Labyrinth of Learning 2.0

Thing 4 – Task:

Read at least five of the suggested blog posts.

As you read, consider the following questions (feel free to adapt and expand on any of these or add your own):

• What do you notice about the genre of blog writing in general?
  
• (How) is blog reading different from other types of reading? How is it similar?
  
• (How) is blog writing different from other types of writing? How is it similar?
  
• How does commenting contribute to the writing and meaning-making?
  
• Is there a “blogging literacy?” How does blogging affect the way we read and write?
  
• (How) can blogging facilitate learning?
  

Create a blog post in response to the exploratory reading and questions listed above. Feel free to reflect on anything that struck you about the posts themselves itself or the genre of blogging in general. Be sure to include a link to any post(s) you refer to and include “Thing 4″ in your post title.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

To me, what makes blogging unique from other types of reading and writing is its informality. It’s reading or writing the way we speak in conversation. I love that! I am someone who requires complete silence and the ability to reread countless times in order to comprehend and make sense of what I read. I am also someone who struggles to write anything of sustenance as formulating clear ideas that can be translated to paper or complete thoughts that are coherent to the audience of my words is a difficult task for me to accomplish. I have always struggled to express myself clearly without the intended audience getting the wrong idea or taking my words the wrong way. This has been a challenge for me my entire life…it’s very frustrating. Therefore, the informality of blogs…with the incomplete sentences (written more as a string of thoughts much like our minds work in daily conversation versus measured and carefully formulated statements that appear in more formal writing), misspellings, and the ability to immediately send your message out to a massive audience of potential readers for their response or input…is an ideal writing and reading platform for me. The ability to comment allows deep (and sometimes “shallow”) conversations to develop and grow. It allows for individuals and groups to share and collaborate on a variety of topics, ideas and discussions. We can now include people from all over the world in a conversation we would normally have just within a small group of colleagues at the school. How perfect is that?

In terms of teaching and technology, many of the greatest thoughts, ideas and discussions have originated in blogs. Blogs allow ideas and thoughts to be formulated now…today…in present and real time. They promote conversation and the ability to collaborate amongst our peers. Whereas, we have to wait for weeks or months to read the next magazine article or book on the same topic. Both of which are very one-sided conversations or points of views. Yes, we could send a letter to the editor or author…but who else would see that beyond you (the writer) and the editor (the reader). Even if you are one of the “lucky ones” whose “letter to the editor” becomes published, it is already a month later and the context of the discussion (the original article or book that sparked the desire to respond) is missed by a large percentage of that month’s audience.

I enjoy reading many types of blogs, but mostly those relating to technology and how it is altering the face and heart of education - teaching and learning. Vicki A. Davis’ post,
Spies Like Us, on the Cool Cat Teacher blog, reminded me of an incident that occurred very recently in our Tablet program where two students were recording a teacher’s lesson without her knowledge or consent. When the teacher became aware of the activity, and uncomfortable with the situation, she asked the group of teachers involved with the program (Tableteers) if this type of activity was addressed in the AUP. We have yet to discuss this in detail during our next meeting. Although, ultimately, I feel that while currently it is not addressed in the AUP, we will be looking at the possibility of altering our AUP to include this type of activity. Additionally, while we cannot always control access to these activities and capabilities, we can teach students ethical use and behavior. That is where our focus needs to be turned, I feel.

I did read most of the other blogs presented and enjoyed many of them. Some in particular that I feel have immediate application to an elementary classroom (promoting student involvement) include:

• Duck with a Blog: Where second graders blog about the whereabouts of a missing duck. How adorable is that!
• A Final Good-Bye: Where third graders post their thoughts about a funeral for overused words. What elementary school teacher has never had the desire to “trash” certain words from our students writings? What a great way for students to become involved in the writing process!
• Imagine Turning On the Faucet and Nothing Coming Out: From
  Extreme Biology where students are encouraged to blog about topics relating to the study of biology and then participate in the discussion. This particular discussion on the situation of Georgia’s water crisis is compelling enough to spark a teacher’s interest in replicating the model within their own classroom.

