Congratulations on Completing the Course!

This will be your final blog posting for the course, which will serve as a summative reflection on your professional growth. Please post a “comment” in response to the following questions:

• Discuss what impact this course has had in your professional development including new perspectives you may have gained as a teacher and for students, as well as new ideas, skills, and knowledge. Have you grown as an education professional?

• What Web 2.0 tools do you think will have the most relevancy in teaching and learning for you and applying these tools in the curriculum? What are their benefits? Do you foresee any challenges in your particular educational setting in implementing these tools?

• Do you think this is a valuable course for other educators in K-12 and higher education (in-service teachers/faculty, pre-service teacher candidates, and graduate students) to take for their professional development? Please explain.

Keep blogging in the personal blog that you have created!

(image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Computer-globe.svg)

Setting Up an RSS Feed Reader

In this course, you have set up an RSS feed reader so you can subscribe to RSS feeds of interest. You’ve also had the to opportunity to view the RSS feeds that your class members have subscribed to, as well as to explore RSS resources and aggregator services to provide you with a foundation for using RSS for teaching and learning. Reflecting on this experience can be helpful as you move forward in using RSS and an aggregator in your educational setting. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. Describe your experience in setting up a Feed Reader and subscribing to RSS feeds. Was it a positive one? Were there challenges you had to overcome? Do you think subscribing to RSS feeds is useful for educational applications for both teachers and their students, as well as for professional development?
   
   
2. Which class participant's RSS Feed Reader page with subscriptions did you like the most? Refer to elements in the “RSS Feed Reader Rubric” to support your decision (include the URL).

(image source: http://www.buyerschoiceinspections.com/)

Creating an Educational Podcast

In this course, you have created an "educational podcast" for a unit of study that you teach in a K-12 or higher education curriculum content area or for professional development. You have also had the opportunity to view educational podcasts created by class members. Reflecting on this experience can be helpful as you move forward and plan to implement the use of podcasts in teaching and learning. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. Describe your experience in creating an educational audio podcast. Was it a positive one? Were there challenges you had to overcome?
   
   
2. Which educational podcast did you like the most? Refer to elements in the "Podcast Rubric" to support your decision (include the Title of the podcast and URL).

(image source: http://www.stephenrahn.com/blog/archives/category/podcasting)

Educational Podcasts

In this course, you were given the opportunity to explore podcast education examples, resources, and tools to provide you with a foundation for thinking about using podcasting for teaching and learning. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. Based on the podcasting resources that you explored in this session, discuss one podcasting education example, one podcasting resource, and one podcasting tool or hosting site that was most relevant and interesting to you as an educator (include webpage titles, authors/organizations, and URLs).
   
   
2. Can you think of specific podcast educational applications that would be worthwhile to use with students in a subject area that you teach?
   
   
3. Do you think podcasts are a useful Web 2.0 tool to engage the Net Generation in learning? (please explain)

(image source: http://church20.blogspot.com/2008/01/c20-poll-is-podcasting-dead.html)

Creating an Educational Social Bookmarking Site

In this course, you have created a "social bookmarking site" for a course, subject, or unit of study that you teach in a K-12 or higher education curriculum content area for your students to use. You have also had the opportunity to view social bookmarking sites created by class members. Reflecting on this experience can be helpful as you move forward and plan to implement the use of social bookmarking in teaching and learning. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. Describe your experience in creating a social bookmarking site. Was it a positive one? Were there challenges you had to overcome?
   

2. Which educational social bookmarking site did you like the most? Refer to elements in the "Social Bookmarking Rubric" to support your decision (include the Title of the social bookmarking site and URL).

(image source: http://socialbookmarking.im-guru.com/articles/Social-Networking-Yahoo-360-Review)

Social Bookmarking in Education

In this course, you were given the opportunity to explore education examples of social bookmarking, Internet resources about social bookmarking, and social bookmarking tools to provide you with a foundation for thinking about using social bookmarking for teaching and learning.

Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. Based on the social bookmarking resources that you explored in this session, discuss one social bookmarking education example, one social bookmarking resource, and one social bookmarking tool that was most relevant and interesting to you as an educator (include webpage titles, authors/organizations, and URLs)
   
   
2. Can you think of specific social bookmarking educational applications that would be worthwhile to use with students in a subject area that you teach?
   
