SHS_Multimedia

experimented."

Experts say that, even more than the digital world in general, collaborative Web 2.0 tools in particular can motivate self-directed learning. "With Web 2.0, there's a strong impetus to make connections," says University of Minnesota researcher Christine Greenhow, who studies how people learn and teach with social networking. "It's not just creating content. It's creating content to share."

And once they share their creations, kids can access one of the richest parts of this learning cycle: the exchange that follows. "While the ability to publish and to share is powerful in and of itself, most of the learning occurs in the connections and conversation that occur after we publish," argues education blogger Will Richardson (a member of The George Lucas Educational Foundation's National Advisory Council).

In this online exchange, students can learn from their peers and simultaneously practice important soft skills -- namely, how to accept feedback and to usefully critique others" work.

"I learn how to take in constructive criticism," says thirteen-year-old Tiranne of her experience with Remix World. She says the collaborative online environment has made this process easier for her. "I'm learning how to post my work, because I never really did that before. I don't like to share personal things, but because everyone else on Remix World is doing it, I can feel comfortable, and I don't have to feel shy."

best use of a social network is as an exoskeleton, or the part of the classroom that exists on the outside but supports the inside," Mosea notes. "The network should be a base of support for whatever the students are learning at school."

Using tools such as the social-network-creation site Ning, teachers can easily develop their own networks, Mosea says. "It is better to create your own," he argues. "If a teacher creates his or her own network, students will post as if their teacher is watching them, and they'll tend to be more safe.

"You can build social networks around the curriculum," Mosea adds, "so you can use them as a teaching resource or another tool."

• Bookmark images you want to remember on the Internet
• Safe ON/S

• afe OFF filter for work environments
• Bulk edit
• Comment on images
• Add tags to pictures so you can easily search for them again
• Wordpress plugin to display your images on blog or website
• A watchlist to keep track of images posted by others you want to follow
• Can search with the “And”, “Or” and the negation (”!”) operators. For example, you could search for still life apples or oranges.