It’s the End of the Semester and It's Graduation!

What a journey this has been! I have finished designing and developing the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course in time for the end of the semester! I’d like to personally thank Professor Jamie Kretsch for sponsoring me in this graduate independent study course and her time in reviewing each section of the Web 2.0 Tools course and providing valuable feedback of which I am thankful. I'd also like to mention three books, in particular, that I found very useful and informative: Will Richardson's Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, Gwen Solomon's and Lynne Schrum's Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools, and Reynol Junco's and Jeanna Mastrodicasa's Connecting to the Net.Generation: What Higher Education Professionals Need to Know About Today's Students.

Designing and developing the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course has been a very gratifying experience for me, and I have learned a great deal about Web 2.0 tools along the way. I'm happy that I was able to employ my instructional design skills with technology in such a large, creative educational endeavor. The saying, “the best way to learn something is to teach it” really holds true here. I designed a model that I think will work effectively for educator-participants: learn foundation concepts, participate in exploratory activities that build on the foundation, and then engage in real-world experiences using Web 2.0 tools for teaching and learning in relevant curriculum content areas. In turn, it is hoped that educators will model the use of technology to their "Net Generation" students and provide them with engaging and meaningful experiences using Web 2.0 technology tools to enhance their learning. I hope to have the opportunity to teach this course to graduate education students in the future.

The completion of this course also marks the completion of my graduate program! On May 20, 2008, I will walk the procession with other graduates to receive a Master of Education Degree with a concentration in instructional technology and educational media. This is the fulfillment of a personal dream that began in 2001, while working full-time, raising my daughter, and taking graduate classes at night. If you happen to be at Commencement, I’ll be the one smiling ear-to-ear, as will my fellow graduates!

I began my first blog posting with “life is all about learning.” I’ll have to think about what I’d like to learn next. Well, there was that novel I always wanted to write . . .

(image source: http://www.dorsetforyou.com/index.jsp?articleid=369276)

Independent Web 2.0 Tools Project

I included an “independent project” for participants to complete at the end of the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course. Although there is a great deal of leeway within the specific Web 2.0 tools (e.g., blogs, wikis, social bookmarking, podcasts, and RSS) that participants will experience in real-world content areas that they teach in a classroom setting, I thought it would also be useful for participants to spend some time exploring other Web 2.0 tools (there are so many of them!) and apply one or more of them in an educational context of their choosing. I defined eight additional categories of Web 2.0 tools in which participants could choose for their independent study: multimedia, surveys and polls, social and learning networks, Web-based applications, Web pages, geographical mapping, mind mapping, and mashups. Participants will prepare an independent project proposal, develop the project, and then present it to the class.

As part of my personal research, I found a Web-based presentation tool that I especially liked called VoiceThread. Using VoiceThread, you can create narrated online presentations (slides with audio) and also collaborate with others online, if desired, to record audio “comments” throughout the presentation. Little “avatars” (i.e., pictures) display on the slides as people comment. I had previously worked with Articulate Presenter, a licensed-based software product that I like, to create narrated presentations that can be published as a “flash” (.swf) file; however, Articulate can be costly for the average person to purchase. What’s great about VoiceThread is that it’s a Web-based tool that can be used free-of-charge, and the presentation can be hosted on VoiceThread’s server for public or private viewing.

As part of my personal exploration, I decided to create a VoiceThread presentation for another graduate course I am taking this semester, along with three other graduate students who were in my group. I wanted to do something innovative using technology for our group’s presentation to the class. I also had the idea of using VoiceThread for “digital storytelling/dialog,” instead of a traditional PowerPoint presentation where each person discusses a given slide separately. It was a lot of work and involved a high degree of collaboration, but it was well worth the "start up" effort. I would highly recommend using VoiceThread and will continue to use it in the future!

(image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Computer-globe.svg)

Educational Podcasts and RSS

Of the Web 2.0 tools that I endeavored to incorporate into the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course, podcasts and RSS (Really Simple Syndication) were more challenging. Unlike creating a blog, wiki, or social bookmarking site, creating a podcast involves more than one tool and more layers in the process to plan, record, and edit a podcast and then to publish and syndicate it through RSS. Originally, I had not included “RSS” in my course design (at least not on paper) because I didn’t know if I would have the time to address it given the time constraints. However, as I progressed in course development and read about RSS, I realized I had to find the time to incorporate it into the course.

