Greg Walker Professional Reflection
Motivation
To explore and discover web tools that useful for richer learning in education. To be able to assist and train my colleagues so they may use web tools in their teaching.
Intended goals / outcomes
- To discover and explore Web 2.0 tools
- To find which ones are useful and have a genuine purpose for classroom use.
- To develop my knowledge to assist my colleagues in implementing their own skills.
- To enable rich learning for students.
- To establish collaborative learning amongst students
Description of the activity
The initial focus was to set a school community using the NING social network sight. It is very useful friendly. Students adapted easily. Choices to make, what web tool in for what purpose? Whether to use groups within NING or a separate word press blog.
Started with NING. Used Ning to explore Stixy notes, bubble us. Students create own profiles, added photo albums, completed blogs and group discussions. Ning completes with Facebook, Myspace, however some year 7 students started using NING outside of school. It kept track of student participation, however some slack students slipped through initially. Naturally it is a private site.
Other tools used within NING
- Use GROUP in NING to further explore and trial a variety of web tools.
- Stixy, way to express thoughts, non threatening way.
- Diigo bookmarks- check out some of my bookmarks
- Bubbl.us Comment on brain storming.
Used groups for different subjects.
Started Word Press blogs for electives- movie making, computer graphics. This will continue as each teacher will have their own subject blog. PD Blog set up for teachers, to allow for demonstration and sandpit time. These will be used in term for with the interactive whiteboards.
http://vccmoviemaking.wordpress.com/
http://vcc910computergraphics.wordpress.com/
Implemented VCC toolbar to organise everything, though it has grown and needs further planning!
http://vcclinks.OurToolbar.com/
VET ICT cert II needed its own subject NING site- with 15 groups set up for each Unit. This allowed students to access Class Power Points, assessment Tasks outside of class. http://ictcertificate2.wordpress.com/
VET ICT cert II has its own word press blog for lesson plans, and links to each of the 15 units. http://vccvet.ning.com/
Still writing the VET course, added these blog tools 6 months into the course. I will use these more consistently from the start of next year.
Use of Online / Web 2 resources & tools
| Web tool | Type | Comments |
Future use |
Mark |
| Ning | Social network | User friendly, students adapted easily. Use mostly in Year 7 and 8 core subjects. |
Yes, ongoing |
10 |
| Word Press | Blog | Rich learning, to be used by subject teachers |
Yes, ongoing |
9 |
| Blogger | Blog | Used previously, prefer word press. Maybe for student profiles |
Re-access |
7 |
| Wetpaint | Wikis | Useful for sharing information, prefer Ning |
Re- access |
8 |
| Wikispaces | Wikis | Will use this collaborative learning- start to use, simple. Looks promising |
Yes |
|
| Stixy | Sticky notes | User friendly, used with purpose |
Yes |
10 |
| Diigo | Bookmarking | Very useful, great purpose, require more training, build my knowledge first. |
Yes |
9 |
| Engrade | Grade book | Will be using this in all subjects, encourage others to do likewise |
Yes |
10 |
| Conduit | Toolbar | Very use for shared links, gives school same info from prep to teachers |
Yes |
10 |
| animoto | Presentation | Okay |
No |
7 |
| Bubbl.us | Brainstorming | Great for brain storming |
Yes |
9 |
| Exploratree | Brainstorming | Okay for printed templates, painful to modify |
No |
4 |
| Tag galaxy | Visualisation | Topic intro |
Yes |
9 |
Useful web 2.0 resources
http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2009/10/04/the-best-web-20-applications-for-education-2009/
http://www.learningplace.com.au/deliver/content.asp?pid=38760
| Diigo | Education group | A great source of bookmarks from teachers around the world. Receive many emails that enable me to explore further |
Yes |
10 |
Anecdotes from Design / Implementation
Still teacher lead in many cases, needs more collaborative input. Having web tools doesn’t always encourage class participation. The ability to monitor progress of individual progress of students can be time consuming. Though, if it is collaborative and spontaneous learning, it’s hard to monitor everything, more the final outcome. Previously used Blogger- sequential structure. Ning groups are different.
Final Reflection
It has been very beneficial to discover many useful web 2.0 tools. I have trial quite a few with a variety of classes. They have not been used consistently in class thought. I would like to have a more consistent approach from next year. To develop regularly routine of using web tools each lesson- first 10 minutes.
Need to have a purpose behind ICT and web tools, not using them for the sake of it.
