CEdO535 Week 5: Web 2.0 apps, social networks in education

This week we took another look into social networking in the classroom environment and the difference between friend based and interest based social networking. As discussed in previous lessons, there is a struggle between the potential benefits and acceptable use within the classroom setting. Hopefully as educators become more aware of the benefits and the innovative ways social networks can be used in education, the more available these tools will be to students during school hours. I think the key to moving forward is keeping in communication with key stakeholders (parents, administrators, other classroom teachers) about objectives and outcomes when using online technology in a collaborative format. Knowledge regarding these areas could help demystify the use of social networking and assist in it becoming a more acceptable format for collaboration.

We were also charged with investigating web 2.0 applications/tools that we have not yet talked about in our cohort. There are a number of metasites that provide lists of the latest web tools out there including Web2go20, All Things Web 2.0, and listio to name a few. While checking out these sites I came across a web 2.0 web conferencing tool called Live Minutes. This application facilitates web conferencing with a simple click of a button that does not require users to sign up with a credit card or extensive information provided. The interface is easy to navigate and the features are excellent in terms of quality. Live Minutes also automatically records the content of a meeting and puts it into an HTML 5 document that can be saved and shared with participants or those who couldn't attend. This is an application I would highly recommend looking into for future study group meetings as an alternative to elluminate or skype.

I continue to learn new and exciting ways to integrate technology into my personal and professional worlds--this week was no exception! I look forward to learning more about the web 2.0 tools available and thinking of ways to leverage them to increase productivity and communication.