The learner is like a.......

The learner today is like a bridge. It order to expand ones knowledge, the learner has to build connections with other people and open ones mind to new ideas and places. The video stated that "social software allows individuals to form new connections with one another. Like a bridge, these connections are going to allow individuals to expand their thoughts, opinions, ideas, across the world, communicating with other individuals. "Our ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill" (reading). This core skill is going to allow individuals to grow in their fields and become more real rounded and educated individuals. I think social media is a great tool for individuals to take advantage of, because I feel the best way for people to become more educated and skilled in their career, is to collaborate and learn from others.

Social Networking Group URL

http://flatclassroomproject.ning.com/

I think participation in this group would be very useful for me because I teach science. I like to do collaboratively assignments in my classroom, where students work together in groups on an assignment, project, or lab. I think this site would be very useful to me because it will help me find some new innovative ideas that others have been using and might also help me expand on the ideas that I use in my classroom. I could also use this site in my classroom to show my students how other students their age are working together in group projects around the world and maybe help formulate some ideas that they would like to do in our classroom as a whole. I think collaborative working is a great thing for students to be exposed to but it teaches them tolerance, how to collaborate with others, be patient, and share ideas, along with a sense of self/group responsibilities.

Three Ways to use blogs in your classroom.

1. Question and Answers: You could create a blog for your class in which students could post questions about the material they are learning. Other students, can help answer the questions and post upon them. I think this is a good way to use your classmates as a resource for information instead of going directly to the teachter. THe teacher could monitor the blogs to make sure the students are on the right track or help guide them to the correct answers.

2. Study Guides: You could put study guide and test discussion questions that the students and work on throughout the unit to help prepare them for an exam. This way students who are normally to shy or embarassed to ask a question in class are given the chance to ask a question or for help on exam material.

3. Discussion Questions: You could have students for homework comment on a discussion question you might have talked about in class that day or will be talking about in class the next day. This would be a good way to understand how well your students are paying attention or understanding the material in class. It is also a good way to see how much your students might already know about a topic you are going to teach and will help you focus on things they do not know very well.