I’m blogging about podcasts and RSS together because I learned that a true podcast is not just a media file (e.g., audio or video file) that you put out on the Internet with a link to it; but rather, in the truest sense, a podcast involves broadcasting “episodes” on a periodic basis through the use of an “RSS feed” that people can subscribe to. The podcast updates automatically come to the reader, instead of the reader having to go to various sites to check for updates. However, RSS goes well beyond subscribing to podcasts. You can subscribe to diverse media sites and people’s blogs using a news aggregator, for example, called an “RSS feed reader.” There are so many educational uses for podcasts and RSS, which I’ve incorporated into the course. Participants will have the opportunity to create an educational podcast and also to subscribe to feeds using an RSS feed reader. I used Bloglines as my RSS aggregator to start subscribing to educational technology sites and blogs in which I’m interested. To view my feeds, click public.

(image sources:
http://www.stephenrahn.com/blog/archives/category/podcasting)
http://www.buyerschoiceinspections.com/)

Social Bookmarking in Education

I have found that “social bookmarking” is an extremely useful Web 2.0 tool. In the past, I worked as a school library media specialist, and I would create “pathfinders” of Internet resources that students and also other teachers could use when conducting research on a unit of study. I would create a “web page” to create lists of resources or a service such as AT&T’s Filamentality to create “hot lists.” However, social bookmarking took this task to a whole new (and better) level.

For the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course, I researched and located hundreds of Internet resources (websites, blogs, wikis, podcasts, online articles, presentations, videos, etc.) on each of the Web 2.0 tools and related topics. Instead of using my Web browser’s “favorites” to store them, I used the del.icio.us social bookmarking site to save and organize my bookmarks (through “tags”), which I can access from any computer with Internet access through a Web browser. So, no matter where I am, when I find a useful Internet resource, I just “tag” it using del.icio.us and “bundle” related bookmarks together for easy access. You can also share bookmarks with others, such as colleagues. I especially like the idea of combining social bookmarking with evaluating electronic resources (along with print-based resources) when instructing students in the research process. Working in small groups, students can create their own social bookmarking sites on specific subjects and share their “finds” with classmates. It’s such an efficient and useful tool!

In the “Web 2.0 Tools” course, participants will learn about social bookmarking and build their own social bookmarking site related to a curriculum content area that they teach for students’ use. If you would like to view the bookmarks that I saved on del.icio.us that participants will use throughout the course, click Web 2.0 Tools.

(image source: http://askbobrankin.com/social_bookmarking.html)

Educational Wikis

Wikis provide a virtual space for people to collaborate online, research together, and contribute to a body of knowledge in a similar vein as Wikipedia. I learned how to use PBwiki, a good tool for education purposes, and have integrated using wikis in the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course. Participants in the course will learn wiki concepts, explore resources and wiki education examples, and then participate in an “online collaboration” project working in small groups to get first-hand experience in how wikis can be used for teaching and learning. They will also apply their wiki knowledge and skills to create their own “Class Wiki” for their students to use in a school setting. The Course Wiki that I created will be used extensively throughout the course to consolidate participants' work and for the online collaboration project.

I think that wikis are a great Web 2.0 tool for students to collaborate in a global context. I like the idea of students working together to create all types of “content” (text, images, audio, video, presentations, etc.) that is published in their wikis. I think a natural by-product of collaborating on a wiki project is that students will hone information literacy skills and writing skills, while learning about copyright, fair use, and ethical practices. I like that students can work on a wiki any hour of the day and from any location as long as they have access to a computer with Internet access and Web browser. What’s particularly awe-inspiring is the very real potential for students in other states and other countries to collaborate on problem-based and inquiry-based projects to create content. In addition, with the $100 laptop initiative that is being implemented in poorer school districts and third-world nations through One Laptop per Child (OLPC) and other organizations, the possibility of narrowing the education gap by providing greater educational opportunities may become a reality. Perhaps greater cultural understanding among nations and tomorrow’s leaders may also be possible.

