Thursday, August 7, 2008

Journal 5

Transforming School Communities: Creating Dialogue Using Web 2.0 Tools

Soule, Helen (August 2008). Transforming School Communities: Creating Dialogue Using Web 2.0 Tools. Learning & Leading With Technology, 36(1), 12-15.

Helen Soule believes that with the use of web 2.0 tools in the classroom, provides opportunities for everyone and that communication throughout the district can flourish. One technological tool that can afford this is a blog. A blog can be made for the communities within the district. The blog can house discussions of current topics in education as well as lesson plans. The possibilities for the types of discussions that can take place are endless. In order to take part on these discussions by way of a blog, one must become a member. Having a membership allows community members to take part and familiarize themselves with the technology of blogging. There are certain steps that are recommended to follow when creating a blog. These steps are as follows: 1) know your audience/who you are speaking to, 2) provide clear messages: the clearer the message the better the response, 3) make it possible for interaction posing questions to get others more involved. Using web 2.0 tools can be used to educate and to be educated.

Questions:

Does having a classroom blog cause a decrease in social interaction among students?

In this technological based society a lot of communication is performed through technology-based medium (e.g. e-mail, text messaging). Having a classroom blog exposes children to another form of communication. With a classroom blog, the students are able to work collaboratively with one another and share ideas. These types of interactions are key for their survival.

How would a student without computer access at home be able to partake in the classroom blog?

As a future educator, I will offer my students with opportunities to use the campus facilities at opportune times in order to complete assignments.

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