Mitch Fowler has started a new forum over at Classroom 2.0. Here’s how he describes it:
Recently, Wesley Fryer forced me to realize that I am simply “digitizing school 1.0 (as he put it at NECC)”. While I thought I was using my classroom blog (www.mrfowler.wordpress.com) in an innovative way, I am pretty much just having my classroom have a conversation with themselves electronically. While this does improve typing skills, it doesn’t incorporate conversation with the outside world. For this reason I have a few questions:
1. How do others incorporate blogs into the school day?
2. What type of topics do you blog about?
3. What strategies have been effective in bringing in genuine collaboration between students and professionals in the real world?I am very anxious to hear what others are doing!
I think it’s something to keep an eye on…
5 comments
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July 16, 2007 at 9:54 pm
mxr5thgrademath
Hi,
I commented earlier this evening on your blog about the HATS STEDTRAIN grant. I am not sure how I came across your page, except that it showed up on a google search I did. I am also interested in having my students communicate with others through blogging. Have you had any luck getting your questions answered? I would be interested in finding out what you plan to do. I plan for my students to answer mathematical questions each week that I post. I had planned to have them comment on their classmates’ posts as well. I think this will be a good start, but I would like to branch out and have them communicate with others outside our classroom. If you get any good ideas please let me know. Thanks!
July 17, 2007 at 9:55 pm
edjunc
Hi,
I came across your blog via a comment you made on another. I am not a teacher, but I am very interested in creating a technology rich learning environment for my children. Here are two blogs to take a look at…
http://kinderteacher.podomatic.com/
http://mscofino.edublogs.org/
Consider incorporating video, slideshows or podcasts into your blog. YouTube is chocked full of science experiments, math tutorials etc. You can add newsfeeds for current events or even news related video. You could set up a free forum for students-just think outside the box
July 18, 2007 at 7:10 am
tgels
What to do with the blog? That is the big question! I’ve been doing some reading over the summer to figure out how to come up with an answer. I believe the technology/opportunity is worth pursuing within the framework of my teaching effort–I want to “do it right,” though.
While browsing yesterday I came across a test of sorts for technology usage in the classroom. Unfortunately, I can’t remember where I saw it, but I do remember the gist of it because it basically covers what I call my “checkbook” illustration. A few years ago, keeping one’s checkbook register on the computer seemed to be in vogue with my circle of friends. It’s not anymore. Why? Because it was time consuming, inconvenient, and certainly didn’t make a relatively easy task easier.
That idea is behind my thinking when it comes to technology usage in the classroom. I want to use a lot of the social networking tools (i.e. blogs and wikis), but I want to do so in a way that provides the students with an experience that can’t be duplicated with a pencil and a piece of paper or a trip to the library down the hall. Edjunc, I do want to create the “technology rich learning environment” that you mention (thanks for the links-they look great), but I want to ease into it so the medium doesn’t overshadow the message.
Thanks for the comments–I value them a lot!
Tim
August 1, 2007 at 6:34 pm
Mr. Fowler
Hey,
Alright… I admit it I did a vain Google search of my own name and came across your blog; very cool! I like your idea of compiling resources here. Your pages on the right offer a lot of rich content too.
As for my post on blogging in the classroom, I feel that the knowledge I have gained from that conversation far surpasses any conversation I could have with one person. Several people have commented and provided me with their ideas. In addition, I have been able to connect with other like-minded teachers who are interested in collaborating this school year. It is this sense of community that I would like for my students to build this year. I’ll keep track of your page… keep up the great work. Take care!
Mitch
August 4, 2007 at 4:01 pm
tgels
Mitch,
Thanks for the encouraging comments.
I’ve also learned a lot from the conversation you started. It’s sort of neat to be involved with an education “shift” that is clearly taking place. I’m looking forward to watching how you and others “do school” in the upcoming year.
Tim