Photo Credit: Mortten Oddvik via Flickr
Twenty-first century teachers have access to an unparalleled amount
of academic information through the internet. The digital content teachers have
access to can be extremely useful in enhancing learning. Teachers can use bookmarking
sites to help keep all of the digital content organized and readily acessable.
I have been using the social bookmarking site Delicious to save links I will
likely want to reference again in the future as a teacher. Delicious also offers
and option to “tag bundles,” which allows for students and teachers to assemble
learning activities together, as the bookmarked sites are shared publicly. The
links saved, categorized, and tagged using bookmarking sites like Delicious,
make accessing material already assess by the teacher, readily available for
use when creating WebQuest, Blogs, or other interactive activities.
As I just completed making my first WebQuest, I now see the
true value in social bookmarking site like Delicious. “WebQuest are online
inquires by students that are designed and quided by teachers” (139). Teachers
can hyperlink pre-assessed material saved and catagized in their bookmarking
tool when creating original WebQuest. WebQuest are broken down into steps,
making them well organized, easy to follow, inquiry based, and interactive
lessons for students. As a future teacher, I look forward to developing new
WebQuest that will be engaging to my students. I believe that make great tools
for small group activities as well. Each student can have a different role, or
task, in completing the group WebQuest.
Another exciting group assignment for students, which involves
engaging learns with digital tools, is going on digital field trips. I love
this idea! Google Earth is a great, free, tool to use for virtual field trips.
There are also many other virtual tour available online. Interactive video conferencing
can further enhance the virtual field trip. For example, if student went on a
virtual tour of the Chicago land area, and explored the Lake Michigan Coast,
they could later speak with experts from Lake Michigan Science Research Center,
or perhaps with another classroom of students from Chicago. There are many student-to-expert website
available, in which students can chat with content experts, ask questions, and
gain more knowledge.
Maloy, R., O’Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition.
Excellent post - both the content and reflections AND the visual enhancements (photo-though there is not link for attribution!, video and lino). You are taking full advantage of what the digital writing can do to transform this communicative experience.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear that both Delicious and WebQuests are "sticking' for you - sometimes when things are introduced, students don't see the usability. There are so many tools out there, but you've got to at least 'dip your toes' into it in order to find what works for you and your students. I have actually moved to Diigo for my own bookmarking as it has additional tools, but whatever you use, you will find the benefits of social bookmarking for storing and for sharing!
And, yes, virtual field trips are awesome - can you imagine all of the places and events you can 'experience' virtually - just with the internet. It really is transformative. :)