Collaborating with Technology Tools
Padlet for Impromptu Posting
Imagine an interactive digital bulletin board, and well, you've got Padlet. We've used Padlet in our online coaching courses for a number of years now, though our use has evolved along with the tool itself. In the most basic sense, you can use Padlet to generate responses to ... just about anything. In one of my favorite examples, I partnered with the instructor of Organizational Change and Student-Centered Coaching, Dr. Laura Lang, to integrate a Padlet into her webinar. Using an image of a model she constructed, we asked participants to share their experiences by posting a response to designated areas on the model. While the idea is so easily replicated in face-to-face settings, this felt like a 'win' for the online space. (Of course now with our upgrade to Blackboard Collaborate web conferencing, this is easily achieved through the Interactive Whiteboard function...but still...)
Most recently, we used Padlet as an informal organizer for our collaborative Special Interest Groups in our Coaching Practicum course. We wanted to facilitate interaction without requiring it and to do so in a format that would exude ease and celebrate the succinct. In reflection, only half of our groups chose to use their Padlet, with the other groups opting to design their own organizer in Google Docs. The groups that did use Padlet eventually utilized their own Google Docs too, however, the Padlet provided that informal messaging space to collect thoughts throughout the process that were later organized within the Google Doc. So, perhaps, Padlet (at least in our use) serves as a brainstorming or prewriting function at its core but may be less able to facilitate deeper collaborative efforts moving forward. Or maybe we just haven't figured out how to get there yet!
Most recently, we used Padlet as an informal organizer for our collaborative Special Interest Groups in our Coaching Practicum course. We wanted to facilitate interaction without requiring it and to do so in a format that would exude ease and celebrate the succinct. In reflection, only half of our groups chose to use their Padlet, with the other groups opting to design their own organizer in Google Docs. The groups that did use Padlet eventually utilized their own Google Docs too, however, the Padlet provided that informal messaging space to collect thoughts throughout the process that were later organized within the Google Doc. So, perhaps, Padlet (at least in our use) serves as a brainstorming or prewriting function at its core but may be less able to facilitate deeper collaborative efforts moving forward. Or maybe we just haven't figured out how to get there yet!
Diigo for Social Bookmarking
A Focus on Informational Literacy Skills Using Diigo
Diigo is a tool my students have used at the middle, high school, and college levels. This social bookmarking tool allows students to save, annotate, and organize bookmarks of useful resources and references that can be shared and commented on by peers. Whether using to support the research process or to construct a library of engaging informational sources, Diigo can help to store ideas and supplement essential literacy learning.
The Research Process: Using Diigo with Wikispaces (7th grade)
In my 7th grade classroom, students conducted interest driven research to explore a line of inquiry. They used Diigo throughout the process to save and annotate the sources they found and used, making it easy to revisit their own sources while also contributing to the research process of peers. The project culminated in our Wikispaces Research Page.
Building a Library of Informational Text
Most recently, my 10th grade students used Diigo throughout their English course to add current event articles of interest. Students would also add a comment for each article they posted, completing a series of 6 mini writing assignments all related to specific literacy skills needed for researching online (and tied to the Common Core State Standards). This process allowed students to develop skills over time, as well as to provide access to exemplar work of peers and to provide authentic reading of interest. The final research process required a culmination of these skills into a final research paper, which greatly benefitted from the targeted practice of the mini-assignments over time.
Diigo is a tool my students have used at the middle, high school, and college levels. This social bookmarking tool allows students to save, annotate, and organize bookmarks of useful resources and references that can be shared and commented on by peers. Whether using to support the research process or to construct a library of engaging informational sources, Diigo can help to store ideas and supplement essential literacy learning.
The Research Process: Using Diigo with Wikispaces (7th grade)
In my 7th grade classroom, students conducted interest driven research to explore a line of inquiry. They used Diigo throughout the process to save and annotate the sources they found and used, making it easy to revisit their own sources while also contributing to the research process of peers. The project culminated in our Wikispaces Research Page.
Building a Library of Informational Text
Most recently, my 10th grade students used Diigo throughout their English course to add current event articles of interest. Students would also add a comment for each article they posted, completing a series of 6 mini writing assignments all related to specific literacy skills needed for researching online (and tied to the Common Core State Standards). This process allowed students to develop skills over time, as well as to provide access to exemplar work of peers and to provide authentic reading of interest. The final research process required a culmination of these skills into a final research paper, which greatly benefitted from the targeted practice of the mini-assignments over time.
Prezi --> without the presentation?
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Group Mapping with Prezi
Prezi is an oft-used replacement for traditional presentation software such as PowerPoint. While there are many compatibility features of Prezi that can make it beneficial to use (previously as one of the only cloud-based presentation tools), it can also be a distracting and overwhelming way to present information. Which made me think-- are there ways to repurpose Prezi for the classroom that don't even require the final stage of "presenting?" Recently, we have explored just that question in 369, as we have used Prezi to construct a collaborative concept map of genre study. Groups work together to explore the similarities/differences, affordances/constraints, language demands, assessment forms, and elements of author's craft related to narrative, informational, and argumentative forms of text. Serving as a collaborative brainstorming tool, students can bring in links to outside sources, videos, images, and even files and documents that address some of the concepts we are discussing. The goal is for this map to serve as both a process of reflecting and analyzing what we are learning and as a future resource to refer back to. The next question becomes whether there is any purpose to present these resources? Or opportunities for additional comparison? |
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