Warlick, David (2009, March/April). Grow Your Personal Learning Network. Learning and Leading with Technology, Retrieved March 30, 2009, from
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Publications/LL/LLIssues/Volume3620082009/MarchAprilNo6/36612w.pdf
According to Davide Warlick, personal learning networks (PLN) have always been around. It’s just that before we thought of them as the people we knew and trusted for information, along with textbooks, magazines, and periodicals. We’ve been digitally connected for a while.
What’s different about today is that we now have digital tools that help us shape how we get that information so that it better serves our individual needs and we are not overwhelmed by information we get. In this new model, we are not just talking about a “destination for information.” The learning is interactive and constantly responding to new input. It’s a more organic learning environment that connects, engages, and empowers people. For example, Warlick posts something on Twitter about PLNs and shortly after is inundated with over 30 responses pointing him in the direction of different tools and sites or lesson ideas.
Warlick identifies the different ways we are connected through our PLNs. First, we have synchronous connections (in real time) that we personally maintain with new tools, such as: chat, text messaging, teleconferencing, twitter, and virtual worlds. Second, there are personal and social semisynchronous connections (collaborations not necessarily in real time) that are “nearly now” or “back and forth” communication. Examples of that are texting, Twitter, Facebook profiles, and questions that are not directed only to one person, but that can also be sent out to a community. Third are asynchronous connections such as the RSS aggregator that feeds and organizes the information directly to you from such sources as, blogs, videos, social bookmarking tools, pod casts, wikis, reports, news and blog searches, or journal articles.
In order to truly act as 21st Century facilitators in connecting our students to the world they are learning about, teachers need to be using these tools and creating learning networks themselves. If we are to prepare students for an uncertain and ever changing future, they need to know how to teach themselves and how to manage a variety of resources to stay up to speed.
What are some tips to organizing a PLN so that it’s simple and effective?
Limit the number of blogs you subscribe to--start small. Warlick suggests organizing subscriptions by topic or job function and creating folders that are organized based on how often you prefer to access them (everyday, once a week, once a month). It’s a good idea to switch it off or ignore sometimes.
What are things to keep in mind when creating a PLN?
There is a responsibility inherent in the creation of our learning networks, since we are connected to other networks as well. A PLN can be limited in its perspective and scope because of the individual limitations of who is involved and because we tend to gravitate towards people who are likeminded. This could limit the diversity of thought or resources available. We need to be consciously aware of creating learning networks that challenge our assumptions and our frames of reference.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Journal 8: Wikis NETS-T (5) Artifact
A wiki is a collaborative website. It can be a single webpage or a collection of web pages where users who have access to it can post and edit content. It’s a place for creating and browsing through information, a kind of database that’s easy to create and update. The individual wiki pages are connected to each other through hyperlinks. The collection of the pages is the wiki itself. The most familiar wiki is, of course, wikipedia.
Wikis can be designed for private access by a select group of users, for example a business or classroom. In the classroom it is a natural tool for project work and cooperative learning. A group or the entire class can collaborate on a wiki. For example, a class could develop a wiki site based on a work of literature, as one class did on the book, The Kite Runner. The site includes information about the author, the setting (Afghanistan), themes, and significant quotes.
Here are some ideas to keep in mind when using wikis in the classroom that I gleaned from the Classroom 2.0 wiki tools thread, “Examples of Collaborative Project Wikis,” posted by Tanya Travis on February 2, 2009:
“We did the wikis mentioned above with up to 20 kids writing, typing, linking and adding pictures at the same time. We, my co-teacher and I, co-ordinated the saving. NO one saved until we told them to. Even though it's not the best option some of the typing can be done in Word while others are working on the wiki …”--Nancy Bosch
“I learned the hard way that if more than one student tries to edit a page at the same time only the first person who clicks on to the page will actually save. I also get around saving problems by having students work on different pages in the wiki” --Tanya Travis
“The easiest way to avoid the editing issues with multiple students is to create individual pages for each student. One of our teachers had her students doing a project on artifacts so we created an "artifacts" page and then each student created a link on that page to their own individual page where they will upload their information. This allows all of the students to go to the lab together and work on their project….”
--Mary Bless
If you need help starting a wiki, there were a couple of websites discussed on Classroom 2.0 that looked helpful. Wetpaint is a free resource that provides features from wikis, blogs forums, and social networks to help you create a collaborative social website. Wikispaces offers up to 2 GB of free wiki hosting in its basic package along with standard and WYSIWYG editing features.
For more ideas on how wikis can be used in the classroom, see other resources bookmarked on my “wikis” delicious tag (Wiki in a K-12 Classroom and Wikis in the Classroom).
