses in the classroom are rather limited.

Thing #8

It is simply amazing the creativity some people will show based around other people’s inventions.  Most notably, people seem to love coming up with new ways to navigate websites, about ten thousand of can be accessed with two clicks through the Flickr App Garden (which is a simply wonderful term).

The Spell with Flickr app is probably the most fun to play with, given its ease of use (and one of the few I can think of a regular use for in the classroom, see post on Thing #7). Students could use it to title projects in fun ways, or to make interesting name tags in introductory activities.

                      

Thing #7

The revolution that is Flickr is useful in a number of ways.  The use of tags to sort large number of pictures into categories has probably done more for people looking to add a little color to their blogs in relevant ways.  I greatly enjoyed entering various words and seeing what picture people have uploaded with that tag, and the amazing shots that were available to view.

Unfortunately, I cannot think of a way to integrate this technology into regular classroom use.  It may occasionally be used to spice up a powerpoint presentation or to grab students’ attention during a particularly difficult lecture but, Flickr does not appear to have much inherent educational value. However that does not exclude it as a useful resource.  Many students today are glued to their cameras (be they actual cameras or attached to a phone) and upload pictures on a regular basis.  For a class in which this is a project, Flickr could be invaluable, or make possible papers in which students need to find images about specific subjects.

Picture Courtesy of user freefotouk (Ian Britton) under Creative Commons Licensing and may be found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/freefoto/8675232160/

Thing #6

The tool I chose to explore for this post is called Learn Boost. This is an amazingly simple to use tool which allows teachers to track grades, attendance, etc. and share these with students and parents.  This works by creating individualized codes which can be printed and sent home or e-mailed to ensure security so that students and parents can only see their own information. 

The gradebook is simple and allows for customization to fit within your personal grading scale.  One of the best things about this tool is that it not only allows you to set your own scale (defining what range of scores constitute which letter grade) but that it allows you to weight categories of grades (e.g. quizzes, tests, homework) and does the calculation on the grades for you.  The attendance reporting is another fun aspect of this tool.  It allows teachers to create a seating chart, and from there mark students as being absent or tardy (students are listed as present by default). 

Finally, the site also allows teachers to create their own lesson plans and to save them in a portfolio for future reference, and claims to be working on a tool to allow teachers to search for lesson plans created by others. 

Any of these things by themselves would be an amazing advancement for a classroom.  Together, they may be a perfect tool for not only keeping track of students but, for letting students and parents keep track of what goes on in the classroom.

Thing #5

I believe that Web 2.0 is a misleading term but, one we are stuck with.  I think that a better term would be Community 2.0.  To me, the word Web conveys a space for information, for knowledge but, not necessarily creativity and community (even if those were some of the intentions of Mr. Berners-Lee when he came up with the World Wide Web) where ‘community’ embraces everything that Web 2.0 has come to represent.  Web 1.0 was a collection of simplistic sites full of information and ideas, where Web 2.0 brought things to life with a variety of coding and presentation options, giving rise to creativity and the ability to share ideas in ways that capture and inspire others’ imaginations.

Extending this idea to teaching, it is awe-inspiring how many options we have to convey information to our students. In 50 Web 2.0 Tools Every Teacher Should Know About a slideshow by Jane Hart lists a stock of amazing resources which cover almost every way to convey information to people via the Internet that can be imagined.  And not only do teacher have friends in this list but, there are resources to make learning easy on the students too.  I wrote previously on how blogs could be created by students to instill a sense of community.  In this list I came across Kidblog, a site designed to help get students started blogging in a safe way.  Additionally, tools like Google Scholar provide a simple way to connect students with legitimate sources to help prepare them for writing papers as professionals.

All of the tools here are great, and amazing extensions of the learning process but, do not say much about the state of “School 2.0.” Since the foundation of public schools, the way we do things has constantly been in a state of change.  This is not a bad thing but, I fear that it may be causing us to lose perspective when lost in the great landscape of Web 2.0.  A great number of people post opinions that school will soon become entirely based in the Web, learning “from the cloud.” However, this is a dangerous idea in my opinion because I can only see it going in one of two directions.

First, and scariest, is that learning will become a free-form, unguided excursion into the internet.  This is not to say that I fear students having curiosity and initiative (indeed the world would be a better place if our schools could do more to nurture those feelings).  Instead, I fear that students (without a grounded knowledge in fact and research) will be led astray and learn things which are simply wrong (which is a frighteningly real possibility in a world where the internet allows anyone to post any thought, however true or false, that they wish).

