I especially loved the fact that the Boone Students – each of whom speaks fluent Spanish and English – acted as “teachers” modeling proper pronunciation and word usage for the beginning Spanish students at BCA. The girls and Luis were ALL SMILES at the end and are rarin’ for another go around – perhaps as part of a regular Skype chat w/ the BCA students! Ms. Durff reported after the conference that her kids were really buzzing about the experience and can’t wait to do it again!

A special note: Many schools block Skype – a FREE video conferencing, voice, and chat tool – and I am thankful that my county has kept it available for our use. This amazing opportunity would never have been possible without it!

Technorati Tags: spanish esl

Many of us here in the States, and some of you abroad, have been involved lately in extensive conversations on the issue of educators being slow to hear about much less adopt online social networking technologies. When I first heard about Moodle, I quickly learned of the wonderful progress Australia and New Zealand were making with it in their educational efforts. Moreover, I learned that students in these regions were truly being encouraged to actively participate in taking ownership of their own education! My first impression was that once again, the US educational system was being outclassed. Further discovery and conversations with area experts painted a slightly brighter picture, as I learned that there are numerous US educators using Moodle, Drupal, blogs, wikis, podcasting to enhance the learner experience. But are we doing enough?

David Warlick’s July 26th article detailing his findings regarding first year teachers and their familiarity with Web 2.0 technology painted a picture that seemed less optimistic than it was in all actuality. After stating that only two in attendance were bloggers, RSS was a mystery, and virtually no one knew what a wiki was, he followed up by saying that:

“It’s not a bad thing that these beginning teachers hadn’t heard of Web 2.0. They’re certainly doing it. Most of them IM, and have MySpace or Facebook (etc.) sites. They communicate online with individuals and groups, and they’ve used these conversations to teach and learn, though they probably haven’t thought of it that way.”

This leaves me with a feeling of hope. But hey, I’m a pretty optimistic guy! I guess I just believe that one by one, as the collaborative online learning and networking mechanism powers up in more and more classrooms, we’ll keep heading in the right direction – towards all things Web 2.0 settling into the realm of tried and true versus novel and experimental. Like many of the educators I have come to call friends and colleagues over the past couple of months, I will be starting and maintaining a consistent grass roots effort on my school campus. If I can encourage five teachers at Boone Middle School in Haines City, Florida to reach out to the world via even one community authored blog and a shared wiki (heck, throw in a podcast .. who knows!?), then that’ll be my little success story for the year. For if they in turn do the same, I think we might find ourselves making progress after all.

Technorati Tags: Web 2.0, collaborative learning, pedagogy

John Concilus, Coordinator of Educational Technology for the Bearing Strait School District in Unalakleet, Alaska recently submitted a great post about what happens when a district’s technical leadership sides with commercial vendors. Typically, these vendors offer “secured” and potentially limited Web 2.0 management software rather than going with more open-ended, open source/software libre options on which many of us have come to depend. Many of you teach at or are at least aware of schools that have closed off access to YouTube, Wikipedia.org, Blogger.com, and other popular content rich portals, so you you don’t have to stretch too far to see why this might happen. Nevertheless, you should read this article to gain some insight into a real live situation that developed not too long ago in my home state of Florida.

I am fortunate enough to teach in a school that is supported under a district policy that encourages the use of technology in the classroom and is open to new and innovative approaches to collaborative learning. However, we all owe it to ourselves to remain aware of obstacles that may potentially arise as our “Web 2.0 in the classroom” efforts move forward. I’ll start by commenting as follows:

Amends the Crime Control Act of 1990 to triple the fines on providers of electronic communication services or remote computing services who knowingly and willfully fail to report child pornography. Requires warning labels for websites depicting sexually explicit material. Deleting Online Predators Act of 2007 – Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require schools and libraries that receive universal service support to enforce a policy that: (1) prohibits access to a commercial social networking website or chat room unless used for an educational purpose with adult supervision; and (2) protects against access to visual depictions that are obscene, child pornography, or harmful to minors. (Track the progress of this bill by clicking here.)

In John’s article referenced above, he relays some interesting thoughts about the way software vendors may be preying on school/district IT Directors who are fearful of promoting the wide use of Web 2.0 technology in light of what they perceive to be the regulations presented by Senate Bill S.49 as well as CIPA, COPA, and eRate:

“Let me be clear: Despite what you may have heard, nothing in CIPA or eRate funding regulations bans the use of wiki, chat, IM, blog, or social networking sites such as MySpace, Bebo, and so on. If these technologies are blocked in your school, it is your district’s policy that prohibits their use.

Vendors of firewall and filtering and security products use industry “publications” to reprint their press releases that fuel these same misperceptions. Why? Because fear equals market share. It is a brilliant use of disinformation, and I see this happening now with collaborative technologies. These tools are freely available right now to any school district that wants them.

A scared tech director is easy prey for sales calls, folks. Want to guess where most tech directors get their information about CIPA, COPA and eRate? Yep, you’ve got it. District level technology leaders get their info mostly from conferences and vendor press releases disguised as articles. These same school district tech directors either make the decisions about purchases and policies for student or teacher use, or they advise those at the top who do.

That vicious cycle, my virtual friends, is the real reason you don’t see Web 2.0 technologies more widely used in schools.”

It is easy to get caught up in the excitement of what Web 2.0 technology can do for our students, and I encourage you to push forward with as many instances of this technology as you can muster up and use. But do stay mindful of the issues mentioned above as you move ahead, and take time to find out where your district stands regarding this latest legislative effort.

Do you see trouble ahead for Web 2.0? Do you feel that the bill’s language adequately protects against the blockage of Web 2.0 applications we educators find so very useful? What is your take regarding John’s opinion that software companies are spearheading a mass disinformation campaign to boost sales?