Wikis can be designed for private access by a select group of users, for example a business or classroom. In the classroom it is a natural tool for project work and cooperative learning. A group or the entire class can collaborate on a wiki. For example, a class could develop a wiki site based on a work of literature, as one class did on the book, The Kite Runner. The site includes information about the author, the setting (Afghanistan), themes, and significant quotes.
Here are some ideas to keep in mind when using wikis in the classroom that I gleaned from the Classroom 2.0 wiki tools thread, “Examples of Collaborative Project Wikis,” posted by Tanya Travis on February 2, 2009:
“We did the wikis mentioned above with up to 20 kids writing, typing, linking and adding pictures at the same time. We, my co-teacher and I, co-ordinated the saving. NO one saved until we told them to. Even though it's not the best option some of the typing can be done in Word while others are working on the wiki …”--Nancy Bosch
“I learned the hard way that if more than one student tries to edit a page at the same time only the first person who clicks on to the page will actually save. I also get around saving problems by having students work on different pages in the wiki” --Tanya Travis
“The easiest way to avoid the editing issues with multiple students is to create individual pages for each student. One of our teachers had her students doing a project on artifacts so we created an "artifacts" page and then each student created a link on that page to their own individual page where they will upload their information. This allows all of the students to go to the lab together and work on their project….”
--Mary Bless
If you need help starting a wiki, there were a couple of websites discussed on Classroom 2.0 that looked helpful. Wetpaint is a free resource that provides features from wikis, blogs forums, and social networks to help you create a collaborative social website. Wikispaces offers up to 2 GB of free wiki hosting in its basic package along with standard and WYSIWYG editing features.
For more ideas on how wikis can be used in the classroom, see other resources bookmarked on my “wikis” delicious tag (Wiki in a K-12 Classroom and Wikis in the Classroom).
Inspiration NETS-T (1) Standards for Teachers 1-5 Artifact
This is a graphic organizer that I created using Inspiration 8 to show the Nets for teachers standards and how I've met them through various artifacts. It includes a hyperlink to the NETS-T standards at the ISTE website on my center graphic. It models creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness. It could be used as a collaborative tool as well to clarify students' conceptual understanding, thinking, planning, and creative processes.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Journal #5 Collaboration in a Web 2.0 Environment
Bull, Glen (2006, April). Collaboration in a Web 2.0 Environment.
Learning and Leading with Technology, Retrieved March11, 2009, from
http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=April_No_7_&Template=/MembersOnly.cfm&ContentFileID=2642
In a Web 2.0 environment the information comes to you as portions of websites are hosted on other sites. This is known as web syndication or RSS which means “Really Simple Syndication.” Look for those orange icons on websites. This new development is encouraging more collaboration in the classroom and affecting the business, social, and entertainment worlds. Sites with RSS feeds function as live bookmarks that are automatically updated as new material appears.” Web-based readers are especially useful, a person can follow a web feed from any internet connection.
Soon almost every application will probably have RSS capability designed into it.
Bloglines a web-based reader that had been around for a while. If a teacher uses it to follow a group of blogs, the web feeder collects them all together in one spot, which makes his or her job much easier.
Syndication also makes it easier to follow topics in the news. For example, I was glad to see the New York Times and the Washington Post have RSS feeds for popular topics they cover. FeedDigest is a service that can put Web feeds on a class Web page. The page is automatically updated with the latest news on favorite topics as it’s visited. This is what is meant by the Web coming to you. As a news junkie I will be exploring these services.
Questions:
People concerned about technology worry that students are checking their skills at the classroom door. How is RSS helping to overcome that?
According to the Pew Foundation three in five teenagers have blogs or other online content. Blogs are becoming more popular with teenagers as a way to stay in touch and create friendship networks. By integrating blogs into class work students can use these skills they already have and they won’t have to dumb-down for class. RSS feeds can help track multiple student postings, help students collaborate, share images, and follow related news topics. It also helps the teachers follow the multiple blogs of their students.
What are some other good Web 2.0 tools out there to help with syndication and collaboration?
Writely, a web based word processor, allows students to jointly edit a document. Afterwards they click a Writely “blog” button and immediately post it for others to review. Flicker has RSS feeds that make class projects easier. Student establish common descriptor tags for photos so new images can be viewed in the news reader once they are posted by members of the group.