The second option, which may be worse, is that learning will become a stream-lined process.  This may sound like a good thing, standardizing education across the board and giving everyone the same opportunities but, at what cost?  It is well-known that students need different things but, how will the internet know that?  Education is enough of a challenge for educators to tailor to individuals, let alone computers.  And worse, this education would corrupt the very nature of Web 2.0.  The “new” Internet is based on creativity and ideas.  To give students such pre-packaged learning is to say that education (and indeed knowledge) is only a bland set of principles to be memorized and forgotten between cute pictures of cats and comments on blogs.

Instead, we need a middle ground.  We need our classrooms, with teachers who guide knowledge and introduce tools and concepts.  School 2.0 needs to be a program that yes, encourages students to explore and learn on their own and in their own ways but, also provides an anchor, a base to question the knowledge and provide truth which can be difficult to discern against the landscape of opinion.

Thing #4

Before doing this “thing” I never really thought much about commenting.  Most of my experience with comments has been seeing the small bits of text that people post on YouTube videos which usually fall into three categories.  First are the comments expressing simple amusement or displeasure with the video watched.  Second are the comments which provide some amusing comment which reference the video and express an opinion which is generally appreciated by other viewers.  Finally are the comments which are blindly hateful.  These commenters are usually looking for a reaction (trolling) without care for other peoples’ feelings.  (For a great summary of how bad these comments can be and a good laugh, see YouTube user “McGroiter”s series of videos entitled Celebrity Hate Mail. WARNING: CONTAINS MATURE LANGUAGE AND SHOULD NOT BE SHARED WITH STUDENTS)

I mention these comments because they are the opposite of the community that comments can be.  Instead of encouraging conversation or creativity, these comments go nowhere except to encourage argument (reminding me most strongly of “Darth Commenter”). This ties in with the other part of the reading that stood out to me the most, which is comments need to be constructive, not only in avoiding pointless hatred but, in avoiding pointless praise.  I realize that not all comments you make can be essays on what makes something great but, more often than not the comments on things are rarely more than a sentence either way.  Without expressing true thought, not only is the sense of community lost but, it is almost as though you are saying that you don’t matter as a viewer/reader/community member.  It reduces you to a like/dislike vote with a name attached, which fails to leave an impression to the point that the name is irrelevant.

In regards to choosing which blogs from our group to comment on, I took a “click randomly until something intriguing happens” approach.  Knowing that I could not possibly read every blog posted by ever classmate, I chose blogs almost at random, read them, and, if I felt I could add something of value, I commented. 

1.      Kyle Christmas- Kyle’s picture of a library closed sign from flickr caught my eye so I read his blogpost and contributed to the conversation regarding the digital age by describing my fear of the loss of books, which he alludes to in his post. 

2.      Jordan Tupper- I commented on Jordan’s “Thing 1,” because I agreed with his statement that “play” should be its own habit. 

3.      Ethan Bourke- Again I was attracted by a pretty picture.  Ethan posted a beautiful image of the old Clarksville bridge and mentioned that it could be applied in an English classroom.  I have always loved teaching Literature by means of art, since it’s a different way to reach more students so I commented exactly that. 

4.      Stephan Morehouse- Stephen has some interesting ideas about using blogs in the classroom.  I agree that blogs can be a great way to communicate with students and parents and add that they are a great way to foster a community in the classroom.

5.      Meghan Wagley- Meghan is a fan of Google Translate, and I think it is a lovely tool, but posted a caveat that it can be used for evil by students of a foreign language.  Since I have a different perspective, I felt that I could add to her conversation. 

And two more from the beyond:

1.      “Witch Rants”- This blogger rants about misused words, particularly in the media.  I often comment because he says what I am too nice to say and points out things that drive me insane as well.

2.      “Strange Salmagundi”- This blogger is a freelance writer who posts for the sake of the “odd, unusual, or bored out of their mind.”  When I comment, it is usually in the form of criticism (generally good) of her writing.  I often read it when I am “bored out of [my] mind.”

Overall, the most important characteristic of commenting is conversation.  If you have something to add to the conversation that was created when the blog was posted, then you should add that point in a comment, but comments that do not contribute to that conversation should not be posted.  Comments are simply another form of social interaction with their own customs and etiquette.  

Thing #3

The more I reflect, the more I see that blogging has a ridiculous number of uses.  I think that blogging’s greatest value lies in the ability to spread your opinions and ideas around in a manner that’s both public (anyone you want can see it) and private (whether you hide the blog like you might have hidden a diary or you remain anonymous). The second greatest is the potential to simplify the information you come across in a way that a lay person could understand and disperse it to a wide community.

