Classroom 2.0's educator network has some "Kool Aid" to share with you

{Back to the original article.}

Blogs, wikis, podcasting, social networks… it seems the entire world has gone 2.0 crazy. Among the followers are educators, who, in ever increasing numbers, are integrating these online, interactive tools into their classrooms and yes, even libraries. In these profiles, you’ll meet a few of these ordinary, in-the-trenches folks—just like you—who have taken the plunge, launching blogs, signing on to social networks, and stepping up to the podcast mic in order to create innovative learning opportunities that encourage collaboration as never before. While these innovators range widely in their experience and comfort level with technology, every one’s a part of Classroom 2.0 (classroom20.ning.com), a social network for educators exploring new technologies (see “Class Is in Session,” below). Online, they’ve shared advice, technical know-how, and encouragement in a community where newbies should feel most welcome.

The Profiles:

• Nancy Bosch on Blogs
• Ginger Lewman on Social Networking
• Dr. Tom Stiff, Susan Stiff, Diane Hammond, Dr. Steve MacLean on Blogs
• Carolyn Foote on Wikis
• Lisa Parisi on Podcasts
• Dave Ehrhart on Social Bookmarking
• Barbara Barreda on All

Class Is in Session

“How are you using your smartboard?” “Confessions of a technology leader.” “Twitter?” These sample subject headings give an idea of the conversations going on at Classroom 2.0 (classroom20.ning.com). Launched in March 2007, the social network for educators attracts practitioners who are exploring Web 2.0 and collaborative technologies. From seasoned two-oh heads to first-timers curious to know about this new-fangled thing called blogging, participants get together and mingle online, to pose questions and provide answers, spark debate, and trade information. There’s also a sense of community, where you can come for support, especially for those who feel isolated, as if they’re the only ones in their schools who are trying something new. While MySpace has given social networks somewhat of a bum rap among grown-ups, Classroom 2.0 is an example of how these groups can function as a virtual watering hole, a professional development tool, and a place where it’s not uncool to say you want to be someone’s friend. I started Classroom 2.0 as a way to make it easy for educators to dip their toes into the sometimes intimidating waters of interactive technology. Once on the site, you can comment on a forum post or send a message to request information. Or jump right in and start your own discussion. Don’t be surprised, an immediate response is typical of this congenial group. Need more assistance? Check out the section “How to Start” on our home page. I look forward to seeing you in class.

---

Web 2.0 Tool of Choice: Blogs

Profile

Name Nancy Bosch Position Gifted education teacher District Shawnee Mission School District Location Shawnee Mission, KS Grades K–6 (gifted) With the help of a student’s dad who set up our site, I started my fourth, fifth and sixth graders blogging in November 2006. My main objectives were safe and responsible social networking, understanding of copyright and intellectual property issues, and, of course, writing relevant content for a real audience. My co-teacher and I posted the initial blog entries, with a link to some creative writing prompts. I dug up appropriate RSS feeds, included a Word of the Day node, and the rest is history. The students jumped in with both feet, logging several thousand posts—that’s A LOT of writing and thinking. Since then, we’ve included a “Book” section, to accommodate the creative work of our budding writers. Other teachers and several parents have joined us in blogging, which is a great opportunity to get into a real conversation with kids. Each student was then given their own blog, while I maintained administrative rights and approval over all their entries. After explaining the rules and how commenting works, I stressed to them that blogging is a formal writing experience; students must meet certain criteria in their writing, such as correct grammar, punctuation, proper citations, and linking, no IM and chat lingo, no personal drivel, etc. They are participating in a written “conversation” and I will delete any comments like “Cool” or “Neat!” But, the most important job of the teacher is to join in the discussion, not be a grader. It’s hard—I only point out the most egregious errors—mostly I just converse. Posted by Nancy Bosch on October 9th, 2007, at 7:44 a.m. — 2 comments (Add)

Nancy’s Places

Nancy Online adifferentplace.org Nancy Offline American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance, Bee Gees, show tunes, contemporary fiction and nonfiction, Harry Potter. Blogging Tools Blogger and Drupal