Thing 3 - Set up your blog at Edublogs and write your first posts.

~~~~~~~~

Here it is! You are visiting it right now!

Enjoy!

Thing 2 – Task:

Complete a blog post reflecting on your initial thoughts about Web 2.0 and its role in 21st Century teaching and learning. Consider the ways in which Web 2.0 tools might change (or have already changed) your professional practice. How might you be able to use these new tools to engage today’s “digital learners?” Why would you want to? How might you be able to use these tools to support your own learning?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I feel the vision statement I wrote last year seems to embody my thoughts about Web2.0 (technology) and its role in 21^st Century teaching and learning.

Vision Statement:

• I believe that the terms education and technology are synonymous with one another. I envision a future where everyone will share this belief and you will no longer be able to determine a clear divide between the “world of education” and the “world of technology.” We are living in a time where new technologies are emerging, and old technologies are improving, on a daily basis. The children of this era, the “digital natives”, will never know a time when they were without technology in their lives. It is our obligation as educators to teach the students of today, and our leaders of tomorrow, in the modality of learning that is most conducive to their technology-enriched learning styles.
• My goal as an educator is to empower students to learn through the use of technology. I want them to view school as a place where they can explore their curiosities and expand their knowledge, not only through books, but through the use of technology. I want to instill in students a life-time love of learning. I believe the only way to accomplish this goal is to show them that education and technology are intertwined; they are not separate entities.
• My goal as a professional is to empower educators, parents, and school/government officials to encourage and actively support the use of technology in education. I aspire to aid in the development and distribution of best practices, ideas, lessons and resources for the integration of technology into the 21st century classroom. I strive to provide educators with the knowledge, tools and confidence to effectively implement technology into their classroom environments.

Web 2.0 tools have been changing my teaching and professional practices for the past few years. When I first heard about blogging and podcasting over three years ago, I began implementing them into my second grade classroom. I worked with my students to create a series of podcasts. Our series included such episodes as their original Haikus during our study of Japan, their reflections and ideas based on a book we read in class, as well as tributes to their parents for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. I also developed a class blog where I posted an essential question or KWL question for the students to respond to in the form of a comment. Parents were invited to subscribe to and encouraged to participate in both the class podcast and blog. Both of these preliminary tools that I implemented into the classroom proved to be huge successes both amongst the students in my class and their parents. The students were more engaged in the learning process when technology was effectively implemented in their classroom activities. The excitement the students exhibited was contagious as they explored technology and learning in new and thrilling ways. The parents often wrote letters to the administration applauding how well connected and involved they felt to their student’s learning by the use of these tools. This only strengthened my belief that web2.0 would be the future of education and teachers needed to begin implementing these tools into their classrooms today.

Today, I am a school Instructional Technology Specialist focusing on providing our teachers with the knowledge, tools and guidance needed to effectively incorporate technology and Web2.0 tools into their classroom environments. This year, some of our teachers have begun implementing the use of wikis to encourage and build collaboration skills among students both within their own classes, as well as with a cooperating classroom abroad. The faculty and administration have also begun using a protected wiki to collaborate and communicate on various ideas, topics and projects. I am also coordinating the sixth grade tablet pc program that launched this year. Along with receiving their own personal tablet to use throughout the school year (both at home and school), the sixth graders were given an email account and a personal blog on the Writer’s Exchange.

Thing 1 - Task:

Write a reflective blog post based on The 7 1/2 Habits of Effective Lifelong Learners. You may write about anything related to your own experiences or beliefs about Lifelong Learning, and your thoughts about this course. The three things you were asked to consider were:

• Which habit(s) may be most challenging for you to employ as part of your K12 Learning 2.0 experience?
• Which habit(s) will be easiest, or are most resonant for you as a lifelong learner?
• Which habit do you think will be most important for you as you work through this course, and why?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I have always enjoyed learning new things and have often pondered the idea of becoming a life-long full-time student. Not that I have any desire to write endless amounts of dissertations and/or reflection papers, but a I do possess a strong desire to learn all that I can within my life. The 7 1/2 Habits of Effective Lifelong Learners helped me reflect on this part of me as a learner and a professional.

The most challenging habit for me will be accepting responsibility for my own learning (Habit #2). In school, I was always a good student and continue to be a hard worker but I tend to get caught up with certain tasks and lose track of time very easily. I am also a self-diagnosed “perfectionist” which inevitably leads to spending too much time on a task that may not be as important as other things that need to be accomplished. Therefore, keeping up with everything that needs to be done without exact due dates will be a test. Balancing this course work along with my professional goals and responsibilities will be a challenge for me to accomplish without procrastinating or letting time “slip away” from me.

The easiest and most enjoyable habit for me will be PLAY! (Habit # 7 1/2). Almost everything I have learned about computers and technology has been the result of playing around with it. Similarly, the most powerful and engaging learning I have seen taken place in the classroom environment has been the result of playing. When we can engage in an activity of our choice or based on our interests, the level of learning taking place is substantially increased. Play is an activity designed to allow us to engage in exactly those activities. I believe that we can take-in and absorb more information/knowledge when we are given the flexibility to engage in an activity by our own means, thereby increasing our enjoyment and engagement levels. When restricted by structured or constrained parameters for an activity by another person, our interest and engagement levels decrease.

The most important habit for me will be to teach and mentor others (Habit #7). In my current role as an Instructional Technology Specialist, I am teaching, assisting and encouraging teachers to use technology in their classrooms. As much as I enjoy learning new and interesting things, I relish in teaching others about these very same ideas and tools. Sharing knowledge and teaching others to apply their knowledge is a personal passion for me. As it has been said countless times and in countless ways, a person who can teach a concept or idea has truly mastered the content themselves.

I feel this course is the perfect segue for me to lead and mentor teachers in building their educational technology knowledge base. Which in turn, will encourage them to engage in more technology enhanced lessons within their own classroom environments? The level of excitement I see from the teachers participating in this course is outstanding. Many are approaching me asking me to show them ways in which they can begin implementing the tools they have explored into their classroom environments. I feel that allowing teachers to explore or “play” with these new tools is raising their excitement, opening their eyes to what is out there and available to them, and providing them with a desire to learn more. Now, instead of me trying to push new technology tools on them, they are approaching me to help deepen their understanding and assist in applying their knowledge effectively in the classroom. I love this effect! I no longer feel like the “bully” in the schoolyard who constantly pushes others around insisting the other kids do things his way. Now I feel the new (not quite popular - yet) kid that everyone wants to know and be “seen” with. This course is exactly the kind of thing that was needed to kick-start what I feel will be a phenomenal wave of technology integration in our classrooms.