“Are social networking sites appropriate for school
use? Should schools ban the use of such sites -- or incorporate them into the
curriculum and teach students?” (Educational World, 2011). If parameters are
set and the correct type of planning and training is put into affect, the social
networking sites will be appropriate for school use (take Edmodo, for example).
Schools should encourage students and teachers to use these types of websites
to enhance the students learning experience, prepare them for the
technologically advancing world around them, and give light to the effect uses
of technology in the classroom.
I
could go on and on about my supportive views on the idea of technology in the
classroom. Today’s society is more technologically proficient than ever before.
It is somewhat our responsibility as effective teachers to keep up on new
reform in education. Jeffrey Kottler, Stanley Zehm, and Ellen Kottler state in
their book, On Being a Teacher: The Human
Dimension that passionately committed teachers “are constantly searching
for more effective ways to reach their children, to mast content and methods of
their craft” (2005). Integrating technology into the classroom routine is
making learning meaningful because it is relevant to the students’ lives as
well as the world around them.
As
I use technology in the classroom, I see the difference in the students’
engagement. Instantaneously, all eyes are on the Smart Board with hands flying
in the air to respond to any questions or to participate in an activity. Practicing
and researching skills online is easy and fun for all learning in my classroom.
I am able to gear specific activities to each type of learner and level of
learning. In addition, I am currently organizing a classroom blog through a
website known as Edmodo. A goal I am hoping to accomplish with this blog is to
guide my students in carrying out their own reflections on their learning and
understanding in my classroom, their “regular” mathematics classroom, or out in
the real world. To begin, I have already come up with a few polls, as well as
reflective questions and thoughts, for students to respond. I am anxious to
monitor their reflections and responses
Furthermore, I will post at least one
blog on my new Edmodo.com website, where students and parents can ask
questions, post comments, and respond to discussion groups online. The first
blog should be created before Thanksgiving, leaving time for a response over the
holiday break.
References:
Education World. (2011). [Editor/Publisher]. Using technology in the classroom archive.
Education World, Inc.
Kottler, J., Zelm, S., & Kottler, E. (2005). On Being a teacher (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks,
CA:
Corwin Press.
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ReplyDeleteI would be interested to learn if any others have used or seen Edmodo in use for preschool age children. My niece has been emailing since she was 3 and my nephew started at two. Now of course, the content is limited but they were shown the various parts of the email and they would say what they wanted to say and my mom would write the words on paper for them. They would then type the message (usually a happy birthday message), they would adjust the font type, size, and color on their own and then send the email! They picked it all up so quickly and have sent a few emails on their own.
DeleteI have not used the poll features but I wonder if this could be included at the younger ages too. Maybe they could learn simple features to manipulate the site but then simply click one picture or word to answer the poll?? Simple questions like do you like cats or dogs may be appropriate. I feel using this would DEFINITELY be challenging task to incorporate. If anyone has used Edmodo or a similar site with preschool children I'd love to hear your success stories!
Ooops! I reposted below!
DeleteSorry for my confusion!
-Cristina
Is this your first experience with using Edmodo? I recently had our tech department set up a url for our school with the school name in the domain so we have a secure site and more power over what takes place on this site. That, however, is as far as I've gotten. Do the students create their own accounts or is it something the teacher or tech department sets up? I'm very excited to learn more about this site and incorporate it into my classroom.
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing how students (and even adults) are so driven to stay "updated" or "connected" these days. Technology obviously is a great motivator. I feel that as teachers if we can successfully integrate our curriculum with the technology we will be more likely to reach our students and build the foundation to become life-long learners.
Hi! Thanks so much for showing your interest in my blog. When I set up Edmodo, it was VERY easy. I created each classroom, as they instructed during the set-up. As I did so, they gave a code for the particular classroom that the students will need when they set up their own accounts (which is also VERY easy). Edmodo provides a step-by-step instruction on how to set up teacher and student accounts. I promise that no manual or video instruction is necessary. Take a visit to Edmodo.com and let me know what you think. I think you'll find it easy and exciting.
Delete“Are social networking sites appropriate for school use? Should schools ban the use of such sites -- or incorporate them into the curriculum and teach students?” (Educational World, 2011).
