Professional Development that Works?

"THE FIVE COMMANDMENTS OF EFFECTIVE STAFF DEVELOPMENT
1. THOU SHALT BE A VISIBLE LEARNER
2. THOU SHALT TREAT ALL INDIVIDUALS INDIVIDUALLY
3. THOU SHALT FIND YOUR OWN VOICE
4. THOU SHALT SEE THINGS AS THEY OUGHT TO BE
5. THOU SHALT MODEL THE MODEL " - (unknown author)

I look forward to professional development days because usually I get to choose what it is that I want to learn about. In the past, this has meant that I could focus on some aspect of English or social studies - I definitely wouldn't consider anything to do with technology because I felt that I was competent, and that students would figure this out for themselves. I can look back on this now and laugh at how truly closed-minded I was.

However, sometimes I don't have a choice as to what I am doing on these days because the decision is made for me by the school administration and pro-d person. Often times, this was frustrating because it meant that we were once again learning about some aspect of Microsoft Word, or worse yet, we were going to be reviewing how to use our marks program (which I was already very familiar and comfortable with). There would be the typical grumbling of frustrated staff members who were competent in these areas, and usually by after lunch there seemed to be noticeably fewer people in the session.

The best decision that I made with regards to professional development came two years ago when I played with the idea of pursuing my Masters. This was a tough decision in that I had to figure out how to juggle the many different aspects of my real life while trying to fit in coursework. Then someone mentioned to me that there were universities which offered online courses. Great, but likely not in the area of librarianship which is where I was hoping to go. I mean seriously, how can you offer an online course that deals with being a librarian? After all, a librarian doesn't have that much to do with computers. Oh, how WRONG I was!

Since I have started doing coursework, my brain has been thinking again, and I have a new enthusiasm for sharing what I am learning with my colleagues. I have learned much more in the courses that I have taken than in any form of pro-d that I have participated in. Why is that?
Simple, because I:

• was able to choose my pro-d
• can fit it in to my schedule
• have, for the length of the course, a professional learning community
• am immersed in technology
• am encouraged to check out new sites, tools, etc. by my classmates and professor
• am constantly revisiting what I have learned about through assignments, projects and discussions.

This scenario has worked for me, but when it comes to pro-d, one size doesn't fit all, as we read about in the articles of the same title. In Judi Harris' 4 part series entitled "One size doesn't fit all," she refers to educational technology professional development (ETPD) and she believes that "[g]iven whatever amount of times is already allocated . . . . we can 'work smarter' in designing effective [ETPD]." She proposes several different models that can be used and links them to goals and the ultimate effect that this has on one's teaching style. It makes sense to have different models to suit different school situations even though the desired end result may be the same for many schools. Two points that she makes in the February 2008 article that I think are essential considerations when implementing ETPD are that:

1. "[b]efore most teachers are willing to integrate the use of new tools or resources into their teaching, they need to recognize the relative advantages of doing so"


2. "continued on-site support as [teachers] experiment with new tools and techniques in their classrooms is essential to ensuring continued and productive use of new tools and ideas."

We know this to be true in any scenario, not just education; however, it seems to be the most true in education because teaching is such an isolated profession that doesn't require people to change in order to keep up with the the day-to-day life of a school. Without support, or continual contact with someone (a mentor, colleague or t-l) who is working with and successfully integrating technology, it is too easy for educators to fall into "old habits."

With regards to ETPD, I think that the t-l can be an excellent "knowledge broker" (Plair, 2008) for teachers because she cannot only "whet their appetites," but also provide the appropriate "menu" for teachers, as explained in Kimberely Ketterer's "A Professional Development Menu." After hearing about what some t-l's are doing, I am more aware of the support that they can potentially provide. T-l's are perhaps the only people in the school house who really need to be aware of what the curriculum is for all of the teachers therein. She can be a great professional development resource by providing support to teachers and offering to team teach with them. In some cases, all that teachers need is someone to help them feel comfortable with their use of technology in a lesson. Although there is perhaps no ideal way to present professional development with regards to technology integration, as educators, we need to continue to consider how we can integrate technology into our lessons, because it is not going away, and we need to engage our students.

Technology in the classroom

"With these [digital] tools, students act like scientists and innovators, rather than serve as empty vessels. They arrive at their own conclusions through controlled experimentation and what scientists call enlightened trial and error." Marc Prensky

Integration of technology in the classroom is not easy for most educators, despite the inspiring articles that were part of this week's readings, and the discussion that ensued. There are many obstacles that need to be overcome such as financial barriers, lack of access, training and perhaps one of the biggest deterrents - lack of time. Many educators would agree that it is essential in today's digital world to be able to integrate technology into classroom instruction in a meaningful way. In order for this to occur successfully, an environment similar to that of the Hong Kong International School as discussed in David and Margaret Carpenter's article "All Aboard!" needs to be consciously created where they "harnessed the talents and time of various stakeholders through a carefully orchestrated and collaborative process." Clearly this is an example of an ideal situation where the school and its administration valued innovative uses of technology, and therefore provided a select group of educators, which included "the instructional technologist, the library media specialist, and the gifted-and-talented coordinator," the time to collaborate and evaluate curriculum.

Pedagogically it does not suffice just to throw in a random lesson including technology here and there as the class moves through the curriculum. In a close-to-ideal situation, teachers would be provided with basic technology such as a computer (or perhaps several) and an LCD projector in the classroom. This would allow them to begin to incorporate some web-based images and videos into their lessons, and teachers could enhance the "teachable" moments that often arise. Not only would teachers' lessons be enhanced, but invariably students' interest and understanding of what is being taught would increase.

I think the key to successful integration of technology is for teachers to be exposed (through pro-d, or after school sessions) to one or two digital tools and then they should be encouraged to go away for a few weeks or months, and play with it in their classrooms. Certain grades or departments could support each other by sharing how they are using the technology in their classrooms. The best case scenario is when a teacher who is meeting with success using technology, as a means to reach curricular objectives, is able to share with and mentor a colleague. The organic benefit of having something develop from within as opposed to being delivered top down lends itself well to both quality and staying power.

This idea is further reinforced by the TeacherTube video demonstrating how Keri Hem, a preservice teacher, plans to use Google Earth to teach a social studies lesson. Her description of how she plans to use this tool for her lesson shows a how she will seamlessly integrate technology, and she gave me many ideas that I can work from with my social studies classes. Not having ever used Google Earth before, I am intrigued by what it can offer me and my students. Further to this was the video found at Edutopia which was a great example of how one school has integrated technology in all aspects across the curriculum, creating authentic learning experiences for its students. These visual examples are excellent resources which could be shared with colleagues to encourage the integration of technology.

Ultimately, as educators, we need to be able to move away from twentieth-century teaching practices and embrace what the twenty-first century has to offer us and our students. If we are not using technology, then it is entirely likely that we are not engaging or adequately preparing our learners. Speaking from the perspective of a teacher who up until recently was afraid of integrating technology into the classroom, it is entirely possible to learn about new digital tools and to use them with confidence.

Does Privacy Matter?

“Privacy is not something that I'm merely entitled to, it's an absolute prerequisite.” Marlon Brando

I am a firm believer in privacy. I have made several conscious decisions about what information I do and do not share about myself on the Internet. Not only that, but because I am a private person, and despite all of the hype surrounding social networking sites, I have chosen not to join one. I am generally quite cautious about what I use the Internet for, and as a result, this week's topic gave me a few more reasons to feel comfortable in my decision not share all with the World Wide Web.

I began my exploration of this week's topic with the YouTube videos about Google and its efforts to maintain its user's privacy. I found these videos informative because I really didn't understand the function of IP addresses and cookies. At least now I have a better understanding of what these are and how they identify my computer. I, perhaps naively, found these videos reassuring in that they seemed to indicate that people's privacy was important to Google, and that they were making efforts to ensure privacy. However, with all of the security measures that the U.S.A. has implemented in recent years, one has to wonder if these videos are only a means to pacify members of society who are questioning what information is being collected about them.

Most importantly, I had a chance to think about the privacy of my students, which is of utmost importance to me. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner makes a good point when it states that "[w]hile many young people recognize the risks associated with their online activities, they lack the knowledge and the tools to mitigate those risks." Working with high school students, this is very evident to me. Almost daily I am surprised with what my students are willing to reveal or share about themselves on line. Not only that, but they freely admit that they do not read the privacy policies, because they are confident that there is nothing for them to worry about because so many people are using the same sites that they are joining. Beliefs such as these concern me, and I try my best to explain to students that they should be wary about what they share, because once the information is on the Internet, it is almost impossible to revoke it.

I am very aware of my students' privacy, and since I have been trying to implement/use many of the Web 2.0 applications that are available to me, I have had to come up with some ways to ensure that they are able to use these "collaborative" tools in a somewhat "private" way.

• When using blogs, VoiceThread and Animoto with my students, I ask them to use only their first names and last initial to identify themselves.
• I do not allow students to post a photo of themselves on Blogger or VoiceThread, rather I ask them to find a photo on the Internet that represents them (I will have to remember to encourage them to use Creative Commons photos from now on).
• I have all of my students' blogs connected to my Bloglines, but I have them listed as private so not everyone can view what my students are writing.
• When students set up their blogs they adjust their settings so that search engines cannot find their blogs, and their blogs are not added to Blogger's listings.

Having students set up these applications using the above criteria does limit the "collaborative" aspect of Web 2.0, but because I am still "playing" with these tools, I haven't worked out all of the details yet.

What I have come to realize after this week's readings, is that it is up to me and other educators to teach students about online safety and privacy. Even though our students are digital natives, we can't expect them to know everything about the digital world. I appreciated Doug Johnson's sage advice in the Bloggers Cafe article "Lighting Lamps", and I think that I will share these points with my students:

• Write assuming your boss [mom, teacher, friend] is reading
• Gripe globally; praise locally
• Write for edited publications
• Write out of goodness.

Also, the YouTube videos Privacy and Social Networks and Does what happens in the Facebook stay in the Facebook? are a couple of videos that I am going to share with my students. The more informed they are about the information that is collected about them, the more likely they are to be a little more discrete. Furthermore, it would be a good idea to have students look at some of the privacy policies and really read them to see what they say.

Intellectual Property - Free or Not?

This week's topic has been a brutal slap in the face for me, as I became aware of the fact that I, quite unintentionally, have not been appropriately respectful of intellectual property. First of all, according to Wherry as quoted in Butler's article "Social Responsibility: Intellectual Property Defined," intellectual property is "the fruit of one's intellect." This definition wasn't quite enough for me, so I looked a little further. The World Intellectual Property Organization provided me with a much more detailed definition: "Intellectual property refers to creations of the mind: inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, images, and designs used in commerce."

Once I knew this, and started to read a couple of the articles, it became obvious to me that I have been a copyright offender, and as a result so have my students. Let me explain. . . The Internet has been a great tool for teachers in allowing them to enhance projects and lessons in many ways. It has helped to enhance my lessons by giving me access to literally millions of articles, poems, song lyrics, and so on, which can be easily printed and copied. I have used these to develop synthesis response questions for my senior English students; lessons on analysis of song lyrics, using these same lyrics as links to periods in history, and as springboards for class discussions, and this is only a short list of how I have used the Internet's "treasures" in my lessons. I have freely used the works of others without asking their permission; however, I have always credited the sources, but according to copyright laws, this is not enough.

As for my students, I can't count the times when I have allowed them to include graphics from the Internet for their projects such as powerpoints and posters. In fact, I have encouraged them to use graphics to make their projects aesthetically pleasing. At the same time, I have insisted that they copy and paste the URL where they have taken these from, but after this week's discussion, I realize that this does not quite cover it when it comes down to copyright laws.

I am still a little confused when it comes to copyright on the Internet, and I clearly need to do some more research/reading when it comes to this topic. For example, when I have my students do their poetry analysis project are they not allowed to use music lyrics from the Internet, or use other poems posted there? I am also not quite sure about the pre-Creative Commons materials. How difficult or easy is it to make contact with people who posted materials on the Internet 7 years ago? Unfortunately, there are numerous pictures on the Internet (Flickr is a prime example) that might be great to include in student or teacher works, but cannot be used because permission is not granted in time for the project's completion. The difficulty arises when the original owners of the work no longer visit or check the site where they originally posted their materials.

This past week I made a concerted effort to only use materials covered under Creative Commons - this was not easy! Partly because this is a relatively new form of dealing with intellectual property, so there still isn't that much out there. However, I did find an article that had a Creative Commons licence, for my discussion on moral dilemma's, and this tied in nicely with the short story "Just Lather, That's All" that I teach in grade 12. So, I realize it is not impossible to find materials that support my teaching, but it is certainly more time consuming. What this means for me, and for my colleagues who adhere to Creative Commons, is that we need to allow ourselves enough time to sift through the information located on the Web. We also need to make ourselves aware of websites that promote Creative Commons.

As for students, I believe many students understand what plagiarism is, but I agree with Tammy Morris' perspective in "Do Students Respect Intellectual Property?" that they do not necessarily understand the issues surrounding copyright, and this can be attributed to the fact that their teachers do not understand it either. Furthermore, I don't know how many of them have heard of Creative Commons. So, I went in search of something that would assist me in trying to explain to my students about Creative Commons, and arrived at this website, which I found quite useful. In particular the Sharing Creative Works slideshow, which has a simple, clear explanation of how Creative Commons works (I think this is accessible to students starting in grade 4, but I am just guessing here).

I believe that most teachers understand what copyright is when it comes to paper materials, but I really believe that there is a misconception that the information found on the Internet is "free for all." After all, if someone is posting something on the Web for the world to see, shouldn't they be prepared to have others use it??? Well the reality is no, the person should have the right to stipulate how he wants the materials used or not used. I believe that it is just a matter of bringing teachers and students up to speed with regards to Creative Commons and copyright on the Internet.

One of the discussion questions this week asked who should be responsible for copyright in the schoolhouse. There was mention made that it is everyone's responsibility, but I tend to think that perhaps one person (and I do believe it should be the teacher-librarian) should be the one to help keep teacher's up-to-date. It would be helpful to have someone who could periodically put on a brief after-school presentation on copyright, Creative Commons, etc. This would hopefully encourage teachers to become aware of what they are doing, and adhere to these laws. I also see this as being beneficial to the new teachers coming into the school. No where in my pre-service training do I remember any discussion of copyright, and I would hazard to guess that this is the case for many teachers currently entering the profession.

I believe in this case it is not easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission. We need to be respectful of people's intellectual property.

Photo courtesy of Bettina Tizzy

Bridging the Digital Divide

"The number one benefit of information technology is that it empowers people to do what they want to do. It lets people be creative. It lets people be productive. It lets people learn things they didn't think they could learn before, and so in a sense it is all about potential." Steve Ballmer

Before getting too far into this post, I have to admit that I really didn't know what the digital divide referred to until I read the wikipedia definition. I was under the false impression that it was more to do with the divide between digitally aware students and digitally unaware educators. Was I ever wrong! Although, I do believe it is possible that digitally unaware educators can contribute to the digital divide.

I really liked the simple, yet straightforward model that shows the "four levels of influence that take the form of 'digital divides' in schools" found at the AASLBlog Web 2.0 in Schools: Our Digital Divides Are Showing!














So, for this post, I am going to focus on this model and ways in which we can bridge the digital divide by addressing each level.

* Access - This seems to be one of the largest areas of the digital divide, and there was much information to mull over on this topic, as I began to think outside of my relatively urban community, and contemplate what ICT access or lack of access could mean for students who live in more rural and remote areas of Canada (I am going to narrow my focus to Canadian children, as the global digital divide is such a huge issue). The realization that came to me as I read the 2003 study The digital divide in Canadian schools: factors affecting student access to the use of information technology is that there is a difference between access to computers and access to the Internet. It hadn't really crossed my mind that there are still some schools that use computers as "glorified typewriters" because they are still unable to access the Internet. This clearly puts these students and teachers at a disadvantage in many aspects, in particular when it comes to all of the collaborative web tools available. However, upon further investigation, I had some hope that perhaps access was becoming less of an issue, as I came across Canadian Internet Use Survey completed in 2007. According to this study, the access to the Internet numbers are slightly higher than shown in the 2005 study, with "65% of residents living in small towns or rural areas access[ing] the Internet, well below the national average, while just over three-quarters (76%) of urban residents d[o] so." This study only looked at home access, so I would assume that students would have access at school.

Further to the access to technology issue is that of bandwidth which seems to be a constant battle that I am dealing with at my school. It seems that students' bandwidth is being constantly decreased, whereas teachers' bandwidth is at an "acceptable" size. The problems that arise are significant in that when a teacher investigates whether or not students can access a Web 2.0 site such as Animoto ,for example, she has no difficulty, but once students try to access it and upload pictures, the entire library lab moves at a snail's pace. The frustration level that results for both the students and teachers is imense, and discourages everyone from using web tools to enhance learning.

The key to bridging this aspect of the digital divide is for Federal and Provincial ministries to designate funding for ensuring that rural/remote schools have access to the Internet. We need to make it a priority that equal access at school is provided for all Canadian students. Not only is access essential, but adequate bandwidth is also a necessity for students and teachers in order to experience success with the many available web tools. (However, from what I understand of bandwidth, this may be closely linked to the issue of filtering.) If we deny teachers access to these essential elements of digital education, then we are not helping to prepare today's students for the jobs of the 21st Century. Educators need to lobby for easier access, and maybe this means inviting some of the members of school boards to spend a day in the computer lab so that they can witness first hand the frustration experienced by the users. The best thing that I can do in my own school is continue to be the "squeaky wheel.' I will continue to attempt to use Web 2.0 tools, and I will continue to be vocal when we can't upload pictures, videos and music.

* Skill - Another contributing factor to the digital divide is the skill or lack thereof of using Web 2.0 tools in education. There are many teachers who are not familiar with what is available to them through digital technology, and it is essential that time be alloted to educate the educators. In this week's discussion Joanie and Carol had some excellent suggestions about how this could be done by offering monthly sessions for teachers to learn a new Web 2.0 tool, as well as initiating a grassroots approach where Educational Assistants would be shown some of these tools which they could share with students. I believe that both of these would be excellent methods of bridging the digital divide. Further to this, it would be beneficial to have more professional development opportunities to increase awareness of Web 2.0. I have offered to give a little session in April on Voicethread and Blogging for the English Department at my school, and I have also spent some time with the Social Studies Department talking about Voicethread and how it can be used.

* Policy - This seems to be an issue that is becoming more prevalent as technology and its uses are increasing. It revolves around the issues of "technology policies that enforce slow hardware replacement cycles or restrictive use and filtering policies that block Web 2.0 applications" (AASLBlog). It is essential for school districts to allocate sufficient funding for replacement and updating of technology, but perhaps this could be done in a way that would be beneficial to teachers who do not want access to the Internet all of the time, but would like access to computers. Christine expressed frustration with teachers who book computer lab time in order to allow students to do simple word processing activities. However, I think that there are times when teachers need to do this, and unfortunately there are no other options available to them other than to use the school computer lab. I think it would be beneficial for schools to take some of their older computers and set them up to be used for word-processing. Also, I think that it is important that library labs be routinely outfitted with new computers, rather than receive the computers being taken out of the IT labs.

I keep reflecting on last week's discussion on filtering and I still believe that teacher-librarians need to advocate for filter-free environments in order to teach students how to be responsible web surfers. Esther Rosenfeld in blocking Web 2.0 tools in schools: creating a new digital divide argues that " [w]e now have a new digital divide-between, on one side, students and teachers who have access to the tools of 21st-century learning and, on the other, those who have that access blocked.

*Motivation - Finally, the idea of motivation contributing to the digital divide seems to be closely linked to Policy. The idea that students and educators have different "motivations to either adopt, ignore, or actively thwart learning innovation with Web 2.0 tools" is a new concept for me because I am so motivated to share all that I have learned about Web 2.0 with students and teachers. I think in order to bridge this aspect of the digital divide, it is important to have more professional development opportunities to allow educators to "play" with these tools, but also there needs to be some sharing of information that shows how motivated students are to learn using Web 2.0. I can think of a number of Women of Web 2.0 podcasts that could be easily used to inspire others to integrate digital technology into the classroom.

After looking at the 4 quadrants of the model, it is easy to see that each needs to be addressed in order to bridge the digital divide. It is essential that we find ways to overcome the digital divide so that our 21st century youth can be successful in their future careers. The way that I plan to help bridge this divide is by continually advocating for access to digital technology and more importantly Web 2.0, and to work on a grassroots approach by getting other educators interested and excited about these tools.

Filtering or Censoring - Is There a Difference?

This week's topic has been an eye opener for me, as I truly was unaware of the filtering that happens in schools, and its impact on student learning. My naivete arises from the fact that I am fortunate enough to teach at a school where the level of filtering seems to be quite low. Students and teachers are easily able to access YouTube, blogs, wikis, voicethread and other web 2.0 tools. It was interesting and surprising for me to read as others in the course spoke about their inability to access web 2.0 tools in their schools. Upon further reading, I was surprised by Mary Ann Bell's survey results listed in "I'm Mad and I'm Not Gonna Take It Anymore!" She states that in her survey, 65.2% of the people polled were dissatisfied with the internet access at their schools. I began to wonder why school districts would spend so much money on filters, rather than spend this money on educating students how to use the Internet in a school appropriate way? What does this mean for the students (and educators) at these schools? Should teacher-librarians be advocating for a filter-free environment?

In the discussion, it came up that not having filters could be a liability issue for a school district. Dale McDonald points out in his article "Educating Students to Protect Themselves in Cyberspace" that "[a] 2006 Harris poll conducted on behalf of Cable in the Classroom found that 71 percent of parents believe the responsibility of ensuring children's safety online belongs to the school" (2007). I was a little surprised by this statistic because as a parent, I feel that it is MY responsibility to ensure that my child understands how she should be surfing the Internet, and how to access appropriate sites. I want to be the one who discusses with her how she should deal with certain difficult situations such as coming across inappropriate websites and not providing too much personal information. However, stepping back from this a little bit, I have come to realize that over time I have become more Internet savvy (Thanks for helping with that, Joanne!), and even though I feel comfortable maneuvering my way around, it is very likely that many parents do not feel this way. So what does this mean for our students?

I think it's important for educators to act as "prudent parents" as someone (I think Danielle) put it; however, perhaps we are going too far in this role. I initially argued that I think that it's important to have different levels of filtering at the different school levels, but after this week's discussion I am tending to move away from this view. I think that we need to focus on teaching our students how to be smart searchers, and we need to develop a protocol of what to do in the case that someone happens upon an inappropriate site. After all, "[h]ow does one learn to use something effectively and safely without being able to see and experience actual examples and Web sites" (Abram 2007)? This brings me around to Acceptable Use Policies, which I had never heard of before this week. I think that we need to be moving towards developing and implementing well thought-out AUPs. I tend to believe that these would be much less expensive and intrusive than filtering, and they allow our students to be responsible users of the Internet. All that we do by installing filters is create an environment of distrust; students believe that we don't trust them, and as a result, some go on to try to circumvent the filters, which results in further distrust - this time educators of students.
Another problem surrounding filters is that it is possible "blocking and rating decisions are made by unknown third parties with unknown qualifications and unknown ideological agendas" (Schrader, 1999). The reality is that much of the content that is filtered was chosen by people who do not teach; therefore, it is possible that there is a lot of valuable information and web 2.0 tools for students and teachers that is being filtered. I tend to agree with Schrader (1999) and Ryan (2005) in that it seems filtering can be seen as a form of censorship. Ryan presents both the positive and negative aspects of filtering, but concludes that "[f]ilters cannot be separated from censorship." After reading these articles, and having some time to reflect on the discussion, I am beginning to realize that schools need to adopt a different approach to dealing with the "undesirable" aspects of the internet. We cannot continue to hide behind filters because they provide us with a false sense of security.

As educators, and (future) teacher-librarians, we need to take a stance and demand a filter-free environment. It is our responsibility to teach students how to be smart and safe when using the internet. When I read the Canadian Library Association's Statement on Intellectual Freedom it became even more evident that we should not be inhibiting the intellectual freedom of our students. We need to remember that even though filters might be in place at school, they will not be in place elsewhere in society. We would be better off redirecting the money that is spent on filters and put it towards creating effective Acceptable Use Policies, and educating our students. As "prudent parents" we need to be prepared to trust our children and give them some freedom to make mistakes.
Here's one student's perspective of "censorship" of the internet:

The changing face of the library

The traditional view of the library, and the librarian's role, is beginning to undergo a radical shift with the many digital opportunities available to 21st century library users. With the help of library-change advocates such as Joyce Valenza, Diane Oberg, Ross Todd, Marlene Asselin and Ray Dorion to name but a few, librarians are beginning to emerge in a different role than before. With the increase of literature, such as can be found in School Libraries Worldwide, school librarians are encouraged to analyze and reevaluate their learning and thinking about what a school library is and find ways to facilitate the learning of school library users, which includes both educators and students.

This week's discussion topic revolves around Valenza's Manifesto for 21st Century School Librarian and articles found in School Libraries Worldwide Volume 14 all of which provided a lot of food for thought. To begin, Valenza's inspiring and enthusiastic presentation was an eye-opener for me and although I am not yet in a library setting, her manifesto forced me to look at how many of her points I could check off as a classroom teacher, and how many of these points I still need to work on. However, her manifesto is not the only one out there; I also found A Librarian's 2.0 Manifesto to be equally thought provoking.

Valenza's Manifesto works together with Asselin & Doiron's article, as well as Todd's article in that they challenge librarians to "rethink the school library as a knowledge commons that both intersects with and bridges the digital and print terrain, and provides the intellectual tools across these multiple environments to foster creativity, to enable young people to develop their own personal knowledge and understanding of the curriculum, the world and themselves, to interpret and apply knowledge they interact with, and to foster the intellectual, social and cultural growth of our young people in a 24/7 time-space environment" (Todd, 2008). Asselin and Doiron reiterate the fact that many educators are not prepared to deal with the reality that many of today's students learn differently due to their daily exposure to the digital world, and as a result, we must change our teaching styles to take what students already know, and find ways to connect this in a meaningful way to what they need to know. They refer to literacies for the information generation and argue that these are necessary for learners to be able to "participate in the global networked society" (2008). Two of these that I have been working on with my students are critical literacies and ethics and social responsibility, and I was happy to see that McPherson's article expanded on these literacies. In fact, his article is very useful in that it links to specific lesson plans to teach these literacies, and after having checked out a few, I can see using them with my high school students.

Sanford's article about video games in the library is another article which challenges most people's thinking about school libraries. This article gave me a lot to think about because I am not a "gamer" nor do I really understand why so many people like to play them. Having said that, I have not even tried to play a video game since PacMan and Donkey Kong were popular when I was a teen (Okay - I realize that maybe I need to check the newer games out one day). This article was of particular interest, because this year our school library has decided to allow gaming. Initially, there were only certain computers designated for this activity which was only permitted before school and at lunchtime; however, it seems that now any available computer can be used for this. The problem that has arisen is that there are many students who would like to use the library lab to complete class assignments, but many of these students cannot find an available computer, and they are too timid to ask someone to stop playing an intense game in which the gamer might be at a critical point. As a classroom teacher, I am repeatedly hearing complaints about this. As important as it is to realize that video games allow for new types of learning, we also need to consider the other learners who frequent the library.

Finally, the last three articles that I looked at, but only briefly, were Naslund and Giustini's, Kopak's, and Friese's. I didn't spend a lot of time with these articles because Naslund and Giustini's was like a very brief overview of EDES 501. In fact, if I would have read this article in August, I would have at least had an idea about some of the topics that we were going to cover. I think that this article would be a great professional development topic for all educators to look at, but for the sake of this post, in particular librarians. It is brief enough that it would give them an idea of what each web 2.0 application is about, and then perhaps at follow up meetings a different tool could be investigated. It would be my hope that those who are remotely interested would go away with the article in hand and pursue their own investigations.

Kopak's article was interesting, but I found directed more at college and university level students. The idea of Open Access journals is a good one, but when I checked out some of the articles that are located in the included links, they were much too upper-level for my high school students. This will certainly change as this becomes a more accepted idea, and I can see its benefits for the 21st century library. Further to this, Friese's article was difficult for me to connect with because I am not yet in the library dealing with collection issues. Not only that, but I really am on the periphery of pop-culture. My students always have a good laugh when I ask them about certain aspects of popular culture that they feel I really should know.

Finally, after having spent some time listening to Valenza's podcast, reading the articles in School Libraries Worldwide and checking out some of the video links, it seems obvious to me that the school library is undergoing a great change. It is my hope that the librarians of the 20th century embrace these changes and as a result become those 21st century librarians who follow Valenza's Manifesto. The 21st century library needs to become the "libratory" that Valenza speaks of, where students are encouraged to explore the endless learning possibilities. And who knows, maybe the new libratory will have cookies and milk for the 21st century "cookie monsters", or a Starbucks outlet as so many of the students wished for in the Interviews with Young People video.

Fall activities

The end is near!

Not really, but the completion of EDES 501 is almost here, and as much as I have enjoyed the course, I am REALLY looking forward to the break. With Christmas in the air, and my daughter excited about Santa Claus, Christmas cookies, and so on, I have found it difficult to focus this past week.

Highlights of EDES 501 include all of the wonderful new tools and ideas that I have been exposed to over the course of the semester. I have had much luck incorporating many of them into my personal and professional life. Here's a quick list of how I am using some of the tools I have learned about.

1. I am creating a blog to post my weekly updates to, so that parents can find out what we are doing in class.
   
2. I have introduced blogging to my grade 11 English class, and they will use this to journal while we are doing a novel study.


3. I am following blogs for professional development. See my bloglines at the side.
   
4. I have set up an RSS feed with Bloglines so that I can follow certain blogs, sites, etc. This is going to make my life much easier with regards to the journaling blogs that my English students are writing.
   
5. I have created a wiki which I am using to post my class assignments and useful links for these assignments.


6. I download podcasts to listen to while I am working in the kitchen. The one that I am really hooked on right now is Women of Web 2.0 - thanks Joanne!
   
7. I had my English 11's read and record Macbeth using Audacity. I originally wanted them to create a podcast, but I had to abort that mission due to technological difficulties.
   
8. I have introduced VoiceThread to my S.S. 9 students and they are creating their own VoiceThreads. I also intend to continue to use it on a personal level for family and friends so that they can watch my daughter's progression through toddlerhood.
   
9. I use YouTube videos to enhance my lessons, or just to make my daughter smile.
   
   

If I would have read the above list just 3 short months ago, I would have laughed out loud and said that I wouldn't possibly be able to do all of those things because I didn't have a clue what any of these things were. Because of that, I am fairly proud of myself for learning about these new Web 2.0 tools, and for introducing my students to them. I am excited that teachers on staff are becoming curious about what I am talking about and doing, and that my students are engaged and excited about what they are learning in my classes. I am much more confident when it comes to using technology, and along with all of the web tools I have discovered, I have learned how to insert hyperlinks, embed videos, voicethreads and pictures (I still haven't figured out how to embed a podcast, but maybe the holidays will provide me with the desire and some time to do this), and I can comfortably skim/read information off of a screen rather than printing everything out.

Lowlights are that there never seemed to be enough time to really explore some of the web tools we learned about in depth, or to follow many of the links that others posted on their blogs or mentioned in their discussions. There were often times when I felt it would have been nice to have 2 weeks for each topic (podcasting in particular because I found it to be the most difficult and time consuming); the drawback to this being that we would not have had as much exposure to web 2.0.

As discussed in my previous post, I am definitely taking a grassroots approach to getting staff on board with learning about, and incorporating, these new tools, and I will continue to do so. I really believe that these tools will make a difference in students' learning, and they definitely make me excited about what I am teaching. I will try to advocate for more computers and computer access in the school, and I hope to have some input in the use of technology in our school.

As for my learning, I will continue to follow some of the blogs on my Bloglines, and as a result, I think that I will naturally learn about some of the new web tools that are available. Not only that, but I will be taking another course with Joanne next semester, and I am certain that she will encourage me to bend my mind a little further. I anticipate that this blog will have a rest for a while as I concentrate on my school blog, and take some time to relax over the holidays.

I am ever so grateful to all of the other people in this course. At times when it felt like I couldn't possibly do any more exploration, follow any more links, or find any more time to do course work, I knew that there were others who were feeling the same way, and also trying to juggle work, family and school. I appreciate all of the hard work that everyone put into posting their blogs and finding interesting and helpful links, and I hope that their blogs remain out there for me to refer to in the future. These are extremely useful resources, filled with hours of research, and it would be a shame to lose them. The discussion sections of the course have also been filled with information, and suggestions which I hope to have some time to explore and implement over the holidays. Of particular interest is the discussion around how to stay organized in a web 2.0 environment. I will definitely be copying some of these suggestions to a folder on my computer!

So, I think that's it for me. I plan on celebrating the completion of EDES 501, and I hope you do too!

The future with VoiceThread

I am going to be approaching this week's topic of "What's next?" from the perspective of a classroom teacher rather than a teacher librarian, so my take on how to introduce a tool to staff may differ from what t-l's might do.

I have already begun the process of introducing VoiceThread to my students and the teachers in my department areas. I am absolutely thrilled with it and its possibilities. I have just started a project with my students who are using it as a means to present their findings on a First Nations tribe in North America; if you are interested, you can check the project out here. My students are very receptive to it, and I am really looking forward to seeing their finished projects on Thursday. As for introducing the staff to this great collaborative tool, the process began a few weeks ago with me talking to the social studies department head one Friday after school and showing him my first voicethread. He, in turn, was quite interested in it and went home and played with it all weekend. On Monday morning he came to me bubbling over with enthusiasm for it, saying that he wanted to introduce it at the next department meeting on the following Thursday. Of course I was thrilled to have someone else interested in a web 2.0 tool, because so far I've been the only one in both of my departments to even know what these are, and to be honest, at times this has been frustrating because I have no one to bounce lesson ideas off of, or to share queries or concerns with.

The S.S. department meeting went without a hitch and the other members were excited about it, but without the opportunity or time to practice and use it, I didn't think that too many of them were going to integrate it into their teaching unless they had some encouragement and help from me.

I recently saw the opportunity to use voicethread in my Social Studies 9 class, so I recruited my department head, and we spent an afternoon together working out the logistics/details. When I booked computer lab time, I went one step further and invited him, as well as another member of our department to participate in the lab blocks. This was partly a selfish move on my part in that not only did I have a couple of extra bodies to help students set up their voicethreads, but I also figured it would cement their learning and interest in this tool. I was right, because not only is my department head now hooked, but so is the other teacher, and she has had an opportunity to see it in action without having to go through the frustrations of figuring out how to use it all on her own. She was going to go home this weekend with the intention of playing with it, and teaching her son how to use it. So I think that the S.S. deptartment is well on its way.

Further to this, once students have finished their voicethreads, I am going to divide my classes into thirds and each group will invite either the vice principal, the grade 9 counsellor or the learning resource teacher to view and comment on their voicethreads. I forewarned these 3 people already on Friday, so hopefully they will play with voicethread over the weekend, but if not, then I will help them with it once the projects are completed on Thursday. In doing this, I hope to introduce people outside of my teaching areas to voicethread. Maybe one of them, or better yet, all three will also see its potential.

As for the English department, at our last meeting I brought up the idea that we should be looking at different Web 2.0 tools which we could use in our classes. I volunteered to share what I have learned, and I am optimistic that others will have some things that they can talk about as well. It was agreed upon that at our next English department pro-d day in February we would all try to come with some technological knowledge to share. Of course I have volunteered to demonstrate voicethread.

After reading the above personal anecdotes about how I am trying to introduce staff members at my school to voicethread, it should be quite clear to you how enthralled I am with this tool, but I am not the only one. The Centre for Learning & Performance Technologies lists Voicethread as one of their top 25 tools that "every Learning Professional should have in their Toolbox," and it is 23rd on their Top 100 Tools for Learning 2008 page. When I checked out the Voicethread 4 Education wiki this week, I learned that Women of Web 2.0 hosted a discussion on November 25 about how voicethread is being used in the classroom. Unfortunately I missed the discussion, and it is not yet posted on their EdTechTalk page, but maybe by the time I post this, it will be there. I am REALLY looking forward to hearing this podcast!!! A helpful resource I found that outlines a step-by-step process for teachers to sign up for voicethread can be found at the Langwitches blog, and I emailed it to the S.S. department head which he will hopefully forward to the rest of the department. I think the main hurdle that some teachers will have to overcome is the intial set up, and this blog helps to simplify this process.

What's the reality of voicethread being successfully integrated into my school?

Pretty good as long as I keep introducing new members of staff to voicethread and its truly collaborative possibilities. I have begun small, but I am hoping that there will be a ripple effect that takes place amongst staff. So far the English and social studies departments have had or will have some exposure. By introducing the VP, counsellor and learning resource teacher to voicethread, they may choose to take it further and share it with other administrators, counsellors, or perhaps other department heads at our school. This may occur naturally because two of them are currently being introduced to voicethread, and I am hoping they will share their knowledge with the others. However, the biggest barrier is ensuring that teachers have enough time to try it out and play with it. I will be able to ensure that this happens in February at the English dept. pro-d, but I will have to be creative to find time for the other S.S. dept. members to get their opportunity to play. Maybe this just means that I need to continue to invite people into my classroom as I am using it with my students. It would be possible for me to offer to do a presentation at a school-based pro-d day so that staff members in all areas have a chance to see this technology in action, but we don't have one of those until May, which right now feels like a long time away. I also think the more exposure students have to voicethread, the more likely they are to use it to support their learning, and they may choose to do a science presentation using this tool which will automatically encourage teachers to at least explore it, even if they aren't using it for lessons.

This is just the beginning, and my school has a long way to go before we are Web 2.0 knowledgeable and friendly, but I have started the process of introducing both students and teachers to some of the great tools available. As a classroom teacher, it is harder to approach large groups of staff unless they are in the departments that I teach in, but I am excited about these tools, and I don't want to be the only one in the school using them. I want other people to be as excited about integrating Web 2.0 tools into the classroom as I am!

Blogs - the "new" pro-d?

"[W]e need to resort to personal recommendation, trusting one individual’s ideas, suggestions or advice because we’ve ‘known’ them online over a long period of time. The longevity of my relationship with some fellow professionals who keep blogs has given me more successful learning opportunities as a teacher than attending some ‘5* status’ conferences." Ewan MacIntosh


Since last January, my professional development has consisted of me working on course work in order to attain a Masters degree in librarianship. This has been a much needed awakening for my brain, and although at times I feel somewhat like Sisyphus, I am enjoying the journey on which I have embarked.

At the beginning of September, I really didn't understand or know what a blog was, nor did I realize that blogs are an amazing resource for professional development. Blogs allow some of the "edublogging greats" to maintain continual communication with bloggers/educators around the world. The ideas and thoughts, as well as explorations of bloggers are easily shared and expanded upon by the blogging community. This is an amazing resource for educators which seems to be largely untapped because many do not know that this collaborative tool and community even exists. Granted, I am generalizing based on my personal experience in talking to teachers in my school, as well as several other schools throughout the province, but I don't think that I am far off the mark. The few times I forwarded blog links which I thought would be of interest to certain staff members, the response I often received was "What am I supposed to do with this link?"

The opportunity to explore this world that I knew nothing about has allowed for an invigorating and thought provoking experience, and I will continue to embrace it once this course is over. It is inevitable that over time, the blogs that I have been following in Bloglines will likely change and the number will increase as I find others that I want to add. But this is a natural evolution as I progress and learn about different educational and technological topics.

In a blog from 2006, Richardson comments on what he read on Karl Fisch's blog: "The latest post on Karl’s blog is a really interesting explanation of a staff development program with real vision, and how blogs have become pretty central to the way he and his teachers reflect on their practice and create community around common goals which were to 'improve teacher and student use of technology, to achieve curricular goals, to help transform our school to a more student-centered, constructivist approach, and to prepare our students to succeed in the 21st century.'” I would have liked to have read more about this process, but unfortunately, I couldn't go that far back in Karl's posts. But this is enough to demonstrate that blogs and blogging can be used effectively as a means of pro-d by a school community.

Not only do blogs provide a means of personal professional development, but they also provide suggestions for promoting professional development. A recent suggestion can be found at the Ideas and Thoughts blog where Dean Shareski tells of how he created a great learning experience for teachers by organizing a time for some of them to get together to view some of the K12 online conference sessions. Shareski creates a meaningful pro-d experience with minimal cost, compared to going to a conference and having to pay hundreds of dollars. This is an excellent idea that I am going to share with my social studies department.

I recently listened to Ewan MacIntosh's podcast which he presented at the 2006 K12 Online Conference. Accompanying the podcast is a blog entitled "Professional Development . . . with fries" and in this MacIntosh explains how "[a]fter a year of promoting the use of social media for professional development [the Modern Foreign Language Educators] now have a burgeoning community of modern linguists and other teaching professionals connecting to each other and sharing their ideas, thoughts, complaints and congrats through complex social networks." What a great accomplishment to have achieved this after only one year.

An interesting video presentation on blogging for professional development, directed mainly at librarians, by John Dupuis can be found here. Dupuis talks about blogging as a means of opening doors and starting conversations, which I believe can allow for some of the most meaningful professional development.

Blogging allows educators to ingest new ideas, as well as contribute to conversations by commenting on blogs. Due to the discussion topic this past week about "finding your voice in the edublogosphere," It was pointed out how important it is to comment on people's blogs in a thoughtful, and meaningful way. This allows for dialogue to occur from many different perspectives, much like going to a conference and conversing with the other members, but perhaps the best part is that the dialogue can be ongoing.

Not only do educators benefit from writing posts and following blogs, but the students also benefit. The vast array of ideas and discussions that are floating around the edublogsphere can only result in more authentic learning environments for students. Opportunities for, and methods of the use of web tools in the classroom are frequently presented. Possibilities for educators to collaborate on student-based projects are more likely to occur, and teachers can share and use lesson ideas and suggestions.

Blogs and blogging for professional development really exemplify the collaborative aspect of the read/write web, and I hope to expose my colleagues to this form of cost-free, ongoing pro-d.

RSS - helping me stay sane!

"Tools like RSS feeds are moving the information experience from “mass media” (few producers of information communicating with a large number of consumers) to “personal media” (many producers of information communicating with a more individualized group of consumers)." Doug Johnson

At the beginning of September, as suggested by Joanne, I signed up with an RSS feed; little did I know how efficient this would be because, "you can read more content from more sources in less time" (Richardson, 76, Blogs, Wikis and Podcasts and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms). At the time, I didn't have a clue what RSS was, or how it could make my life easier, so I began my quest for "RSS knowledge" by reading Richardson's chp. "RSS:The New Killer App for Educators" and of course viewing, what has become a standby for me, Lee Lefever's RSS in Plain English video. What I learned is that instead of me going to find all of the blogs that I need/want to follow in order to see if there is a new post, RSS tells me every time there is new content on the blog. Not only does it tell me that there is something new, but I can actually read that information directly through my feed reader! Marvelous!

As mentioned in my September post, it was Richardson's "tried and true" book that helped me focus in on Bloglines, which has worked amazingly well for me! I check my Bloglines once or twice a week, and I can immediately see when someone has added a blog post, whether it be someone in EDES 501, or one of the other blogs I am trying to follow. However, as of late, I have been thinking about how I can use Bloglines to streamline my following of all of the different places I am creating on the web. I added a feed to my Classroom 2.0 Ning as well as a feed to my voicethread, but I am not sure if that will work the way I want it to. I also added Women of Web 2.0 podcasts - this way, I won't have to check my bookmarks to see if there is a new podcast which is what I have been doing up until now. I feel like my RSS feed is really helping to keep me organized in what seems, at times, to be web 2.0 overload.

I recently checked out Google reader, which is also popular with people using RSS (according to Richardson's blog, he has switched over to this reader as well). I even signed up with it, but at the moment I am comfortable using Bloglines, and to be honest I don't want to mess with something that is working well for me (Unlike Blogger which didn't save this post the first time I tried to post it this morning )-: ). Also, being a minimalist, I prefer the simple straightforward layout of Bloglines versus the busier layout of Google Reader. However, there are many people who have done comparisons of both, and some of the most recent can be found at Library Stuff, ReadWriteWeb, and Pleasure and Pain: Measuring the impact of new technology on human experience, (this blog does the most thorough analysis of both) and after having read these, there is considerable evidence that suggests that Google reader is the RSS of choice.

Why do I like Bloglines?

• I was able to set this up without too much difficulty at a time when I was quite clueless about how to set anything up on the web.
• I can have different folders in order to group the blogs that I am following.
• I was able to add a "subscribe to Bloglines" button to my favorites. This way all I have to do is click on this when I find a blog or site that I would like to add.
• I am able to show my Bloglines feeds on my blog, and, once again, I was able to accomplish this without too much difficulty.
• I can "clip" certain parts of a blog to review later.

How can RSS be used by teachers?

