So...

To Blog or not to Blog???? 

...Wiki...or won't he??

and...lastly is the future Websites or will the web-bite??

What do I think of Blogs...Wikis and webpages? ..and how would I use these in a classroom?

I am such a baby blogger...and at this stage I am just learning to crawl. Like any baby I want to pull myself upright just so I can reach and play with all the 'goodies' that I just know is out there. But sadly I do have to learn to crawl in a straight line first.

Before I start this reflection, let me just say that I am really really excited about technology and am already investigating great sites that talk about using things like blogs in the classroom. Wow!! So many opportunities...but I do have to ask, would the schools all allow these to occur in the classrooms? It seems that while we all want to use these great ideas, and all the teachers I have spoken to are so enthusiastic about e learning, there is limited time or resources for teaching with technology. This is particularly so in most Primary schools.

To quote one school teacher "Debbie, in a perfect world each child would have a computer with safe internet access and each teacher would be equipped with the knowledge needed to utilise as many online resources as possible to engage students in their learning, but sadly we just do not have any of these"...she goes on to say..."we are lucky to get access to the computers twice a week and then it is to perform simple tasks such as looking for information for assignments...nothing very engaging or exciting at all".

I wondered how this could change...and then I asked myself...why should this change? 

Okay....so...why should classrooms use things like wikis, weeblys and blogs?? 

1. It is the future...okay...it is the NOW actually... and anyone that argues this point has their head in the sand or perhaps in a book...not that there is anything wrong with a book. (I love books).

Most children are introduced to the wonderful world of computers at very young ages, even my granddaughter could open a iPad and play games or read books (look at the pictures) at the tender age of three, so children are immersed in technology. It is their world and sadly it can become their whole world. (Now I am thinking of my 15 year old 'gaming' son). So I believe teaching students how to safely use technology and computers and wikis, blogs, websites etc etc has become pretty much mandatory. They will use it regardless so...hey...let's teach it.

2. It is engaging! Kids love all this stuff! They want to use it, so this is a very very good reason to use all of these tools to teach important things. A maths lesson delivered with IXL for example is received with so much more enthusiasm than a 'chalk and talk' lesson. (Mind you...the 'chalk and talk' is fundamental to learning and can not be replaced). Introducing a science lesson with an online activity makes an engaging 'hook'. Why WOULDN'T a teacher use these engaging ways to teach?? I know I will!

SO...okay...if we all agree that we should use these resources then HOW do we start??

To teach using these...we have to know how to use them ourselves...TEACHERS HAVE TO BECOME STUDENTS OF TECHNOLOGY....and we have to LEARN all things great and beautiful...otherwise known as ...E Learning!
Simply put...we cannot use or teach what we do not know.

So back to my original question...

What do I think of Blogs...Wikis and webpages? ..and how would I use these in a classroom?

What I think...

I LOVE Blogs....I LOVE some webpages and...wiki's??...I am not too sure on yet.
I have experimented with my first wiki which I have created for this course, but I do not find it very user friendly yet....so as I said I will reserve my opinion until I have learnt more in this course.
So here is a link to my wiki...which is still very much an experiment in progress.

SO...how would I use these in a classroom?

Wikis:
I am still not totally sure how I would use wikis in the classroom however I am beginning to have ideas.

The positives:
The wiki is diffidently a place were people/students can communicate and work in a collaborate space. It is a little like a meeting place where all who have been invited have an equal say and perhaps equal ownership to the site. A teacher could post a challenge or a question on a wiki as a starting point which the class could discuss, investigate and share ideas and the answers they find. This would also be a fantastic tool for distance students to work in groups and also for schools in other towns, states or even countries to interact and learn from each other.

The negatives:
It could be hard to police and perhaps the safety aspect would be an issue but I am sure that there are ways to overcome these problems. (note to self...I must investigate how schools solve safety issues with internet tools such as these). They also seem rather boring to look at in the beginning and I believe this aspect does not 'draw' you into playing with them. (Unlike a weebly where you can go straight to choosing your own design fairly easily...or...'making it look pretty'). It also seems more complicated so would perhaps be more suitable to higher grades. (I think younger children could learn quite quickly how to use a Blog).

