Thing 23 Final Thoughts

Final Thoughts
The practical reflection happened in my Thing 22 entry. These thoughts are of a more esoteric nature. The need for all our students to be highly literate in a world that is plunging into Web 2.0. is imperative. What an opportunity we have to work with young people who navigate and learn together across boundaries of every kind. Our job is so important to help them reach depth and clarity of thought, knowledge, and values in their collaboration, innovation, and communication. ICCCAR is as important as ever and merging Web 2.0. with Service Learning will help our students transform the world - I hope.

Thing 22 What Did I Learn Today?

I learned that:

I knew more than I thought I did and had incorporated many aspects of Web 2.0. into my life before this class. That was an eye opener and a confidence booster for this digital immigrant.

No fear and confident tenacity are good. Additional tools and networking will simply, complicate, and enhance my life.

That I need to have the same patience with myself that I have with students and colleagues.

I pledge to continue new tool use especially Del.icio.us, photo play sites, and blogging. I'll share/teach some of the tools in gratitude for what I have learned,to go deeper into the experience and have a face to face network to learn with. Additionally I'll expand my current use of podcasts, RSS feeds, and organizational tools.

I hope DMTS will be able to continue to support us with these learning opportunities as Web 2.0. changes and evolves on a daily basis. This class has been a rich learning experience. We can learn alone but learn so much more and better together. Thank you.

Thing 21 Beyond MySpace: Other Social Networks

Joined the 23 Things on A Stick social network in Ning and left our media specialist from South View a message.

The whole idea at Ning of starting your own network seems to be Web 2.0. at it's finest - communicate and connect.

Yelp for reviews was intriguing especially in it's randomness. After entering the word garden, everything from nursery locations, Lake Harriet Rose Garden and Bill's Imports (who deliver to a restaurant with garden in the name) showed up in the final list.

I belong to Angie's List which is it's own way is a social network and it's really helped to find good services and companies. Now after Thing 20 and 21 I belong to two more social networks.

Thing 20 Libraries and Social Networks

Well as the car talk guys say, "You've wasted another perfectly good hour." In this case it would be more like two hours. I see why the kids like MySpace and why adults prefer Facebook based on the visual presentation of the page alone. This isn't the first time I've ambled through these sites and it won't be my last as I joined up and have some friends!

Thing 19 Exploring Podcasts

Podcasts have been part of my life for a while as I like to listen to them when I am doing tasks that don't take a huge amount of concentration. They fascinate me because they like other Web 2.0 tools they range from somewhat inarticulate discussions to polished productions. The authenticity of the more informal podcasts is often fun and the sophistication of podcasts from sites such as MPR is so valued. Both expose me to thoughts, ideas and beliefs that enrich and challenge my life. The multitasking aspect of podcasts is a definite plus to their use over viewing and reading which require for me more focus to stay engaged. My husband surprised me with an iPod last night so it's going to be great to listen to more podcasts.

In Thing 15 I talked about listening to "YALSA Podcast #20 - Teens on TSL In this podcast Kelly Czarnecki and Linda Braun talk with two teens about Teen Second Life." so it only made sense to share it. The other podcast which I added to my Bloglines is from EPN The Education Podcast Network, ADHD is A Gift How You Can Appreciate The Gifts of ADHD.

Thing 18 YouTube

YouTube is a like a good magazine you just keep reading/viewing from article to article and voila before you know it hours have gone by.

I chose this video DIGITAL LITERACY IN GOOGLE because it's a good example of students using YouTube for a class assignment and then posting for a wider audience.

YouTube is not new to me but posting to the blog, the links to 7 Things Things You Should Know About YouTube, and EDUCAUSE all expanded my understanding of the site and applications.

Thing 17 ELM Productivity Tools

Well live and learn! This incredible sight is both humbling and invigorating to learn about. Searching professional information was daunting with out tight parameters. The RSS feed conundrum is interesting. It's great to know we have media folks to guide us and the reference I found for kids really opened my eyes up to new search possibilities. Use of this site would be a great DMTS Media class for teachers.