As always, I look forward to reading your thoughts.
Technorati Tags: web 2.0, Senate Bill S.49, Ted Stevens

Great post, Kevin. Thanks for reminding me about Wesley Fryer. It’s about time I payed his blog a visit and his podcasts a listen.

Who do I look for when I’m seeking guidance and inspiration? My students. Definitely. and also my fellow bloggers who plug at it each day, asking difficult questions and sharing their experiences.

Am I a Web 2.0 teacher? I don’t know about that. I feel I am a teacher because a teacher works with students to help them create products that reflect their knowledge and their growth. Regardless of the media in which they do this. I personally use Web 2.0 ’stuff’ because it is authentic to how my students live and learn…and because I think it’s way cool! But I also have them use other technologies – like book-making and tactile arts because they are pretty cool too and because they still play a role in their lives.

Like I wrote at the beginning of this lengthy comment – great post!

cheers,
tracy

Comment by Tracy 08.06.07

What I hear Tracy stating is that we need not abandon traditionally accepted creative tools in favor of all things “Webby.” If you will remember from my Giving Up the Ghost article, I stated that Web 2.0 is as much a creative philosophy as it is a collection of technologies. Tracy is absolutely correct. I mean, think about it. Some of humankind’s most stunning innovations reference at least one landmark iteration that came before them. Throughout our history on this planet, one style or school of thought has built upon another, sometimes leaving the former behind – sometimes incorporating it into something familiar,yet altogether new. We have only to look at the Renaissance to find an example of this. The very word means “new birth,” and the period itself is wrought with artists, sculptors, and architects responsible for some of the world’s most famous creations who accomplished greatness by looking at the Classical past. From a technological perspective we can ask ourselves: How many wooden plows were made and refined before John Deere crafted the world’s first successful steel version?

How many of us have been in a school for more than a couple of years and have had to experience a new “flavor of the month” teaching methodology or system of tools for each of those years? I would urge us to remember Tracy’s point as we embrace the Web 2.0 philosophy. Move forward with blogs, wikis, podcasting, and screencasting with reckless abandon, but do take a moment to pull out a few trusty non-Webby tools should they prove useful in supplementing some of your ‘wired’ activities.

Closing Thoughts…

What do you think? Is there value in looking back to past teaching styles or methods? In what ways can you think to integrate classic or traditional creative practices with Web 2.0 technology? As you ponder your answer, take a look at Tracy’s Understanding the Machine post, which relays how she used a combination of traditional and Web 2.0 teaching methods to reach students no one else thought were reachable! Great work, Tracy. And thanks again for your comment.

Technorati Tags: web 2.0, applied arts, fine arts, creativity

At a time when I am about to embark upon my first year of teaching with Web 2.0 technology, I really value these posts and podcasts. I value them because I am learning as much from their content as I am in the way Mr. Fryer delivers them. As a lifelong learner, I am doing my best to take down salient points, ideas, lessons, and techniques that I feel will result in my becoming a better teacher. This recent series of posts by Mr. Fryer surely fits the bill.

In his August 6, 2007 podcast entitled: Strive to Engage Not Enthrall, Fryer does a great job of juxtaposing the standard ‘old school’ teaching methodology with one that follows Web 2.0’s collaborative and participatory style. Listen to his “voice of the old school teacher” as it speaks “at” students telling them exactly how they are supposed to behave and to what degree they will be controlled. Sound familiar? I am sad to say that I have been guilty of teaching in this manner. Yes, I may have tried to be a bit more entertaining and to deliver my words with a bit more finesse. But to quote Led Zeppelin…for those of us who fail to see a need to change within ourselves… The Song Remains the Same. As Fryer puts it, we have to stop trying to “capture” or “enslave” our students for their prescribed “stint” in our class (you know, before their mad dash for the door begins…leaving scraps of paper and a cloud of dust whirling in a small but well defined pathway to sweet, sweet freedom?). Rather, we must encourage them to become active participants in the learning experience and to want to take ownership of that experience by tying it to things that are unique and meaningful to them.

Mr. Fryer ends his podcast by challenging us all to transform our teaching style from one that is captivating to one that encourages them to investigate their passions and aspire to creative participation. His words say it best:

Fryer: “Invite students to collaborate with each other to create authentic knowledge products which reflect their true understanding, perceptions, and mastery of the subject being studied. Devise assessments, and have students help devise assessments for themselves, which cannot be “faked.” A worksheet or a study guide will not suffice. Invite students to conduct interviews and put together a short video documentary. Invite students to create an animation which illustrates a concept visually as well as auditorially. Invite students to collaboratively create and author a wiki-based document with other students in a classroom across the continent or across the world, about a topic in which they are interested and want to explore further. Not sure what a wiki-document is? Ask and find out! Invite your students to help!”

The challenge to modify one’s teaching style is massive, and it is often coupled with the fear of failure spurred on by our mandate to meet the aims of our curriculum and/or high stakes testing. As I head into the beginning of the school year, there are most definitely times when my thoughts range from impassioned excitability and eagernesses to the fear that my efforts may be met with administrative friction or that I won’t be able to get my Moodle class and blog/podcasting efforts past the “rumbling, stumbling, bumbling” stage. In these moments, I turn to my network of fellow Web 2.0 teachers, and I seek out the wise advice of people like Wes Fryer who speak from the standpoint of having been there.

What hopes and fears do you have as a Web 2.0 teacher? Where or to whom do you look for guidance and inspiration? Drop a line and let me know.

Technorati Tags: collaborative teaching, web 2.0, engage