I have created a blog in the past, but it was short-lived. I had published the blog to promote a home-based business, but I was not excited about using the blog as a marketing tool so I abandoned it quickly. Lately, I have been thinking about starting a new blog, mostly to share my adventures with friends. But, I think that it will be fun to use a blog to interact with my future students and my free time is very limited - so, I think that this will be my sole blog for now.
One teacher that I have observed would publish podcasts on her school website, but it was password protected so I have not had the opportunity to view them. I think that I will ask her to email them to me so that I can at least take a look at what she has done.
Now, let's look at some definitions from our textbook:
Blog - short for weblog, an online journal that people can read and respond to electronically
Podcast - digital audio files delivered to computers by the Internet
Wiki - web pages that are created and maintained by multiple contributors
So, in comparison, usually blogs and podcasts are created by one user, while wikis are collaborated on by many users. Podcasts are videos or audios, while blogs and wikis and typically written word. There are always exceptions, so these are not hard and fast rules.
I think that using any technology to communicate with students is going to benefit everybody involved. I can create podcasts on a weekly basis to flip the classroom and introduce new topics before the students get to class. These podcasts can be used from year to year. I can also establish a standards wiki to outline the curriculum for the year. I can use a class blog to communicate with students or even a class wiki so that parents and students can keep abreast of what is happening in the classroom.
The podcasts that are available on iTunes can be used for flipping the classroom, as well as for professional development. I know that there are college lectures available and I am sure that new podcasts are being added all the time. It seems like a great way to stay up-to-date with the latest technology and scientific breakthroughs. Although I am not a fan of using wikipedia as a source for papers, it is a great resource for gathering quick information or getting a basic overview of a subject. It is so interesting that it is a living document and that it can be collaborated on by anybody...but that is a little scary too. It is that freedom that could be problematic when people post inaccurate information, either as a joke or because they are truly misinformed.
I like how you made the connection with podcasting and flipping the classroom. I am also glad that you bring up the point about posting appropriate material - it is always a great lesson to teach students - digital citizenship!
ReplyDeleteHi Amy! I think that web tools like blogs and wikis are a GREAT way to establish and maintain communication with families. Last year, when my son was a 1st grader, his teacher kept a website/blog and kept us up to date on what was going on in the classroom and gave some links to great resources we could use for ourselves or with our kids. It was really nice as a parent to feel like I could see what was happening at school. I'm glad to see i'm not the only one who plans to blog as a teacher.
ReplyDeleteI like the ways that you want to integrate these technologies into the classroom. The use of the podcasts to flip the classroom when introducing new topics is a great idea.
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