New Horizons

taken from Flickr.com,  www.flickr.com/photos/urbmtl/3867283811/

Embarking on this journey, I took my first steps with trepidation and wondered in which direction to head.  Reminds me of a family trip to the Gaspe.  One day when looking for hiking trails, we came across one that climbed the edge of limestone cliffs, and lead to an observation tower almost 1 000 feet above sea level.  Because of shin splints, I wasn’t too sure whether I could achieve such a feat, but I tried just the same.  Although painful at times, I carried on and we reached our destination.  What a breathtaking view!  It certainly provided quite a different perspective of the coast from that at sea level.  Although I questioned by times whether what I was doing was such a good idea, I was well rewarded and felt eager to carry on and explore further trails.  Very much like my experience with this course.  There were several times I was faced with challenges and wondered whether I could continue.  But now that the end of the course is upon us, I realize just how far I have come, how much I have grown and learned and how energized I feel to further explore these tools and to integrate them into my own teaching... and learning.

Learning by doing... the premise for this course.  In fact, the premise for everything this course is about...    the use of Web 2.0 tools in the classroom to develop digital literacy skills which include communication, collaboration, and reflection.  Here's a snapshot of my learning, including highlights, lowlights, AHA moments and future plans...

Photo sharing

Highlights

1.  Photo sharing tools allow you to create albums and multimedia shows that can be shared

2.  Flickr.com -  A site for storing and sharing photos and videos.  Provides an annotate feature where you may add notes to parts of the image

3.  Smilebox.com – An online slideshow tool which has fun, animated templates to choose from

Lowlights

1.  Creativity limited.  Inexperience working with digital cameras, few resources to choose from

2.  Overlooked idea of editing and adjusting images before uploading

3.  Tried Kizoa.com but had difficulty downloading pictures

Future Learning/Integration into Classroom

1.  Further explore use of Flickr, particularly the Creative Commons, how it can launch learning activities and conversations

2.  Check out Bubblr.com (a tool where you can make comic strips from photos and dialogue with thought bubbles) for use in class

Video sharing

Highlights

1.  Video sharing tools are valuable in that they provide a different medium for learning and demonstrating learning

2.  Both YouTube.com and TeacherTube.com are video-sharing sites on which users can upload, share and view videos.

3.  Although there are some contentious issues with YouTube, teachers may easily embed videos into blogs and wikis so students may navigate safely

4.  Use Windows Movie Maker 2.1 to create movies.  Use Mydeo.com as a link to show your videos on a website

Lowlights

1.  Again had limited amount of video footage to use to create a video.

2.  Took some time “fiddling” to customize text within the video

 Future Learning/Integration into Classroom

1.  Look further into possibilities of video sharing i.e. StoryTubes as a book trailer to showcase students’ learning; documenting interviews; My Community Project

Social Bookmarking

Highlights

1.  Bookmarking tools provide a “method for internet users to organize, store, manage and search for bookmarks of resources online” (Wikipedia)

2.  AHA! A valuable alternative to “My Favourites”.  The “online” feature provides much better access to resources, particularly when you are not able to work on your home computer.

3.  Using Diigo.com, one can easily bookmark sites, highlight important information and add tags for quick retrieval.  Group feature allows you to share resources with others

4.  Evernote provides an additional feature, allowing users to preview homepage of bookmarked link.

Lowlights

1.  Explored tools but did not put them into practise

2.  Regarding Evernote, was unable to find how to share resources, other than through email.

Future Learning/Integration into the Classroom

1.  Make more of an attempt to use social bookmarking sites for managing research

2.  Look further into connecting with others that have similar interests and can share/be part of group

3.  Explore teaching students how to use this tool in their own inquiries.

Podcasting

Highlights

1.  Another valuable medium for learning and sharing knowledge.  An effective evaluation tool whereby students may self-evaluate their own efforts.

2.  Audacity is a free, open source software for recording and editing sounds which is free to use and has room for much creativity

3.  CCmixter.org provides royalty free music clips that may be embedded into podcasts

4.  Podomatic.com transferred audio files into a podcast relatively easily.

Lowlights

1. Could create audio files but had difficulty transferring into a podcast.   School computers would not permit me to download features (like Quick Time) to listen to or create MP3 files.  This part had to be done at home.

Future Learning/Integration into Classroom

1.  Seize opportunities to create podcasts with students i.e. as a testimonial to their learning of how to play a recorder.   “Students (who) eagerly and actively participate in the creation of content-rich podcasts and those who publish their podcasts publicly are quickly connected to the world community in ways never before possible” (E.K. Eash, 2006, p. 18).

Wikis

Highlights

1.  One of my favourite Web 2.0 tools.  Wikis invite collaboration;  content is easily organized but still has room for creativity; features may be added such as images, videos, links; layout and design may be customized; demonstrates learning; promotes discussion

2.  Wikispaces is easy to navigate

Lowlights

1.  Other than issues of embedding features onto wikis, have had very positive experiences

Future Learning/Integration into the Classroom

1.  Explore further use of/creation of wikis both with students and colleagues

2.  With increased personal use of Wikipedia, teach students about Wikipedia and how to use it wisely

3.  Research wiki etiquette, principles and elements of usage and fair use of multimedia products

Presentation/Multimedia Sharing

Highlights

1.  Multimedia tools allow for creative use of a combination of different content forms i.e., text, audio, images, animation, and video

2.  Animoto  is a “shockingly easy” tool which creates a video montage of photos, video clips, and music.

3.  Glogster provides a unique and engaging way of creating interactive posters.

4.  Thoroughly enjoyed playing with these tools and can only imagine how much students would enjoy interacting with them.