---

Web 2.0 Tool of Choice: Social Networking

Profile

Name Ginger Lewman Position Director, Face to Face Program, Turning Point Learning Center District We’re the K-8 charter school for the Emporia Kansas, USD 253 school district Grades 5–8 collaborative classroom I’ve been toying with social networks, Ning mostly, since I was introduced to the Classroom 2.0 group of educators. It was daunting, at first, seeing so many people in the network talking about things I’d never even heard about. However, keeping my students in mind and mimicking their fearless style, I jumped right in, made a few comments, posted a few discussion items, and began to find that the community in Classroom 2.0 seemed to be able to answer ALL of my possible questions, no matter how simple or complex! Here was my own 24-hour feedback station for technical and moral support, where I could offer assistance to others as well (as you do in a true community). I then tried to find ways to incorporate more student-friendly communities into my classroom. Social networking allows my students to thoughtfully experience not only academic learning, but also true community-building. In our setting, with ages 10–14 all in the same classroom, it’s important that we respect one another. Networking is a super-quick way to build that friendly, family-like camaraderie. The students are LOVING this additional dimension of communication. This year, through distance collaborations I forged with other teachers in Classroom 2.0, my students will consider “what time is it?” and different time zones across the country and around the world. They are learning cultural interaction skills. They are becoming true citizens of the 21st century! Posted by Ginger Lewman on October 3rd, 2007, at 8:44 a.m. — 2 Comments (Add)

Faves

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, A Clockwork Orange, Dr. Strangelove, Hole, The Dresden Dolls, The Fountainhead, Susan Whittaker Ginger’s URL classroom20.ning.com/profile/GingerTPLC Ginger 'Mini Q & A’ Fave Software Ning! (Too bad it’s blocked at most schools.) Fave Softdrink Tab Energy (Tastes just like cherry Jolly Ranchers!)

---

Web 2.0 Tool of Choice: Blogs

Profile

Names Dr. Tom Stiff, Susan Stiff, Diane Hammond, Dr. Steve MacLean Group YES I Can! Science Project School McMaster University Location Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Grades K–12 teachers and students worldwide YES I Can! Science connects scientists, engineers, and researchers working in the field with K–12 classrooms around the world through our project blogs. When the team first built a collaborative online learning environment, we offered project participants a variety of communication tools—email, discussion forums, and blogs. Scientists, teachers, and students alike gravitated to the blogs, so much so that that we now use them as our primary communication tool. No wonder, blogs are easy to use and access. They allow for communication on a continuum from very structured to completely open. Participants can respond to a posted question, comment on another user’s post, ask questions of our experts, solicit advice or feedback from others, start new conversations, and reflect on what they’re learning. Some students have become so engaged in their learning that they continue to blog even after the project has officially ended. In 2005/06, we helped connect students from grades 3–12 with researchers in Antarctica studying the aerobic capacity of Weddell seals. The scientists blogged about daily life on the ice, finding the seals, and taking muscle tissue samples. Our current project, ISS07, links grade 4–12 students with American astronaut Clayton Anderson, a flight engineer on the International Space Station. Students are blogging questions to him about living and working conditions in orbit and construction of the space station. Through these exchanges and collaborative activities, our participants are creating a legacy resource for future generation. Posted by Diane Hammond on September 24th, 2007, at 3:33 a.m. — 2 Comments (Add) Hero from Diane Hammond “I got started with student blogging because of David Warlick. I really like his take on literacy.” URL iss07.yesican-science.ca/ Yes I Can! 'Mini Q & A’ Fave Software Ours! (For our collaborative projects, we have developed our own software.) Favorite softdrink Diet Coke (That actually works for all of us.)

---

Web 2.0 Tool of Choice: Wikis

Profile

Name Carolyn Foote Position District librarian School Westlake High School, Eanes ISD LocationAustin, TX Grades 9–12 With a wiki, you have the ability to garner contributions from so many others in your community. So if I am designing a pathfinder for a class, teachers can add Web sites. If students are working on a research project, they can help one another share links. I’ve used wikis to compile notes with classes, encourage creative writing, and create book lists for teachers. In my role as district librarian, I’ve also used a wiki to create an editable “help” site for our new library automation software in which all our librarians can contribute their tips or questions. I’ve also created a wiki for professional development workshops on various Web 2.0 tools for our district. And our elementary school librarians have used the tools to discuss award-winning books. Wikis are becoming a real collaborative workhorse in our district. Posted by Carolyn Foote on October 12th, 2007, at 11:22 p.m. — 5 Comments (Add)

FAVES

Software pbwiki.com and wikispaces.com Softdrink “Real” Coke TV show Project Runway (an obsession!) Song “Read My Mind” (Killers remix of Pet Shop Boys) Book I have to pick just one? Whole New Mind Carolyn’s Hero “What about a heroine?” Carolyn Online www.futura.edublogs.org

