Re-entering the Bloggersphere
I set up this Blog late last year and (I am, told like many first time bloggers) have abandonned the process for an extended period of time. Having just come off the back of this year's CEGSA conference (my first) with a re-ignited enthusiasm for online tools, I am now kickstarting my blog for the second time, as well as experimenting with Wikis and del.icio.us.
The conference introduced me further to concepts which I had been hearing about and looking at to some level but hadn't really explored in depth. Web2.0, and the various associated social tools, provide us with an online identity and networks far beyond the physical locations of where we work and live. The majority of our students are engaging in a vast and complex world beyond the classroom, living room, home office or bedroom. They develop an undertstanding of the norms of each environment, utalise and communicate in a variety of language modes and develop skills that are not accounted for within the general classroom.
The question now is: how do I relate this back to my role in my site.
As an educator I feel I could easily imbed the use of these tools within my classroom practices. For instance I will look at using a Wiki to facilitate the collaboration of Year 9 Drama students throughout the development of a script. I am not phased by adopting these tools and utalising them with my students within the classroom setting. (Although the extent to which I am successful at doing this is sometimes questionable). However, what I need to explore further is how can I harness the online world to support students' wellbeing?
In quickly brainstorming I think: Maybe I should be looking at hosting Forums for students to discuss relevant issues. Locating Podcasts of relevant speakers on issues surrounding mental health etc and making them available to the students. Maybe using a del.icio.us account to tag relevant sites and sharing that with the students via the school intranet. The possiblities are quite endless, I suppose, therfore it is really a question about what format will meet the needs of my students and support the programs currently being run within the school.
The conference introduced me further to concepts which I had been hearing about and looking at to some level but hadn't really explored in depth. Web2.0, and the various associated social tools, provide us with an online identity and networks far beyond the physical locations of where we work and live. The majority of our students are engaging in a vast and complex world beyond the classroom, living room, home office or bedroom. They develop an undertstanding of the norms of each environment, utalise and communicate in a variety of language modes and develop skills that are not accounted for within the general classroom.
The question now is: how do I relate this back to my role in my site.
As an educator I feel I could easily imbed the use of these tools within my classroom practices. For instance I will look at using a Wiki to facilitate the collaboration of Year 9 Drama students throughout the development of a script. I am not phased by adopting these tools and utalising them with my students within the classroom setting. (Although the extent to which I am successful at doing this is sometimes questionable). However, what I need to explore further is how can I harness the online world to support students' wellbeing?
In quickly brainstorming I think: Maybe I should be looking at hosting Forums for students to discuss relevant issues. Locating Podcasts of relevant speakers on issues surrounding mental health etc and making them available to the students. Maybe using a del.icio.us account to tag relevant sites and sharing that with the students via the school intranet. The possiblities are quite endless, I suppose, therfore it is really a question about what format will meet the needs of my students and support the programs currently being run within the school.
posted by Lynette at
11:34 am
1 Comments:
"Maybe I should be looking at hosting Forums for students to discuss relevant issues." I think that you're onto something here. The great thing about the internet is that I can connect with other like people.
Testimonial - "My life has never been the same since I have been able to communicate with other ten foot tall, red headed giants from all of the world. There are only three of us but before I felt like I was the only one".
There is a big fat hairy monster in the road of this though and it is called Edu... Filter. It is there to protect students but the downside is that it isolates.
An idea that I had was on the observation that gamemaking is receiving lots and lots of attention in edu circles. Maybe there is the opportunity of combining some multimedia skills with wellbeing by assisting students to work on developing games that help people understand an issue.
We could call them Social
Impact Games.
By
Wara, at 24 July, 2006
Post a Comment
<< Home