Wikis and Authentic Writing

Wikis are a fabulous tool for teachers. There is an English teacher in our high school that set up a wiki for his classes. He specifically used it when he went to India in a teacher exchange program. While in India, he was able to monitor his classes, write to his students and comment on their work. Wikis allow for collaboration between students as well as between students and the teacher. Hendron states, “In essence, wiki documents are linked pages” (175). The beauty of it is that there is no limit to how many pages can be linked together. And not only can these pages be linked to other pages in the wiki, but also to websites on the net.

The collaboration is truly what makes wikis great. No longer do students have to swap papers during class in order to comment on one another’s. Now, with a wiki, students can read other students writing at home or anywhere there is internet access. Not only can they read other students’ works, but also they can also comment on it and even edit the writing piece. All of these actions are also documented so that the teacher knows who is accessing the site and who is not. Also, since the site is documented, it also saves versions of each the site or document so that students may revert to previous versions. Back to the teacher in my school, the other great think about wikis is that it can document who is very or reading the site. His wiki shows who is reading his students short stories and from what country they are from, a great aspect of the site, particularly when we have been discussing the idea of authentic writing and writing for an audience. Hendron states, “Educators who have already engaged their students with Reade/Write opportunities of expression know how their students are powerfully motivated by being able to publish their work online for others to see, hear, and use” (178). Giving students a voice will truly give the motivation. Just as with blogging, writing with an audience in mind allows for better writing, writing that is cleaner and writing that contains a stronger voice.

Just as with any technology, wikis have a downside to them. What happens to the students who do not have access to a computer or the internet at their home. I realize that many teachers will say that there is plenty of time in school (study halls and lunch) for a student to get access to a computer. But the reality is that there is not enough time in a day. Many students do not have study hall and those that do find the library closed many of the times that they would like to go and use the computers. Although I do agree with Hendron’s statement, “We are part of a new society; one actively collaborating through social technologies, which may be the future of our global economy,” it is difficulty to expect our students to use so much technology when unlimited access is not completely there yet (180). This is not to say that districts will not eventually have enough computers and times that the students can use them, but rather, as of now, using technology at home can not be mandatory.

Blogging on Blogs!

With technology flooding many school districts, teachers are left in a quandary on how and when to incorporate technology. As with anything new, problems arise. Using technology, such as blogs, can change a classroom and a student’s perspective on a particular lesson or unit. As Hendron states, “the number of blogs is now approaching 100 million by some accounts,” which only means that blogging will be with us for quite some time (172). With that said, teachers need to explore and find different avenues that they can incorporate blogging into their classes. Blogging allows people access to an unlimited audience and allows the writers to voice their opinions on whatever subject they deem important. The one idea that I strive for in my classroom is authenticity, and that is precisely what blogs offer. With blogging, students can be “honest-to share personal experiences and to ultimately encourage authenticity in their writing” (153). Giving students an audience allows them to develop their own voices while feeling that there is a purpose to what they are writing. Unfortunately, too many students feel that it is pointless to write because the only person that is going to read their work is the teacher. Blogging takes that out of the equation. Students, particularly middle school students, are narcissistic. They like to know that people are reading what they are writing. So what is blogging and why is it important to the classroom, simply put, “blogs are, together and separately, introspective, public, challenging, engaging, social, and connected entities that students create” (152).

The social sites, such as Facebook and MySpace, were originally designed to make networking easier for people. However, it has evolved over its few years of existence. Many people use these sites as blogging sites. Users are constantly writing thoughts, feelings and ideas on their pages that other people are reading. And not only reading, but people also comment on these thoughts, and that is what makes this writing authentic and an attraction to people and more specifically, students.

As great as blogging can be, there are also some concerns, especially when dealing with the legalities. Teachers must be careful not to subject their students to dangers that may occur on the net. Blogging has the potential to allow a student’s personal information to be publicized on the internet. I find it difficult to believe that many districts will allow students to blog in school. First, too many filters must be turned off to allow that to happen, which will allow other unwanted material in. Secondly, by allowing students to blog in school, the districts are opening themselves up to possible lawsuits if something does happen. I don’t think blogging will become an integral part of schools until we begin teaching students to be responsible internet users instead of simply blocking everything with filters. By using filters, we are not educating the students on what to do if they come across a bad site, or if someone asks for personal information. If students learn to trust filters, they will never learn how to handle different situations that may arise while using the internet.

