According to the theory of small pieces loosely joined, using the web and hyperlinks, we can all be right next door to each other. This is the philosophy I've worked with in my classroom. We currently have:
- blog accounts at learnerblogs (free)
- two wikis at pbwiki.com (free)
- podcasts and vlogs posted at Ourmedia and Archive.org (both free)
- a suprglu page (free)
- Bloglines accounts for each students in the class (free)
- a flickr account (could be free, but we've gone with a pro account)
- every student has an email account and most have an IM (both free as well)
First of all I need to say that the ability to work with a collection of basically free resources like this has changed the possibilities for where and when education takes place. Besides paying for a net connection, we pay nothing to be connected together.
But I worry about the number of pieces. My blogroll on my class blog has had to evolve towards being a portal for kids to be connected to all of these pieces. I have lists of classes and sites they can use and connect with, trying to make things easier for them. I have consciously not worked with a single piece of software such as Moodle because I wanted kids to see the power of collecting resources across the web into a single environment. But we do pay, having to access different accounts across the web. The kids need to remember URLs, passwords, and how to navigate through different interfaces. They need to remember how to run WordPress, make a photostream in Flickr, add blogs to their aggregator, and format a wiki.
While this is what we all do as adults, I want to ensure that their focus remains on the learning that is possible using these tools, not the frustration of forgetting how to accomplish a specific task.
I worry about the number of small pieces we have joined together......
As with everyone else who works in these ways, I am constantly searching for better, more effective ways to lead students in these directions. I don't have the technical expertise to design an interface that could combine these pieces, and my school or division doesn't either. So I am left cobbling pieces together that will do the tasks that I require and which will help me to form the environment that I want to become. In the past I felt I was able to build a solid structure for learning to occur within, but sometimes this year, I feel like I'm building a tower held together by duct tape......
You might not get this if you're not Canadian.....
"Duct tape - if it's not working, then you're not using enough!"
So many cool tools, but it *would* be nice if we had a way to bind them together.
Posted by: Almost American | Sunday, October 08, 2006 at 09:32 PM
Clarence-this is SO on target! I don't have all these pieces in play in the classrooms as yet. They're still bouncing around in my head like a juggling act. I'm hoping that I can have a good enough sense that I can offer a 'custom formula' to each teacher I work with.
I also appreciate your concern for keeping technology out of the way of learning. I'm working in middle school and it's easy to assume that the kids will all just 'get it' effortlessly and the content and project will bloom....
Thanks for the post.
Posted by: Curtis Borg | Monday, October 09, 2006 at 08:52 AM
Curtis;
I really like the idea of custom fitting pieces together into a structure that works for each classroom and learning community. I think it is like I always tell the kids in my classroom; we need to try and test all of the pieces and then find what works for us, for now, for a specific purpose. The pieces will change, they will come and go, but we need to have them in place for use as needed.
Posted by: Clarence Fisher | Monday, October 09, 2006 at 09:09 AM
Clarence and Curtis, I found this blog and your comments regarding the cool tools available, mostly for free, to students and everyone else. The pain you feel is shared with many. It would be great to collect the best, wire them together and present them in a organized - MEASURABLE way within Education.
There is an international effort in combination with LearnKey and a new effort of open source LCMS with Web 2.0 tools. Many companies are involved and many understand the needs of open source educational solutions. The free model will most likely keep the really cool tools in silos (islands)as they do not all share in our vision for " LearnCast(TM)".
However the groups that are willing to be involved will be on the front of the change that is quickly going to happen, they will be educational "HEROS" . WEB 2.0 is here and the single sided proprietary CMS solutions will disappear.
In Europe WEBCT and BlackBoard are getting their passports handed back to them based on this new trend - open source - collaborative source.
If you want to connect with us - drop me a line. onlineexpert1@hotmail.com
It sounds like we are on the same page - looking for the coolest tools and keeping it real simple to operate... well let's do it.
D. Clemons
Posted by: David Clemons | Friday, February 01, 2008 at 06:20 AM
Clarence and Curtis, I found this blog and your comments regarding the cool tools available, mostly for free, to students and everyone else. The pain you feel is shared with many. It would be great to collect the best, wire them together and present them in a organized - MEASURABLE way within Education.
There is an international effort in combination with LearnKey and a new effort of open source LCMS with Web 2.0 tools. Many companies are involved and many understand the needs of open source educational solutions. The free model will most likely keep the really cool tools in silos (islands)as they do not all share in our vision for " LearnCast(TM)".
However the groups that are willing to be involved will be on the front of the change that is quickly going to happen, they will be educational "HEROS" . WEB 2.0 is here and the single sided proprietary CMS solutions will disappear.
In Europe WEBCT and BlackBoard are getting their passports handed back to them based on this new trend - open source - collaborative source.
If you want to connect with us - drop me a line. onlineexpert1@hotmail.com
It sounds like we are on the same page - looking for the coolest tools and keeping it real simple to operate... well let's do it.
D. Clemons
Posted by: David Clemons | Friday, February 01, 2008 at 06:23 AM
I wish I'd read this when I was thinking about how the University should plan for Pandemic Flu.
http://www.nilspeterson.com/2007/04/18/pandemic-flu-and-the-web-20-university/
We talked about putting all courses into Blackboard, but the single points of failure were huge. I concluded that many loosely joined elements and a "teach-in" model where a better strategy. Its good to find someone implementing it.
Posted by: Nils Peterson | Tuesday, June 24, 2008 at 11:53 AM