Web 2.0: Enhancing Education Through Technology

Using the iPad in creative ways to meet IEP goals in all areas. This article will give you a list of apps and how they can be used in a creative manner to reach specific goals.

Cindy, the instructional technologist from a school in Northeastern North Carolina sees administrators using the flip camera in creative ways all the time. One principal takes her flip camera on her daily walk-through through her school. When she sees great interaction between students, unique teaching methods, or an overall great experience in a classroom she pulls out her handy camera and records the experience. Then, during faculty meetings and staff development she shares her videos with the staff as great examples of what is and should contiunue to happen in her school.

This article presents many ways Flip Cams can be used in the classroom. Students and teachers can be very creative using Flip Cams. Suggestions included students sharing their world, digital story telling and others. Creativity can be enhanced Flip Cams.

This article highlights schools that are integrating gps technology into the classrooms and the linking this to students being connected to the real world along with building critical thinking skills. Joseph Kerski, the curriculum manager in Redlands California, is quoted as saying "From bus routing to airplane navigation to geocaching for recreational purposes, it's one of those technologies that's all around us now" . He goes on to say, "And it's not just the tool. It's about students' using those higher-order thinking skills and thinking critically about their world". An earth science teacher , Jim Kuhl, explains how he pairs up reading and interpreting topographic maps with geocaching. GPS can cost as little as $75 per unit and most data phones have a gps embedded. Example provided was Monroe BOCES Stream Team Project where 10 schools are collecting gps and gis data about the quality of streams feeding Lake Ontario.

This teacher makes a really strong argument that you should not feel that you have nothing important to say. This is the way to make some strong networked relationships. I like her quote "This has led to many great conversations with other educators about teaching issues." Blogging has connected her to peers throughout the world. I find that being an online educator is lonely so this may be the way to go to share resources and to discuss with others that share our online world.

I really enjoyed reading this article because I'm feeling the same excitement as the author did when she first began blogging. While I'm just learning how to "officially" blog, I have been using Edmodo with my students as a way to connect with my students outside my classroom. It allows us to communicate and ask questions to one another outside of normal school hours, yet in a more structured classroom like forum, unlike Facebook. But because it works similar to Facebook, the students love it and don't mind logging on and doing their assignments. One day when I was out sick, I was able to log on an have real time discussions with my students. If they had questions about the assignment they were able to ask. They can also turn in their assignments via Edmodo instead of waiting for the next day/week. My feelings are if the students are into it, then it's something we need to be doing as well to keep up with them. Teachers who use Web 2.0 tools such as blogging have an advantage over those that don't because these are the social networks that students know and are familiar with. Also, the author of this article points out the fact that teachers have a new way of connecting to each other and share ideas. From what I remember when I was younger, the traditional teacher's only way of communicating and sharing ideas or concerns with other teachers were via phone or before/after school meetings. I don't know how often that actually happened, but now with blogging you can share your information any time with any body.

This article, from eSchool News, summarizes the features of two free social networking sites, Wiggio and Sophia. In Wiggio online groups can be formed and then users can communicate through email, voice, and text messages, and can share links and files. Teachers can use Wiggio to "set up chat rooms for after-school help" and for "peer-to-peer collaboration within group projects." Sophia "has been described as a mashup of Facebook, Wikipedia, and YouTube focused solely on education." It consists of user created "learning packets" on various subjects that use Web 2.0 tools. Each packet can also be rated on a five star system by the users as well as be given a "green checkmark" to be considered academically sound by experts in the appropriate field.

This article clearly explains what constitutes a quality educational game. The formula includes "focusing on a targeted curriculum" and using higher order thinking skills. Problem solving is usually the main focus. Students should be "intrinsically motivated" by the game and be able to "master the learning goals behind the game."

This article is a review for animation software for the grade school level. While this article is not about HOTS directly it describes an interesting tool that can promote HOTS. Students are well versed in making PowerPoints these days and moving to a more extensive animation platform is the next logical step. The animation process involves HOTS because students must process the information into a format that is more then just memorization and repetition. This tool would promote the skills of analysis, synthesizing, and critical thinking as students take information presented in class and work to share their knowledge through film/animation.

A great perspective on the similarities between the initial transformation from folk culture to commercial culture and the same transformation back from commercial culture to folk culture. Everyone can produce, but, at the same time, it requires that we be more critical of what we consume. It discusses the transformation from high schools of the past to the present.

A great article that discusses some of the potential uses for technology and communication beyond the walls of the classroom. Through the use of the internet, online programs, and direct communications like Skype, Edmodo, and other instant messaging, students can attend the classroom, even if they can't get to the school on days of weather inconvenience. Snow, Water damage, bomb scares, you name it. Provided that the students could access the internet and had power, the school could exist for that day. Part of the issue is getting kids to realize that the learning can occur outside of the classroom. Another part is that sometimes snow days occur at very inopportune time, like right before benchmark/standardized tests. But, it appears that for the most part the article discusses saving money and keeping the schooling going, when the weather won't allow it. Not sure how many snow days your school has but... not the biggest issue for me. But then there is the other side of this issue. Some parents, and myself included, agree that there just isn't enough time off in the winter. Go to school in the dark, leave in the dark, creates no time for play, no time for a mental break from the classroom. And in a world where students have been accused of not spending enough time outside being kids, I would have a difficult time as a teacher expecting to see them sign in to my classroom, when I was also outside playing on one of those mythical "Snow Days."

Live blogging and active commenting helps to make real-time reporting of fast-changing events available to all. This is a communication super-highway!

University students generally enter opposed to group work. This video article explains how to be effective, facilitate and create transparent assessment for this real-life skill.

A great article about how it is actually quite easy to use many of the web 2.0 tools to collect and analyze quickly, the current media and create connections between it and your classroom, or at least ideas to which you teach. This teacher did a great job of doing what so many of us try to do everyday. Finding current events and relating it to our classroom. But by having more feeds connected to one site, she was able to quickly narrow her search to whatever it was that she was teaching at the time. She also made it a point to observe the news feeds with her students and ask them to try to make the connections. If there was a story that made sense or got them intrigued and interested, they researched and read it together. A great way to teach young students how to filter the information that they are being exposed to, and to seek out credible references to initial questions and information.

Discusses why prof development is hard to use . Give 5 Js approach for teachers to use tech

Informative information regarding education in the Middle School grades.

A blog post about Edistorm. It is a free, Post-It Note style brainstorming tool. An alternative to Wallwisher, but probably geared more towards a corporate setting. There is a limited Free account, as well as, an inexpensive Educator account. A neat collaboration and communication tool worth checking out.

The article From 'e' to 'we' Learning is about empowerment through collaboration of networking. According to article this more than" 80 millions adults use social media for health-related issues-creating or sharing content on blogs, message boards, and chat rooms". Soem example of network tools are Twittter and Facebook.. This article was not an easy read.

Group work is regarded by most students as challenging. However in real life context, they have to work in teams in many situations. Collaboration is considered in this video to be an authentic approach to learning and this resource suggests strategies on how internet technology can make group work effective, less time consuming and transparent.

A slide show represents the way students are learning today and the new net generation. Just thought it fit well with the class.

Great site to learn about the latest in technology itegration .

Research was done on whether students learn better from lectures or hands on and the outcome was clearly in favor of hands on. This article highlights a study and actual research performed to show the difference in results. The study was also done with middle school aged students.