In the halls of any high school in our country it seems that more and more students are using technology to interact with more people then ever before. I know of students who can be writing and sending a text message from their pocket of their sweatshirt as they are looking a teacher in the eye and answering a question about history. Our students rely on technology more then I ever have. Because of their familiarity with technology and the network and equipment they already have set up and access to as educators we have a great setup to use for educational purposes. MySpace and Face Book are popular social media sites. There are also programs that can send text messages to students’ cell phones or handheld devices that update them on information about a specific topic. Twitter is very popular example of this. Students can continue class discussions out side of class and ask and answer questions either logged onto the computer or through their cell phones.

The social media that our students interact with is a great educational tool because of its ubiquitous nature; however it is very difficult to control. A colleague of mine set up Twitter in her English class but had to place many restrictions on her students. They had to come up with aliases. They could not use a picture of them that showed their face on their profile. All students had to have parent permission as well. Students did really well with Twitter and were really excited about it. My colleague said that students were making Twitter dates so they could get together after school and tweet. What a great way to get students talking about Shakespeare! However there was a problem with students getting text messages all day long in other teachers’ classes. Also, not all students have cell phones or phones with unlimited texting, so this could get rather expensive for those who do not have unlimited texting capabilities.

• It is very advantageous for educators to use a network that students are familiar with and enjoy interacting with
• Almost all students use the social web outside of school
• Classroom discussions can be continued outside of school

The concern that I have with using social media in the classroom is student safety. There are more and more online predators that put our youth at risk. School schould be a safe place where students are able to focus on learning, not protecting themselves from others. The English teacher at my school took extra precautions to make sure that her students would be safe. Another concern for student safety that I have is regarding other students. The social media that our students interact with is not immune to harassment, threats, and slander. A new term has come up called “sexting” where students send revealing pictures of them selves to one another. There has been a recent case in the news where a young girl killed herself because of pictures of her were sent around school. Once something is sent out it can not be taken back, and the original sender had no control over where it goes or who sees or reads it.

• Predation and harassment is a reality of social media
• Some students may not use social media responsibly
• Students do not have control over information sent after it is sent
  
  

Wikis

Wikis are a great way to collaborate and share information. One can open up a document as a web page, click edit, and add to the document, then save it as a web page again and post it for all to access. My government class used a wiki to share information about a debate that they had to prepare for. We had a wiki for the Pro argument and another for the Con argument. Students could add their research for whichever side they were debating. I thought the wikis were great for educational purposes because students can share information that their classmate may not have thought about. As a teacher, and administrator of our class wiki, I can see what individual students have contributed to the discussion.

• Wikis are great for brainstorming
• Wikis are convenient for students to work on their own time
• Collaboration is facilitated in one location
• Students are held accountable for what they post

However there are some draw backs to wikis. Due to the fact that many people have the ability to edit a wiki there may be information posted that is not correct or biased. I believe that if we teach students to analyze information with a critical mind and make sure there is another credible source wikis can be very successful in education. Another draw back we found is that only one person can edit a page at a time. If more then one student would like to contribute to the discussion at the same time he or she is not allowed to. We had problems initially with our wiki pages freezing because too many students were trying to edit them at once. When students realized that, they were able to wait and take turns.

• Only one person may edit a wiki at one time
• Information shared on wikis may not be accurate due to their collaborative nature
  
  

Podcasts

Podcasting is a great resource for second language classes. I am always looking for good resources of input for my students. As a teacher of Spanish I, I am constantly seeking comprehensible input for my students. There is a lot of music, literature, and podcasts out there, however if it is too advanced students will not get any meaning. As I was searching for podcasts I found many of them for beginning language students; however they were not exactly what I wanted students to focus on. I would like students to create their own podcasts for their fellow classmates.

