This reflection will explore
a range of technology, namely web based spaces such as Wiki Spaces, websites
and blogs. Links between the technology and its use by students and teachers
within the classroom and beyond will be explored. The SAMR model will also be
used to show possible classroom examples and links will be made to current and
relevant learning theory.
Technical aspects.
Blogs, wiki spaces and websites are web-based applications,
which can be modified individually or collaboratively. Modifications can be
applied to content, structure, backgrounds, fonts, privacy settings, audio,
video, images or links to name a few. Select groups may complete customisation or
alternatively, editing rights may be held by an individual to restrict the
adding or removal of certain materials. Blogs, wiki’s and websites functions can
vary, from private and public purposes such as community forums on a website,
the organisation of knowledge on a blog and general note taking on a wiki. They
may also be used for a range of in-depth learning experiences, or simply for an
individual to share information socially. Due to the open-ended nature of these
online platforms, they are able to meet the dynamic needs of the contributors
as the editors constantly update the spaces in the form of posts that are seen
by users by the date they were submitted. This helps the users to follow the
ongoing feed of information with ease. Users are not restricted by time or
space as they add to the spaces, and can do so simultaneously from the comfort
of their own home. Some platforms such as a wiki space, for example are more
collaborative in this sense, compare to a website, which is usually used as a
means to share information, rather than to provide a collective discussion.
Users can access these spaces using a variety of means, including subscribing
to a feed or simply by being accessed via a web search. The platforms are also quite complex and
in-depth, providing users the opportunity to embed apps within the space,
further enhancing the experience for users on a multimodal level.
These spaces can be used in an endless amount of classroom
contexts, from simple, lower level information sharing, through to aiding
students complete complex reasoning processes. A Plus, Minus, Interesting chart
will be used to further investigate these online spaces.
Wiki Spaces
Plus
Students can take ownership of their own ‘space’.
Students can access information anywhere, at any time.
Some students may feel more comfortable typing than writing
or participating in a classroom discussion.
Easy way to manage/incorporate whole class with numerous
authors at once.
Parents may also be able to access and monitor student work
at home.
Allows teachers to provide timely and relevant feedback with
ease.
User friendly and engaging for digital natives.
Allows students to store and collect information to add, edit
and reflect upon.
Shows evidence of students learning and engagement.
Can be used for formative and summative assessment.
Can provide open ended or carefully scaffolded guides to
activities to encourage higher order thinking.
Encourages discussion and consideration of other point of
views and opinions.
Allows students with disabilities or speech difficulties to
participate.
Templates can be changed to suit a range of activities.
Ability to link or add apps/images/links etc.
Can be a safe platform with the use of privacy settings and
passwords.
Teaches use of online platforms that students will encounter
late in life and should be proficient in to be active 21st Century
citizens.
Minus
Could encourage cyber bullying as they post on each other’s
pages.
Must be constantly monitored by teacher – this could be
difficult.
Construction of templates may take time, and may not always
work.
Students may plagiarise other student’s content.
Time must be spent on teaching the appropriate ways to
contribute to spaces, such as copyrights, cyber bullying, privacy issues etc.
Numerous authors can create issues with content, such as
accidentally erasing others or their own work.
May not suit students from low socio-economic areas who may
not have easy access to computers or the internet.
Interesting
Can be used as effective technology integration (SAMR Model)
starting from substation, for example a wiki can be used instead of a ‘normal’
classroom discussion. This could lead to Augmentation as students employ higher
order thinking skills as they view other’s wiki posts and in turn other’s
opinions. Modification can be utilised to create new tasks, such as embed a
Wordle into their own wiki space and reach vast audiences that they could not
otherwise reach if they had not created a wiki space on the Internet.
Redefinition would then be constructed by the students and the teachers
collaboratively, as they use this new found knowledge and apply to new
situations and receive feedback from professionals in specific fields. A wiki
platform also comes under the social constructivist and connectivist learning
theories, as students learn by discovery and social experiences, with the
teacher facilitating the learning. The learning should also be intrinsically
motivated as they students engage in collaborative learning.
Blogs
Plus
Engaging tool for digital natives.
Students can take ownership of their own space and learning
journey.
Information can be added, editing and removed as the user
sees fit.
Can be used as a tool to follow students learning journey’s
with ease as the information is posted chronologically.
Could be used as formal or information formative and
summative assessment.
Students can experience a range of views and opinions with
ease.
Access to blogs can be password protected, and students can
decide to has access to their blogs.
Students can access blogs anywhere and work at a their own
pace.
Students can refine skills they will need as a 21st
century citizen.
Students can access professional’s and expert’s blogs and communicate with them
with ease.
Easy to edit and personalise.
Teachers can provide timely and relevant feedback on blogs.
Posts can be set up to be checked and approved by the teacher
before the are publicly posted.
Can be a great tool for students with a disability or who
struggle with classroom discussions.
Blogs on the Learning Place are safe an appropriate for
classroom use.
Minus
Time must be spent on teaching students how to use blogs
appropriately to ensure their safety in regards to cyber bullying and privacy,
as well as copyrighting issues.
Students may have issues
setting up blogs, and may not complete tasks.
Could encourage cyber
bullying as students post inappropriate comments.
Teachers may find it
difficult and time consuming to monitor and access all student’s blogs.
Could be difficult to use as
a whole class activity, or provide information via the blog to all students.
Students may plagiarise other
student’s work.
Technology occasionally is
unreliable, and student’s work may be lost or deleted.
Hands on or kinaesthetic
learners may struggle.
Could be an issue for low
socio-economic students, as the may have issues with access, or lack the skills
to create and maintain a blog.
