The use of wikis and blogs will be helpful tools for my students in my teaching career. Although blogs have evolved, it remains as a more personal tool for diaries or journals as it allows individuals to post their thoughts and ideas (Jonassen, 2010, p. 112). I could use blogs for my E. S. L. students to enhance their writing skills. Usually, students are not as enthusiastic about writing, specially, if they have to write on a paper journal. Blogs, however, offer students the opportunity to write in a more interactive and entertaining way. This would be a perfect weekly assignment for them to write about their favorite TV show or any extracurricular activities with the opportunity to post a response to a classmate’s blog once a month. I will potentially use wikis for a group project in my Spanish class. The assignment may be to explore a specific country in Latin America and inform the rest of class about their costumes, social problems, or touristic places. This could be perfect for an end of semester due project because it will allow them to prepare, process, share, and edit the information.
Social bookmarking seems to be a very reliable tool for anyone, particularly teachers. Because teachers have unique methods for tutorials or extra help, social bookmarking is beneficial to be an expert teacher. Students expect teachers to answer every question they have and they expect a quick answer; thus, having quick and organized access to these links will help students clear any doubts they may have. It also provides an opportunity to share with peers the websites you are currently using allowing them to also access the information available in those sites. Voice thread will be very useful for Spanish students because it will not only give them the opportunity to practice their pronunciation but also listen to themselves and other peers to get the specific feedback they want. This feedback will be almost instantly after they record their voices using a different learning material versus reading a paragraph out loud in the classroom.
While I have had not heard of Tapped In, Jonassen provides a good explanation: a community of professional educators for an online workplace. The calendar and the virtual offices provided are excellent tools for us teachers. I have very little experience with learning communities online, and I do not want to be part of the isolated community due to lack of access to tools such as wikis, blogs, and voice thread. I believe that all educators should be part of these communities because it will serve as a way to learn from a peer’s point of view. By respecting the diversity among participating groups, it enhances the capacity of the learning community (Kilpatrick, Barrett, & Jones, 2003). This is important as it breaks the pattern of isolated communities and allows even for greater learning lessons among peers in education. Further, learning communities give everyone the adaptation to change, and this change means equate learning, Jonassen says. Just like students engage in learning through learning communities, teachers, too, should be engaging in learning opportunities like this.
References
Jonassen, D. (2008). Meaningful learning with technology (pp. 112, 129). Upper Saddle, New Jersey: Pearson.
Kilpatrick, S., Barrett, M., & Jones, T. (2003). Defining learning communities. Manuscript submitted for publication, Faculty of Education, University of Tasmania, Tasmania, Australia. Retrieved from http://www.crlra.utas.edu.au/files/discussion/2003/D1-2003.pdf
I agree that Tapped In is a way to avoid being isolated from fellow teachers. While I watched my children grow up I noticed that after a while all the teachers were doing everything the same way. I know lots of the kids were having issues with math but the manner of instruction never changed. With access to something like Tapped In, teachers can share ideas and network with teachers across the country by use of chats and messaging as well as discussion boards, discussion and message transcripts can be emailed and saved for someone who is not logged in (About tapped in, 2010). I would think that this community would be a Godsend for a new teacher and a way to have a sounding board is an issue were to arise. I have used similar networking for years in Scouting and it works beautifully.
ReplyDeleteAbout tapped in. (2010). Retrieved from http://tappedin.org/tappedin/web/about.jsp
I agree with you in that Social Bookmarking can be a reliable tool for everyone. I believe that we need others in our lives to help us as we go through life. Social Bookmarking allows everyone involved to put in their favorite and most beneficial web sites so that everyone getes the most out of it. I have never heard of Tapped In either, but it, as well as, wikis, blogs, and Voice Threads can all be ways to come together and help each other.
ReplyDeleteRichard Smith-Social Bookmarking can be a reliable tool but if you need quick sources to websites you have your favorites list on your computer or you have search sites like google to help answer a students question very quickly, but i like your opinion on the learning communities because being apart of a community would help with teaching strategies that work that are up to date.- Richard Smith
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing how technology increases the performance of sutdents in the classroom. I think the Blogs may be eventually phased out with the websites that allow video feeds and other ways of commenting. Unless, you can post video and/or audio responses in the format the way they do. I really liked the site that allowed you to stop the video, post your own comment in a video response or text box, and then start the video again. This allows so much coordination of opinions over the subject of the website. Very cool.
ReplyDeleteRuth,
ReplyDeleteI like the way you plan to use wikkis and blogs in your classroom. I also think that blogging is great for projects and for ESL students in order to motivate and engage them into writting. It makes writing more fun!
Ruth,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that Wikis and blogs would be helpful in your ESL classes. I also plan to use them in my Special Ed classes for Learning Disabled students. It is a great way to use the written word for students that have a hard time expressing themselves in group situations.
While blogs may be a fun and entertaining way of communicating with people outside of the classroom, we need to consider that sometimes people who exclusively blog tend to have limited social skills. Would we want our students to be taught that blogging or social networking is the only skill they need? I think not. I think a better solution to this problem is to create a classroom group in which students openly talked about their thoughts and feelings about a particular subject or had a written question/answer session with their teacher. This would still improve their writing skills, but also their interpersonal social skills.
ReplyDelete