In the classroom, I think that this has amazing potential.  First, you can give students links to resources and information (as well as write explanations you may not have had time to get to in class for those that need the extra help) to improve the experience of learning. Second, it’s a great way to give additional thoughts on a subject to help get students looking at alternative ways of thinking about a problem by posting opinions or summarizing debates on a topic. Third, by creating a space of your own, you can let students get to know you in a way that you wouldn’t have time for in class.  This should help them feel like you’re more approachable if they have problems, or just to help establish a sense of community by letting the students know the person leading them on their own journeys for knowledge.  Finally, by having students make their own blogs, you can take the above ideas and put them into the hands of all.  In doing so, you create a sense of community and instill some self-esteem by challenging them to create and share and learn together.

These are just a few thoughts, and I’m sure more will come to me as I explore more of this crazy blogging world and as I continue to grow as a teacher and a person.

Thing #2

I have not had much experience with blogs in the past, either with reading or writing.  I would dabble but never commit to reading more than one or two posts from a blog linked to Facebook when I had free time or something caught my eye.  So, creating this blog as a means to chronicle my journey across learning new technology is both helpful and symbolic.

Not wanting to take too much time to set up the blog (and reminding myself that things can always be changed later) I went with defaults for my name and the blog’s.  As I stated in my last post, Google really made it simple to set up.  Particularly, the ability to move things around in layout was really cool, and I think it adds a really personal touch to what could otherwise be a basic standard layout but, you don’t need a Ph. D. in programming to do it.

Speaking of simple, the process behind creating an avatar was also really easy and fun.  The hardest thing for me was that there were so many options I got a little lost in the choosing and it took a lot more time than I expected (but it was time I enjoyed wasting, so that’s ok).  I think the finished product came out a lot like me and my personality.  It’s simple, professional and (I think) she looks eager to jump into new experiences. So, hopefully she and I will be ready to face the rest of the semester and learning, and neither of us will lose that passion for learning which brought us here in the first place.

Thing #1

I am a teacher who rarely uses technology any more complex than a powerpoint presentation (or rather a Prezi, but more on that later) in her classes.  This is not because of some belief that technology is the devil or a lack of skill with technology.  I am actually a strong proponent of technology in the classroom (anything to get the kids to put down their cell phones willingly, right!?) I have simply never taken the time to find the resources necessary to incorporate technology appropriately in my lessons.  Over the course of the next several weeks, I will be exploring a type of technology that has been entitled Web 2.0 via a self-guided online course at Austin Peay State University.  I have created this blog to track my progress, reflect, and, hopefully, share my experience with others. 

I’ve never created a blog before so this was the first step in my journey.  As it turns out, the process was not that difficult!  Thanks to the almighty Google, I created my blog with a few easy clicks of the mouse.  In fact, the most difficult part of the creation process was choosing a theme for my blog space, but have faith! Google makes this decision easy as well, reminding the user that they will be able to customize their blog later.  So after a few minutes, most of which were taken up creating a new gmail account as my old one has gone the way of my old yahoo account and is fated to become and forever-cluttered spam folder, here I am.  I have reached the peak of internet glory and reclassed myself from lay facebook-user to omnipotent blogger.  Okay, perhaps not omnipotent, but I at least feel as if I have leveled up my internet skill. Go me!  

The first item to explore is a presentation on slideshare called 7 ½ habits of lifelong learners.  This powerpoint-esque presentation is a perfectly appropriate way to begin the course as it forces us to think about one of the most important goals that teachers have—creating lifelong learners.  We do this by instilling these habits into our students, and praying that our students will get something, anything, from our classes that will stick for life.  The seven (and a half) habits are as follows:

1.      Begin with the end in mind.

2.      Accept responsibility for your own learning.

3.      View problems as challenges.

4.      Have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner.

5.      Create your own learning toolbox.

6.      Use technology to your advantage.

7.      Teach/ mentor others.

7 ½. Play!

Some of these habits are clearly easier than others.  For me, for example, the easiest is number 4.  I have always been able to easily pinpoint which tasks I need to complete in order to learn effectively.  The hardest has often been accepting responsibility for my own learning.  If I am taking a class that requires me to learn something or there is some other requirement I am trying to meet, I have no trouble, but if, for example, I know that I need to learn more about technology, that task will stay on my to-do list until someone kicks me in the butt and forces me to it (ahem). 

Our students will have different difficulties with lifelong learning, but the biggest challenge we have will be reaching them so that we can teach them these habits.  Technology is key here.  It is the unfortunate fact that many of these students see the world through a viewfinder.  While I love the romantic idea of breaking that habit and creating a class of students who gladly throws their smartphones in the garbage, deletes their twitter accounts, and experiences life rather than instagramming it, I am a realist.  If we want to have any chance at all at communicating with these students, we have to learn their language.  If that means creating a class twitter account (cringe), then that is what I aim to do.  We can’t teach them if we can’t communicate with them effectively and we have not chance to create lifelong learners out of our students.