So edublogging. I can make easy comment about it: I like it. I think it's nice. Okay, so maybe nice isn't the word I'm looking for, but you get the point. I like seeing the opinions and viewpoints of seasoned educators who have more content knowledge then I do or skills in an area I lack. Based on my age, I can't be considered a total digital native, but I've had significant technology most of my life--we'll say I'm digital immigrant, okay? Finding information from something like a blog makes sense to me. It works.
Over the past 2 weeks, I've been reading up on some edubloggers recommended by Kristin and Jeff, as well as various social studies blogs I've come across. And surprise, surprise, I found some I like. One that I've been digging as I've read through current and archived posts is Learning is Messy. The very name works for me because learning is not neat and clean is easy, so why should be we expected anything going along with it to be that way? The blogger, Brian Crosby, is an educator from Nevada who does a lot of work with technology in his classroom. Crosby blogs about his career, as well as technology that can be used in the classroom in ways I wouldn't always think about it. In a post from April, he talks about how he's "snuck in" technology in his classroom and how well it's been accepted. He's using google docs and Skype to collaborate with classrooms around the country. Crosby talks about innovative pedagogy and finding ways to force technology into the curriculum. At a secondary level, I'm not sure how forcing technology into the curriculum would really work, especially since more and more schools are starting to require students to have at least one technology course before graduation (I think the state of Michigan has made this a graduation requirement as well). I never took "technology" course in high school, but that was just at the start of the emphasis on technology being crucial in all classroom levels. We were just starting to have 1:1 computer classrooms throughout the school. But I do remember my teachers introducing things like topic specific blogs, listservs, and the like. Thinking back 10 years to high school, those things seem so basic and simple, but they were really revolutionary at the time.
Another blog I enjoyed was The Unquiet Librarian. The blogger, Buffy Hamilton, makes some points that hit on all aspects of technology--from maker and hacker spaces to the role of libraries in our lives--but a blog she posted yesterday hit home from me. She was talking about the role of E-readers and when she feels they work best. It felt like something I was writing because her opinions were so similar. For fluffy light stuff, my Kindle is great. I'm preparing to go to Italy and France and my Kindle is pretty much the only thing I know I'm DEFINITELY packing. But I can't use my Kindle or iPad for any kind of serious or non-fiction reading. They're my last resorts when it comes to doing my reading for school. For non-fiction and school related work, I have to be able to hold something, highlight it, and make annotations. Even if I open a PDF on my iPad and make notes, it's not the same. If I want to be able to get the most out of non-fiction reading, I have to have a copy of it in my hands. Hamilton talks about how certain genres of reading work best for her on her E-reader, like poetry. Poetry is something she can go through quickly on her E-reader and now doesn't see a point in buying paper copies of poetry anymore. I agree so much with that. For things that I'm reading for pure pleasure, it seems easier and cheaper to buy an electronic copy. If it's something I need to comprehend, it has to be more "real."
I'm pretty sure I'm going to be seeking out more and different edubloggers over the next few months and years. I see them really as a wealth of knowledge and information for a teaching neophyte like myself.
So, let's end this with something fun, as I like fun. In fact, I dig cheesy fun stuff a lot. Hence, the reason why I love this clip of the US Olympic Swimming team so much. It's so cheesy, it's fabulous.
Just a quick comment on the kindle. I agree that reading paper copies of non-fiction works is much more helpful, and I try to do it whenever possible (its good for the eyes too). I'd also like to comment that technology items like kindle are great, and it's wonderful that we're getting the whole world of literature at our fingertips. However, I fear that books may go away, and this saddens me because books are one of my favorite things in the world. I just hope we can keep them around in this era of increased technology.
ReplyDeleteThis bookworm prefers paper! This program has tried to convert me to digital for all the articles (it's a crime to print all that!... and time consuming) we've had to read. I have found the annotate tool particularly helpful. In any case, books have a special place in my heart. And I love the way bookstores smell. Something special about enjoying the process of turning pages and watching the thickness on one hand transfer to the other as you soak up a good book for pleasure. Can't wait for August.
DeleteI still buy books. I can't give up on them. My kindle doesn't give me the same mental satisfaction as a book does.
ReplyDeleteLike Buffy (the Unquiet Librarian, a friend of mine), I also like some genres in digital format (guilty pleasure reading!) and others in print format (professional books). The research from the book industry falls pretty much along the lines that you and your commenters mention -- folks buy a lot more guilty pleasure fiction for their eReaders than anything else. :)
ReplyDeleteI like how you analyzed the validity of using certain texts in digital formats vs. paper, you critically literate student you. I agree that using paper for nonfiction usually results (at least for me personally) in increased comprehension. I can use my talking to the text skills and be engage in reading apprenticeship...
ReplyDeleteI checked out the Unquiet Librarian, and it looks like she is actually against reading poetry on a digital device- it takes away the warm cozy sweater feeling and gives it a scratchy poly blend feeling (paraphrasing her words). She only advocates it if she has an inkling for certain poetry in the middle of the night that she doesn't already own?
Have fun on your trip! Enjoy fluffy reading for one month on the Kindle!
Abby,
ReplyDeleteI feel similar to you about ebook readers. But this summer I did try to challenge myself and go paperless and began reading our articles on my computer. While I have mastered making virtual notes on the pdf's I see less value in it. It is so easy to leave the document and begin surfing the web or playing a game when I am reading something on my mac or iPad. My eyes begin to hurt from the screen and then the headache follows. My comprehension suffers because there are so many more variables to take into account while trying to read electronic versions. But I wonder, could a similar experience apply to a REAL digital native?
I do like that students have to take a technology course in high school, but I'd like to see the course curriculum. If the class only covers the basic how-to's, it's a waste of time. I think students need to be taught not just how to USE technology, but how to UTILIZE technology in an higher-ordered thinking context. But it does sound like the edublogger you covered is using technology to collaborate, and I like that. The idea of communicating with a class from another part of the world is really cool.
Have fun in Italy and France!