Learning and Leading with Technology, Retrieved March11, 2009, from
http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=April_No_7_&Template=/MembersOnly.cfm&ContentFileID=2642
In a Web 2.0 environment the information comes to you as portions of websites are hosted on other sites. This is known as web syndication or RSS which means “Really Simple Syndication.” Look for those orange icons on websites. This new development is encouraging more collaboration in the classroom and affecting the business, social, and entertainment worlds. Sites with RSS feeds function as live bookmarks that are automatically updated as new material appears.” Web-based readers are especially useful, a person can follow a web feed from any internet connection.
Soon almost every application will probably have RSS capability designed into it.
Bloglines a web-based reader that had been around for a while. If a teacher uses it to follow a group of blogs, the web feeder collects them all together in one spot, which makes his or her job much easier.
Syndication also makes it easier to follow topics in the news. For example, I was glad to see the New York Times and the Washington Post have RSS feeds for popular topics they cover. FeedDigest is a service that can put Web feeds on a class Web page. The page is automatically updated with the latest news on favorite topics as it’s visited. This is what is meant by the Web coming to you. As a news junkie I will be exploring these services.
Questions:
People concerned about technology worry that students are checking their skills at the classroom door. How is RSS helping to overcome that?
According to the Pew Foundation three in five teenagers have blogs or other online content. Blogs are becoming more popular with teenagers as a way to stay in touch and create friendship networks. By integrating blogs into class work students can use these skills they already have and they won’t have to dumb-down for class. RSS feeds can help track multiple student postings, help students collaborate, share images, and follow related news topics. It also helps the teachers follow the multiple blogs of their students.
What are some other good Web 2.0 tools out there to help with syndication and collaboration?
Writely, a web based word processor, allows students to jointly edit a document. Afterwards they click a Writely “blog” button and immediately post it for others to review. Flicker has RSS feeds that make class projects easier. Student establish common descriptor tags for photos so new images can be viewed in the news reader once they are posted by members of the group.
Journal #4 Create, Collaborate, Communicate: Empowering Students with 21st Century Skills
Riedel, Chris (2009, January). Create, Collaborate, Communicate: Empowering Students with 21st Century Skills. T.H.E. Journal, Retrieved March 10,2009, from
http://www.thejournal.com/articles/23872_2
Apparently education is riding a horse and buggy into the 21st Century. This the article by Chris Riedel, which covers a speech given by Howie DiBlasi, recently at FETC 2009 has some sobering information,. According to the United States Department of Commerce the education sector ranks 55 in IT savvy--below coal mining (ouch!).
Diblasi is a retired district CIO on an evangelical mission. He would like to see the students more “at the center of the stage.” Educators should be developing students into editors and collaborators, not only readers and writers of content. This is what employers want, according to DiBlasi. He refers to a survey of 50 corporations, organizations, and small businesses that revealed the three most important things employers look for when recruiting: creative problem solving, critical and analytical thinking, and information gathering and evaluation. He warns against a system that lets students check their “robust” computer skills at the door when they enter the classroom.
He outlines 16 ways educators can better prepare students:
1.Hug a geek. Get help from those who thrive in the digital world.
2.Create a social network
3.Challenge students to develop problem solving skills
4.Collaborate on GoogleDocs
5.Use project-based learning
6.Teach them to evaluate sources
7. Encourage them to collaborate with other students globally
8. Discover RSS as a way to collect and publish information in a standardized format
9. Improve critical thinking skills
10. Teach them to be self-directed
11. Get a variety of disciplines collaborating together, as in a school blog.
12. Social bookmarking
13. Interactive video conferencing
14. Integrate Web 2.0 tools
15. Promote 1:1 computing
16. Staff development
Questions:
What does he mean by hug a geek?
Get help from those people who thrive in the digital world. If you’re struggling, find a mentor.
How can teaching kids to be “Self-directed” help them succeed?
It teaches them to push projects through to completion. They get the work done regardless of the tools of production. They are more dedicated to get things done when they are excited about the final product.
http://www.thejournal.com/articles/23872_2
Apparently education is riding a horse and buggy into the 21st Century. This the article by Chris Riedel, which covers a speech given by Howie DiBlasi, recently at FETC 2009 has some sobering information,. According to the United States Department of Commerce the education sector ranks 55 in IT savvy--below coal mining (ouch!).
Diblasi is a retired district CIO on an evangelical mission. He would like to see the students more “at the center of the stage.” Educators should be developing students into editors and collaborators, not only readers and writers of content. This is what employers want, according to DiBlasi. He refers to a survey of 50 corporations, organizations, and small businesses that revealed the three most important things employers look for when recruiting: creative problem solving, critical and analytical thinking, and information gathering and evaluation. He warns against a system that lets students check their “robust” computer skills at the door when they enter the classroom.
