After reviewing the page I created for this topic READ/WRITE WEB [also listed in our header bar], I will ask you to post the responses you wrote for Chapter 1 as a Comment.
To Post your Response, please Click on Add a Comment below this posting. Copy & Paste your content from your document and Save. That way we can organize all of your thoughts about the Read/Write Web to this page.
Already, this chapter has got me looking at the cyber-world differently! I am a
ReplyDeleteregular user of the Internet but I haven’t analyzed the impacts of the growth and
possibilities of the WEB. I found the following statement to be very powerful, “No matter
how you look at it, we are creating what author Douglas Rushkoff calls a “society of
authorship” where every teacher and every student-every person with access-will have the
ability to contribute ideas and experiences to the larger body of knowledge that is the
internet”…”we will be writing the human system in real time together- a vision that asks
each of us to participate” (p. 5). I also found it very true how Richardson made the
connection of how fast the world is changing around education, yet education is extremely
slow to change. For this very reason, students often have more experience with technology
than their teachers. I can attest to this fact- especially since my own children are familiar
with “social networking sites with training wheels.” I find the ways mentioned in chapter 1
to incorporate more technology in the classroom very practical. I was able to identify the
majority but a few I still am unfamiliar with. I am excited to become more aware and
educated of this new realm and I will be selfish during the discovery process as Richardson
suggests!
Well said! I relate to your thoughts exactly! :)
DeleteI agree it is very sad to see that the education system is getting behind or reluctant to use the technology in every content area in the classrooms. We are facing a digital generation that is going crazy about the use of technology. We better wake up, start running, and try to catch up.
DeleteResponse to Chapter 1…The read/Write Web
ReplyDeleteAs the title of this book mentions it, I believe the Web is a powerful tool. It HAS TO be used in the classroom. The use of new technology and the Internet is growing and growing to the point that almost everything we do has to do with it. I strongly agree that the use of technology and the Web are an amazing way to engage, motivate, and make our students work. It facilitates the learning process and the developing of the four skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Our students are used to our digital world and attracted by it. Why not taking advantage of it for our teaching and learning processes?
I agree with you and your comments of the use of the web. Our students are getting more and more interested in what the internet has to offer. I also strongly agree with the use of the internet in the classroom during the learning process. If we know that our students are spending their time in front of a computer screen we should take advantage of that opportunity and create a learning experience for them.
DeleteAndy Haugen
ReplyDelete5-1-12
ED Tech 537
Chapter 1 Response
Will Richardson’s book Blogs, Wikis, and Podcasts discusses technology and how it is a great resource for education. In the author’s first chapter on The Read/Write Web a brief background is given on the history of technology and how technology has improved more in the last decade than it has in the previous twenty years. He believes technology is a huge factor in our lives and will impact future generations even more. Discussed are types of technologies and tools that can be use in the classroom such as weblogs, wikis, and social book markings, as well as the problems and benefits a classroom experiences while using these devices. Richardson notes that blogs and internet usage in the classroom always has a risk especially involving personal safety but measures such as filters and identity protection can be obtained and have great success.
I like the ways Richardson writes and thinks. While reading this book I can really tell he believes in technology and that it can greatly benefit students. He offers some good tools and ideas that can be applied to any classroom and that the students can relate to. At the same time I still wonder if it is not more complicated because there has to be computer access and some students might not have computer access at home or enough at school depending on the resources and school size. Also, just because work is done in a more 21st century form it does not mean students will do the work more readily or effectively. I do understand what he is trying to say and I think it could work. With a large class especially I feel it would be difficult to keep everyone on task with a blog or wiki during class time and making sure students do not get distracted by other sites when they are using the computers. Overall, I think this could be very effective but the technology and tools Richardson discussed would have to be managed in the right way with the correct material. The teacher would also have to know what the students were capable of otherwise it could end up being ineffective. Richardson has good ideas and insights while acknowledging problems that can arise with using technology and he recognizes that to really reach students, teaching methods have to be modified and technology is a great way to connect with students.
Chapter 1: The Read/ Write Web
ReplyDeleteBy Bob Hankel
Chapter 1 of Richardson's "Blogs, Wikis, and Podcasts and Other Web Tools for Classrooms" explained really well about how big the read/write web has become and how we have fallen behind in education. "The world is changing daily around us and education is slow to react." A lot of the reason why this is might be teachers are worried about the inappropriate content on the web or that students have grown up with technology and are actually ahead of most teachers. The bottom line is that students are using this technology away from school all the time but are told they can't while they are at school. We need to close the gap and use technology to our advantage to better educate and collaborate with our students. Having limited resources should not be an excuse because it is mostly easy to employ and free of cost,once you have the equipment of course.
