Final Reflection

Throughout this class I have learned very valuable information that I have been able to easily integrate into my teaching. We learned about several Web2.0 tools that I found very useful. By completing the Web2.0 Tool assignment, I was easily able to learn about other tools as well. I think that the assignment on the Web2.0 tools was very valuable and a great way to share information with others. I liked the fact that we were then responsible for learning about at least three other tools. Some of the tools that I found useful in this class were:

Google Docs-

Google Docs is a great tool. After completing the in class assignment on Google Docs, I was very intrigued at what Google Docs could do. I shared how to use Google Docs with my schools RTI committee as a way to gather data on certain students and how to easily share that information with others. A colleague and I then did a demonstration on how to use Google Docs at a staff meeting for the school. I created my own wiki on Google Docs as a way to present my information and share it with others. I am happy to announce that now staff members at my school are using Google Docs as a way to track data as well as using it for surveys. I have even bought a set of teachers guides for next year that describe ways in which you can use Google Docs in the classroom. I am very excited to integrate Google Docs into my classroom next year.

Wikis-

Wiki’s are one of my favorite tools that we learned about in this class. Before this class I remember attending a conference in February in which the presenter kept referring to “wikis”. I vividly remember saying to one of my colleagues “what the heck is a wiki”? I now have the answer to that question! Not only do I have the answer to that question, I feel as though I know how to create wiki’s as well. My partner and I created our own wiki page when completing the web2.0 tool project. This helped me familiarize myself with wiki’s. Since then I have created another wiki on my own for personal use. My goal is to create a class wiki next year at the beginning of the year. I currently send home a bi-weekly newsletter. With the wiki, I will be able to update it more often and parents will have access to it from home. I plan to place information on the class wiki that pertains to class, as well as homework assignments each day.

Blogs-

Blogs are a great way for students to share information with others. I have enjoyed learning about and using blogs throughout this course. Blogs are very useful for both teachers and students. Before this class, I never thought that I as a teacher could gain anything from a blog. Throughout this class I have began to follow many blogs that relate to education. By following those blogs I have been able to gain useful information and broaden the range of my PLN. I am looking forward to starting a blog with my language arts classes at the beginning of next year. I usually have students create journals at the beginning of the year. Instead of creating journals, students are going to be creating their very own blog page. We will be using the blog throughout the year for numerous activities.

Voice Threads-

Voice Threads were one of the very firs tools that we used in this class. I have to admit I did not find voice threads as useful as some of the other tools in the class. I have however done a little more research on how voice threads are being used in the classroom. I found the following wiki that shows numerous ways in which voice threads can be used in the classroom. http://voicethread4education.wikispaces.com/ I feel that voice threads could be useful in the classroom.

Twitter-

If I am being honest, I did not find this tool very useful. I can see its potential, especially for older students. I do not feel as I have fully bought into using Twitter in the classroom. To me Twitter was more of a social networking site, much like facebook. Before this class, I was not at all interested in using Twitter. I was a little apprehensive about creating a Twitter account. Although I do not really see its value in the classroom, I know that teachers are creative and can do almost anything with tech tools. So although I may not like to use it, I am sure there are teachers out there who are doing really neat things with it. I however prefer some of the other tools we have learned about over using Twitter. I was glad I at least was able to familiarize myself with the tool. On a side note, that was one of the major benefits to this class. I was able to familiarize myself with many tools and then decide for myself which tools I felt I could easily integrate into my lesson plans to improve my teaching.

Delicious-

The social book marking site Delicious is another tool that I find myself using very often since being introduced to it. It is a very convenient tool that allows you to access your personal bookmarks from any computer. Before using Delicious I would often book mark things at work and then not be able to access them at home, or I would write them down on a post-it. Delicious eliminates this problem because of the fact that you can access your bookmarks from anywhere. It also is unique in that you can find other people who may have similar interests as you. I found another teacher who teaches similar subjects as I do. I was able to then see what she was book marking and was interested in some of the pages that she bookmarked and added them to my Delicious account. Delicious has also helped me to become better organized with the web pages that I do book mark, because it allows you to add annotated notes after you tag the page. This helps me to remember what exactly was on that page that I liked. Delicious is a tool that I can foresee myself using in the future.

Google Earth/Maps

I have used Google Earth before in the classroom, but have never gotten a chance to take an in depth look at it. I was glad that we were able to do so through the examination of web 2.0 tools project. I definitely would like to incorporate it into my Social Studies class somehow next year. My students love to use it, even if it is just to locate their own home. I feel that this is a tool that I could use to enhance learning and capture students attention.

As I stated in many other posts I have thoroughly enjoyed this class. I feel that it has give me many new ideas that I can incorporate into my teaching in the feature. I feel as if my PLN has grown and continues to grow. I have not stopped using some of the tools that we were introduced to at the beginning of the class. I hope to continue to share what I have learned with colleagues in an effort to get them to expand or create their PLN as well. We are currently looking for a new reading curriculum at our school. I brought up the point that we should look for something that has some sort of focus on 21 Century Skills. We came across the reading/language curriculum created by Scholastic that is titled Expert 21. I was able to use my knowledge of 21^st Century Skills as we took an in depth look at the curriculum. I really favor that curriculum over many others because of the focus on 21^st Century Skills. I do not think I would have liked this curriculum as much as I did had I not had the knowledge of 21^st Century Skills. I continue to look for ways to incorporate these skills into my teaching in an effort to become a better teacher for my students.