To be honest, when I first heard of Web 2.0, I had no idea what it was. When I read the chart explaining the differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0, it made much more sense. The first thing I thought of after I read the article, A Day in the Life of Web 2.0 by David Warlick was it would be a great way to communicate with parents. It can be a pain to create a weekly newsletter, but to quickly post something on a blog site would be easy! Parents could ask questions and I could respond when I have a free moment, which could be 10:00 at night! Then I tried to think of ways that I could use it with my students. I could pose questions about topics or books that we are reading in class and have students respond to the question and to each other. Students could work on their writing online and their peers could review it and leave comments, each helping each other become better writers. There are endless possibilities!
Using ideas such as these forces students to become active participants. It also allows all students, especially ones who don't like to contribute orally, share in a discussion or respond to another student. By sharing with one another, it allows students to think more critically by pushing them to work on a higher level and consider alternative positions.
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You're not along not knowing what Web 2.0 is. I tend to get pretty blank looks when I talk about Web 2.0 to most people. It's just not a common part of our vocabulary yet.
ReplyDeleteUsing a blog to communicate with parents and to provide them with the means to pose questions and make comments is a wonderful idea. Granted, not all parents would (or could) take advantage of a valuable resources such as that, but it can be an invaluable tool for the school-home connection that a newsletter just can match. Imagine even being able to post pictures of student work the day they did it or recording a song they sang in class as a podcast. A newsletter can touch that.
You've also come up with some great possible uses of blogs with your students as well. Students really enjoy using technology and don't tend to see it as "work" (your little secret). And yes, it does compel them to be active participants in the discussion. They can't sit in the back of the room and NOT say something if they have to respond online. It can also provide much richer responses and more engaging conversations as well, especially for students who are shy or don't express themselves well orally.
It sounds like you're onto some great ideas, and I'd be happy to help if you'd like to pursue them.
Thing 2, Part 2
ReplyDeleteHi Courtney,
I like your idea about posing questions about topics or books and allowing students to respond to the questions and to each other. I think it would perhaps lead to more reading by students (if only to have the opportunity to write to others "on the computer!") You also mentioned that it might help students become better writers. How do you think this might happen? Would it involve the teacher or some other capable adult reading the blogs and coaching them on the writing piece?