I think Richardson has a lot of good ideas about using the web more effectively, but I don't think it is as easy as he makes it seem. There might be a lot of underlying issues in different economic situations that could hinder his plans and it comes down to resources. For example, a lot of schools might have a hard time getting updated computer equipment. Also, a lot of students might not be able to afford computers or internet and might feel left out if they can't contribute as easily as others. This would create an even bigger gap between the schools that have and the ones that don't. But looking at all the evidence, I think it is a no-brainer that we should do all we can to be more tech savvy in our schools. Teachers should first become learners before they can teach their students. It will definitely help the students as they get out of school and into an increasingly digital world in the 21st century.
You bring up some great points here about all having access to computers within schools. I recently heard that a local district is having to cut 8 some million this year, yet they are spending on technology! I guess they are jumping on board despite the shortfalls! I also felt that Richardson makes it seem very simple but I have to admit that the thought of becoming this technologically savvy is a bit intimidating!
DeleteI really agree with what your saying Bob, I think that schools need to be a little more open to the web sources that we have now a days, rather than rather turning them down because of the fear to the dangers it also brings. I also also agree that students are more technology literate than teachers, and I've seen that in my experience, which should not be the case.
DeleteLooking at chapter 1 there are great points that are being made about the growth of the WWW and also the educational systems that are not truly using this resource. I would like to comment on the fact that our education system has not tapped into web 2.0 as a way to interact with students. They mentioned that in 2008 more than 65 percent of students had a Facebook or MySpace account. I would imagine that these numbers have grown since then. As educators it’s up to us to find a way to connect with our students. Our schools need to see this as well. If we can communicate better with our students or have them interact more because we have implemented the WWW, we should take advantage of this and put our skills into the World Wide WEB. It’s time to be different, but keeping in mind the safety of our students.
ReplyDeleteI agree that this will be a huge challenge to implement more technology and still keep our students safe and away from inappropriate materials that are all over the web. Also, showing the kids how to locate reliable information is key as well
DeleteI think your comment about how the educational system has not tapped into this web 2.0 system at all is very true and should be changed. Having the interaction between students and teachers in an online environment is crucial because that is where education is going more and more. Most of the classes we take as grad school students have an online portion, so why not start the students of today out with online portions of classes so that they might be more ready for it than I was.
DeleteResponse to Chapter 1
ReplyDeleteWhile reading this chapter, I was struck by a couple things. One, how the book is already outdate even though this edition was published in 2010. Second, how much harder we as educators need to work to stay ahead of the kids’ knowledge of technology, and third, how student interaction is much more electronics based as apposed to people based as ours was when growing up.
While reading the chapter, I couldn’t help remembering the days before the World Wide Web. I was in college when e-mail was just starting to become common. It’s hard to believe how far technology has come in the 20 years since that time. Even just the past two years have shown significant growth in technological advances and they show now signs of slowing down. We are progressing at a pace where books about technology are almost outdated months after publication. Meanwhile, our kids in elementary school no not know any difference.
Kids in schools today have grown up with technology since the day they were born, as digital images are published on the internet within moments of birth. Because technology has always been a part of their lives, their learning curve for understanding how things work is not as steep as ours may be. As educators, we need to race to stay ahead of the kids’ knowledge of the world as it exists today. What I find troubling is the vast difference between childhood today compared to childhood merely 30 years ago.
While I agree that technology can be a valuable learning tool, I cant help but struggle with its implications. Kids growing up in today’s world learn technology skills which may be getting in the way of their people skills as they interact with peers in social groups. They may be able to navigate the dark forests of some world of the future as their fingers fly around the remote controller, but can they effectively create a world of imagination on the playground with a group of friends? Most kids, I’ve noticed, can do this, but there are some that struggle with social interactions including patience.
Technology is a part of the evolution of our world. Teaching kids how to use it safely and effectively is important. Keeping a balance between technological advances and holistic growth is going to create a more well-rounded individual in the end.
I like these comments. I think there should be a balance in technology as well because students are on it so much anyways. Also, you sort of hit on it but communication becomes much poorer through things like chats or blogs. As a whole technology is essential but there are some things old fashion teaching can not be replaced by.
