Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools

Web 2.0 is a great text to have in your personal and professional collection. This book provides extensive information as well as evidence for technology use in the classroom. I think that if I was teaching a course in this field I would definitely use this books as one of the required class texts. Students that are going to seek a career in this field need to be aware of all the aspects presented and this book does a fabulous job at providing useful research and information. There were certain chapters that stood out to me while reading this books and I have included them below. On the first page of the first chapter of this book, it is noted that in today's world, workers can work from anywhere. Vacation or home they are connected to their jobs through technology. I really like this is included, because for me personally, this is how my job functions. We are all always traveling and are able to have virtual staff meetings, as well as complete our daily tasks through technological use. Thinking about who will be prepared for this new technology world and if individuals will have the appropriate thinking skills to function in this new and upcoming world as well as how can we help individuals prepare are very common (5). Personally I think that this piece relates to me especially while working on my Masters' degree. As a future Instructional Technologist, I need to be thinking about these factors all the time. I also really like how in the first chapter the use of social media is discussed as an effective tool to help businesses grow. For the company I work for we use social media to monitor the interaction of the public with our product. Another thing I liked was on page 15, when Solomon and Schrum bring attention to the old way of learning, presentation driven and the new way of learning, collaboration. This is very important when looking at schools. The old way of learning allows students to get a job that allows them to just follow directions, while collaboration presents many more sophisticated career opportunities. Chapter 2 looks at students and their role within technology. Evidence suggests that students use technology more than watching TV. Technology is embedded into their everyday lives and communication is a big factor that correlates with student use of technology. For example students are on social media sites communicating with their classmates such as Twitter, Facebook, IM, and many more. Since students today have fingertip access to technology, their thinking process differs from students of previous generations. I think that this is a powerful statement, and is true. Students today are accessing technology to answer questions about different core subjects daily. This means that students have access to academic information any where at any time. I also think it is helpful when Solomon and Schrum discuss each learning style and relate to how each style has a positive impact with technology. I think it was also most helpful to include in Chapter 3 the technology tools that teachers have found most useful. This shows readers that educators have implemented different technological tools in their classroom and have facilitated student learning in a positive way, aiming for academic success. Chapter 4 brings attention to the tools that are being used in school currently and how they are affecting students. Again, I think it is important to examine all factors that make up technological use in education. I think that Solomon and Schrum do a good job of presenting all the evidence needed. Also,in chapter 4 there is examples of specific social media tools that teachers have used and what you can do with them in the classroom. For example, podcasting, Cheryl Oakes discusses her experiences with this tool in her classroom.She also talks about how social media helps her incorporate state standards in her classroom. Chapter 5 discusses professional development which is another huge topic in schools. Page 94 explains that commonly professional development, provides suggestions for changing and new ways to develop, however, when funding is not longer available, most of the practices for change disappear as well (Solomon, Schrum 97). I think that this is very powerful because it is important to develop a professional development training that allows your organization or school to continue to grow. It is important to create an effective realistic program that will allow professional development training to improve practices. In the text Solomon and Schrum, explain that it is important, especially with adults, do move away from the "One size fits all approach" and develop individual practices for each colleague. This is a great statement because no two people are alike. Everyone is different and has their own ideas, which this practice allows for adults to be creative and have an authentic strategy for themselves instead of a strategy for everyone.Chapter 7 is a huge topic in technology. Online Safety and Security are extremely important. This chapter actually goes through different phases and explains what you need to know and be aware of to avoid problems. Adults need to be aware of the dangers of online use, but students need to be aware as well. The teacher will not be able to watch every single child on the computer thoroughly at all times. By providing students with online training and giving them the education they need about online safety, students will be able to use the technology and feel confident doing so. This chapter provides 10 questions that students can answer to gauge what they think about online safety and what needs to be discussed in more detail than others.I think it is great to include the Web TImeline in Appendix A. This is a great way to show students how technology has emerged and developed throughout the years. This will also explain that technology is still developing and will only continue to grow. I also appreciate the fact that Appendix B gives a list of all the Web 2.0 tools that are available and suggestions for classroom use. Teachers have easy access to interactive ideas for the classroom.Appendix C focuses on an in depth classroom experience using technology. These helpful tools enable educators to expand the learning process for their students.I really enjoyed this book and think that teachers would benefit from reading this text. The information included gives teachers the confidence to implement technology in the classroom, but also provides effective suggestions for doing so. Solomon and Schrum do a through job of covering different aspects of technology.

A great resource for a beginner's guide to web 2.0, naturally since this was written initially in 2007 some of the suggested tools are outdated (MySpace) which has been eclipsed by Twitter and FACEBOOK and Yahoo Messenger!It allows the reader an overview to classroom tools designed for 21st century learning (bearing in mind this is a book written by higher education professionals). Schools with a STEM program can identify with the new tech high concept of tech savvy schools. Some of the schools selected for inclusion: Napa New Tech High who were financed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (lucky them). Although the author does reference the fact that weakness in continual funding can lead to issues in growth of the technology model over time. The correct pedagogical model linked with infrastructure needs is essential to maintaining technological growth. LemonLINK developed at Lemon Grove school district establishes the development of collaborative learning environments. It fosters the connection between students, parents and educators using thin client technology. The beauty of this model program is the built in 120 hours of curriculum based professional development offered to all teachers on a rotational cycle. Not every district can afford to develop, maintain and provide such an ideal situation for their collaborative learning environments.The Web 2.0 tools section discusses blogs, wikis, podcasting and digital storytelling via Flickr. Naturally since the book was written the tools have evolved exponentially. There are numerous new resources that deserve a mention: Glogster, Symbaloo, Mixxt, Classroom and Teacher 2.0 where new tools are developed, tested and implemented among globally minded classrooms.I do like the author's timeline of 15 years of the web (based on BBC News report link) no longer available. The historical timeline of how the web evolved from a nuclear physics laboratory (CERN) to whitehouse.gov on the web to number of websites surpassing 100 million mark in 2006. These facts clearly represent the growth of the internet age, but don't necessary specify the use and development of all current web 2.0 tools. The tutorials while helpful are very basic and are by no means a substitute for what you can view on YouTube (which the author does give a nod to). I'm surprised by the lack of mention for e-learning, e-books and the development of e-based technology, but again I don't think even the Google development of tools (other than Google Earth and Sketch-Up) where developed prior to the release of the book.Overall, Web 2.0 tools is a user's basic guide (Check out Lynn Schrum's 2010 updated version). The guide can be used by schools to understand the correct use of collaborative learning models and how to integrate technology properly. Although, opportunities abound for grants from tech companies, not every school is eligible to qualify or able to maintain their technology without further funding opportunities.