• Students receive quality comprehensible input in Spanish
• Podcasting allows students to hear their own language production
• Podcasts can be made to emphasize specific grammar or vocabulary concepts
• Creating podcasts can be difficult if there is a lack of equipment at school

In language learning speaking is one of the last things that students are able to do. They need to receive lots of input before they can produce correct output in the forms of speaking and writing. Podcasting will provide a meaningful way for students to practice their speech as well. I learn a lot when I hear myself speak in English or Spanish. I have posted a couple of podcasts on our class Moodle site for students who miss listening exercises due to travel or illness and for students to hear Spanish when they are outside of the classroom too.

The one frustration that I have found with podcasts at school is that we do not have to equipment to record podcasts for an entire class, even if students work in groups. I have students record their podcasts on my computer and I post them, but I would like students to learn how to do it themselves so they are not dependant on me or restricted to only working during their time at school to complete their assignments or listen to their fellow students. Another obstacle that I have encountered is there is limited storage space on students’ H drives. If they save many audio or video files they run out of room quickly.

There is lots of free software to record audio files. I like working with Audacity, a free down load, and then use Prism Media Converter to convert the audio AVI file to an MP3 file.

Second Life

Second Life is interesting. The first person that I met in SL approached me in Spanish about the size of his anatomy. Other people that I approached were rather cold and did not respond. I do not think that I have the technological intuition that others have as I felt frustrated exploring SL. It was difficult to understand the layout of where I was and where I could go. I enjoyed changing my avatar and it was fun to see other people. I do agree with the discussion that was going around about how the avatars are very developed, voluptuous people. Perhaps this is because SL can function as an escape for some people.

Second Life can be a great educational tool, however I think it would not be appropriate for elementary or secondary students. SL could be a good tool for college level students who are more mature and able to filter the inappropriate material that is available through Second Life.

• SL is a great opportunity to experience things students are not able to experience in the classroom
  
• There is a lot of inappropriate material on SL that I would not want my students exposed to
  
• It is impossible to monitor students on SL

Even though there are many educational benefits to SL, I do not believe that the pros out weigh the cons. There seems to be a lot of rubbish that one must wade through to get to anything meaningful. I am very busy with my OL, (original life) and find that interacting with real people is more valuable then avatars on the computer. I do however; see the appeal and benefit to students to have a game situation where learning can take place.

Podcst Rubric

Click on the title above to see the rubric that students' podcasts will be graded on.

Spanish Podcast

Click on the title above or the link below to listen.

http://www.4shared.com/file/103480947/ac4ecc31/Ed_tech_final.html

As a foreign language teacher I am constantly seeking sources of comprehensible input for my students. There is a lot of input available however it is ineffective if students do not have the language ability to understand what they are hearing. A good philosophy for foreign language teaching is (input + 1). This is to mean that students should understand most of what they read or hear, plus a little more to challenge them and keep their brains engaged. If the material is too easy students will not progress in the language. Conversely if the material is too difficult for students to understand they will shut off and no acquire any new knowledge. We are to give them what they know plus a little more. It is like Plato’s The Allegory of the Cave. When students are in the comforting darkness of the cave they are not learning. As they move into the light their minds grow and they lean. (Input + 1) puts takes the students from the darkness towards the light as they learn.

• Comprehensible input is important to foreign language acquisition
  
• It is challenging to find quality input for students
  
• Input that is too easy is ineffective
  
• Input that is too difficult is ineffective
  
• (Input + 1)

Due to the continual challenge that I encounter I thought it would be fun for students to be a part of their Spanish experience. Students will create a podcast and a set of questions using vocabulary and grammar concepts that we have worked on in class. Other students will listen to the podcast and answer questions in Spanish. This project will be successful because students will be able to talk about what they are interested in as communicate with each other in Spanish. I have found that students teaching students is a very successful way for students learning. Students will also be encouraged and excited to hear their own voice speaking a foreign language.

• Students will be producing original work
  
• Students teaching students Spanish
  
• Students will be producing and listening to (input + 1) Spanish
  
• Students will have ownership in the products they create