Using Ning: Classroom 2.0

I’ve actually heard of Classroom 2.0 before even though I didn't know it was apart of Ning, so I decided to check it out.  Classroom 2.0 is “a social network for those interested in Web 2.0 and Social Media in education.” I liked that I saw the description:  “We especially hope that those who are "beginners" will find this a supportive comfortable place to start being part of the digital dialogue,” because I’m new to this whole Ning thing.  There are links to articles and other sources, events advertised, online events to participate in, and a forum with multiple threads created, to name a few.  One of the things I particularly was interested in checking out was the groups.

A group has been created for High School Math Teachers to join a community.  There are is a discussion board with different threads, one of them I found perked my interest because it was about teaching Algebra 2.  Last year I student taught this course and found some challenges since it was the first year being offered after changes in the NYS curriculum.  Finding this page and discussion forum made me realize that if I find groups like this I can connect with other teachers experiencing the same things as myself, and I can get advice from more experienced teachers…I can also take the time to share any advice of things I have come across.

Another group I checked out was for Middle School Math.  From viewing this group I was very impressed!  This man David R. Wetzel posted links of articles to his page, Teach Science and Math:  Dedicated to encouraging & supporting K-12 teachers.  I was very intrigued upon reading the titles of some of his posts, especially the most recent one on using Google Docs in Science and Math classrooms.  Apparenlty there are templates of already made documents that I could use; I had no idea!  In my one grad class my professor is very adamant on using Google Docs so I have been using it a lot lately, but I had no idea it could be such a resource for me to use as a teacher.  I’m excited to check this out!  If I didn’t click on this Middle School Math group apart of Classroom 2.0, I never would have found access to David Wetzel’s Teach Science and Math page!  I’m therefore very impressed with Ning and I’m sure after spending some more time checking it out I will find a lot more valuable information I can use in my future teaching!  : )

A Learner of Today...using Connectivism Theory

Using Connectivism theory, I came up with an analogy of a learner being a member of a food chain in an ecosystem.  Within the ecosystem, there could be many different types of animals, organized in a hierarchical form due to their ecosystem’s pyramid.  Each animal, which I am considering to be analogous to a learner, has the challenge of being able to survive.  The ecosystem is analogous to the ever-changing society in which we live.  Maybe the ecosystem has undergone many changes within the last few years:  changes in habitat due to construction of new homes, meaning trees cut down and intrusion of some animal’s original ‘home;’ changes of habitat due to possible pollution of water in which plants and animals reside; changes in climate/temperature maybe due to global warming over an extended period of time.  Obviously animals face changes in their environment and must learn to adapt to challenges that may arise (such as human interference, having to find new areas to be their ‘homes’ within the habitat, and having to alter eating habits if plants/animals lower in the food pyramid can no longer survive).  To me, we as learners of today have to adapt to societal changes, especially those in technology, just like members of an ecosystem have to adapt to changes in their surroundings and way of life in order to survive. 

Members of an ecosystem cannot live merely by themselves, just like learners are no longer merely learning through internalization of knowledge.  Members of the ecosystem are reliant on other members of their ecosystem:  connecting with their own species to plot for survival, along with relying on lower members for their food source.  To me, learning occurs in a similar way now in today’s society, where learning occurs due to reliance on other members of society.  Learning now occurs outside of people, and according to the George Siemens article on Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age, “learning occurs within the nebulous environments of shifting core elements that are not entirely under control of the individual.”  Also it is stated within the article, “sensitive dependence on initial conditions profoundly impacts what we learn and how we act based on our learning.”  That to me is like survival in an ecosystem, adapting to challenges that arise due to changes in the environment.  Also I liked viewing Siemens’ video titled, The Changing Nature of Knowledge, because I think it thoroughly explains the concept of Connectivism and how learning is evolving in today’s society.  Starting at  time 1:32 in the video, he says, “…today because of the complex environment that we’re in, learning isn’t something that’s exclusively limited or occurs exclusively within an individual’s mind…knowledge is really about the distribution that occurs across an entire network.”  Once again upon hearing this part, I was able to visualize the connection to the analogy I thought of.  Learning today is like survival in an ecosystem because you can’t learn or “survive” without adapting to changes that are outside yourself in society that you cannot control.  The network becomes the learning, or as I can compare to my analogy, the ecosystem can yield survival.

Pay Attention--Reaction to Video

Digital Learners

Students, as we know, learn in different ways…there are many types of learners. However, now in the 21st century, students are of a new “breed”: digital learners. This video, Pay Attention, recalls how many hours an average college graduate spends watching TV, playing videogames, talks on their cellphones, uses the computer. I wasn’t really surprised by these statistics because these forms of technology tend to “run” our lives…but I think that now in 2010, only 3 years after this video was made, these number of hours have probably increased a lot. I think that this video is very intriguing, especially for teachers that maybe do not realize how important technology is in our society today…how they need to integrate technology to appeal to the digital learners.

I couldn’t believe the statistic where it said that on average, students in class only get to ask a question once every 10 hours! In most of the classrooms I have observed in the past two years, I did not find this the case. In my student teaching, I tried to call on each student every class period at least once! This statistic really made me wonder…but does encourage me to always try to integrate technology and create an “engaging world of teaching” that will appeal to the students of today. When I saw the montage of all the ways to consider using the internet while teaching, I felt a little bit of excitement/relief that I am taking this class to learn as much as I can about these resources, so that I will feel more comfortable trying to use them in my teaching. One thing I am not so sure about, despite the fact that I keep finding more and more research/information about it, is using cellphones in the classroom…I don’t even have internet on my phone! However I do agree that by the time I get a few more years into teaching, everything will continue to change, so I plan on getting as best accustomed as I can with such advances. As it says in the video, “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!”

