Networks on the Web
Social and Professional.
If we embraced all these networking tools and resources, we wouldn't so much as be leaving a digital footprint so much as a digital Grand Canyon.
I doubt we would get much done either. Not between reading and contributing (having a chat?)I also feel that you can get to the stage that you can't see the woods for the trees. With so much on offer, I guess it is a matter of seeing what works for you, your class, their ability levels and the very real issue of what technology you actually have available in the classroom. Ultimately, this may well be the deciding factor.
Scootle
An oldie but a goodie. It is current and up to date and obviously in line with the National Curriculum. It does kind of put things all in the one place and has many good links to educational resources both here and overseas. I like being able to put things into learning pathways, but there other ways to do this too. Embedding links into a class blog for instance!
I used the Glogster in Module Five to direct my class to Web related learning tasks.
I added a Biteslide slide sequence to my blog. This directed my children to the task I wanted them to complete in reading groups and took them to the You Tube clip I wanted them to see. Unfortunately these slides can't be downloaded at the moment hence the need to embed it somewhere! I used my Prezi in much the same way.
I will admit I haven't used Scootle for a while and had forgotten that it does have good resources and things you can access straight away. I do feel that other sites offer more though. See some of my favourites on the link on the right.
Sometimes having so much to chose from does mean that you forget some older sites. Other sites more 'subject specific' have tended to become favourites.
Second Life - Good for 'bad hair' days...
This was rather 'out there'!! I don't know what I was expecting, but it is quite different to the other networks covered in this module. It would appear that you communicate to and with the world through your avatar. I can see that it would be extremely entertaining and engaging to children and teenagers in particular. It would also mean that if I was running late and didn't quite get the hair and makeup done, I could present a fantastic alter ego to my class!
Some of the avatars and worlds looked a little scary. I chose not to join the site at this point in time.
I did notice that some universities are using the medium and love the thought of a virtual tour through the Sistine Chapel or a quick chat with Shakespeare and some of his characters.
When I saw that Dell provides a virtual tour through the inner workings of a computer, I couldn't help but recall old episodes of The Magic School Bus when a classroom of children are shrunk and explore all manner of things - from the inside of a volcano to the circulatory system of a child with a cold...
It does seem that educational institutions are just beginning to supply content so I will wait and see. In the meantime, I will use virtual tours that are not quite so interactive and I won't be throwing away my Magic School Bus DVD's just yet.
This and related sites just get bigger and bigger. The time some individuals spend on it is quite scary too.
It seems to be a way for many to self promote and feed their egos. People measure each other's popularity by just how many people 'like' what they've written/done/said/looked like...
As the bulk of companies - even local area Police Stations - do have Facebook sites, it is an easy way to share and receive information about safety, recalls, products and so on, but it is predominantly used for chatting. Nothing wrong with that, but do we really need to share with the world every nuance of our lives as so many do?
I have seen teenage nieces post photos of their belly buttons... Saw another person take time out on Christmas Day to announce to the world that they didn't like Christmas Pudding... Maybe it's just me but....
It can be used by mothers desperate for help with a homework task (I've heard that one in the playground!!) or checking on a planned excursion and missing note. That's fine, but do we really need to see pictures of children being toilet trained? Cute for the family album maybe, but perhaps in twenty years, quite mortifying for the individual concerned.
There is not too much point in discussing the issues of privacy and the dangers of Facebook, digital footprints and so on, as they are continually discussed in the media.
The real use of Facebook in the classroom is to discuss it as an example of how to be safe on the internet and be careful of what you say and post. We are not permitted to use it in our diocese anyway and that could well be because the CEO doesn't see it as a valuable learning tool either.
I did end up joining Twitter in this module. Better late, saw no great need for it in the primary classroom...
Many schools do have Twitter accounts as a way of disseminating information quickly and efficiently. Saves trying to listen to the radio to work out if a sports carnival is still on or not due to rain.
I joined up to some news and newspaper sites. Given the fact that information is kept brief is good, but as it only hangs around for a short time, if you are really interesting in following some educational Tweet, you may well miss out on something good -and you can't stop a hundred times a day to check every new notification.
I did think it was used in a novel way to share information in class between individuals, but it really is technology dependent. Fine in a high school where many children would have mobile devices, in a primary classroom with a few computers, it's use is limited at best.
Again the You Tube clip suggested it's use a sharing medium for all those little personal moments of your life. Like the cup of coffee you are enjoying. Why not just enjoy the coffee with the person you are with? Another site used this type of desperate need to share every bit of your life as an open invitation to any potential burglar in your extended circle (who you may well not even know) to seize the opportunity to clean your house out.
Linked In
Doesn't look bad for teachers and net working, but I like Scoop It and following other teachers with similar interests through that medium, blogs and Pinterest.
On these virtual pin boards, we can all share a wealth of ideas and collections with each other. I feel no great desire to enter into discussions about my vegemite sandwich lunch and get to know complete strangers by joining chat sites.
I am hard pressed fitting things in to my day as it is.
Let's share resources, we don't need to share our lives with the world.
I like to add to my collection of information and sites to make my life easier. I enjoy sharing this too. For that reason, I have added additional posts with sites I have discovered that would be useful in the Primary classroom. I don't feel the need to add to my virtual 'friend' collection....
That could well make me a 21st Century Leper!
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