Interesting
Similarly to a Wiki, a blog can be used as effective
technology integration - again using the SAMR Model - starting from substation,
for example a blog can be used instead of a ‘normal’ classroom project or
presentation on a specific topic. This could lead to Augmentation as students
employ higher order thinking skills as they view other’s blogs and in turn
other’s opinions. Modification can be utilised to create new tasks, such as embed
appas and outside links and images into their own blogs and reach vast
audiences that they could not otherwise reach if they had not created a blog on
the Internet. Redefinition would then be constructed by the students and the
teachers collaboratively, as they use this new found knowledge and apply to new
situations and receive feedback from professionals in specific fields, further
enhancing their learning and adding to their knowledge. A blog also comes under
the social constructivist and connectivist learning theories, as students learn
by discovery and social experiences, with the teacher facilitating the
learning. The learning should also be intrinsically motivated as they students
engage in collaborative learning, as per the wiki.
Websites
Plus
Students can control their
own learning and take ownership of their own space.
Content can be continuously
added, reviewed and updated.
Integration of apps or
external links can be added such as videos and images – multimedia.
Engaging learning tool for digital
natives.
Provides and opportunity to
refine important technological skills needed for the 21st Century.
Could be used as a formative
and summative assessment tool.
Easy to access and create for
students and teachers.
Pages and templates can be
personalised and edited to suit a range of purposes.
Provides a platform to track
and reflect on learning.
Parents can access and view
student’s work.
Can be accessed and viewed by
teachers and students at any time, anywhere.
Students with a disability or
quiet students can participate with ease.
Provides an alternative way
to present work, or can further enhance and back up work that has already been
completed.
Minus
Could be difficult for
teacher to monitor all students’ websites in a timely manner.
Could encourage cyber
bullying.
Time must be spent on
teaching proper etiquette on the Internet to discourage cyber bullying and
promote correct use of copyright and privacy issues.
Technology may not always be
reliable, and work may be erased or lost.
Could be difficult for
teachers to communicate with whole class.
Design of websites and
scaffolding of activities could take time.
Platform does not allow for
numerous authors at once.
May not be as secure a
platform as a Learning Place blog.
Does not allow for as much
collaboration as a Wiki Space.
Interesting
As per a blog and a wiki, websites can be used as effective
technology integration - again using the SAMR Model - starting from substation,
for example a website can be used instead of a book review presentation or
specific writing tasks such as report writing or creative writing. This could
lead to Augmentation as students employ higher order thinking skills as they
view other’s websites and in turn are exposed to new information. Modification
can be utilised to create new tasks, such as embed images, videos and outside
links and images into their own websites and reach vast audiences that they
could not otherwise reach if they had not created a website. Redefinition would
then be constructed by the students and the teachers collaboratively, as they
use this new found knowledge and apply to new situations and receive feedback
from professionals in specific fields, further enhancing their learning and
adding to their knowledge. A website also comes under the social constructivist
and connectivist learning theories, as students learn by discovery and social
experiences, with the teacher facilitating the learning. The learning should
also be intrinsically motivated as they students engage in collaborative
learning as they access and view other students’ blogs.
Comparison of Blogs, Wikis and Websites as learning
and teaching tools.
As learners and teachers in
the 21st Century, it is imperative that tools such as these are
utilised in the classroom. More importantly, however, is that teachers ensure
that they are used effectively, as not just as direct tool substitutes (SAMR),
but used to design and create new tasks. Collaboration must also be integrated
within rich and engaging learning experiences, which is used appropriately, all
of these platforms can provide. With personal experience I have found, however
that a Wiki Space provides the best opportunity for student and teacher
collaboration. As discovered in the participation of the De Bono’s hats
activity, contributions and edits could be made with ease. Tasks were
scaffolded carefully, and students could easily be self-directed through the
task. Collaboration could be seen on one page, and teachers could access and
mark students’ work with ease. A wiki can be a great classroom tool for
creating discussions and constructing new knowledge, making it also a great
tool for formative or diagnostic assessment. These tasks would be slightly more
time consuming with a blog, for example. Having experienced setting up and posting
on Blogger for the first time, I found this to be slightly more complicated. It
was more difficult to discover peers work, however, I enjoyed the fact that I
could personalise and edit my own space. Students would not have this sense of
ownership and responsibility on a Wiki Space. The ‘circles’ on friends you can
create makes for easy interaction, and blogs make it easy to communicate with
professionals and pages you would not otherwise have access to. Blogs can be
great tools for creating personalised learning journeys and reflections in a
safe and secure platform. Blogging may
also be a way to help improve students’ writing skills, sharing research, and
generally improving ICT skills. Websites, I found, had again lightly less of a
collaborative theme. While students can create and publish in their own spaces,
and view others pages, the connections are fewer. Websites have a more professional presentation
to them, and could be used to publish final drafts of projects such as book
reviews or themed projects. My personal experience with a website in a learning
setting has occurred when we were required to showcase information for other
professionals, such as a complete unit plan or specific lesson plans. I found a
Weebly was easy to navigate and customise without much effort, and looked
professional and organised. Students would enjoy personalising their own space,
and teachers can easily navigate their work and provide feedback. Teachers may
also use all of the above to communicate with other educators and gather and
share information with peers from across the school, or across the globe.
Overall, all above-mentioned
online platforms can be useful in an educational setting for both educators and
students alike, however special consideration must be given to the authenticity
and complexity of the tasks to ensure that using this type of technology is
worthwhile.
Evidence of exploration
Below are the links to the above-mentioned
technology that I have explored either as a part of this course, or as required
by other courses.
Blog
http://samgleesonelearning.blogspot.com.au
Wiki
Weebly
