Moving and Much More
The past week has given me many things to be thankful for, including some time off from grad classes as I have moved, and needed time to get organized. As I sort my life out of boxes, I have been reflecting on the semester so far, and all of the resources I have been introduced to. This class has made me much more aware of the many educational resources available for use, and given me a lot of ideas on how to implement these resources within my classroom. The week also gave me a chance to realize how important Internet use is to me, I felt very isolated not being able to see the news, access my email or change my fantasy sports teams. Finally I have Internet back and will be able to complete my web quest homework, as well as keep up to date on what is happening in the world. Now its time to finish getting settled into my new home and play catch up on the important things that I had to put aside for a few days.
Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend!
WIKI WIKI WIKI and the Internet
Sometimes you find the most amazing things you never knew about. As I was introduced to Wikis and how to use them, I realized that this is possibly the greatest way to complete group or class projects. It amazed me that I had never even heard of a Wiki before now, and had regularly completed group projects during my undergraduate classes just a few years ago. The idea of being able to add information to a page anywhere and at anytime makes group work so much easier to complete. No more working around everyones schedules to try to find a common time. Add to the page as you like, communicate with the group or class with the discussion board or via email. Simplicity is such a wonderful thing.
That being said, if only the internet had a filter or fact checking system. When people dedicate entire websites to selling dehydrated water and tree octopuses, it makes me think that there has to be some sort of way to control the misinformation that is seemingly everywhere. Although you can find some very funny websites, there are far too many intended to distribute misinformation in the name of altering people’s perceptions of the world (such as the MLK website being run by white supremacists). I know I have said this before, but it is the duty of parents and teachers to cooperatively show students how to determine the validity and authenticity of information on the websites they use.
And now a special thank you to edublogs for driving me insane with the scheduled maintainance. I checked probably 100 times between Friday and Sunday evening waiting for it to be over. At least I was able to memorize what the logo looks like and the little apology they had written.