He outlines 16 ways educators can better prepare students:
1.Hug a geek. Get help from those who thrive in the digital world.
2.Create a social network
3.Challenge students to develop problem solving skills
4.Collaborate on GoogleDocs
5.Use project-based learning
6.Teach them to evaluate sources
7. Encourage them to collaborate with other students globally
8. Discover RSS as a way to collect and publish information in a standardized format
9. Improve critical thinking skills
10. Teach them to be self-directed
11. Get a variety of disciplines collaborating together, as in a school blog.
12. Social bookmarking
13. Interactive video conferencing
14. Integrate Web 2.0 tools
15. Promote 1:1 computing
16. Staff development
Questions:
What does he mean by hug a geek?
Get help from those people who thrive in the digital world. If you’re struggling, find a mentor.
How can teaching kids to be “Self-directed” help them succeed?
It teaches them to push projects through to completion. They get the work done regardless of the tools of production. They are more dedicated to get things done when they are excited about the final product.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Journal #3 Keep them chatting online
Cole, Jeanie (2009, February). Keep them Chatting. Learning and Leading with Technology, 36 No.5, Retrieved 2/21/09, from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/200902/
Summary
Having problems getting your students to chat in a K-12 online course? Jeanie Cole has several suggestions for how to get them talking. Before starting teachers should plan the objectives and outcomes of each discussion. Her first suggestions is to ask high-level open ended questions that require collaboration where each member is responsible for a portion of the answer and comments on the other student‘s entries. Another approach is to ask them a question that requires research and problem solving and have them report it in Google’s shared documents. Show them an unexplained video clip, photograph, demonstration, or a simulation then pose a question, such as “Where did all the Mayas go?” Have them do detailed research and a group wiki about it. Teachers can pose a survey question like, “discuss the perfect rollercoaster” then have the students create a simulation based on their own specifications. A final suggestion is to use illogical comparisons, such as comparing Guinevere to Miss Piggy. Student can compare and contrast the two in a group wiki then create an Arthurian legend for Miss Piggy.
I thought she had some really creative ideas. I liked how each situation naturally required the student to use a range of skills, do additional research, and collaborate. It’s not easy to get students to go beyond what is required and to avoid the cut and paste mentality. Clearly her position as a manager of digital learning and instruction has given her plenty of experience in this area. I was impressed when she said that they’ve had to extend enrollment for some classes because the kids just keep talking and the discussions were so active and productive.
What psychology does she use to get the students involved?
She says that when students discover content for themselves they take ownership in their work. Also she taps into their sense of pride by allowing other students to view their work.
What ideas can I see myself using in a 9-12 class?
I liked the idea of introducing a lesson with a video clip or another unexplained visual. This could be used in a variety of subject areas. Her idea about comparing Miss Piggy to Guinevere and constructing an Arthurian legend could be adapted by allowing students to choose characters from their favorite T.V. shows.
Summary
Having problems getting your students to chat in a K-12 online course? Jeanie Cole has several suggestions for how to get them talking. Before starting teachers should plan the objectives and outcomes of each discussion. Her first suggestions is to ask high-level open ended questions that require collaboration where each member is responsible for a portion of the answer and comments on the other student‘s entries. Another approach is to ask them a question that requires research and problem solving and have them report it in Google’s shared documents. Show them an unexplained video clip, photograph, demonstration, or a simulation then pose a question, such as “Where did all the Mayas go?” Have them do detailed research and a group wiki about it. Teachers can pose a survey question like, “discuss the perfect rollercoaster” then have the students create a simulation based on their own specifications. A final suggestion is to use illogical comparisons, such as comparing Guinevere to Miss Piggy. Student can compare and contrast the two in a group wiki then create an Arthurian legend for Miss Piggy.
I thought she had some really creative ideas. I liked how each situation naturally required the student to use a range of skills, do additional research, and collaborate. It’s not easy to get students to go beyond what is required and to avoid the cut and paste mentality. Clearly her position as a manager of digital learning and instruction has given her plenty of experience in this area. I was impressed when she said that they’ve had to extend enrollment for some classes because the kids just keep talking and the discussions were so active and productive.
What psychology does she use to get the students involved?
She says that when students discover content for themselves they take ownership in their work. Also she taps into their sense of pride by allowing other students to view their work.
What ideas can I see myself using in a 9-12 class?
I liked the idea of introducing a lesson with a video clip or another unexplained visual. This could be used in a variety of subject areas. Her idea about comparing Miss Piggy to Guinevere and constructing an Arthurian legend could be adapted by allowing students to choose characters from their favorite T.V. shows.
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