Technology & Professional Development

This weeks chapters from Ashburn/Floden discusses effective professional development and what it means to a district as well as the teacher. The idea is to slowly bring teachers up to speed on technology, especially for those who are fearful and hesitant. Most importantly, technology was be part of the lessons and not just something that is added as an after thought. Ashburn/Floden state, “Teaching for meaningful learning with technology is not simply inserting technology into the teaching sequence, but, rather, inventing new ways of teaching” (p 162). The hope for technology and teachers is that it will become an integral part of lessons. When teachers create lesson plans jointly with technology, it no longer becomes the computer program that is thrown in at the end just so the teacher can state that he or she uses technology.

A second, rather large point Ashburn/Floden make is the notion of having fun and enjoying technology. Something that many teachers are not able or allowed to do. They state, “Teachers must, of course, interact (or play with) educational technologies as part of learning to teach with them” (p 190). Many times, teachers are not given enough time to become accustomed to the new technology. Educators need time to explore, play and practice prior to even considering how to incorporate it in to the classroom. If you look at core content teachers, all throughout schooling they were allowed to read, understand, interpret and experiment with what they were learning. We cannot expect a two hour professional development to enable teachers to take that learned knowledge and quickly apply it. After all, would schools allow someone to teach English who has only taken one class?

Technology has come to the forefront of education. It is now become widely accepted that in order to keep up with other countries, the United States must make a large push to incorporate more technology into the public schools. This however has not always been the case and that has created part of the problem that we face today. Since schools and towns have taken so long to realize that technology in schools is important, education is three steps behind in getting the proper equipment and training that is needed. “Many scholars and policymakers have expressed high hopes for educational technologies, especially computers and the Internet, while others have noted that past hopes for an educational technology revolution have usually been disappointed” (Ashbur/Floden p 180). It is great news that the government has taken such an interest in technology and education, however our schools are extremely behind and a lot of work needs to be done in order to catch up to other nations. The crux of the problem is money, money to purchase the equipment, money to train staff and money to continually update older technologies. It will get easier though, especially once a school has been updated; it’s that initial leap and investment that is so daunting.

Creativity in Public Schools

In addition to the readings this week, we also were asked to watch a video on the failings of public schools and creativity. I have to admit that once I saw that it was a twenty minute video, I was reluctant to watch it, but the speaker quickly got my attention with his humor and I was hooked. I enjoyed the video so much that I forwarded it to the faculty in my school.

The speaker makes some compelling arguments for why the public schools are failing and why we need to allow kids to be creative and actually assist them in finding whatever avenue suits them best. As a society, I think we have failed our students with our push of standardized testing and the notion that every child must fit a certain mold. As the speaker states, if we don’t try and fail at new creative endeavors, we will no longer create anything new and exciting.

In chapter fourteen, Ashburn/Floden make some valid and strong points for affordances. However, one of their strongest points seems to revolve around technology. They state, “The main point is that teachers cannot know or evaluate every possible technology that might be useful, but they need to learn strategies for choosing and evaluating a few technologies until they develop a portfolio that infuses their teaching with appropriate tools” (p. 157). This is a huge point that is often overlooked by administrators. Many times, teachers are given an over abundance of technology and the thought is that some if not all will stick. This reasoning does not only not work, but can also be detrimental to the psyche of a teacher who has a technology phobia. The more times teachers feel unsuccessful with technology, the more likely the will be resistant to using it in their classrooms.

Those teachers that struggle with technology must find a way to balance all this new technology and their old teaching practices. Ashburn/Floden state, “The teacher learns through her own experience how students respond to activities that use the technology, what activities are effective, what strategies and routines are beneficial, and a host of other complex knowledge about how the technology works in her classroom” (p. 158). I think that this is important to note. Not all classes are the same and not all students are the same. From year to year, how students respond to certain technology will vary and this can be dependent on learning styles, abilities, or past uses of technology. Every teacher must figure out on his/her own what works for any given class. Sometimes what works for one class will not work for the next.

A striking statistic that I found in Ashburn/Floden is that “even though the numbers have improved--- the student-to-computer ratio in the United States has decreased to about six to one” (p. 159). This makes it extremely difficult for a teacher to assign work to be done on a computer, when many students don’t have access to one at home. I know that many people feel that the students have access to pcs in school, but it all depends on their schedule. Many students, particularly those who are struggling students, do not have any study halls because all their free periods are take up by extra help classes, which basically only leaves lunch time when certain students came find their way to a computer. How to remedy that situation, I have no ideas. It seems that technology is only going to create a larger gap between the have’s and have not’s.

This Time Please do it Without the Clown Suit!