ReplyDeleteThese are significant questions that we really do need to consider and address as
21st century teachers. This day and age is so driven by social media sites and evolving technology sources like blogs, wikis, and podcasts. My school district unfortunately blocks many social media sites, which makes their incorporation in classroom learning difficult. This may also pose a challenge for you. Because of these district policies, I may not be able to bring social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, or Blogger into the classroom. I teach early childhood, and I also think that many of these sites are not exactly age-appropriate anyway, but, I can see why teaching about their proper usage is so relevant. I agree that “schools should encourage students and teachers to use these types of websites to enhance the students learning experience, prepare them for the technologically advancing world around them, and give light to the effect uses of technology in the classroom.” Educators are already using many of these sites for personal use, and we should realize that our students and their families are too. Therefore, I think that it is a great idea to utilize these free sites as education resources in the classroom because they are relevant to our students’ lives. I encourage you to continue to find meaningful ways to incorporate these technologies in your classroom. Just make sure that the content is age-appropriate, that your district approves of their usage, and that you have also gotten written permission from parents, just to cover all of the bases and avoid any difficulties.
As you mentioned, I also support incorporating as much access to technology as possible, but I think a strong focus must be put on teaching the proper and safest ways to make use of these sites. Instead of banning the use of these sites, or acting as if they simply do not exist, teachers need to find ways to expose their students to this technology in a secure and significant way, while teaching internet safety and etiquette. I’m sure you will do all the necessary planning to create the safest and most suitable technology-rich learning environment for your students. But, if you need some suggestions on how to overcome the challenges that incorporating social media could bring, I have found a helpful blog that you might want to check out called “Safety Clicks”. It is full of helpful tips for parents and teachers in regards to keeping kids safe when using various forms of technology.
Here is the link: http://blog.safetyclicks.com/
Good luck on your venture to use Edmodo in the classroom. I think your students will enjoy taking polls, and this will be a fun and innovative way to teach your curriculum and inspire class discussions. Keep us posted on how this works for you and your students!
Thank you Cristina for the "Safety Clicks" link. That is my primary concern with using blogs and social networking is providing safety for my students. I have struggled with getting participation outside of my classroom with technology before because a lot of parents shelter their kids from it. I need to prove to them that I am taking precautions to keep their children safe.
Delete"Make sure that the content is age-appropriate, that your district approves of their usage, and that you have also gotten written permission from parents, just to cover all of the bases and avoid any difficulties". These are very helpful tips for me. Thank you, Cristina, for your support and encouragement. I wish you the best of luck with your technology experiences, as well.
DeleteJacquelyn,
ReplyDeleteI appreciate how you are engaging students in your classroom using technology. The first time I was ever able to use a Promethean Board with my students, they were literally fighting over the chance to use the board. They loved being able to interact with a board.
Do you plan to have more than one blog post for parents and students to respond? I like the idea of using your breaks to allow parents and students time. It seems like a good first step, but I think you could do it more often. I guess I feel like the more often you do something, the more often parents are likely to respond because they get into a routine, but of course you do not want to overwhelm them either. Of course, it would depend on the content as well.
I agree with your thoughts, Whitney. Thank you. I try my best to keep up with communicating with the parents. There are so many "things" to keep up with on a daily basis. It's quite hard to have a enough time for it all.
DeleteWith this aside, I do see the benefit of blogging with parents more often in order to establish more of a routine.
Do you have a specific webpage or blog that you already use with your parents? If you do, would you mind sharing the link so that I may visit?
Hi Jacuelyn,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thoughts on integrating technology in the classroom. I'm really interested to hear more about Edmodo. I had a brief conversation with someone who had used it and they thought it might be an appropriate form of social networking for my fifth graders. Would you consider Edmodo an appropriate and viable communication tool for upper elementary kids? I can imagine the collaboration opportunities that would arise using this. Anyway, looking forward to hearing more about your work with Edmodo. Thanks again for your thoughts.
Thanks for the Edmoto site. I will look into this. I have a classroom website using Weebly. It has been very easy to set up. I fee like it is secure but will check out Edmoto too. I have been worried about what I can post on a blog because I know the district has strict regulations. I know the parents signed something to do with Google docs at the beginning of the year but not sure about Internet stuff. I wonder how many people know the guidelines of their district. Questions I have are can you post photos, student work with a name, first and last names, names with photos? I asked my principal but he isn't sure so we are looking into it now. There is also a rule about kids under the age of 13 having websites, blogs or other accounts. I teach 3rd grade so right now I am trying to get answers. Thanks again.
ReplyDelete