I haven't finished digesting what blogs could mean to my daily practice (I am still attempting to become a blogger myself) and I have Wikis knocking on my door already. If I ever get questioned about my limited classroom use of a new technology I won't have an answer but a question: "Which new technology: Last summer's new technology, last fall's new technology or this spring's new technology? I need more time to ruminate all this!!
However, in spite of the self-impossed pressure to find applicability to these new technologies as I become aware of them, I can still dream of cool alternatives to traditional instruction using blogs and wikis, the bad news is that I don't think I will actually have the time to master them in order to incorporate them at ease into my practice. While reading Richardson's book "Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms" I could think nothing but how convenient a Wiki could be for the FLES team in Loudoun County. Our annual "Swap workshop" besides saving a few trees, could turn an idea for a lesson into a very innovative learning experience thanks to the collaborative effort of our culturally diverse team. This would be a great exercise to get to master the tool and feel comfortable with its future use in the classroom.
4 comments:
I like the idea of saving trees! I am also struggling to gain enough skills with the new technologies to utilize them in my classroom. My students are already comfortable using the blog in MySpace so it would be nice to channel that knowledge into a more academic arena. Unfortunately, it is not as cool for them to discuss chemistry and physics as it is to comment on what someone wore to school that day or who is dating whom. I suppose, we as the educators, need to think of a clever way to get the students blogging on an authentic problem.
I share your feelings about how blogs and wikis will affect the classroom once the counties discover they are being used and set limits or ban them all together.
I, too, am struggling to keep up with technology. I am intrigued by the concepts, but find little time to explore to the detail I would like.
Well, we will soon have more time to explore the many aspects of the newest technologies for our teacher leadership.
Could you use wikis with pictures to reinforce vocabulary and encourage students to move beyond practicing in class and using their knowledge in a different context? It would be very cool if students from other parts of the world came together on your wiki to commmunicate in Spanish.
Post a Comment