What do I hope to learn from this T.E.A.M. program? Well, honestly I don't know anymore - before last week, I've simply wanted to be better at using the computer and learn some new tricks to keep my students entertained from time to time. After checking out one website after another, one blog site after another, one wiki after another, one video after another... I realized that my simple website through the Herricks School District is only a tiny step into the tremendous possibilities of technology usage in the world of education.I am easily inspired and I am gifted with an uncontrollable imagination that gives me an instant picture of me doing the cool things I see others doing. So after watching the short video of Weblogs in Education from Will Richardson - I immediately pictured my students blogging about so many different assignments I give throughout the year... Native American cultures, European exploration, colonial America, Congressional debates, etc.
Then I quickly stopped myself - how on earth could this be done? I started to think about me - I have over 100 students in four different classes and I can hardly find the time to grade their homework on paper - how will I ever design something so involved and keep track of it all? I will be blind by the time I finish reading 100 blogs and my fingers will be numb before I finish commenting on them all.
Then I thought of my darling students... I can hardly get them to answer questions from the right pages in the textbook; I can hardly get them to follow direction to color a map correctly... it will take me years to explain wikis and blogs (of which I don't even have a full understanding myself)! I can only imagine the excuses they will think of if I replace assignments with blogging - "my Internet is down", "my computer has a virus", "my dad wouldn't let me use the computer last night", etc.
Then I thought of the parents... "my son is spending so much time online", "I don't want my daughter to stare at the screen for so long", "my child stayed up all night on the computer doing your assignment - there's too much bad things out there", etc. I can almost smell a lawsuit in the works!
After shaking myself of this crazy bundle of random thoughts (some more realistic than others) - I figured I should check out one more video - Telling the New Story from the classroom of Kathy Cassidy. After watching, I thought... if first graders can do it... why not my 7th graders?
I can definitely see the amazing possibilities of blogging as an educational tool - now I just need someone to hold my hand (not literally) and guide me through all my worries, my doubts, my fears. I need someone to be just as thoughtful about my concerns as I am and be the logical/practical voice of encouragement as I experiment. I do NOT need someone to tell me - "Just do it, its so easy!" Even Ms. Cassidy said, it's not easy - but being inspired... I can't wait to learn the ropes and give this my best shot and hopefully by the end of the school year my students will be blogging and learning - the right way, somehow!
