Task: #1: Blog Posting Web 2.0
I agree with the statement by authors Schechtman, DeBarger, Dornsife, Rosier, & Yarnell (2013) concerning giving students an opportunity to include technology and Web 2.0 tools to reach their full potential. Technology is a multi-faceted tool that has endless possibilities for not only our students, but for our future. Technology can branch out and impact all of our lives on a daily basis. As teachers we see the need to provide our students with engaged learning activities that are authentic, emphasize critical thinking skills, and offer our students differentiated instruction. Authors Solomon & Schrum stated, “Web-based tools offer new potential for learning” (p.10). By giving our students access to these tools we are opening the doors to our students becoming inquirers, communicators, reflective and balanced individuals, open-minded, and caring, which will help them be able to function in our ever changing society.
There are several tools that I am interested in learning more about and how they can positively impact my students and my teaching. Learning about these three tools will be an added bonus for my Capstone project too. I’ll be able to take this information and share it with my students as well as my teachers. The three tools are: presentation and video-editing tools, video sharing, and infographics. The presentation and video-editing tools and infographics will also add more variety for my student’s final products. On a side note, I’ve always noticed how teachers have used video sharing and I’m intrigued. I’m not sure if that’s something I’m interested in, but I do want to learn more about it. Using Web 2.0 tools in my classroom has always had a positive impact on my teaching. My students enjoy the freedom and creativity that Web 2.0 tools are able to offer them. It also increases their collaboration, understanding and interest in their assignments because it fosters student engagement.
Using Web 2.0 tools in our classrooms is going to continue to have a tremendous impact on our students. Unfortunately, there are several barriers that are going to impact its growth in our schools. We all understand the importance of integrating these tools, but sometimes change is slow moving. Some systems are going to be hindered by funding, bandwidth, access, and even providing the proper teacher training needed to keep up with these changing skills. We are going to have to find some innovative ways to make sure that we are fostering a technology rich learning environment for our students. Web 2.0 tools can be used to support all of our students including students with diverse learning needs. Some of these tools are able to provide our ELL students with English translations, speech tools, and even podcasts for extra listening practice. Teachers are able to use these tools to provide differentiated lessons that they would have not been able to do without it. All of the Web 2.0 tools provide a great opportunity for all of our students to develop, create, and share their work.
Task #2: Internet Research on Evaluating Student Blogs
Links: http://edtechteacher.org/assessment/
http://chronicle.com/blogs/profhacker/how-are-you-going-to-grade-this-evaluating-classroom-blogs/24935
The Edtechteacher article provided a great amount of resources to help guide educators as they are assessing student assignments. The article was mainly focused on one question, “How do I grade these activities and projects that have technology integrated in them?” It was discussed that these projects are no different than the traditional paper pencil projects. The only difference between these projects is the unique opportunities that can be created using technology. For example, using hypertext, including a video, or even adding an avatar to it. This article also includes several resources to get teachers started assessing these projects. There are a variety of links that give educators help creating rubrics for assessing websites, wikis, digital storytelling projects, etc. The second article by ProfHacker picks right up where the first article left off at. It also gives guidance for evaluating student blogs. For example, the author identifies key components to look for in your student’s blogs. Many of the criteria is centered around thoughtful and well written responses, original ideas, using multimedia, and responding to peers.
Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2014). Web 2.0 How-To For Educators. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.
Student Blog Rubric: