Thing #5

Web 2.0 is the read/write attribute of the web, the "two-way" nature of the internet; School 2.0 being the implementation of Web 2.0 in the classroom.  It means a classroom where students and teachers publish, create, and collaborate as a means of learning.  It also gives teachers the ability to join groups of like-minded educators to discuss new technology and approaches to teaching.  But with this ability comes access to massive amounts of information (much more then any single school library could ever hold) which also means helping students find and utilize relevant information and not be overwhelmed (or distracted) by the sheer volume of web tools, links, apps, and blogs available.  It also means remembering the importance of mastering content.  Anyone can add an opinion to a blog or post a few pictures they find interesting.  It takes a bit of work to master content and have both background info and context to make a blog contribution more then just a personal opinion, but worthy of the scholastic environment that schools are supposed to be.  It means making sure that students not only know how to participate in Web 2.0 forums, but have the ability to inform their contribution with knowledge and depth.  It also means challenging what are already becoming common assumptions.  In Web 2.0 is the Future of Education #7, the paragraph is titled The World is Getting Flat,which I assume is a reference to Thomas Friedman's The World is Flat book.  Last semester, in my World Geography class, our textbook authors took on some key ideas of Friedman, and really challenged their legitimacy, both in terms of economics and social/cultural happenings.  The assumption of the Web 2.0 article (#7) by  Steve Hargadon is that anyone, anywhere has access and can both use and contribute to Web 2.0 which in turn enhances the academics our classroom experiences.  The truth is, hundreds of millions of people in the world do not have access or the ability to contribute to Web 2.0 tools and blogs, so in secondary history and political science classes, like I will be teaching, some questions have to be raised. Are these truly global perspectives that we now have access to, or are they merely reflections of the contributions of those who live in certain geographic, educational, or socio-economic realms that allow for their contributions?  Web and School 2.0 offer some exciting possibilities, but as with all possibilities there will definitely be challenges, and as with so many parts of teaching, a lot of trial-by-error!