I am using this week’s discussion board as a spring board for the posting. I have grown tired of the constant discussions about what teachers need to do to get their students to pass the state tests. I have also grown extremely tired of hearing what a poor job teachers do, in fact we do such a bad job that we given Leno enough ammunition to create a segment on his show about what people don’t know. Ashburn/Floden even state, “for all the emphasis teachers seem to place upon facts, most state, national, and international test reveal how little students remember. Students continue to confuse key events in U.S. history” (p 89). What Ashburn/Floden fail to mention is that: 1. state and national exams are extremely subject 2. test scores are dependent upon socio-economics 3. the people who are creating these tests are the same companies that are creating and SELLING the test prep material. Bringing technology into the classrooms is a great way to reach students, but what happens when students are still not being reached? What will be the next step to get the kids engaged and to have them memorize their facts? The chapter focused on how to incorporate technology in order to get students to learn history/geography. Hmmm. It seems that the Ashburn/Floden have forgotten to mention that much of the blame must also land on parents and society and yes, the students. Why is it that kids knew their facts 50 years ago? I agree that technology is a great way to reach students, but I don’t feel that kids’ lack of knowledge can be entirely blamed on teachers.

The social studies teachers in my building are dynamic educators, who bring everything to the table and leave exhausted everyday, and yet, you ask many of their students some of these Leno questions and they will get them wrong as well. As Ashburn/Floden claim, “Teachers have collected student malapropisms, providing some humor in the midst of growing concerns of educational failure” (p 89). Really? It seems that teachers are uncaring people who like to laugh at their students expense all the while students across this nation are failing. When are we, as educators, going to turn things around and demand more from our students and hold them to higher standards and stop having to put on an entertainment show everyday in hopes that they stay interested. I guess we merely demand that students learn, “Facts, facts, and more facts—it appears that teachers obsess over them while students do not know even the most elementary information” (Ashburn/Floden p 90). It seems that everything we read, not just this class but news articles as well, discusses what teachers need to do so that students are successful instead of asking what students need to do so that they are successful. Is it wrong for them to memorize something occasionally? There is nothing wrong with rote memorization, as long as that is not the only philosophy a teacher subscribes to. Eventually the pendulum will swing back again and students will finally be held accountable and be expected to learn without all the bells and whistles and without the teachers having to wear a clown suit.

Excuse the Cliche of the Day

Since I am creating a Wiki on how to incorporate Skype into the teaching and particularly the library, I thought this week’s focus should be on Skype. The second reason for posting on Skype is because I didn’t find this week’s reading terribly interesting, let alone something I wanted to write on. So the readings forced me to find an article to read and blog about, which led me to “Skype Hype” by Eric Nee. The article does not deal with using Skype in schools, but it does offer something interesting viewpoints on Skype and its importance. The crux of the article is that even though “Ebay may have overpaid for Skype, don’t discount the importance of VoIP” (25). Prior to Ebay purchasing Skype, Ebay’s stock price had dropped because many analysts felt that Skype was not worth the 4 billion dollars that Ebay paid to acquire the company. Nee however feels that Ebay has decided to tap a potential that no other business has yet to do. Nee believes that Ebay will incorporate Skype into their online auction as well as other avenues. Why is this important to Ebay, simply put, “Skype operates what is by far the largest internet phone (VoIP) service in the world. That makes it bigger than Sprint, for one, which ahs 40 million customers” (25). Those 54 million users/customers will hopefully and likely spend even more money on the Ebay site. All this translates into two technologies merging that will hopefully breed something even greater. Meg Whitman, CEO of Ebay, believes that the purchase of Skype will only make Ebay stronger. She states, “Communications is at the heart of e-commerce and community” (26). At the heart of that quote is what brings meaning to schools, which is that educators/libraries are in the business of selling and communicating. If we are not selling our lesson plans, books and ideas to our students, then we are not doing our jobs. The only way to do our jobs well is through communication. And there in lies Skype, a program built for 21st century communication. Just as Ebay took a chance on Skype increasing its revenue, educators and schools must take a chance that Skype can increase student engagement, learning and a desire to learn. Skype has the potential to make this shrinking planet of ours even smaller, thus bringing together students from all over the world in a way that has never been seen before. Just imagine a student studying for a French quiz with a student from France on Skype all the while the French student is studying for his or her English quiz with the American student. Excuse the cliché, but the possibilities are endless.

Authentic Texts

Authenticity, authenticity, authenticity. That is the crux of teaching and having student engagement. Long gone are the days when the teacher stands in front of the class while the students merely take notes. Long gone are the days when rote memorization was the only way to learn. Now I am not saying that rote memorization or lecture do not have a place in the classroom, I am merely stating that teachers have other ways of reaching students; making their learning authentic. As Ashburn/Floden state, “Teachers need to be able to design learning tasks and performance assessments that make this work ‘real’ for the students” (p 17). That is a great point, but what does “make it real” actually mean. Students learn better and are more engaged when, for example, their writing pieces are published, either in a contest, magazine or even school newspaper. By writing for an audience, the writing piece now becomes authentic because there is a purpose behind it. Also, by using authentic texts, students are able to read personal narratives or stories that they may be able to connect to their own lives. Ashburn/Floden state that, “Lessons designed for authentic work require students to frame questions meaningful to them and to connect their personal experiences with the content to be learned” (p 16). With authentic texts, students are able to connect information to their own lives, which immediately and ultimately brings life and importance to the passage. The same principle applies to adults. How often do we actually read things that we are not interested in or how often do we write something that we are not interested in? We generally read or write because we are looking for information or to get a message across, again we are completing tasks with a purpose. Students are the same; they have a greater desire to learn when there is meaning behind the lesson, when it is purposeful to them and not just a meaningless task.
The last strong point that I will touch upon by Ashburn/Floden is for collaborative work. They state that collaborative work is when, “Small groups of students work collaboratively on common tasks to achieve their learning goals” (p 22). This style of learning aids in bringing different thought processes together and allows the students to interact while learning instead of sitting, listening and copying. Group work is great as long as it is done correctly. Too many times teachers create groups with mixed levels only to find that the higher level students are not being pushed and the lower level kids are struggling. Or teachers created homogeneous groups only to find that the groups are so similar that there is no exchanging of ideas. Teachers must always look out what is best for the student and organize the activity and group around that thought. Too many times educators create groups merely because they were told to, but they fail to consider how the groups will affect the students.

The Barriers of Technology

So this week’s readings were interesting, but yet they seem to resonate with the same thoughts from the previous chapters. These chapters however do go more into depth with the issues of implementing technology into the schools, which is basically my largest concern. I guess that is my largest concern because I am witnessing it in my own district. So I get frustrated when I begin reading articles and books on how we need to push technology into the classrooms, yet fail to mention how to go about doing it so that it becomes a useful tool. It’s funny, as I read the Johnston/Cooley chapters, I could easily identify and connect the mistakes that districts make with technology with my own district. For instance, when they state, “When computers are placed in classrooms, there generally are too few computers---in many cases only one---which makes it difficult to plan and schedule meaningful computer activities based on new models of teaching and learning” (p 56). This is precisely the problem with our schools’ classrooms. One solution that the authors make is that the district can spend money on a laptop cart to help give greater access to the students as well as the faculty, which our district did. However, there are so many connectivity problems that I spend more time getting all the students logged on than on actual teaching. With forty-two minute classes the laptop cart definitely takes time away from instruction time!

I also appreciated what Johnston/Cooley had to say in regards to how computer labs “are not integral components of the teachers’ instructional strategies and tend to be curricular ‘add-ons’ disconnected from regular classroom activities” (63). Prior to our laptop arriving in the school, our only use of computers was the pc lab, which felt more like a room that we should use as opposed to technology that could help students investigate, analyze and learn through a different medium.

Lastly, Johnston/Cooley’s point on assessment truly hit home. We are no longer teaching in a world where rote memorization is the only way to learn and that multiple choice tests is the only form of assessment, instead “to evaluate what has actually been learned, it is necessary to assess actual, authentic tasks produced through student interaction and collaboration” (p 92). With the integration of technology, educators now have different avenues to assess their students, which ultimately allow the students to truly show what they have learned. Also, with more and different forms of assessment, it will be easier to judge a students knowledge, especially knowing that not all students learn of reveal what they have learned in the same fashion.
I did enjoy the Hendron article on podcasting, particularly since I was one of the teachers that helped convince my school to purchase an IPod cart. It is a fabulous piece of technology; it contains one laptop and 30 IPod classics. The unfortunate part about the cart is that we have had so many issues attempting to download to the IPods that no one uses it anymore. It is now over a year old, no one can seem to fix the software problem, and it has now simply become a large rolling paper holder.

