Introduction
When I embarked upon the learning journey that was to be
this course, I had several goals. I
wanted to increase my own comfort level with Web 2.0 tools, so that I could
more effectively integrate their use into my classroom practice. I wanted my use of Web 2.0 tools in the
classroom to lead to rich, meaningful, and curricularly-linked learning for my
students. I also wanted to explore ways
to teach my students to be active participants in the Web 2.0 world, while still
being safe, responsible, and resourceful.
While I had used some Web 2.0 tools in my classroom in the past, I had
had mixed results, and wanted to increase my knowledge and competence, so that
my future technological efforts would be more successful. I chose several tools that I intended to
explore, but I was fully aware that it was a fluid list, and kept an open
mind. The blogs and discussions of my
classmates, the readings I did, the needs of my class, and the conversations I
had with my colleagues, all led me to make changes in my list as my inquiry
progressed. In the end, my inquiry led
me to explore some fascinating new (to me) Web 2.0 tools, challenged me to find
ways to integrate technology into my classroom practice in a meaningful way,
and helped me to gain confidence in learning and using new Web 2.0 tools.
Synthesis
of Learning
When this course began, I was an intermediate tech
user. I was comfortable using a range of
technological tools in my classroom, but had concerns about online security and
digital citizenship. I also found that
technology would often be used in schools just for the sake of using
technology, rather than to create a learning opportunity that would not have
existed in a lower-tech environment. I
wanted to find ways to use technology to augment my teaching and my students’
learning. My inquiry project allowed me
to begin to do this.
Over the course of my inquiry, I explored a range of Web
2.0 tools. Some were useful in my
classroom, some allowed me to present materials to my students in interesting
ways, and some engaged me in professional learning. While my blog contains details on my efforts,
successes, and struggles with each Web 2.0 tool that I tried, I can summarize
my experiences by saying that however I used technology with my students, it
engaged them. Technology is the heart of
the world in which my students are growing up, and they are excited when
presented with an opportunity to incorporate pieces of this world into their
school experience.
Brian Kenney, in School
Library Journal, said the following:
For
librarian-teachers, this challenge is even more critical. The new Web is
increasingly the pen and paper for young people. It's one of the places they
experience and create narrative. It's where reading and learning takes place,
where recreational needs are met, communities are formed, and knowledge is
constructed. (Kenney,
2007)
Bearing
this in mind, I was not surprised to find my students highly engaged by technology. I was looking for more than just engagement,
however. I was looking for meaningful
learning.
While my students were engaged by the Web 2.0 tools that
we explored as part of my inquiry, I found that they needed direct instruction
and purposeful feedback if they were to use the tools responsibly and
effectively. Just like when students are
learning a new low-tech skill, students need to be guided in reflection on
their work, and goal-setting for improvement, based on feedback. They need a chance to become familiar with a
Web 2.0 tool, but also with how to interact responsibly and respectfully in an
online environment. My students were at
first sometimes silly, off-task, and even disrespectful to each other when
interacting in an online environment, but with direct instruction, their
digital citizenship improved. I believe
that this learning will transfer to other online areas of their lives. Will Richardson (2010) states that students
are interacting with others on the Web at an earlier and earlier age, and so
they need to be taught the fundamentals of digital citizenship. Students are going to have a digital
footprint, regardless of whether we help them to develop one or not. We can help this to be a positive experience
by modelling respectful, responsible use of Web 2.0 tools, and the development
of a positive online profile. I talked
to my students about my inquiry project, and showed them some of the tools that
I was using and resources that I was creating.
They were intrigued, and I was able to be a positive Web 2.0 role-model.
Perhaps the most important result of my inquiry is that I
became a much more fluent and competent user of Web 2.0 tools, both for my own
personal and professional uses, and in my classroom. I challenged myself to explore new tools,
even when I was sceptical, and I was pleasantly surprised. I began to understand the richness of the
possibilities of the Web 2.0 world.
While there is a lot out there that holds no interest for me, there is
also a lot that is relevant, intriguing, and useful to me. Although I barely scraped the surface of the
Web, I am a lot further along than I was before this inquiry started. While I would still consider myself an
intermediate tech user, I now have a much clearer idea of the possibilities of
the Web 2.0 world, and a much more positive attitude towards them.
Sharing
My Learning
I work in a small school, with a small staff of
open-minded people. Our school is in the
process of updating our technological hardware, and is spending a lot of money
purchasing projectors, iPads, Apple TV, class sets of lap tops, and document
cameras. Because of this, it is
understandable that we would be focussing our professional development and
collaboration on using this technology effectively. So I am in a good position to share my
learning with a group of keen, hard-working teachers. My colleagues and I share ideas, and learn
from each other. My class has a Grade
One class for computer buddies, and my students teach them most things that
they learn. We present our tech products
at assemblies and staff meetings, as well as on our school website. We are learning day by day, and we are
sharing our learning with others whenever we can.
Imagining
the Future
My exploration of the Web 2.0 world does not end with
this course. Our students live in a Web
2.0 world, so we, as teachers, must plan our students’ learning with this in
mind. I have already, since I finished
my blog, set up blogs for each of my students (in the secure environment of
Moodle) on which they will blog as the main character of their novel as they
read for their independent novel study.
I have developed criteria for their blogs, and am working on setting
criteria for them to read and comment on their classmates’ blogs. As I continue in my career, I anticipate that
I will continue to learn and grow. Next
year, our district is apparently going to begin using a programme that will
assign each student a school-specific email address. This would allow my students to access many
of the excellent Web 2.0 tools that I explored in this inquiry, as well as many
that I haven’t yet become familiar with.
Secure email addresses would open a lot of possibilities for my
students. As well as this development,
my school is investing in some exciting technology, and I will need to learn
and grow if I am to incorporate its use effectively into my classroom
practice. The future holds many exciting
possibilities, and I look forward to exploring them with the open mind and the
comfort level that I developed over the course of this inquiry. Berger and Trexler (2010) say that “school
librarians need to become leaders, advocates, and change agents willing to
embrace the digital environment to ensure that students and staff are effective
users of ideas and information” (p 17).
As this course draws to a close, I feel confident that I will be able to
be a leader in my school as my learning journey into the Web 2.0 world
continues.
References
Berger, P., & Trexler, S.
(2010).Choosing Web 2.0 Tools for
Learning and Teaching in a Digital World. Santa
Barbara, CA: Libraries Unlimited.
Kenney, B. (2007). You 2.0. School Library Journal, 53 (1).
Retrieved from http://ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login?url=http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/docvi ew/211823073?accountid=14656
Kist, W. (2010). The Socially Networked Classroom: Teaching
in the New Media Age. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful
Web Tools for Classrooms. Thousand Oaks,
CA: Corwin.
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