This year, I decided to try something new with my students. I wanted to find a way to tap into their social needs and technology know-how while addressing my Spanish curriculum. So, I have introduced them the learning environment EDU2.0. This site, much like BlackBoard, but free, allows me to set up classes, provide resources and links to my students, and to establish a safe, closed environment for Spanish language practice. The site is also set up like FaceBook in that it allows the students to chat with each other and share photos. The students can contribute to a class wiki and small group wikis; they also have 3 different levels of blogs to use: personal, class, and small groups. The great thing is that you, as the teacher, are able to control and monitor the environment while teaching the students social skills and appropriate Internet usage. If we don't do it, who will???
Let me just say though that I have gained a plethora of knowledge about working with students and technology in these past couple of weeks:
First, do not introduce students to a social network and expect them to listen to a lesson that same day. As soon as the students realized they could add their classmates as friends and chat, as well as upload photos, I had lost their attention for that day. I quickly realized that for them to learn the "educational" features of the site, I had to turn them off to tune them in. So, I let them "play" with the site the first day and then took the lesson into the classroom where they had to follow me.
Second, students are not afraid to tell you how they feel about an assignment or the class via electronic media. Some things that they would only whisper to their friends during your class become open conversations online. Now, a teacher could take these comments one of two ways: constructively or destructively. For example, I learned that I need to go slower when introducing the features of the site instead of lumping them all into one project simply because the students told me so without actually planning on telling me. There were many comments posted about "what are we supposed to be doing?" "I'm confused" "Where are we supposed to be posting this information?" etc. Again, I took the site back into the classroom, where there was only one computer and projected it with their comments and thanked the students for letting me know what they needed from me. By doing this, they understand that it's OK to ask questions when they don't understand something.
Then, I was reminded that not all "digital natives" are technologically saavy. There is still a learning curve when being introduced to new sites and resources. The great thing about this site is that there are no mistakes that can't be fixed. So, they posted their research notes in the wrong wiki; just move them. Some students have to make the mistakes in order to learn how to get it right.
Next, I reaffirmed my belief that wiki's are the way to go for group research projects. I have gotten a higher percentage of students actively participating in their group's research because the findings are posted on wiki where everyone can see who has contributed. As soon as I introduced them to the history button on their group wikis, there was an immediate turn around from the "I'll just sit back and watch" mentality to the "let me contribute something" mentality.
Finally, I have gotten to know my students on a more personal level by reading their personal descriptions, seeing how they research and organize information, and watching how they interact with their peers electronically. Students are amazing, but how many of us, especially at the high-school level, actually take the time to get to know our students.
One last note on using the EDU 2.0. If you have parents who are reluctant to let their students participate, or who are nervous about social media, you can allow parents to join the site as viewers and/or contributors. It's time we stop being afraid to teach students the skills they will need for the future and start being proactive in teaching the parents how to recognize that we do know what we're doing.
