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Initially, when I first started reading about social bookmarking - I was a little hesitant. Anytime social, web and education are put together, it is a fine line to walk, see page 10, Educational hopes and fears of Web 2.0. I enjoy the ability personally, to consolidate all my resources into a single place with the ability to access them from any computer, tablet or mobile device. In terms of use within public education, I believe we need to provide parameters to students, staff and the community.
For example Diigo and other open forums do not allow restrictions, such as appropriate tagging of content, it is subjective to the users. As an administrator, I want to assure my students, staff and parents are receiving appropriate information in the appropriate context, as the attached link discusses the pros and cons of technology in the classroom. You do not want staff or students exploring beyond their bounds. It would be beneficial for this type of forum to be customized for a district or particular school to assure proper content reviews/approval processes are completed prior to publication. We want to be collaborative, but I also think it is important establish rules of use to ensure proper use of these resources as they are becoming increasingly more popular and an essential way for us to communicate.
Overall, the ability to bookmark and categorize your resources by subject, year, author, web site is great. I can see this being rewarding to educators as they regularly find new tools everyday and this provides the ability to share, save and reuse no matter where they are, as it typical for us to accumulate years of resources, especially now with the Internet and ease of access.
I liked your link to the Pros and Cons of Technology in the Classroom. I plan on sharing that we my tech team. I also liked the article beside it, Pros and Cons of Mammals in the Classroom! As an administrator, it must be a logistical nightmare bringing teachers, parents, and students to together regarding appropriate use of technology in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI agree that using diigo in the classroom could be walking the fine line, as tagging is not regulated. It is also very important as an educator to teach our students, even at the youngest of ages about digital citizenship. It is ever so important that we are having discussions with our students about the proper use of technology and what happens when something goes wrong. If we do not, we can not assume the parents are educating the children, and they are going home to what the video calls the "wild wild west." Social Media in Schools I know using diigo with students who are younger, such as elementary school age might not be appropriate, but possibly with 4th or 5th grade students. The best part is the highlighting tool that allows them to find key topics in articles. I think if done well, with parents as partners and the backing of administration, social media in the classroom is a collaborative learning tool. Here are two videos that I like that discuss using tools such as these in the classroom. Creating a Digital Rich Classroom and also Burlington High School, MA Using Diigo for educators to collaborate is a great way to foster professional development.
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