(image source: http://writingwiki.org/default.aspx/WritingWiki/For%20Teachers%20New%20to%20Wikis.html)

Eduacational Blogs

The first Web 2.0 tool that I learned how to use was a “blog” using Blogger, which I’ve incorporated throughout the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course. Students post their reflections extensively on their personal blog, which is created during the course. Of all the uses of blogs, I think that perhaps the most relevant use in education is the reflective thinking you can do, which is very important for all students in schools and higher education to develop. Blogging gives “voice” to a person’s thoughts and ideas. It’s also a great way to learn how to write opinion/argumentative pieces.

With the Read/Write Web and tools like blogs, every day people can “publish” on the Web for the world to read, if desired. This is an exciting prospect but also a privilege that one should not take lightly. What I realize is that care should be taken in formulating one’s writing because anyone might read your blog (especially if it’s public) including students, parents, grandparents, and former teachers! As educators, we are called to “model” to our students how to communicate effectively and responsibly (e.g., using appropriate language and style; no defamation of someone’s character). Blogs are an open-diary of sorts, not hidden under the mattress from a younger sibling like years ago.

(image source: http://liberatemedia.typepad.com/)

The Net Generation

As part of the research for designing and developing the Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning course, I found readings on the Net Generation very enlightening in terms of understanding students of this generation as a “culture,” in contrast to previous generations such as the Silent Generation, Boomers, and Generation X. The book by Rynol Junco and Jeanna Mastrodicasa – Connecting to the Net.Generation: What Higher Educational Professionals Need to Know about Today’s Students – was especially informative in discussing the Net Generation’s core personality traits, their shared culture, and themes and considerations associated with this generation, particularly the impact to teaching and learning with students born after 2000. As a result, I included a session, “Net Generation,” in the Web 2.0 Tools course.

The motivation for educators to integrate Web 2.0 tools into curriculum content areas becomes apparent after reading this book and related articles. As “digital natives,” the Net Generation thrives on the use of technology as a way of life, and the use of Web 2.0 tools can actively engage students in learning through online collaboration, social networking, and an avenue for them to create diverse types of digital “content” (text, images, audio, video, presentations, etc.) that can be shared and viewed on the Internet. The Read/Write Web and Web–based tools (many are free) support a highly learner-centered environment and foster co-construction in the learning experience. It would seem to behoove educators to model and embrace technology, such as Web 2.0 tools, to enhance instruction in ways that are relevant and meaningful to students of this generation. Professional development opportunities would be critical so that educators may keep pace with new educational technology.

(image source: http://communication.howstuffworks.com/how-net-generation-students-work.htm)

Living the Web 2.0 Read/Write Web

For my last “elective” course in the M.Ed. graduate program, I want to design my own “independent study” course that would be a creative endeavor, utilize my instructional design and technology skills and experience, and tap into a new area that I haven’t explored yet – Web 2.0 tools. I want to learn about useful Web 2.0 tools such as blogs, wikis, social bookmarking, podcasts, RSS, and multimedia – how to use these tools and how they can apply in educational contexts for teaching and learning.

While learning about these tools, I plan to design and develop a “course” that can be delivered in a Web-enhanced, hybrid/blended, and/or fully online learning environment that will be beneficial to educators – faculty in higher education, K-12 in-service teachers, graduate students in M.Ed., M.A.T. and education certificate endorsement programs, and undergraduate education majors seeking teacher certification. Based on graduate research I have done and from my teaching experience in K-12 schools and higher education, I see there is a need to prepare in-service and preservice teachers in schools and higher education with the knowledge, skills, and hands-on real-world experiences to integrate technology into curriculum content areas. I have obtained university approval and also a faculty member to sponsor me in this endeavor and have one semester to accomplish my goals before I graduate in May '08. It’s a pretty tall order, so wish me luck!

(image source: http://www.learnit2.com/tutorial%20018/index.html)

Welcome to Learning 100

Life is all about learning, isn't it? We're all on this planet trying to figure out where our lives fit into the greater scheme of things. A common thread that we share as human beings is our quest to learn. We are, afterall, all students in a class called "Learning 100" where we rise every morning with the hopes that a new day will bring a sense of purpose in our lives. When we embrace life as a grand forum to learn - about ourselves, others, world issues, our jobs, hobbies and interests, etc. - our purpose in life can be revealed so we can contribute authentically to the world at large. Being committed to lifelong learning and growing every day is key to thriving vs. just going through the motions. Today, I learned how to create a blog. What did you learn today?

(image source: http://daily.hotpads.com/hotpads_daily/startup_/index.html)