After opening up my week four folder I was very surprised to see the topic of this weeks blog- wikis. I consider myself to be pretty good on the computer but I must admit I've never heard of a wiki. After thinking about it I decided to find an article that was just about how wikis worked.
The article I chose is a pretty basic breakdown about what a wiki is and how it works. The article states that a wiki is just a place that allows a group of people to enter and communally edit bits of text, and can be viewed by anyone and even edited by anyone. After reading more and more I saw that the article was really combating a lot of common misconceptions of the wiki and it's overall technological contribution. It was really interesting to actually try out Wikipedia, the largest and most famous wiki, and actually do some changing to articles written. Behind it all though is community. Basically that is how the wiki is run and how it functions.
The effect that the wiki has on teaching and learning is still a little confusing to me. While the wiki is really just an opinion based place to find and input information it still might be able to give students the ability to correct and be corrected. One thing I found out is that the wiki is a relatively safe place to actually go, although one might think otherwise. The community is what pretty much governs the wiki and really protects students or anyone for that matter from porn or otherwise offensive changes.
Personally I don't think that the wiki is a good tool for teaching or students. I think it is great to use as software for a business or organization to add to and make better, but maybe not as good for schools. With that being said, I have to admit that it might have some advantages in the classroom. I like the fact that is a run by the community and students may be able to input information and be virtually corrected within minutes. I also like that a student can really get into the whole community thing and add their own ideas and opinions. It also may be a good place to brainstorm ideas and find links to related info. My biggest drawback is the ability for a student to research something and take what they find as fact. Even though corrections are made pretty fast, there is still the ability to get some wrong information. All in all I think that this technology is a good place to find a good mix of input, perspective and ideas but cannot replace fact.
I think that further investigation would be interesting due to the fact that the wiki is controlled by community. I think it would be interesting to see how the "community" reacts to certain controversial subjects. The article talked about George Bush's page and how so many people were inputting opinions every second. It went on to say though that the community eventually reached a neutrality. All in all I learned a lot of new info on the wiki but am still just a little skeptical.
If you would like to read more about how wikis work feel free to check it out at:
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/wiki.htm
Monday, January 28, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Blog Article
In the Classroom, Web Logs Are the New Bulletin Boards
This week I decided to write about an article on blogging in the classroom. The article begins by talking about how second grade teacher Marisa Dudiak used a web log instead of a traditional discussion to discuss information about the students recent field trip. The article focus's on how blogs are being used in the classrooms as an effective learning tool and points out some of the positives and negatives about this new type of technology.
Blogging or "web logs" are becoming increasingly popular with teachers and in school systems all around the world. Teacher's are seeing that this type of technology really "evens out the playing field" and they are seeing a lot of students that normally don't participate in the classroom, come alive with the use of blogging. Like most technology, there are advantages and disadvantages with blogging. One of the great advantages of blogging is that it gives teachers a chance to prolong the class or as one tech supervisor put it, "with blogs, class doesn't have to end when the bell rings". This gives teachers an opportunity to really get a lot into the limited amount of time they have directly with the students. Another advantage is that students seem to put a lot more effort into their blogs. Since they are on the Internet, there's always a chance parents or other people outside the classroom might read it. Teachers are also really excited about blogging because it encourages student to write more. Some of the drawbacks of blogging are the student getting into a pattern of bad grammar and using Internet abbreviations. A lot of teachers are encouraging students to write out their entries first and then post them online.
I think that blogging is a very cost effective tool for teacher's to use. I think that blogs will become increasingly popular in the coming future and teacher's need to be educated on this technology so they can present the material in the right way. The only thing I don't like is the ability of the student to "hide" behind the computer. While blogging can really bring out some of the shy students from class, it also limits them in the area of public speaking. When your behind a computer you can express yourself however you want, but it might not be that way in public. When I become a teacher I will definitely use blogging to help me. To me the time management aspect of it is what I find most appealing. The fact that I can present material and then have the opportunity to hold the discussion part of class after school hours is a great way to get the most out of the limited time in class.
One thing that I think would be interesting is to really find out how many students that come to life on the blogs take that into the classroom. The use of the blog might just be an effective tool in not only discussing topics but also building up a students confidence amongst their peers. Another thing that would be interesting is to see what times students are actually doing the blogging. If they are using their free time outside of class to really elaborate with fellow students then that would be a great way in seeing how interested they were in the subject.
You can read this article for yourself by following this link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/19/technology/circuits/19blog.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5090&en=33627811ca310596&ex=1250568000
This week I decided to write about an article on blogging in the classroom. The article begins by talking about how second grade teacher Marisa Dudiak used a web log instead of a traditional discussion to discuss information about the students recent field trip. The article focus's on how blogs are being used in the classrooms as an effective learning tool and points out some of the positives and negatives about this new type of technology.
Blogging or "web logs" are becoming increasingly popular with teachers and in school systems all around the world. Teacher's are seeing that this type of technology really "evens out the playing field" and they are seeing a lot of students that normally don't participate in the classroom, come alive with the use of blogging. Like most technology, there are advantages and disadvantages with blogging. One of the great advantages of blogging is that it gives teachers a chance to prolong the class or as one tech supervisor put it, "with blogs, class doesn't have to end when the bell rings". This gives teachers an opportunity to really get a lot into the limited amount of time they have directly with the students. Another advantage is that students seem to put a lot more effort into their blogs. Since they are on the Internet, there's always a chance parents or other people outside the classroom might read it. Teachers are also really excited about blogging because it encourages student to write more. Some of the drawbacks of blogging are the student getting into a pattern of bad grammar and using Internet abbreviations. A lot of teachers are encouraging students to write out their entries first and then post them online.
