As I walk through the halls of my high school, I see students “plugged in” all over the place. I have heard songs from MP3 players that are intended for one listener; I have heard phone conversations that were meant to be private; and I have seen students take out their phones, connect to the internet and give an answer in class. What does this mean? Are the students no longer interested in school? Are students giving up on education? I think that all we can say is that students are addicted to technology. But this is not necessarily a bad thing.
As educators, we need to provide the students with an “Edventure”, a learning experience that is relevant to their world and their interests. These interests are not always the same as our interests as educators, but our interest should be providing students with the knowledge and skills to be successful in the world in which they will live. That world certainly involves technology.
As I see the student’s eyes glaze over as we work through another example problem, I wonder, what I could be doing as a teacher that would allow me to cover the same material with increased student engagement. Recently, I have been working with a web 2.0 tool called Glogster. Glogster is similar to a blog, in the sense that it allows you to write in comments and create your own posts. In actuality, Glogster can be used in the same manner as the posters that students make. This tool allows students to convey their thoughts in a creative manner, allowing them freedom and a chance to express their learning.
A Glog can be created by anyone, as www.glogster.com is a free website. The site asks the user to register in order to create a Glog page. Once the Glog is created, the user can make postings, or posters that depict any topic that they want. There are various backgrounds to choose from, depending on the theme or subject. Users can also add in cartoon, clip-art style pictures that are relevant to their post. Some of the features are similar to that of a PowerPoint presentation, as the user can add text boxes, borders and shapes to spice up the project. As a student, I can remember the project assignments that took me an hour to pull all of my thoughts and information together, and three hours to fabricate a poster or diorama. Glogster helps to expedite the process, leaving more time and energy to focus on learning the material. The students also get the chance to satisfy their technology craving as they work on a school related project.
One of the features that I found most beneficial is the ability to embed photos, as well as video and audio clips. Students are able to take pictures and video during an in class lab or demonstration, and place them in the Glog as artifacts. These artifacts allow the students to properly describe and discuss the set up or events that occurred during the lab. Rather than say that they saw the chemicals react to create bubbles, the student can show the bubbles forming. Rather than saying that the cart with the larger mass and larger velocity had more momentum than another cart, the student can show the two carts colliding. This opens up a new world for the students, as they will be able to demonstrate these phenomena to others. There is also something to be said for repeatability. The students will be able to replay the reaction or demonstration as they describe it in words, allowing clarification throughout the process.
Students are also able to comment on other student’s Glogs. This does not need to turn into a peer critique, however, the students can help clear up common misconceptions. The students can help one another learn as they comment and build knowledge together. While a technology component is incorporated into Glogster, them emphasis is not strictly on technology. The technology involved is only a device to facilitate the learning process. Students are not only focused on the computer because it is a computer, they are utilizing it as an integrated tool.
Students learn best when they are interested in the material, which is exactly the opportunity that Glogster provides. By generating Glogs, students are able to explain their knowledge in a way that they never could before. The students can spend their “technology time” on school related topics, and maybe, just maybe, spend a little less time just “plugged in”.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
It's cool that you're seeing some potential with glogster for bridging the sometimes large gap between how kids use technology in their own lives, and it's potential for aiding in the teaching and learning process.
ReplyDeleteYou probably know about this, but since the glogster people became aware that their tool was being used by teachers, they've opened up a Glogster for Educators space so that teachers can wall off glogs that wouldn't be classroom appropriate.
If you try something, Phil, I hope you'll blog about the experience.