The Digital Divide

I was much happier reading the Johnston/Cooley text this week. I felt last week’s reading truly left out the notion that not every student has access to technology. It merely stated that technology should be used in the classroom and that students, for the most part, know more about technology than we do. Which may be true to some extent; however it seems that many students only know the game or fun aspect of technology, and rarely know how to use it to complete tasks for school or how to use it to aid them in learning. I feel that the main difference between students and teachers is that students are able to learn how to use technology more quickly than teachers. Obviously that is not a statement that is completely factual, but it seems that last week’s readings failed to mention the students lack awareness on how to use technology for school.

As for this week’s readings, I felt that the text truly focused in on problems with technology as opposed to being the savior of education. This is evident when Johnston/Cooley quote Boreen (2000), “that greater access to technology does not automatically mean improved achievement (44). A large issue among districts is that many administrators feel that all there needs to be done to facilitate learning for students is to purchase technology, unfortunately though they fail to realize the importance of teacher education in how to implement this new technology in the classroom. I have a perfect example that occurred in my school. My administrator, after a few years of purchasing document cameras and smart boards for the classrooms, decided to ask me whether I even wanted a Smart Board in my classroom. Reason being, she has begun to realize that not all the teachers are using the Smart boards or that they are only using them as whiteboards. I told her that I would only like one if I can first be trained on how to incorporate the Smart Board into my English classes. I understand the practicality in a science or social studies class, but English I do not see the need to have one. If my administrator had not approached me and merely just purchased it and placed it in my room, it could have been another piece of technology that went to waste. Schools need to do away with the idea of updating and upgrading simply for the purpose of updating. By stating that each classroom has a Smart Board does not mean that the district is better than another.

Johnston/Cooley make another poignant statement in regards to the affluence of the students or their families. Even though computers are prevalent in our society, we cannot make the assumption that everyone has one. Johnston/Cooley state that, “Instructional leaders must be sensitive to the fact that all students do not have equitable access to the most promising applications of information technology…the ‘digital divide,’ is associated with community demographics, age, race/ethnicity, and gender” (44). This is important to acknowledge because if teachers make it a requirement that certain assignments must be done at home using technology, what will happen to those students who are too embarrassed to speak up and admit that they do not have a computer? The use of technology is great, but it also creates a greater difficulty for those who do not have the means, to learn.

I do not what this posting to seem that I am against technology, but that is simply not the case. I love technology, I use it constantly and I cannot imagine my life without it. We just need to be sensitive to all aspects of technology in the classroom as well as at home. One last point, Johnston/Cooley as make a valid point in using technology, and it is something that I do with my students. They state, in regards to an exercise, “the students learned to critique information and authors by comparing accounts, looking at sources, and checking authenticity” (46). We as educators must teach our students how to anaylize a website for authenticity as well as for factual information. Too many times students Google something only to take the first hit as the word of God. We need to teach them how to read with purpose and how to read with a critical eye. I feel that this skill is more important now with the advent of the internet than it was fifty years ago.

We Need More Than Just Technology!

In the Johnston/Cooley text, chapter 1, there was strong mention that teachers as well as administrators need to bring in more technology in order to reach the students. The idea is that students have grown up around technology, use technology at home on a daily basis, and can be engaged further if technology is used in the classroom. Although the theory behind this is accurate, the logistics seem to be lacking. Although it is absolutely necessary to use technology in the classroom, it becomes extremely difficult when the majority of educators are teaching in buildings that were constructed from the 1950’s or earlier. If the technology in the building has to updated, then so does the building itself. For example, I am a huge proponent of technology in the classroom, but I have come to the point where I almost don’t want it anymore. I have wires hanging from the ceiling and wires across the floor, which truly limits the amount of teaching space. And now with the limited teaching space, it becomes even more difficult to create small group learning, not to mention the safety hazard that all these wires pose. Johnston/Cooley (2001) state, in regards to technology knowledge and skills, that “today’s students are often far ahead of the adults who work with them (p. 11). But at what price should we force technology into our classrooms, especially when it stifle the movement of the classroom and possible group arrangements. We need more than just technology, there should be a push to build new schools, not simply add technology to outdated buildings.
The Johnston/Cooley text as well as the Hendron text made great points, but both readings failed to mention on a very important aspect of technology and students. Technology is great, and even though computers and such are prevalent throughout our society, there are still many students who do not have any technology at home because their families cannot afford it. This creates problems for those students who must use technology for homework, but do not have access to it. These students are at a huge disadvantage. So even though technology is a great tool, we cannot forget about those students who have limited technology at their disposal.

WELCOME

Hello everyone,

This blog is intended to cover an array of topics that will vary from newly learned technology to personal thoughts on readings from graduate class LS 589: New Technologies for Educators.