• They can easily and quickly follow students' blogs, which is what I intend to do when my students set their blogs up in December.
• They can use this as a means of professional development by easily following other educator's blogs.
• They can use it to stay on top of current information about topics that are being studied in class. This can be particularly useful for science and social studies teachers.

By Students?

• They can set up a feed reader to help them stay on top of current events.
• They can collect "topic-specific research that . . . [could] assist[] them with research or further study" (Richardson, 81).

I think the key to making RSS work for me is to ensure that I am following a manageable number of feeds, and for the moment, all of these are tied to education; however, several out-of-the-classroom uses can be found at 34 Ways to Use RSS, and 14 "OTHER" Ways to Use RSS.

Social networking - It's not just for students

"People nowadays like to be together not in the old-fashioned way of, say, mingling on the piazza of an Italian Renaissance city, but, instead, huddled together in traffic jams, bus queues, on escalators and so on. It’s a new kind of togetherness which may seem totally alien, but it’s the togetherness of modern technology." - J.G. (James Graham) Ballard

The exploration of social networking sites is the one assignment for EDES 501 that I have been dreading the most. I am one of those (possibly few) people who doesn't want everyone in the world to be able to make contact with me, or know everything about me. I don't want to share information about me, my job or my family on the web; I'd rather share it with people whom I know, or am connecting with by choice, such as people in this course. I don't want my high school students to add me as a "friend" to their social networking sites, and to be honest, the thought of it seems a little odd. I also don't need/want old acquaintances to connect with me through a social networking site just to say that they have one more "friend." If they really need to get a hold of me because they want to visit/reminisce, then they can call my parents to find out where I am. Furthermore, articles such as Faceless no more: Social networking comes with a price, found in the Globe and Mail, Sept. 12, 2008, make me feel very uneasy about putting too much personal information out on the internet. So, for these reasons, I swore that I would never join a social networking site such as Facebook or MySpace, and I procrastinated all fall about becoming a member of one of these sites. (By the way, this didn't help with my negative feelings about this topic (-; )
However, now comes the time when I have to re-evaluate what little I know of these sites. I began my search by checking in with Lee Lefever at Social Networking in Plain English. He manages to simplify the concept, and make it appear beneficial for all involved.

Having done this, I decided that if I was going to join a social networking site, it would be to my advantage if I could find a site that would be useful to me and what I am doing now. So I began my search by finding out what was "out there." Using the keywords "social networking sites" brought up a site called Social Networking God: 350+ Social Networking Sites - who knew that there were soooo many??? I scrolled through these, but there wasn't anything very appealing. So I decided to narrow down my search by adding "educational" to "social networking sites." This is when I stumbled upon the Social Networks in Education wiki which is an extensive list of sites, and Ning in Education. As I was checking out Ning in Education, I discovered its "sister" site Classroom 2.0 - this looked very appealing to me, and I decided to join this Ning because I could connect with people and learn more about Web 2.0 tools being used in classrooms. According to Wikipedia, "[t]he unique feature of Ning is that anyone can create their own custom social network for a particular topic or need, catering to specific audiences." Perfect - this is exactly what I needed!

I created my profile page to reflect me, (I chose a profile that reminds me of summer) and I proceeded to invite my classmates from EDES 501 who had included their email addresses in their profiles, as well as a couple of colleagues from school whom I thought might be interested in exploring and learning about web 2.0 tools. I then joined the Digiskills group and the Free & Open Source Software group - both of these groups' names sounded daunting, but once I explored their spaces, they seemed accessible to me.

What are the positives about joining a social networking site?

For Me Personally:

So far, I am happy that I have joined this Ning, as it doesn't require a great deal of personal information about me, and I am able to connect with people from around the world who have similar interests. I have spent enough time exploring it, that I have managed to figure out how to manoeuver my way through it, and not only that, but I spent hours following links located in a discussion about what web 2.0 tools others are using in the classroom, and how they are using them. This has led me to discover many more great sites such as teacherstv, yackpack, authorSTREAM, Bubbl.us, Quizlet and Gabcast to mention only a few.

For Colleagues:

"Social networking in education opens doors to an unprecedented array of learning opportunities in an environment where educators often feel freer to express themselves, share their ideas and be catalysts for change." PBS Teachers - Learning.now blog

A Ning is a great way for teachers within a district who are teaching the same courses, or who have similar interests to communicate and share ideas. It allows for professional development without having to organize a time and place for people to meet. It could also provide support and opportunities for teachers who are isolated due to geographical reasons to collaborate with other teachers or classes. An example of this could be found in the Digiskills group that I joined, where a U.S. based teacher put out a request for anyone interested in doing some type of collaborative voicethread project with students at his school. There were 5 people who indicated interest, one of whom was from Australia. What a great opportunity for both teachers and students!

For Students:

"Depending on the role of school in their lives, youth leverage these structures for educational purposes - asking questions about homework, sharing links and resources, and even in some cases asking their teachers for information outside of the classroom. SNSs do not make youth engage educationally; they allow educationally-motivated youth with a structure to engage educationally." Apophenia: The Economist Debate on Social "Networking"

Online Social Networking And Education: Study Reports On New Generations Social And Creative Interconnected Lifestyles is an interesting look at an online study conducted by Grunwald Associates LLC in cooperation with the National School Boards Association. Although the information in this study is American-based, I believe that the numbers are similar for Canadian students as well. This study shows that over 96% of students use social networking sites and "[a]lmost 60 percent of students who use social networking talk about education topics online and, surprisingly, more than 50 percent talk specifically about schoolwork."Most students have had exposure to using social networking sites in their personal lives, but perhaps it's time for educators to tap into these sites as a form of connecting students with others in education. I think that it would be great for students who are studying a second (third, fourth) language to be in contact with others who speak it fluently. But there are other collaborative possiblities as well where classes from opposite ends of the earth could connect and share their learning experience, or perhaps an English class could connect with an author whose work is being studied in class. I think it is a matter of looking beyond Facebook and Myspace and creating a Ning for students to use.

What are possible negatives of joining a social networking site?

Of course there are issues of personal safety that need to be considered when joining a social networking site. CNN recently published Social networking sites dos and don'ts which relates more to what career people, or those looking for jobs should/shouldn't be putting on their sites, but much of this list can apply directly to our high school students. It is important for students to realize that they are leaving their technological footprint which is almost impossible to erase. They might not want to be associated with certain activities or people when they are applying for scholarships or jobs.

So, despite the fact that I was opposed to social networking, I was quite limited in my knowledge of how these sites could work, and I am glad that I have explored this topic further.

A fairy-princess' Hallowe'en