Class Websites & Skype in the Classroom

Class websites or blogs are a great addition to any effective classroom. They allow you to compile all components of your teaching (assignments, discussions, grades, communication, etc) in one spot that can be used for you to communicate with your students, for them to keep up to date with classroom activities, and for parents to stay involved in their children's education. I personally will definitely be using a website in my classroom. I like the idea that all important information can be posted online and accessed from anywhere. This will undoubtedly clear up many communication issues between students, teachers and parents before they even arise. I think it is also a great way to post additional learning material and related topics to engage students further and get them interested in a specific subject area.

Many people have often used Skype as a free long distance communication tool to talk with friends or relatives, but have never really thought much about other applications from this form of communication.

Skye is an excellent communication tool to use in a classroom. There are so many applications for it beyond simple communication with students outside of the classroom. You can stretch online communication further with Skype and have guest speakers in the classroom via Skype, communicate with parents, communicate with other classrooms and students around the world, just to name a few. I really like the idea of communicated with students in other parts of the world as it is very rare for many kids to get the opportunity to see what life is like for other cultures first hand. This is a great way to open doors and inspire curiosity about the world outside your comfort zone. A great initiative in this direction has already been started:  

 The Around the World with 80 Schools Project". This is a global communication project where schools from across the globe connect with each other. The general idea is for students from each classroom to have the opportunity to connect for a few minutes with each other to help them not only to understand other cultures, but to show them just how technology and globalization is making our world smaller. Check out their website to learn more about this project.

http://aroundtheworldwith80schools.net/
Check out this video, these students are playing a question and answer game with another school and they have to figure out where in the world they are from:


The Mystery Skype Call from langwitches on Vimeo.

I think something like this would be so fun!!
Skype can also be used to bring people into your classroom that you could not normally get in. The Royal Tyrrell museum has a in class program where a dinosaur expert gives you the grand tour but you don't even have to leave your desk!



This is just another form of education through Skype, it just doesn't carry the name brand of Skype with it. It shows you how distance learning and communication can be made easy through Skype.

References:
http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/programs/distance_learning.htm
http://aroundtheworldwith80schools.net/

RRS Feeds

RSS feeds stand for Really Simply Syndication feeds. What does that mean exactly? Well essentially updates on sites you subscribe to come directly to your email as they are updated. This means that you no longer have to search out new material on your favorites sites because you will be notified when something is updated. The icon for RSS feeds is seen almost everywhere, if a site you like has this icon (see image in top left) then you can subscribe to updates from that site through an RSS feed.

There are many ways to use RSS Feeds in the classroom, it is a great way to stay updated on new and exciting curriculum material. If you have a class blog then and RSS feed would allow you to be updated when your students post to the blog. It is a great way to communicate with your students. I think it’s useful to see RSS feed on websites as it’s a great way to direct you to related information you may not have otherwise considered. RSS feeds are a great way to combine all areas of your online activities into one simple location.  

Social Networking in the Classroom

Social networking is a great way to get your students involved in discussing school related topics in a method that they can relate to, understand, and enjoy using. Social media started out as a fun way to connect with friends, but it has evolved to become so much more. It has become a powerful tool for educators to open up a world of possibilities and connections to our students. Social networking tools like; Facebook, Twitter even Skype are connecting students to learning opportunities in new and exciting ways. It is also part of their everyday life so it would silly to ignore it in the classroom.

There are so many ways to use the different social networking sites in the classroom, many activities can cross grade levels and subject areas. It just takes a little creativity! I found a great blog on OnlineUniversities.com with some awesome ideas for classroom applications of social media tools. OnlineUniversities also had a great article about the impacts of using social networking in the classroom its worth checking out! It had some great ideas of different social networking options that you could use in the classroom like Brainify. http://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2010/05/100-inspiring-ways-to-use-social-media-in-the-classroom/

100Inspiring Ways to Use Social Media in the Classroom

The first idea on this site really jumped out at me. It has the students create facebook accounts for characters in a novel study. I would take it a step further as a writing assignment and have the students email each other (or post on the walls) as if they were the characters talking about events occurring in the novel. You could connect it with art and have the students sketch their characters, scan the drawings and use them as their profile pictures.

Even sites like Today’sMeet can be used as a discussion forum while working on another project in class, kind of a background commentary to another lesson. This way you can view all the students comments, but it is more casual then an essay or writing an entire blog entry. 

I think using social media in any way we can is a great idea. Students use it so much already, rather than fight it we should embrace it.

Internet Safety

Internet Safety is of growing concern to teachers and parents alike. Despite all the technology in place today like; web filters and firewalls, as the internet grows so do the safety problems associated with it.  It is hugely important that despite the technology in place to protect students from unsafe sites, that students are taught to be aware of the issue and understand the importance of being web aware. T this will help them in the future and when internet filters and firewalls are not enough.

Web safety itself is comprised of a variety of issues from protecting personal privacy to cyber bullying and everything in between. Students use the internet in a variety of ways, BeWebAware lists the main reasons for internet use as; Research and homework, Social Networking, Blogging, and File sharing. Once we understand how and why students are using the internet we better prepare them for the challenges that they will face while online. While online some of the safety issues that students will encounter are; cyber bullying, pornography, sexually explicit material, personal privacy/identity issues, and marketing risks. BeWebAware has some great resources for preparing ourselves and our students for being safe online. There are many sites available out there that even provide completely constructed lesson plans for all grades pertaining to web safety like CyberSmart. Due the fact that internet is becoming such a huge part of education and our everyday lives, the issue of internet safety cannot be ignored. The issues and skills to prevention need to be addressed to our students.
The fist step is educating ourselves so that we can be better prepared to help our students.