Collaboration (through blogs and wikis) - week 8

Being able to work through the medium of a blog has given me a space to put down my thoughts on my progress in this subject. Because this is a public domain I have been more cautious in what I write, making sure I have correct information therefor researching things more thoroughly. Although this is a journal of sorts because people can view it I want to make sure it is a good representation of me and my learning journey. 

In a classroom this medium would be beneficial for a number of reasons:

• It gives students the chance to voice their opinions. Students who are shy quite often feel more confident if they don't have to stand up in front of a class to talk. This medium gives them a chance to still participate in classroom (blog) discussions.
• It helps with the home/school gap. It enables parents to engage in what their children are learning and keeps them in the loop.
• It increases their ICT skills. It teaches students how to embed text, use links, insert pictures.

Some ways a classroom blog could be used are:

• responding to readings
• guided questions
• homework reminders
• a place for final assessment pieces
• newsletter for parents
• a place to share link about topic students are learning about
• videos can be posted to enhance the learning of a subject
• additional homework challenges for those inclined to want more
• reading lists and reviews of those books from class members
• if a student is on holiday they can post a diary of their adventure for the class to see

Its all about creating a community feel in your classroom for student's, teacher's and parents.

Wiki's are another tools that could be used in a classroom. Wikis are a place to keep document and to interact with others in a collaborative way.

These are some ways wikis could be used in a classroom:

• create in online text for your classroom
• try creating a choose your own adventure
• have your students use a wiki to publish information about a topic that they are investigating
• create digital portfolios for students and teachers
• create collaboration opportunities between classes across the school and across the world

The possibilities are endless in this digital age. By incorporating these learning aspects into todays classroom we are teaching students how to present, research, share, collaborated and interpret information and am settting them up for the future of tomorrows workforce.