   
3. Do you think social bookmarking is a useful Web 2.0 tool to engage students of the Net Generation in learning? (please explain)
   
   

(image source: http://askbobrankin.com/social_bookmarking.html)

Creating a Class Wiki

In this course, you have created a "class wiki" on a course, subject, or unit of study in which your students can participate in a K-12 or higher education setting. You have also had the opportunity to view each others’ wikis in specific curriculum content areas. Reflecting on this experience can be helpful as you move forward and plan to implement the use of wikis in teaching and learning. Please post a "comment" in response to the following question:

Which class wiki did you like the most? Refer to elements in the "Wiki Rubric" to support your decision (include the Title of the wiki and URL).

(image source: http://writingwiki.org/default.aspx/WritingWiki/For%20Teachers%20New%20to%20Wikis.html

Educational Wikis

In this course, you were given the opportunity to explore Internet resources on wikis for educational purposes and to participate in a real-world web-based collaborative educational experience on the topic of "Cyber Safety and Ethics" working in small groups and using the PBwiki tool. Now is a good time to reflect on your experience with wikis thus far. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. Of the wiki resources that you have explored, discuss one wiki education example, one wiki resource, and one wiki tool that was most relevant and interesting to you as an educator. (include webpage titles, authors/organizations, and URLs)
   
   
2. Describe your experience in participating in the wiki group collaboration project on the topic of Cyber Safety and Ethics. Was it a positive experience? Were there challenges that you and your group had to overcome?
   
   
3. Can you think of specific wiki applications that would be worthwhile to use with students in a subject area that you teach?
   
   
4. Do you think wikis are a useful Web 2.0 tool to engage students of the Net Generation in learning? (please explain)

(image source: http://textoscolaborativos.wikispaces.com/)

Educational Blogs

In this course, you were given the opportunity to explore examples of educational blogs, Internet resources about blogs (e.g., online articles, presentations, videos), and blogging tools to provide you with a foundation for thinking about using blogs for teaching and learning. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. What educational blogs did you view? Which one did you think was most effective? (include Blog titles, authors, and URLs)
   
   
2. What Internet resources about blogs did you view? Which one did you find most useful? (include Blog titles, authors, and URLs)
   
   
3. Which blogging tool did you explore? Would you recommend using it for an educational-type blog?
   
   
4. Do you think blogs are a useful Web 2.0 tool to engage students of the Net Generation in learning? (please explain)

(image source: http://liberatemedia.typepad.com/)

Net Generation in the Classroom

In this course, you have learned about the characteristics and interests of the "Net Generation," including educational considerations. Now, you’ll reflect on how you see yourself as a educator in relation to your students, who are members of the Net Generation. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. Which generation do you think best reflects your personality, attitudes, and beliefs: Silent Generation, Boomers, Generation X, or Net Generation? Do you identify with more than one generation? Is the generation you identified with based on the year you were born or other intrinsic considerations?
   
   
2. What insights have you gained about teaching students of the Net Generation? Reference specific course material and Internet resources in your response.
   
   
3. How do you think you can best engage students of the Net Generation in learning, particularly in your subject area?

(image source: http://communication.howstuffworks.com/how-net-generation-students-work.htm)

Introduction to Web 2.0 Tools

In this course, you were given the opportunity to explore Internet resources (e.g., online articles, presentations, videos) as an introduction to Web 2.0 tools for educational purposes. Now, you can reflect on this exploration in this blog. Please post a "comment" in response to the following questions (and support your responses):

1. What were your initial reactions when you viewed the "Shift Happens" video? What skills and resources do you think students need to survive and thrive in 21st century society?
   
   
2. Which Internet resources about Web 2.0 tools did you view? (include website titles, authors, & URLs)
   
   
3. Which resource resonated with you the most about Web 2.0 tools? What insights did you gain?
   
   
4. What are your first impressions about using Web 2.0 tools in education? Do you think their use will play a role in developing students' skills for the 21st century?
   
   
5. Which Web 2.0 tools are you most interested in at this time for teaching and learning?

(image source: http://www.learnit2.com/tutorial%20018/index.html)

Welcome to Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning!

This blog is intended for educators in K-12 and higher education and also preservice teachers who want to learn about Web 2.0 tools and how they can be used for teaching and learning. The blog is part of a course on Web 2.0 tools that provides educators with hands-on opportunities to explore and use Web 2.0 tools (e.g., blogs, wikis, podcasts, social bookmarking, etc.) for real-world applications in curriculum content areas and professional development. Have fun blogging!
Denise Kreiger

(image source: http://daily.hotpads.com/hotpads_daily/startup_/index.html)