Using wikis as
textbooks, placing classroom tools and data online, and employing open-source
software are three suggestions our text offers for creating new schools based
on the principles of Web 2.0. While each
of these ideas is insightful and useful, no student will benefit unless we as
teachers broaden our perception of educational tools, embrace the potential of
technology, and actually put the concepts into practice. Mark Prensky points out that today’s students
“are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach” (Web
2.0). He further proposes that teachers
should not change “the meaning of what’s important” but should instead rethink
the ways they engage their students.
I would promote
21st century learning in my classroom by incorporating tools that students
can also access at home. There is a
plethora of online music education resources ranging from tutorials and
practice aids to endless audio and video files.
(The link below examines seven such resources for creating music.) Students could use these tools to supplement
their education in ways they find most engaging personally. As music educator Carol Broos, a presenter
for the 2011 K12 Online Conference, points out, this will allow students to
challenge themselves independently.
This post is my reflection on chapter nine of Web 2.0:
New Tools, New Schools by Gwen Solomon and Lynne Shrum. This book was required reading for ED 529 (Curriculum Integration of Technology). I don’t usually enjoy reading textbooks, but Web 2.0 was insightful in many
ways. For a person who, according to
this text, is a “digital immigrant,” the book clarified many aspects of web 2.0
technology and related issues. So how
does this relate to my blog topic, “Tech For Tots?” See my next post!
