Chapter 3 and 4 Summary

Among teachers, a frequently expressed hesitation about using Web 2.0 revolves around whether they have time to “fit” new media into their already crowded curriculum. “Will I have to take time to teach them how to work with twitter or blogger is a common question. “I barely have time to get through my curriculum map as it is without throwing in a five-day tutorial on using iMovie.” Teachers tend to feel that they need to get students completely comfortable with whatever tool they’re using before making an assignment. And they feel they have to do it themselves. Fortunately, this is one of the easier questions to answer.

Kists gives great examples and ideas on how to do all this for example in chapter 3 he focused on classrooms in which the students and teachers participate in a kind of offline-online world hybrid. Most of the teachers that have commented wished they could teach in a freer environment, their idea being that one doesn't learn to drive by watching movies about driving. But an increasing number of teachers actually are getting access to a less-filtered Internet experience, and the assignments they develop prove to be quite tantalizing to the teachers and classrooms.

This chapter marked our place in the whirlwind transformation of Internet technology that launches users in a surprisingly sudden (and often unnoticed) leap from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0. Kist shows educators both a mirror and a map, explaining where we are and where we might go in this vastly rich frontier of knowledge and learning. The paths he shows us “ (Kist, 2009)spill into layered networks of inter-crossing connections and intersections—a true 'web' of knowledge—replacing old, tired, and narrow paths." This chapter provides examples of assignments and assessments that include at least a taste of Web 2.0 at school. First, the issue of staying safe online is addressed with examples of how some educators are dealing with this challenge. (Kist, 2009)

In chapter 4 entitled “Grande”: Kists speaks of how social networking in a high-tech environment. He also acknowledges that there is an increasing number of teachers are in schools that allow students to have unfiltered access to such sites as Blogger, YouTube, Google Docs and other applications. These teachers are able to more fully realize the learning opportunities that Web 2.0 applications afford. This chapter includes ideas for how to structure assignments in schools that allow for some Internet surfing that is less restricted. (Kist, 2009)

Kist, W. (2009). The Socially Networked Classroom: Teaching in the New Media Age. California: Corwin Press.