Can they apply what they have found, synthesize and create something new from what was sent back from their search results?
This is one of the new Web2.0 technologies that we will need to be teaching our students. So start now!
Some of my students were asked to select two sites each and report on them. The criteria for these sites was that they needed to be something that would allow the user to create something new. They could not be gaming sites, or sites like YouTube that were common and known to everyone in the class.
To assist the students told them about two sites and they had to use a search engine in order to find the exact sites I wanted. They needed to validate the links to be the following:
www.go2web20.net and http://web2010.discoveryeducation.com/web20tools.cfm - both of these sites provide links to online photography, music, animation sites in addition to a variety of other applications.
Now, they are to create a presentation with panache. Some will have to look up the word and see what "panache" means. They will not be able to read directly from the screen. In order to "nail it" (slang for an A) My encouragement is to do your best.
I surprised them by offering some of sites listed below in order to help them to be more creative:
Soundation.com - an online music studio that had many students engaged (or distracted) from their work in class.
Popplet.com - a platform for sharing ideas - looks a bit like online mind-mapping but I haven't had time to explore it yet.
Knotebooks.com - online notebooks for math and science courses that people are able to edit and contribute to.
Spreaker.com - online tool for creating podcasts.
Photopeach.com - online slideshow creation tool.
Many of us were already a little more familiar with such as Prezi.com, Flickr.com, Glogster.com, Slideshare.net, andAnimoto.com.
I'm looking forward to a successful project and a good learning experience not only for the students, but also for the rest of us educators.
I'm looking forward to a successful project and a good learning experience not only for the students, but also for the rest of us educators.
