Social Networking: How one could use it in the classroom

I think Facebook, or a similar social-networking application, would be an excellent Web 2.0 tool to use in the classroom because it connects everyone together. For example, students in an English class could use it as an electronic journal. Instead of writing entries in a traditional notebook, students could write them online. This would enable other students to read and critique them, would save a lot of money on paper and pens, and teachers could easily go through and give instant feedback or grades on the entries. There are ways to make entries or posts private, too, so only a certain person or people could view them; that way a student could feel comfortable writing about something personal that they don’t want to share with everyone.

Another great thing about using a social networking site would be the ability for students to make use of other Web 2.0 tools. They could post pics, videos, communicate with each other about class projects, and even access and update their pages via mobile devices as well. Students would have the ability to post media relating to a story they’ve written or are reading in class such as pics, music, clips from a play, movie, TV show, or anything relevant. Doing so would be a great application of the multiple intelligences in that artistically or musically inclined individuals could showcase their abilities. Also, by their very nature, these sorts of sites make great use of interaction (interpersonal intelligence) and expression (intrapersonal intelligence).

Collaborative writing projects could be done with ease, too, as students could write and quickly email drafts to each other for additions, revisions, and publication. A story could be sent around to twenty people in a day or two and the teacher could monitor the progress of each draft and offer guidance along the way.

Obviously, there are many drawbacks and things to be wary of when using such applications. Will students abuse it? Will students use the text-message speak teenagers often do on these sites? (Teachers should certainly discourage that!) Will their pages be accessible by anyone? Security procedures are important with anything involving children. Teachers should make sure that all pages are private and viewable only by others in the class. Perhaps instead of using Facebook, a similar social networking page could be set up inside a school’s Intranet which could only be used in school. Also, what about students who are economically disadvantaged and don’t have access to a computer? A teacher must make accommodations for any such student so they aren’t left out.

In the future, I see more and more integration of technology in the classroom as we become increasingly dependent on the Internet for even the most routine functions in our daily lives. I think that setting up networks where students can interact, publish work, seek assistance, and use various tools for educational purposes will greatly benefit our children by making learning more interactive and will definitely help further prepare them for today’s high tech world.

Inquiry-Based Learning: What is it?

Inquiry-Based Learning is an educational movement which began in the 1960s and continues to grow in popularity. Like any sort of educational practice or philosophy, its effectiveness is debated. I will examine Inquiry-Based Learning and its applications in this blog entry.

What is Inquiry-Based Learning?

Inquiry-Based Learning is a type of instruction in which students work to find solutions to problems, generate hypotheses, further questions, and accumulate knowledge and theories about a given topic, problem, or area. Its progress is judged by how well students generate experimental and analytical skills rather than on how much knowledge they possess.

How does it differ from traditional instruction?

Traditional instruction focuses more on content mastery, seeking the “right” answer, and having the teacher be the dispenser of knowledge, whereas IBL is more focused on generating multiple answers to questions, investigating why a question or topic is important, and has the teacher in more of a “guide” function, helping the students along, rather than instructing them. In IBL the students are the ones instructing themselves through their research and applications of knowledge.

What does it have to do with my classroom?

That’s a good question. It’s up to the individual teacher to decide whether they want to use IBL methods of instruction. However, teachers should think about the fact that traditional methods of instruction centered around rote-memorization and lower-order thinking skills are becoming obsolete in today’s fast-paced world and should consider more thought-provoking and student-involved methods of instruction such as IBL.

What are the benefits of IBL?

Students are benefited by being more involved in their work, not being confined to seeking only one “correct” answer, and hopefully should be more motivated by this type of constructivist instruction.

How has IBL developed since its inception and initial popularity?

IBL has gone through many changes and developments. The “Whole Language” movement was an important development in IBL in that it emphasized the roles reading and writing play in learning. Nowadays, there are a lot of changes coming into IBL as computers, the Internet, and software change how students learn. Many IT components can be used in IBL activities in a way not possible ten or twenty years ago.

What are some critical perspectives?

Education is not fixed or static. We need to constantly adjust the way we teach students due to our ever-changing world. Students need to be able to utilize their different intelligences, write clearly, ask questions, generate theories and solutions, and think out of the box. IBL prepares students and gives them the skills to do such things, while traditional instruction does not.

How can I use IBL in conjunction with other educational techniques?

Teachers should look for ways to integrate IBL into their lessons. For instance, in an English class, instead of reading a story and coming to one determination about a protagonist’s actions, why not generate multiple theories about his/her actions? Then, at the conclusion of the unit, an exam could be taken to evaluate students’ understanding of the material. Something like that is an easy way to mesh traditional instruction and IBL together.

I think it’s up to each individual teacher to decide whether or not to use IBL in the classroom. Does it suit his/her style of instruction? What about the students? How would they respond to it? It’s even possible to try some IBL activities and see how they go; if they work, a teacher could integrate more of them into their lessons. However, one thing I wonder about is whether or not it’s possible in a “No Child Left Behind” environment to use this sort of instruction when you’re so pressed for time and have several high-stakes tests to take. Balancing that and innovative methods like Problem-Based Learning and Inquiry-Based Learning is tough but is something, in my opinion, we as educators should seek to accomplish.