While I am somewhat negative still and no where near confident enough to use a wiki yet in any classroom I AM confident that I could learn how to!

But in saying all this...wikis are very different to Blogs and Weeblys.

Blogs:
Yes! I would use these in the classroom...IF I am able to. I asked a year 5 teacher about the possibility of using these and he was not enthusiastic...to say the least. He said that the problems associated with being able to use these far outweighed the benefits. When asked what were these problems... he answered that the major ones were lack of time to teach children how to actually create and use a blog, additionally many of his class did not have access to their own computers or the internet and limited time was allocated for each student to use school computers. Safety was another issue, particularly with the younger children.

This response was echoed by another teacher of a year 7 class. This teacher added that these types of ICT's also opened up another can of worms...such as ethics....

and bullying and other safety concerns (Bullying had been an issue in one instance). Another problem was that while most children by year 7 had quite a sound education in how to use a computer there were still a few who would have to be taught the fundamentals before any of these tools could even be considered.

However, even with all these problems I feel that the time it would take to teach students how to create and use a blog would be time well invested and in an ideal teaching situation using these in a class situation as I described in my Blog SMAR would prove to be a very beneficial method of teaching.

Weeblys:
Many would disagree with me...many would argue....BUT I really REALLY love weeblys. I have created a weebly for ensuring student success which I am also doing this semester (which I have not done a lot on yet) but I have enjoyed creating two previous weeblys in past courses. Both were for science courses....the first one was called        Chemical change and Food...and the other....What on EARTH will happen? Both of these assignments were thoroughly enjoyable and I believe the reason was because I chose the weebly as my tool to present them in. Weeblys are creative tools and that appealed to me. I enjoyed the ability to make it my own and found it user friendly. being able to put my own pictures and links easily onto this website was empowering. In my second weebly I brought it up a level by adding my own recorded voice message on the final 'page' addressing higher order thinking. Both weeblys enabled me to present my work to a high enough standard to receive HD's. I am very proud of these and would actually feel confident enough to use these in a classroom. 
There are so many opportunities for students to learn using weeblys in an upper primary class but the students would firstly have to be taught HOW to use all the 'bits and pieces' that make weeblys such a creative tool and so much fun.... and after all shouldn't learning be fun!!!??!!

To sum up.

Using these three tools in a classroom would be wonderful, they are similar and yet offer different ways to engage with technology. There is diffidently a place for technology and it is vital that students are taught how to use the web however there are problems that come along with this and communication should not rely on interaction with faceless words on a website. Learning how to learn... both in real life social and online social situations is ideal. 



The Blog would be a wonderful to engage reluctant writers as they complete personally designed journals. Additionally the thrill of 'publishing' their work would surely encourage them to become active bloggers. 
The wiki allows students to enter the whole wide world and they could communicate with students from anywhere and everywhere. What an opportunity for learning! Wikis also allow the teacher to actively be a part of a group of students as the work. This would enable the teacher to assess for understanding in a very unobtrusive manner and then to offer suggestions and guidance where and when needed. Students could access this site at home and ask questions that they perhaps may have been reluctant to ask in person. These questions could be answered by the other students and/or the teacher and could benefit all students. 
The weebly is just one website but it is the one I know at present and I do believe that these would be a wonderful way for an upper grade student to package an assignment They are neat and easily manipulated and very engaging.  .for myself and for personal assignments and tasks I believe the weebly wins hands down... however the Blog page is the best for a "continual work in progress" and it is also slightly easier to manipulate... however for group work and collaborative situations the wiki would have to be the only choice...so...all the more reason for me to get cracking and get my head around these wonderful wacky wikis.

I will end this with two final problems that I find with all ICT. 
It is additive...

....and then there is the distraction aspect. I find that I get sidelined so easily...I wander off into the world of wondrous things...wow....so much to explore and try!

So if these can distract ME.... a responsible adult learner from my task...how much more can they lead a child off on a merry chase?


I will look at other forms of ICT I have used in another posting.

So..... hang on tight...

........there's more to come.