Main benefit I see is that it can hold "Posts" for moderation like comments are currently held. So teachers don't have to worry about inappropriate content getting out there, but students can post robust content.
This tool allows you to set up a personalized room for backchannel conversations. Perfect for workshnops or teachers that are looking to get a backchannel conversations going without the headache of a username/login, etc.
Edmodo could be a solution for teachers looking to start a basic vle in their classroom. I wonder if you can customize Edmodo to be fully functional for an entire learning community?
Become a "contributor" and add your kid-friendly favorite resources. Then have your K-5 students learn search strategies with results limited to teacher-approved sites.
The purpose of the New York State Education Department's Virtual Learning System is to encourage the use of the Internet as a tool for teaching and learning and to assist classroom teachers in locating Internet resources for instruction. VLS offers the full text of New York State's learning standards with their key ideas and performance indicators, as well as alternate performance indicators for students with severe disabilities.
there are three reasons why schools have failed to develop as true learning organizations—culture, competition, and isolation.
Through virtual exchanges and the building of personal learning networks, teachers are increasingly drawing on external communities that promote connection and knowledge-sharing.
providing space for reflection and collaboration is not something most schools do very we
A former teacher and education-technology consultant says today's professional development needs to immerse educators in experiences that promote reflection and relationship-building.
I am finding more examples of teachers using wikis. This list is extensive and in addition to sharing it, I will use it as a discussion topic in a presentation.
English classes today focus too much on self-expression. “It is rare in a working environment,
“narrative nonfiction
New Journalism could be applied to most student writing. It benefits from intense reporting, immersion in a subject, imaginative scene setting, dialogue and telling details. These are the very skills most English teachers want students to develop. What’s odd is how rarely such literary nonfiction appears on English — or other class — reading lists.
Narrative nonfiction also provides a bridge between the personal narratives students typically write in elementary school and the essays on external subjects that are more appropriate assignments in high school and beyond.
Models of narrative nonfiction are everywhere, on programs like “This American Life” and “Radiolab,” in nonfiction books for young adults, like “Sugar Changed the World” (which is about slavery and science in the pursuit of the food additive), and even in graphic nonfiction works, like “Persepolis,”
Students are a natural (and the future) audience for serious, in-depth reporting.
"Winkles Wakes Up" - a staple animation in our icebreaker activities was created by this innovative teacher who views technology integration as a means of fostering higher order thinking skills, collaborative communities and effective professional development
On this site, you can see the ways fellow teachers are solving problems, leave a comment, recommend an idea, share inventive things you've done, and take on meaningful professional learning challenges.
New York City Looking To Bring Networking, Technology and Social Media Into The Classroom.
Interview with Lisa Nielsen newly appointed Director of Digital Literacy and Citizenship at the New York City Department of Education
NYC DOE sees the light!! - They have created position of Director of Digital Literacy and Citizenship - primary role to help teachers understand possibilities of social media and how they might use various tools - Facebook, Twitter, wikis - effectively as part of their professional practice.