Week 2: Web 2.0 in Education

Things start to heat up a bit this week. We will jump into the Web 2.0 concepts and hang out here for a couple of weeks. We will review the first reading, Small Pieces Loosely Joined. This book discusses a great concept and one I want you to really start to understand. This is my take on the concept, please establish your own.

The web is a platform … we can go over its history — look at who invented what, when they did it, and where we were went it all happened. But I am quite sure very few of you have thought about the web as an open space that can be moved around, rebuilt, recrafted, and rethought (over and over again). As a matter of fact, I didn’t really think of it that way just a year or so ago. I have been in the web business for several years … as a matter of fact, nearly from the get go. I’ve been a webmaster, a web developer, managed huge online learning projects, and done just about anything the web can handle.

But, my thinking has changed. I no longer see the web as a static place where content gets placed. I have come to the conclusion that the web is a living breathing part of what we are about as a society, culture, country, and even to some degree as the world. I know it is hard to make sense of … I am having trouble explaining it. What I am saying is that web should be (and is really starting to) empower us to be active participants in its ongoing evolution.

Over the next few weeks, I want you to investigate that a little bit. I am going to give you some readings and want you to take a look at them and really reflect on what they are saying. I think you will come out of this understanding a little more about what the web is and what it could be.

This week we will really start the course moving forward. We will look at Web 2.0 and discuss its impacts on education. The class will be dedicated to presentation, discussion, and activity so please bring your laptops.

Each Working Block is 30 Minutes

  1. Lecture: Web 2.0 and Education (2 Blocks)
  2. Break
  3. Web 2.0 Tools w/ Discuccsion (3 Blocks)
    • Social Bookmarking (del.icio.us)
    • Community (digg)
    • RSS Readers (bloglines)
    • Blogging (WordPress)
    • Wiki (Need free wiki service)
    • Flickr (Social Photo Sharing)
  4. Web 2.0 Discussion (From Above Blocks):
    • How does one look at educational support structures through a small pieces model?
    • Can we construct the educational platform of the future via loosely joined Web 2.0 tools?
    • How will instructors and students’ roles change under these new rules?

    Assignments

    • Post your del.icio.us account information … please do the same using your name and userid in the post.
    • Listen to this Podcast and complete Discussion Activity 01
    • Begin adding links to your del.icio.us account using our shard tag

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