Classroom 2.0

The networking website I chose is classroom2.0.

I think it is a great tool for new teachers like me.

I did not find the forum section helpful. Most of them were not very active. Most of them are from last year or even older.

However, I do think the member section is helpful. I can easily get access to other teachers' blog and learn from their skills and experiences. There are blogs and videos for you to chose. I think it is a very good platform for us to get to know other teachers who are more experienced. Seeing what they have been doing in their classrooms can inspire us or give us tips on similar situations.

http://www.classroom20.com/

A Learner is like a spider

After reading the Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age and watching the video "the network is the learning", the first thing that can be compared to a learner popped in my head was a spider.

As mentioned in Siemen's video, the network is the learning. In that sense, learners are like spiders working on their webs that connects to others and other sources. Learning is no longer an isolated activity thanks to the technologies we developed. Learning is continuous and associated with many other aspects. Nowadays, learners are facing the challenge of getting the ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts.


Siemens G. claims that Personal knowledge is comprised of a network, which feeds into organizations and institutions, which in turn feed back into the network, and then continue to provide learning to individual. A spider can sense everything through its web. Same with a learner who stays current by many different ways: networking, friends/family, the internet, books/journals, etc. A spider without a web can not survive. A learner without sources to stay current can't learn.

Diigo & Pinterest

How to manage tons of information? What's the efficient way for sharing them? Two tools named Diigo and Pinterest can help.

From the table we can see the differences between Diigo and Pinterest. In my point of view, Diigo is more academic. We can highlight text and make notes in sites. On the other hand, Pinterest is more visual. But that also means if a site do not have a good picture, we’ll overlook it. I like Pinterest better because it’s easy to use and it’s enjoyable to look through the colorful pin broad.

I would continue to use both tools for different purposes. When I am working on projects or writing essays, Diigo is definitely useful for managing the websites I need. However, when I want to look for ideas of the subjects that interest me, I would search in Pinterest. For example, I want to add a tattoo so I can search “tattoo” and the beautiful tattoo pictures would come out.

 

 

 

Embrace technology, 21st century teachers!

I would like to introduce two videos about technology. We can see teachers in this fast changing world would need to keep updating their technology knowledge in order to have a better teaching result.

 

1.Did You Know? Version 6 is an eye-catching video. The main point is "shift happens".

 

We are living in exponential times. The vocabulary we have now is five times as many as during Shakespeare's time. The amount of new technical information is doubling less than every 72 hours by now. Technology is growing faster than we thought. 

 

After watching the video, I feel pressure. It is impossible to know all the information. We are using the edge-cutting technologies which we do not know how they work. Every minute hundreds of babies are born. Maybe one day we will be a person who cannot catch up the trend just like some old people nowadays. When I tried to show my grandparents how to use smart phones they are reluctant to learn because it is "too complicated". I am not saying that watching TV and reading newspaper is not good, but when you know how to use the Internet you will open a door to the new world. Getting to know the newest technology is not just excited but also make life more convenient. So let's learn some technologies! Don't be left behind!

 

2.How can a  teacher in 21st century digitally empower the students? What would the students learn with technology as a tool? You can find the answers in the A Vision of 21st Century Teachers. Apart from that, the video says a 21st century teacher should keep learning. It encourages teachers to embrace techonology. As a teacher, we should make every ways to help teaching. I remember in my high school, there was an oral English teacher who's from London. In the first class he used a software to let us choose the right answer from four choices. The questions were about himself. We had fun with guessing the answers. It is an interesting and efficient way to made an self introduction. None of my Chinese teachers could use the technological tools like he did. From him, I understand how important can technology be. I believe 21st century teachers should make good use of the mordern technology to make their classes more vivid.

 

 So teachers, get invovled in the technological world. You will be glad you do so.



How blogging helps language learning

Young people are keen on Internet. Many have a blog. They post, make comments, log in everyday to see what is new. If teacher can connect blogging with learning, students would have more motivation.

 

Blogging, as a convenient way to express and communicate, can benefit language learning as well. Outside the traditional classroom, students would feel free to talk with each other and with teachers. If I post events and ask the students to give comments or think about solutions, students might have different point of views according to their backgrounds.  By viewing others' posts and adding comments, students can share the language and their different cultures. Someone outside the classroom can also make comments. Therefore, the interchanging of thoughts happens not only within the classroom but with the world.

 

Also, since blogs create a openly and frankly environment, students would be more careful when they post. They would think clearly and modify several times before they feel good to show to the audience. When teaching English, I would ask the students to post in English. They would care about the grammar and maybe look up a word in the dictionary or Google some sentences they are going to use. Writing is an efficient way to learn language, and the students are more likely to remember the knowledge when they try to figure it out by themselves.

 

High Intermediate Language Skills Writing Indicators: Draft, organize, write and edit a short paragraph using a topic sentence, supporting details and transitions.