W4C Blog 3

In Chapter 10 What it All Means, Richardson perfectly describes our challenge as educators. He points to two key factors affecting this challenge. First, the amount of information online is enormous and is Increasing exponentially. Second, most of the new content and online tools is collaborative in nature, having some feature allowing some type of shared workspace capability.

Before this course, I thought the biggest challenge I faced was how to teach my students to discern a credible source from those which are not. This is still important in light of Chapter Ten’s two points, but now I realize that my task is much greater in breadth and depth. I have to teach my students self discipline in order to effectively and responsibly weld this enormous, ever-expanding body of information. The web is like a tool or even a weapon. Used correctly, it can be very productive, but used improperly it can be very harmful and even destructive. Users need the self discipline to focus on a given task without being distracted by the myriad distractions readily available online.

I have to teach my students good judgement in discerning the credibility of a source, how to use the information they find, how to cite their sources, and how to avoid plagiarism.  Not only do I have to teach them to evaluate the information they find, but also to analyze and apply it in practical ways to solve problems in a real life context. this revelation changes everything we do in our classrooms. There is no time for busy work. We talk about getting students ready for the real world when they are already in the real world- connected to it through technology. We have to embrace the truth that our students, despite their age or maturity level are privy to everything on the net.

I had thought that I was fairly good at networking, but my introduction to using RSS feeds and social bookmarking has revolutionized the way that I view professional and personal networking. The saying that technology is shrinking the globe has taken on new meaning for me. Just in the course of the last two weeks, I have subscribed to blogs and other RSS feeds that have challenged my thinking and inspired me with new ideas for my upcoming new school year.

Samantha’s blog gave some great examples of how social media like Twitter and Tumblr could be used for learning experiences and instruction. This really changed my thinking. I had come to believe that social media was just a giant gimmick and distraction to real educational endeavors and that it should be blocked, filtered, and forbidden in school. However, demonstrating how to use social media productively and responsibly, and even in a manner focused on learning content is by far more important. The greatest tragedy would be if we let our students through our fingers without teaching them how to use technology to effectively network and collaborate with others to share and manipulate information.

On a personal note, I want to thank Dr. Yoon and all of you, my fellow classmates, for making this 516 course truly the most illuminating and inspiring experience of the IDT program.I'm sure I will be running into you all somewhere out there in tech land.

Fellow '1:1 Classroom' Pioneers Unite!

My quest to integrate technology into my classroom instruction culminated this past year in the second year of my pilot of a 1:1 student to device ratio classroom using a class set of Acer Chromebooks and Google Apps and Google Classroom as the main platform. It has been an exciting year, and there have been many changes in these platforms. So, the saying “A rolling stone gathers no moss” certainly applies to Google! However, I have found the official blog for Google Apps for Education at: http://googleforeducation.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default (appears at the bottom left of my blog) to be extremely effective at keeping me abreast of coming changes and updated features. 

Also, I have found that I am not alone in this quest. I have bumped virtual elbows with educators of all persuasions sharing struggles, ideas and solutions. One such teacher is Alice Keeler, who has kept an amazing record of great ideas she had tried and refined in her own classroom. her blog can be found here: http://www.alicekeeler.com/teachertech/feed/ (appears on the bottom right side of my blog.)

 Finally, I sometimes feel lost in a sea of change when I think about how quickly new innovations can completely transform what we do and how we do it. However, there is hope! My experimentation with various RSS feeds and viewing the blogs of many of my colleagues have reminded me that these fascinating new tools have given us the power to collaborate more effectively than ever before. My challenge to all of you is this: Get wired into a network of other tech pioneers. Do virtual classroom visits! Critique one another! Share, swap and collaborate ideas! The result will be a revolution in the how we teach- and the beginning of the kind of instruction our students need and deserve.

Tool of the trade for the 1:1 Classroom

This is the Acer Chromebook

Welcome!

Now that I am at the end of the learning adventure of my Instructional Design and Technology degree at WIU, I asked myself, "How in the world will I keep up with the ever-changing world of technology?" I think the answer lies in collaborating with others who share my passion for using technology to improve and revolutionize instruction to advance student learning.

In this blog, I will share insights, best practices, professional development ideas, cutting edge tools, and new ideas in the field. Feel free to post your thoughts, ideas, breakthroughs, frustrations, etc. to add to the conversation. This approach to collaboration, known as connective writing, is an exciting way to share experiences and advance the field in ways previously unimaginable.

I look forward to an exciting adventure with you.