There is a clear disconnect between the media students are accustomed to using outside the classroom and the media they predominantly use within the classroom. Students spend copious amounts of their free time socializing, shopping, and even studying on the Internet, where they are flooded with text, images, video, animation, and sound in what is a complex multimedia environment.
This site is complete with Siemen's Principles of Connectivism and offers several videos and Power Points by Stephen Downes explaining various elements of personal learning environment.
This is one of my favorite resources for educational technology. Includes examples of videos and a matrix of key indicators of levels of technology integration in classrooms.
Thank you for this resource! When deciding to use technology, I struggle with efficiency vs effectiveness. Bu using the matrix, I can now frame my analyses in terms of "to what extent" does the tool meet student needs.
The study in the paper was interesting as it looked at K-12 educators and their use of Twitter to research, relate and form PLNs. Twitter and other social medias have allowed teachers to form networks that are specific to their needs and wants in terms of their own professional growth. In the "End of Isolation" the researchers findings touched on the fact that "over 82% of the time, the educators in this study chose to follow other educators or content experts related to their field of teaching so they were able to create a personal learning network meaningful to their professional needs." Now I just need to work with teachers at my school site to help them realize the individualized professional potential!
Cassie-
This is a really neat resource in which actual data has been accumulated and presented for teachers and their use of a social networking website. It was interesting to look at the numbers behind the ten educators that they chose and see them present some other general findings. I think the "Benefits" section towards the end of the article hits the goals of any social network precisely: 1) Access to Resources, 2)Supportive Relationships, 3)Increased Leadership Capacity, and 4)Development of a Professional Vision. IF you get into these tools to become a better educator, then I feel those are four visions that you set out to fill by utilizing the networking/technology.
This is a great resource to use to support the research behind using Twitter as an educator. I think the title of the article says it all. As the only social studies on my campus, I have learned to reach out to other teachers using social media. The end of the article brings up some interesting points regarding professional development and Twitter. Research says that teachers need more than just a "one stop shop" when it comes to any professional development, and that they need time to reflect, question, and practice. I would argue that Twitter allows for exactly that. Having a community of teachers to come back to in order to reflect on a teaching experience and/or ask for support provides a safe place to do just that.
Cassie, this was a very interesting research article that presented actual statistics and information on how teachers utilize social media, specifically Twitter. It was very informative and discussed the uses of twitter beyond just being a social outlet.
This was indeed an interesting research project. It was nice to see that there were so many collaborations that were spawned through Twitter connections. Most of the teachers said they were able to exchange information or resources at a professional level, but I was surprised by how many continued the conversation at a social level also.
I feel like this resource has a lot of valuable information. I am very interested in learning to use Twitter as a form of PLN using Twitter and this resource seems to show the value in that. In addition, I liked the research study approach to this article.
This study underscored the benefits of Twitter for the educational community. The article shared the advantages to new teachers in particular, where one participant stated it changed her vision and practice in the classroom. Very powerful!
Of all the resources I have read thus far on PLNs, this particular article forced me to think deeper and reconsider my interpretation of this concept. First of all, I found that the article provided a picture of the quality of interaction that can occur within Twitter. The data collected by researchers provides an in depth look at Twitter as a PLN - a feat that few other resources I have read have accomplished. By detailing the amount, quality, and type of interactions and connections, a tangible conception of a PLN emerges, even for someone who has little to no experience with Twitter. Of the 10 surveyed, a majority of their connections and tweets were professionally related. According to Nussbaum-Beach (video I posted), the difference between a PLN and a CoP is the familiarity of the people and the connection to an idea or problem. However, this study provides a different perception of a PLN that is largely professionally based with strong two-way connections. These conclusions made me wonder if it is possible for facets of a PLN on Twitter to transform into a CoP. Further, at what point can one argue that a PLN has successfully transform into a virtual CoP? Thanks for sharing. This was an excellent read!
Web App: Online Timer Countdown + Online Alarm Clock + Online Stopwatch
Timer-tab is a website that allows teachers and students to manage their time in class. This site has a built-in countdown, alarm clock and stopwatch. The background of the timer can be changed via any image URL, and YouTube videos can be embedded and will play once time is up.
This site, created by Scholastic, is jammed with activities for students and teachers. I personally like the authors and illustrators page, on which students can view videos about authors, and participate in writing workshops where authors give students tips on how to improve their writing in a specific genre.
This site has the most information of any of the sites I found. In addition to text and photographs, there are also videos, lesson plans, and information about the scientists who study the biomes.
This is a great tool for students to work individually to research, report & respond to a particular topic. Projects can also be done collaboratively. You can integrate photos, videos, audio and more to share a story about ANYTHING!!
Topics covered from very basic algebra all the way through algebra II. This is the best algebra playlist to start at if you've never seen algebra before. Once you get your feet wet, you may want to try some of the videos in the "Algebra I Worked Examples" playlist.
At this site you can make a 30 second audio recording that you can share online. You can also connect your recordings to a photo or video elsewhere on the web, i.e. Facebook, a blog, etc.
Screencast-O-Matic is my favorite online screen casting tool. It is easy to use and allows for longer recordings. It is great for demonstrations or to answer math questions that are difficult to type out in an email.