Post 10: Google Docs & Peer Editing

OK --- Google Docs is exceeding my expectations. Better take this Web2.0 App seriously.

• I just spent the last 30 minutes synchronously co-editing with the author of a new online PE/Health course. The author/creator posted the Syllabus as a Document in Google Docs and sent me an invite to co-edit.
• We're literally watching each other type as words appear on the screen.
  
• I used the built-in spell checker and Saved, and she added colored-notes for my opinion on certain topics. We continued to update based on each other notes and suggestions.
  
• Both of us noticed the changes instantly and neither of us lost any of our updates. Geez --- how do they do that?
  
• This is just too cool to put into words.
• A revision button let's us look back at previous versions all the way to its conception.
  
• Had we sent attachments back and forth this would have taken forever.
• And here is a Circuit Training Journal Spreadsheet that was created in Google Docs. I just hit Publish and it's available for everyone to view!
• And don't forget about their new Presentation tool (virtual version of Powerpoint).
• And when we were done, I simply hit File, export to .pdf and .html to offer students other view options.
• One click to Post this doc to a Blog.
  

-> Google Docs demo (Student Project).
_

Post 9: Web 2.0, Rigor, Relevance & Education

Continuing from previous Blog --- following the video I asked the kids 'What is Web 2.0?' and sent them to Google for 3 minutes. I then requested rapid fire, key word definitions and wrote them on the board, including Blogs, YouTube, Google Docs, Wikis, social networking, and more. I then asked for a raise of hands who used some of these tools and 100% of the kids hands went up. Of course social networking was the most popular tool (gaming, YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, etc.). However, I suspect very few educators have actually experienced or are using many of these tools.

Here is my response: schools want more rigor out of kids, which means they must first achieve more relevance. Todays kids are social, social, social --- and that is a key component of Web 2.0.
So, educators, become the 'guide on the side' that models and encourages kids to use these tools for the lessons and activities you plan in your classroom. I guarantee kids will become much more engaged with your curriculum, and rigor is simply a bi-product.

Post 8: Blocking Sites NOT a good Solution

This is not about Internet Filters, it's about Information Censoring. And Information Censoring is the teachers responsibility. Current school District filters are generally set by technicians, not educators. Most of them have never been in the classroom and have no idea how to modify the software-filter defaults to meet the teachers and students needs.

• I always thought our philosophy is to have high expectations for our students, to educate them to behave ethically, responsibly and safely and then expect that they will do the right thing.
  
• When they don’t, they know there will be consequences and we’ll have a conversation and try to learn from the mistake, but we don’t assume they are going to screw up.
  
• In other words, our philosophy has been to educate, not ban.

The other day I attempted to give a presentation to kids/teachers/administrators at a nearby progressive school. The outstanding 8-minute video titled "Shift Happens", which resides on YouTube, was filtered/blocked. So, obviously the filter is not very intelligent.

• So, not to panic, I simply challenged the kids to help me solve this little problem and offered a prize to the first one who could bypass the 'filter' so we could watch the video.
• 5 minutes later a student came up to my pc, typed in some information (which I won't share) and voila --- the video began.
• Lesson 1: school Districts continue to attempt to block students and staff out of academic (and non-academic) sites without really dealing with the issue at hand. The only people the District 'filters' stop are the teachers and administrators --- not the kids.
  
• Lesson 2: Best solution -> Most District filtering software (like 8e6) reside in an Active Directory environment so let the individual teachers override the universal unintelligent filters to open up appropriate sites for their kids.
  
• Yes, it's the teachers responsibility to select 'appropriate content'. And if they make a poor decision, there are already consequences set in place.
  
  

Post 7: Recording audio to broadcast

Yackpack is a great Web 2.0 tool that has many features. Participants can talk 'live' with anyone in their group that is currently online, or record messages for anyone to hear. In the following example I recorded a short message in Yackpack. One of the options is to "share this message". Yackpack generates the URL (web address) and I just copy/pasted it in my blog below.