I think that blogging is a very cost effective tool for teacher's to use. I think that blogs will become increasingly popular in the coming future and teacher's need to be educated on this technology so they can present the material in the right way. The only thing I don't like is the ability of the student to "hide" behind the computer. While blogging can really bring out some of the shy students from class, it also limits them in the area of public speaking. When your behind a computer you can express yourself however you want, but it might not be that way in public. When I become a teacher I will definitely use blogging to help me. To me the time management aspect of it is what I find most appealing. The fact that I can present material and then have the opportunity to hold the discussion part of class after school hours is a great way to get the most out of the limited time in class.
One thing that I think would be interesting is to really find out how many students that come to life on the blogs take that into the classroom. The use of the blog might just be an effective tool in not only discussing topics but also building up a students confidence amongst their peers. Another thing that would be interesting is to see what times students are actually doing the blogging. If they are using their free time outside of class to really elaborate with fellow students then that would be a great way in seeing how interested they were in the subject.
You can read this article for yourself by following this link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/19/technology/circuits/19blog.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5090&en=33627811ca310596&ex=1250568000
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Article
Park Service takes kids on electronic field trips
By Mead Gruver
Associated Press
I decided to write my weekly discussion blog on an article about how kids are learning about the Grand Teton National Park through the use of a virtual field trip. The article explains how Ball State University is engaging children in technology, with over 50,000 students nationwide tuning into the webcast. In addition to the Grand Teton National Park, Ball State's webcast offers to take students places like Carlsbad Caverns, Grand Canyon and Hawaii Volcanoes national parks. The national park is seeing less and less visitors each year. Despite this decline in annual visitors, the National Park has not let this stop them from finding ways to get students involved. It offers students a chance to learn about important things that they would normally not get the chance to experience. The article also talks about some of the ways that the webcast can catch the children's attention, instead of just providing information.
This virtual field trip is a good way to get kids excited about places such as Grand Teton National Park from the classroom. It provides teachers and schools a more economic way to teach them about places they may never get to visit on the school's budget. Although it's not as concrete as actually being there, this technology is an effective teaching tool that uses something different than the traditional lecture and it can get students "virtually outdoors". Another reason why this is such a good learning tool is that it really helps broaden students' perspective. As one student says, "Just all the different parks, it's cool to see the different habitats in the U.S. instead of just the ones you live at." Another interesting activity in the website is a video game inside the virtual field trip that allows kids to be the park ranger, teaching them how to find critters such as antelope, moose, elk and black bears. I can't imagine a better way to reach today's child!
I think that virtual filed trips are a great way to really get students interested and engaged in a particular subject or in a specific place. When I was in high school I never had the opportunity to utilize this type of technology and I really believe that I would have had broader prospective on the world if I was exposed to it. I agree with Kathy Kupper, a spokesman for the park service in Washington D.C., when she says, "There are a lot of other things that compete for kids' interest these days." I feel that the use of the webcast really could be helpful in teaching children the important aspects of one of our country's great national parks.
After reading this article, I think it would be really interesting to find out how many of the students actually make a trip to some sort of national park because of their exposure to the virtual field trip. The ultimate goal of the website may not be to encourage students to visit Grand Teton National Park, but to give them an appreciation for the great outdoors.
If you'd like to read about this article, go to:
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695242108,00.html
By Mead Gruver
Associated Press
I decided to write my weekly discussion blog on an article about how kids are learning about the Grand Teton National Park through the use of a virtual field trip. The article explains how Ball State University is engaging children in technology, with over 50,000 students nationwide tuning into the webcast. In addition to the Grand Teton National Park, Ball State's webcast offers to take students places like Carlsbad Caverns, Grand Canyon and Hawaii Volcanoes national parks. The national park is seeing less and less visitors each year. Despite this decline in annual visitors, the National Park has not let this stop them from finding ways to get students involved. It offers students a chance to learn about important things that they would normally not get the chance to experience. The article also talks about some of the ways that the webcast can catch the children's attention, instead of just providing information.
This virtual field trip is a good way to get kids excited about places such as Grand Teton National Park from the classroom. It provides teachers and schools a more economic way to teach them about places they may never get to visit on the school's budget. Although it's not as concrete as actually being there, this technology is an effective teaching tool that uses something different than the traditional lecture and it can get students "virtually outdoors". Another reason why this is such a good learning tool is that it really helps broaden students' perspective. As one student says, "Just all the different parks, it's cool to see the different habitats in the U.S. instead of just the ones you live at." Another interesting activity in the website is a video game inside the virtual field trip that allows kids to be the park ranger, teaching them how to find critters such as antelope, moose, elk and black bears. I can't imagine a better way to reach today's child!
I think that virtual filed trips are a great way to really get students interested and engaged in a particular subject or in a specific place. When I was in high school I never had the opportunity to utilize this type of technology and I really believe that I would have had broader prospective on the world if I was exposed to it. I agree with Kathy Kupper, a spokesman for the park service in Washington D.C., when she says, "There are a lot of other things that compete for kids' interest these days." I feel that the use of the webcast really could be helpful in teaching children the important aspects of one of our country's great national parks.
After reading this article, I think it would be really interesting to find out how many of the students actually make a trip to some sort of national park because of their exposure to the virtual field trip. The ultimate goal of the website may not be to encourage students to visit Grand Teton National Park, but to give them an appreciation for the great outdoors.
If you'd like to read about this article, go to:
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695242108,00.html
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