Lowlights

1.  Must seek special permission from school board to download software (i.e. Flash Player)

2.  Sometimes encountered difficulties watching videos.  With several patrons still using dial up, this may be an issue of

Future Learning/Integration into the Classroom

1.  Explore other presentation/multimedia tools such as Prezi, VoiceThread and Google Earth

2.  Look for opportunities for students to use Glogster.  Explore Glogster Edu further to create student accounts.

Social Networking

Highlights

1.  Social networking refers to connecting with others online through platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.  “. . . these platforms usually involve some kind of grouping... and forming networks that range in size and scope from the very small and personal to the vast, international, and professional” (Kist, 2010, p. 2)

2.  Teacher Library Ning  and Shelfari both provide excellent opportunites to connect with others who have common interests

Lowlights

1.  School board denies access to Facebook

2..  Challenges in participating on a regular basis as computer lab must be shared with the entire school

Future Learning/Integration into the Classroom

1.  For professional purposes, be more of an active participant on both Shalfari and TLNing (i.e. take part in TL Cafe

2.  Research ways for students to share personal reading, find book reviews of others, through Shelfari or Scholastic’s new social networking site, You Are What You Read

Twitter

Highlights

1.  “Twitter is an online social network that asks participants to update their “followers” as to what they are doing in fewer than 140 characters” (Kist, 2010, p. 3).

2.  AHA!  To help meet the 140 character limit, use symbols and sites such as TinyURL or BIT.LY to shorten links

3.  Use TweetDeck to help organize and channel tweets in columns so they are easier to follow

4.  With some creativity, Twitter can be used within the classroom as a means of engaging students in their learning; connecting and collaborating with others; showcasing their learning

Lowlights

1.  Due to personal time management issues and poor internet connections, I did not participate fully and was unable to grasp the capabilities of Twitter

Future Learning/Integration into the Classroom

1.  Make an effort to continue to “tweet” and build “followers” as a means of connecting and learning from others.

Blogging and RSS feeds

Highlights

1.  Blogs are similar to websites in that they present information but are different in that others may respond/comment on this information and a conversation may ensue.

2.  Platforms such as Blogger may be customized to include various multimedia tools

3.  Blogging may also act as an online diary whereby writers may reflect on things such as their thinking, their learning, or thir ideas.

4.  Google Reader is an invaluable tool which collects RSS feeds (albeit from other bloggers or news feeds) to help manage information one is interested in following

Lowlights

1.  Even with the help of an aggregator, there is still a vast amount of information to sift through

2.  Experienced challenges in sharing personal thoughts with others in a “public” online setting

Future Learning/Integration into the Classroom

1.  I plan to make time to continue to follow bloggers as a means of professional development

2.  I champion the efforts of Kristie to develop a class blog (Way to go Kristie... keep it up!).  I plan to speak with my principal to discuss the possibility of my class creating its own class blog.

3.  Although this has been an invaluable experience and I see the rewards of blogging, I will take some time to reflect on where I will go from here, personally.

Learning from Fellow Classmates

Courses such as these reinforce the power of interacting with others.  Discussions with fellow classmates have not only provided me with some valuable links and ideas that will help in my teaching but discussions also raised questions and challenged me to ponder my own thinking about my teaching.  Discussions on reading and writing on the internet have prompted me to step back and rethink my approach to teaching these subjects.  Considering our new digital era and how students are now consuming information and producing information (or publishing), allowances need to be made in the classroom to help students meet the needs as the 21^st century learners... to become better citizens of the world.

Sharing my Learning with Colleagues

Many of my colleagues feel quite overwhelmed with the idea of integrating technology into their classrooms, just as I did.  With the increasing demands of the curriculum, lack of support at the administrative level and a shortage of computers in the classroom, fellow colleagues are not prepared to meet that challenge.

Susan Boss (2008) outlines some very helpful, practical suggestions on how teachers may confront these hurdles.  Here’s how I see these suggestions applying to my situation:

1.  Innovate with the tools you already have

              - Do the best with what we have

              - Design professional development projects to allow time for developing ideas on how best to integrate technology into our classrooms

2.  Seek out free, easy-to-use tool digital resources

              - Continue to seek webcasts, podcasts and other vehicles for professional development

3.  Overcome fear... learn from one another... see what other educators are teaching in different ways

              -  I like the idea of creating rituals.  Ask principal to set aside “short” bits of time to give teachers time to show something cool the students have done

              - Choose a favourite unit (i.e. hockey) and collaborate with a fellow colleague to see how we could “infuse” technology into the learning

4.  Small, Fast Projects

              - With a need to be successful early, I could share some Multimedia/Presentation tools with staff that are easy to use and may be integrated into various subjects at different levels

5.  Learn side by side with students

              - Give students the opportunity to share what they know, what they are passionate about and be open to learn alongside them

Finally, looking out from the top of the observation tower, I view the horizon from a different perspective.  To my left and right are many new hills to conquer.  And behind me are the thousands of steps that brought me to this new place.  I am exhilarated with my accomplishments and with my new knowledge, I look forward to scaling the next mountain!

.

 References

Boss, S. (2008).  Overcoming technology barriers:  How to innovate without extra money or support.  Edutopia.  Retrieved online from http://www.edutopia.org/technology-how-to-implement-classroom

Eash, E.K. (2006).  Podcasting 101 for K – 12 librarians.  Computers in Education, vol. 26, no. 4, p. 16-21.

Kist, @.  The socially networked classroom:  Teaching in the new media age.  Thousand Oaks, CA:  Corwin.

Richardson, W.  Blogs, wikis, podcasts and other powerful web tools for classrooms.  Thousand Oaks, CA:  Corwin.