Web 2.0 Technology - Delicious & Skype in the Classroom
Delicious
Del.icio.us is a social bookmarking website, which means it is designed to allow you to store and share bookmarks on the web, instead of inside your browser. On Del.icio.us, you can use tags to organize and remember your bookmarks, which is a much more flexible system than folders. You can assign as many tags to a bookmark as you like and easily rename or delete them later.
Del.icio.us has several advantages. The reasons why I use this technological tool are, firstly, I can access bookmarks from different computers. Working in a school system often requires teachers to move about and this sometimes results in the loss of saved bookmarks. This feature helps me to alleviate this problem. Secondly, you can share your bookmarks publicly, so your students or coworkers can view them for references, or collaboration. Another great feature is that you can also mark bookmarks on Del.icio.us as private which is only viewable by you. Thirdly, Marilyn and I both agree that the reason why Del.icio.us has been success to integrate into many educational settings across the country is because it is a simple and free service that is available to students and teachers.
The organized and user friendly characteristics of the site make it a useful and valuable Web 2.0 technological tool. You can view the YouTube video below which describes the uses and functions of Del.icio.us.
Del.icio.us Class Project
A project that we could consider using Del.icio.us for, is, for example History papers. This web 2.0 tool could be used for grades 3-12. We could ask students to write a paper on the American Revolution or Martin Luther King. Each student must bookmark five credible sources using Del.icio.us. Students can keep track of what sites their classmates have been on. And if they find a new credible site they can share it with the class. This way students will be able to increase their knowledge and website base with the combined bookmarks using subject tags and improve their research repository.
Skype
P.C. Magazine Encyclopedia states an average of 10 million people Skype to Skype simultaneously; Nikki and I are two within this millions of people who enjoy skyping. We both agree talk is cheap. In 2004, Skype was introduced to us as a voice calling service and as of today, it is one of the most popular free VoIP tools. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is another form of connecting to the world via the Internet. Nikki and I also believe that Skype is another Web 2.0 tool schools can use to help students be connected with the world. Skype features several form of communication: Skype to Skype, phones and mobiles, conference calls, and video calling. Talking face to face with live video free is the feature that I use the most. However, another great option Skype offers, a user can call and make unlimited calls to any phone in the United States and International for only a small fee.
At only a click of a button, you can download Skype free. Skype website, www.skype.com is very user friendly. The installation process is very easy and it only takes a few moments to complete. So how can educator use this free tool within the classroom? Integrating this feature is very easy and many educators are using it on a daily basis. One example I read about, a language art teacher who had her students connect with other students in other countries. The students each got to share something about their city, state and country. As a writing activity, students had to summarize his or her conversation and their experience.
In several of my class at Cambridge College, I have used the conference-calling feature that Skype provide. We use this feature as a means to strategies and plan assignments. Teacher can also use this feature to assist with class work out side of the classroom. Students can also step up a study hall via this service because as many as 10 simultaneous users can use this service. The possibilities for using Skype in the classroom can be endless because its all about the connection and the creativity of the teachers and students.
Skype Class Project A class project that Marilyn and I could consider using Skype for, is, teaming up with another school and collaborating with students from the same grade on a joint research project. This could be a science, language, history, or social studies class. This face to face interaction would be a great way for the students to receive or share information about the content that they are studying. This can also be a great way for the students to practice public speaking or improve their communication skills. Our class could even team up with schools from different countries for example, we could collaborate with a school in France or South Africa and learn about another culture, language or geography.