---

Web 2.0 Tool of Choice: Podcasts

Profile

Name Lisa Parisi Position Teacher School Denton Avenue Elementary School, Herricks UFSD, New Hyde Park, NY Grades 5 Podcasting is a very tool new for my classroom. After listening to Radio WillowWeb, incredible podcasts created by students at Willowdale Elementary School in Omaha, NE, my co-teacher and I decided to give it a go ourselves. Our students started by writing scripts and creating Web sites dedicated to the fantasy books they were reading. Each reading group created their own Web page. The assignment was time-consuming, and little did we know that what we had created weren’t actually podcasts, but merely MP3 files uploaded to our site. But the children didn’t care. They worked extremely hard and had a ball recording their scripts. Our students with special needs excelled, with a few taking control of their groups and running the show. Eventually, the project helped us secure a Cablevision Power to Learn grant, which we used to buy a few handheld voice recorders, a Snowball mic for recording groups, and a webcam for recording video. We have many ideas for this coming year, including book review podcasts. Students will also record a monthly newsletter-type podcast based on class events. We plan to record guest speakers and student commentary, field-trip assessments, and general class discussions. Alice Mercer’s class [mizmercer.edublogs.org] has been a big inspiration, demonstrating the brilliance of children when given the chance to speak into a mic. Editing is not of utmost importance here. Just raw talent. The sky’s the limit. Next, Gcast and Podomatic will be put to the test. Who knows? Maybe in a few years, we’ll launch DentonWeb. The children, I’m sure, would love it. Posted by Lisa Parisi on October 9rd, 2007, at 6:21 a.m. — 3 Comments (Add) Lisa’s URL lisaslingo.blogspot.com.  

---

Web 2.0 Tool of Choice: Social Bookmarking

Profile

Name Dave Ehrhart Position Social studies teacher School Central York (PA) High School Grades 10–12 Social bookmarking is an excellent way for students to provide me with notes and documentation when they read online articles. So what is it exactly? A Web tool that lets you “bookmark” or “tag” sites for sharing, and it’s very easy to use. Del.icio.us is the most popular such application, but I like Diigo (www.diigo.com) because it enables me to highlight and save comments within online articles. In this way, I can monitor students’ research and comprehension skills. After accessing an online article, students bookmark it and share it with me online, highlighting those passages that they consider important or especially relevant. To add a comment, they attach a “sticky note” to each highlighted passage. This is a powerful tool—ensuring that students actually read, understand, and comment on the text. Through their feedback, I can check their research and respond directly or pose a question of my own. Social bookmarking has tremendous potential for group collaboration; imagine students exchanging comments and questions with any number of their peers. Diigo also allows you to differentiate instruction, starting from a basic level, where students must find a main topic or vocabulary words by highlighting and making comments, to more sophisticated skills, in which they might be asked to highlight and discuss bias in an editorial. Posted by Dave Ehrhart on October 3rd, 2007, at 8:44 a.m. — 2 Comments (Add) URL classroom20.ning.com/profile/dehrhart Dave Recommends Book The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt by Edmund Morris Song “Through the Years” by Kenny Rogers

'Mini Q & A’

Favorite software Diigo Favorite soft drink Iced vanilla-caramel latte

---

Web 2.0 Tool of Choice All

Profile

Name Barbara Barreda Position Principal School St. Elisabeth School Van Nuys, CA Grades Pre-School through 8 Developing some knowledge and skill with all things Web 2.0 is essential. Last year, I spent a lot of time leading the way, teaching in the classrooms so my staff could see the tools in action. Now we all share the mission. I have moved my modeling from instructing students to conducting our weekly curriculum and faculty meetings in a way similar to how I expect instruction to look in the classroom. We now have a blog where we take turns posting notes from our meetings. Critical to our success has been taking time to build a common vision and understanding. Each month, for example, we hold a “technology playground,” in which teachers explore a variety of basic literacy skills, including effective Web searches, site validity, blogs, and more. From an administrative perspective, it’s essential to provide every opportunity to reduce the teachers work load that allows them the time to explore. My job is to help them sort the important from the urgent, to empower them to try new technologies and to be willing to join them in the trenches. Our new mission statement, written by the whole staff, strives to “provide an excellent academic and spiritual foundation that will empower the students to be moral and responsible citizens who effectively apply technology as a tool of learning and as a means to actively participate in the global community.” Posted by Barbara Barreda on October 3rd, 2007, at 8:44 a.m. — 2 Comments (Add) Barbara’s URL dare-to-dream--classroom-technology.blogspot.com

Barbara’s Favorites

Software: Skype and Voicethread TV show or movie: Lord of the Rings Song: Riding with Private Malone Book: While We Still Live

---

Author Information

Steve Hargadon is the director of the K–12 Open Technologies Initiative for the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) and founder of the Classroom 2.0 social network.