Topic #3 -- Podcasts & Blogs & Whatnot

The smart folks who know what's going on are calling what's happening on the Internet right now Web 2.0. Basically, Web 2.0 is a place where we control the vertical and the horizontal. Anyone can publish. Anyone can contribute. Information is everywhere.

And we've got to teach our students how to live in such a place. No pressure.

The cool thing is that the tools are everywhere, and free, and they've never been easier to use. Here are a few popular Web 2.0 tools. Take a look and think about what has potential for your classroom (Don't worry if some of this doesn't make sense -- we're moving really fast!):

• Blogger -- You're reading a Blogger blog right now. Here's a recent article on blogging in schools. Here's one I wrote. Here's a training course on how to start your own.
  
• Flickr -- Photo Sharing (Here's my daughter's website. Isn't she cute?)
• Del.icio.us -- Social Bookmarking. Share the good stuff you find with others, and tag it for later for your own use. (Furl is my preferred social bookmarking tool -- same basic premise.)
• RSS -- Stands for "Really Simple Syndication." Imagine that, instead of going to all of your favorite websites, they came to you. That's what RSS is all about. And more.
• Podcasting -- Imagine student-created radio shows that you can subscribe to. Then imagine anything else you can do with audio. Podcasts are everywhere right now. Here are some that I've created with teachers in Colorado. David Warlick created this excellent directory of educational podcasts.
  

Some of the commonalities of Web 2.0 tools are that they are about creating content and sharing it with others. Web 2.0 is also about organizing and accessing quality information. We ask students to do these things all the time (although too often we only ask them to share what they do with the teacher), so why can't we ask them to do them online?

What would you like to know more about? What questions or ideas do you have? Come on over to the chat room when you're ready to post.

** If you want to know more about Web 2.0 and how it works, check out Darren's really cool presentation blog.