DeleteI also am having trouble with accepting technology as playing such a huge role in childhood! With my own kiddos it's hard for me to "give in" when it comes to owning certain technologies such as ipod touches (on their current wish-list) due to the amount of time that it takes from them actively playing and using their imaginations. I guess this is something I really need to embrace and hopefully this course will really help me move more in this direction!
DeleteRight off the bat, I can appreciate your insightful comments. It will be quite a challenge to stay ahead of the students, so for now I am hoping to just catch up. I think this class will certainly help all of us in varying degrees in this regard. I can relate to your last paragraph. You might want to check out the book Last Child in the Woods: Nature Deficit Disorder, if you have not already. Thanks for sharing.
DeleteThis chapter is essentially a narrative of how the internet developed into the immensely useful and relevant piece of technology it is today. In the past the amount of information that could be shared with a huge range of people was greatly limited, but with the introduction of the internet in 1993 with the first web browser, information that was never accessible to the vast majority of people slowly began its journey to become an open source for all. (Richardson, 2010) In the past few years there has been a huge boom in the usability of the internet in terms of making new information. In the past the process of making a new website was an intricate process of writing code, today with the relatively recent developments, it’s as easy as making a basic powerpoint. Blogs are a huge part of this change, in 2009 there was somewhere close to 133 million blogs listed on just one of the many different blogging websites. (Richardson, 2010)
ReplyDeleteThis change in the way the internet is being used changes the way teachers must use it as well. Many teachers are strongly encouraged to have a website of their own where they can update information regarding classes. This huge change in technology must be taught to the teachers so that they will be able to teach it to the students. In 2005 a study showed that most students were more computer literate than their teachers. (Richardson, 2010) using technology has its downsides as well, privacy and student safety are issues that will be addressed throughout this book.
This chapter shows many different ways that the internet can be a vast tool box to use in our own teaching as well as our learning. The list on page 10-11 is a great resource that I will refer to when I need a way to incorporate the internet into my learning or teaching. Overall the internet is a huge source of information that we must utilize, learn and teach our students to how to use, but we must not overlook the possible negative sides of this amazing resource. (Richardson, 2010)
Works cited
Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. (3rd ed.). Corwin Press.
Shane Robinson
ReplyDeleteEDUC. 537
Response to Ch.1
Chapter One: The Read/Write Web
It is amazing to me that the name of the person who invented the World Wide Web, Tim Berners-Lee is not more commonly known or taught in schools. Many people know who Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are and yet I would venture to say not many students or people in general know who Tim Berners-Lee is. It seems to me that Berner-Lee’s vision to create a “collaborative medium, a place where we could all meet and read and write” became a realty through the efforts of Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg (Carviun, 2005).
I can’t help but wonder if Tim Berners-Lee could understand the impact his work would have on the world at the time he was inventing it. One thought that comes to mind is the various revolutions taking place around the world that attribute the possibility of overthrowing corrupt government to various technological means rooted in the World Wide Web. It’s amazing to read in our text that President Obama has 1.7 million followers.
It is a bit disheartening to read that, “the reality is that we are not going to get any less plugged in … these shifts will only become more acute” (Richardson, 2009). Having read the book entitled the Last Child in the Woods written about nature deficit disorder, I believe a level of balance, especially in regard to our youth, is required in the utilization of the technological advances as depicted in the chapter written by Richardson.
I found it very interesting that the results of a Netday survey released in March 2005 cited 97 percent of students in grades 7-12 believe strongly that technology use is important in education and that the fastest-growing age group of using the internet is 2 to 5 years old (NetDay News, 2005.)
I thought almost the same when I read about Tim Berners-Lee. His vision has gone, I believe, beyond the results he even imagined. We should teach more or at least give credit to the man that started everything.
DeleteThat's why you are taking this course :0)
ReplyDeleteShane, I was interested to read your note about the increase in 2-5 year old use of technology. I love technology, but somehow that statement kind of scares me. I wonder if this increase in technology use will lead to an increase in inactivity - my husband is always amazed to hear the boys at his school talk about how they spent hours and hours on their video games over the weekend. I guess I just worry that these electronic babysitters mean less time playing outside or being physically active. Then there's the impact that technology has on our brain. It is literally rewiring it. For a great read on this see: Carr's book "The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains" NPR also had a story on it http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127370598