Lifelong Learning 2.0

I am a goal-setting girl.

When it comes to project completion, I operate best if I take a few moments to set goals for myself in writing.  It puts things in perspective and holds me accountable to completion.

I thought I’d share the post that I have on the blog that I use with my students and their families.  It may be helpful to some teacher out there who has been on a similar journey as I have these past 10 months of taking a good look at pedagogy for best teaching practices and discovering how technology and tools can fit in.  It can put one in the state of being overwhelmed.  Unless….  you take time to narrow in on just a few things to apply, and set goals to that means.

It is only the beginning of May, you ask?  True.  Yet in the past 18 years of teaching, I’ve found that if I take time to do goal-setting and planning in May, then I’ll be more reflective than I’ll be in August, when the whirlwind of meetings, and set-up and expectations begin.

Here’s the post, written to my families, taken right from my other blog:

In the previous post, I’ve shared the mission and core values of Visions in Education. Our mission is to prepare each student to succeed in a rapidly changing world. An important part of this mission is a focus on helping students become familiar with the technology tools that are available. These tools can help students communicate, collaborate and contribute now, as a student; in their future education; and later, in the workforce.

I’ve taken the opportunity this year to learn more about educational technology, research how teachers are integrating it into their curriculum, and investigate some of the web 2.0 technology tools available. I am learning so much that I’m almost overwhelmed. (Okay, I’m already overwhelmed.) To help, I am choosing to focus in on just a few things for next year the next several years. I will be sharing more about these in the future. For now, here’s a brief description of the goals I’ve set to address our school’s mission statement.

1. Blogging: I will be using this blog to communicate and keep you informed. Additionally, I want to provide a place on the blog for student blogging. Students tend to write better when they have a purpose and an authentic audience. I will provide a “publishing place” on my blog for posting student-writing projects next year. There will also be a “student spotlight” which I’ll share more about later.
2. Social Networking: The Visions Homeschool Network will be used to facilitate community and connections for you and about 800 other parents. I have it just about ready to launch so you’ll have a chance to join before summer.
3. Technology Instruction: I’m not sure how this will take shape yet. This is in addition to regular tech instruction.  I hope to create a “Tech Club” for interested students. Let me know if you are interested in this or have ideas.
4. Project 2.0: This is a self-directed learning program that I am putting together for 7th-12th graders or Parent Educators who want to learn more about Web2.0. I hope to have it completed for the fall semester.  I’m really excited about this one!!
5. Online Portfolio Projects: Colleges are seeking out potential student candidates through online networks. I will be available to help your high school student create an online portfolio that they can add to throughout their high school years, and later present, as they apply for colleges and scholarships.  Let me know if you are interested.

If you have any thoughts about any of these, I would love to hear it. Post a comment below.

Creative Commons Photo Attribution:

Web2.0, by Tyler Howarth

Determination, by Pixleposition

Blogging Workshop at CUE

The benefits of blogging with students were the focus of a couple of the CUE sessions I attended. They focused on the features of popular blogging platforms. Discussion also centered around CyberSafety and ways to teach your students to participate in blogging, at an early age. Alice Mercer shared how “Blogging with elementary students is a good way to add transparency and engagement to learning, and to give students an authentic audience for their writing.”  I learned a lot from her workshop and the examples of how she engages her students in the process of leaving comments for fellow students on the blog. I was able to hear a wealth of information on blogging and great ideas. I even won a complementary support status on Edublogs.org for a year, thanks to Sue Waters at edublogs, and Alice Mercer.  There’s no excuse for putting off blogging with students.

Recently, I stumbled upon this article on Glencoe’s website. The author states the following about the functions that blogs can serve in the classroom.

Classroom Management
“Class blogs can serve as a portal to foster a community of learners. As they are easy to create and update efficiently, they can be used to inform students of class requirements, post handouts, notices, and homework assignments, or act as a question and answer board.”

Collaboration
“Blogs provide a space where teachers and students work to further develop writing or other skills with the advantage of an instant audience. Teachers can offer instructional tips, and students can practice and benefit from peer review. They also make online mentoring possible. Students can also participate in cooperative learning activities that require them to relay research findings, ideas, or suggestions.”

Discussions
“A class blog opens the opportunity for students to discuss topics outside of the classroom. With a blog, every person has an equal opportunity to share his or her thoughts and opinions. Students have time to react to ideas and reflect on learning. Teachers can also bring together a group of knowledgeable individuals for a given unit of study for students to network and conference with on a blog.”

Student Portfolios
“Blogs present, organize, and protect student work as digital portfolios. As older entries are archived, developing skills and progress may be analyzed more conveniently. Additionally, as students realize their efforts will be published, they are typically more motivated to produce better writing.”

Blogging Anyone?

I work at a charter school, supporting families who choose to homeschool or participate in independent study.  This year, I had hoped to have my students participate in blogging. I wanted to tie in their core subject assignments to their blog posts. I was excited to pilot this practice this year with a few students. When discussing the possibilities with a few parents, I found that they were not ready to embrace blogging.

Transfer of Enthusiasm – Take Two!

To help transfer enthusiasm for blogging, I realized a few things.

1. Modeling is important.  I need to be more consistent with blogging to keep my parents informed.
2. I need to invite them into the conversation with questions, polls, and relevant links.
3. Instead of emailing my newsletters, I need to move that content to the blog.
4. I needed to find a way to share information with parents about blogging and other tools.  I started working on a project to help them become familiar with the use of web 2.0 tools.  I hope to have it completed soon.
5. Lastly, I would like to have an orientation meeting in the fall to present the option of blogging, importance of CyberSafety, and the benefits of having their homeschooling children participate in the read/write web. I hope that by offering to meet them in small groups for a workshop, they may be more open to have their students participate in blogging and trying out new tools for learning.

What steps did you take to make your parents feel comfortable with having your students blogging in the classroom?

Photo Attribution

A funny thing happens when you start a new blog.  You have a lot to say.  You have a lot of resources to share.  You have learned so much that now you want to pass along a few of those treasures.  You choose the platform, decide on the appearance, find your favorite features, and click on the ‘new post’ button.

And there it is.

Blank.

The first post should set the tone for the author and the audience.  It answers the questions, “Why would someone want to come here, what can I share that will be of value, how can I pass along my passion for learning, and what will this blog be about?”

I imagine a few give up at this point.  Not being one to quit, I will publish this first post, even though all of the answers aren’t there yet.  I encourage my students to take that first step, and want to do the same.  I’m using wordle, one of my favorite tools, to express a few of the topics I hope to blog about in the coming months.  Please feel free to leave a comment or send me a message.  If you have a blog, send me a link.  I’d love to learn from you too.