"Safe and appropriate"

I hope that my students would at least have some grasp on how they should be “safe” on the internet, but after hearing so many instances of negative things occurring on the internet, I would definitely take the time to remind them what they shouldn’t do. Hopefully I could present this content in an appealing manner by incorporating a video clip or two (particularly this one on cyberbullying that I couldn’t find to post its link), and maybe give students a fun-fact quiz of some of the internet safety statistics I would come across. I would give students an “internet permission slip” to inform students and their parents my code of conduct for working on the blog, which would go hand-in-hand with the school district’s policy. The expectations would be clear, and student and parent signatures are giving consent that they are agreeing to adhere to the policies. There will be serious consequences if a student uses inappropriate language, posts inappropriate content, talks negatively to another student, etc.  Things always need to be "safe and appropriate!"

There are many things that I would like to iterate/remind my students. I would encourage them to only use their first names if possible, but to never post personal information like their address, phone number, locations they plan on going to, etc. There is no need to put up specific information that could allow people they don’t know to find out too much about them. Students always need to think of who their audience is, since all information put up on the internet is there for anyone to see: There’s no such thing as “private” online. Students need to be reminded that their passwords need to be kept private and should never be shared with anyone, not even their closest friends.

Since I would be incorporating blogging as a form of assessment within my classroom, I need to nicely introduce students into what is expected of them. When we would first be starting out with blogs I would encourage students to have a “model” blog to measure up to, which could be either mine or another colleagues. The first few assignments will slowly ease students into the concept of blogging, where they would get reading other blogs first, and then begin responding. All assignments will have a rubric explaining their level of participation and quality of work, but as always, the whole “safe and appropriate” issue will always come to play.

Using the internet, particularly the idea of a blog, has such great potential from an educational standpoint. I really hope that my students will take things seriously when it comes to our course, as well as their outside social networking. The responsibility of teachers and parents definitely play a large role in reminding students what is “safe and appropriate,” compared to what is not.

Ways that I could use Blogs within my own classroom!

Once I become a teacher, I hope to integrate technology into my classroom to help engage and motivate my students. Since today’s students are constantly embedding technology within their everyday lives, like using their cell phones, using social network sites such as facebook, twitter, etc., they already will have a “blog” mentality. Even if blogging isn’t something I as the teacher am not used to just yet, I know my students will find it “second nature.” Therefore I plan on getting acclimated to the “world of blogging” now, getting some practice so that I will feel comfortable enough embedding this resource into my teaching.


At first, especially until I get used to teaching with the use of blogs, I will mainly use a blog for my sole personal use. As the teacher, my blog will be informational for students and parents so they can always know what is going on in my classroom. I really think it will be a great way to communicate information about the class! I will upload my classroom rules and procedures (“code of conduct”), a class syllabus, and information on the curriculum of the course. I also will develop an archive of class materials: copies of daily classnotes, handouts, presentations, homework assignments, any answer keys I give to my students, projects, rubrics for assignments, etc. I will have an informative calendar where each day will include what we do in class and what homework is assigned. I will have a page for important and useful websites that I come across in which I feel would benefit my students, especially if they are having a hard time with a certain concept, it would be a great resource for them to look at some of the suggested websites. This blog will definitely save class time trying to explain what absent students missed, or if they lose/misplace any class materials. There will be no excuse from a student claiming they “didn’t know what was going on, or what was due today.” I think the website will give parents a great “in” on their child’s time within in my class. They will always have a way to be informed about what is going on, and they will be able to access of the materials.

Secondly, aside from using my blog as a great source of communicate information to my students and their parents, I hope to eventually open up the blog for student use. Since research shows that blogging has positive results within students such as promoting critical and analytical thinking, I definitely would consider using it as a form of assessment. Since I am not an English teacher, I don’t really intend on asking my students to create e-portfolios, since I will not be assigning them large writing assignments. However, it is a common misconception that students do not have to read or write in a math classroom…even though it is an important necessity. Therefore I would really like to use a blog to get my students to read and write about math, without them even noticing it. Asking students to explain their mathematical thoughts of how they arrived upon an answer/explain what method they used, pushes students to go beyond simple computations. They are forced to actually think about their solving processes and are therefore gaining a deeper understanding of the material. This is a goal I have for students, instead of just being able to merely, rotely, arrive at answers. I want my students to become problem solvers and actually understand what they are doing as they work through a problem. This is why I think a blog will be a great asset to my math classroom. I would give students credit for posting a response to a question I post, pertaining to how they solved a math problem. It could be apart of their homework assignments each week to check the blog and respond, as a formal assessment.

Another way I think blogs would work great in my classroom would be as a form of informal assessment. Let’s say in class one day the students start discussing something at the end of class, but I realize that we are running out of time to get as in depth as I would like.  If we do not have time in class for a discussion, I can spontaneously tell my students that they need to take some time in the evening to put a post on the blog with their opinion – as a part of the homework assignment.  I think that a great discussion could evolve if every student puts one post. I would then take the time to read all of the posts and it would give me an idea of how my students are thinking/how well they were doing with a certain math concept.  Also if I had a closure activity planned for class and we ran out of time to get to it, I could try to put it on the blog for students to respond to. Either scenario would become a great instance of informal assessment, allowing me to see how well my students comprehended the material and to determine if I need to reteach/reiterate anything.  I could also continue the next day with the informal data I received by using it as an anticipatory set to get the student’s attention.  I am looking forward to personally learning more about blogging while in this course so that I will feel comfortable enough to live up to these high hopes I have about using blogs in my own classroom!