Thinking About Learning

At last! With the release of Diigo 3 and the subsequent chatter in the Twitterverse, this great social bookmarking app is finally getting the attention it deserves!! Until recently I only had 2 close friends who were Diigo users. We included a social bookmarking page on our Digital Educators wiki to use in our Diigo evangelization efforts in our district. In spite of our best efforts, we’ve been unable to convert many other Technology Integration Specialists or teachers to our way of thinking about the advantages of Diigo. People just have a hard time moving out of their delicious comfort zones, but maybe some will be willing to jump on this bandwagon soon.

Here’s how I’m introducing Diigo at my K-5 school…I set up a school-wide Diigo account. Only teachers have the ability to add bookmarks (they’re still learning about tagging), but students can access the bookmarks. It’s a great way for teachers to collaborate and save sites for students to use for research, extending learning, and at-home study. Students use the highlighting tool when they are researching. When I taught them how to use the highlighting, we had a fabulous lesson about finding main ideas and determining important information.

Diigo 3 offers some useful new tools. A Diigo sidebar allows quick and easy access to your bookmarks, annotations, and other readers of your URLs. The bookmarking dialogue box offers a suggested tag and the option to share it with friends, groups or Twitter. The send button enables you to email your bookmark, blog it, or send it to Twitter or Facebook. I still need to play with the slideshow feature.

Diigo has added new meaning to the word “social” in “social bookmarking.” While I find this personally appealing, I am concerned about how this may impact my students. At this point they are novice users and stay within our own bookmarks, but they are digital self-taught learners. Soon they will figure out how to explore the larger Diigo world, which contains lots more than elementary-appropriate content. It would be great to have an education version of Diigo.

Ryan Bretag posted a great entry about Diigo on his Metanoia blog. He includes a great chart that compares the features of Diigo with Del.ic.ious and Zoterro, and includes the Diigo promo video as well. He makes a very strong case for the use of Diigo!

It’s finally spring break! Yesterday was a gorgeous day, and I went hiking with my mom. Every so often, I need a strong dose of nature to keep myself balanced and connected. I believe that connections are what matter the most…our connections to ourselves, to others, to the Divine, and to the planet.
Ramsey Falls, Chau Ram Park
I was reflecting on the past week and some small successes I experienced in my efforts to facilitate changes in pedagogy in my school regarding teaching from a 21st Century perspective. After a 3rd grade teacher had a fantastic podcasting experience, another 3rd grade teacher wanted to give it a try. She asked me to get their habitat podcasts posted quickly because it would be a good way for students to study for the test. Right then she had a 21st Century “aha!” moment, and she said, “Hey, I don’t have to give them a test. I can use the rubric and grade them on their podcasts.” Authentic assessment for authentic work products…I love it! Making a connection between old expectations and new practices helped her realize that a new way of doing things would save her time and still generate the desired results.

A third grade student in another class made an awesome connection this week as well. When I use my iPod to record student podcasts, I explain to them that if they goof up, I can use Audacity to edit the recording and remove the boo-boos. That seems to relieve their nervousness about speaking into the microphone. After a recording session with me, a girl went back into her class and told her teacher that I could edit their recordings just like they edit their written work. Connections between old ways and new ways… change will happen! I hope that I’ll continue to be an agent for change in both thinking and learning…one teacher, one student at a time!

I’ve been off grid for about 2 weeks…never have time to write at school and had other obligations every night. Cool week at school though! I worked with 3rd grade students to create podcasts after they had researched Revolutionary War battles that took place in South Carolina. After completing the research, they worked in teams to write newscasts about each battle. This was a first podcasting experience for these students. They were very excited, and their teacher reported that she got much better effort with the writing because of their high motivation. In addition to all the Social Studies standards covered in this lesson, 14 state ELA standards were addressed through the course of the unit:

• Analyze informational texts to draw conclusions and make inferences.
• Create responses to informational texts through a variety of methods such as drawings, written works, and oral presentations.
• Carry out independent reading for extended periods of time to gain information.
• Use graphic features such as illustrations, graphs, charts, maps, diagrams, and graphic organizers as sources of information.
• The student will use word analysis and vocabulary strategies to read fluently.
• Use prewriting techniques such as creating lists, having discussions, using graphic organizers, and using literary models to organize written works.
• Use complete sentences (including compound sentences) in writing.
• The student will write for a variety of purposes and audiences.
• Create written descriptions about people, places, or events such as those important to South Carolina history.
• Use print sources such as books, magazines, charts, graphs, diagrams, dictionaries, encyclopedias, atlases, and thesauri and nonprint media to access information.
• Organize information by classifying or sequencing.
• Paraphrase research information accurately and meaningfully.
• Use the Internet as a source of information.
• Use vocabulary (including Standard American English) that is appropriate for the particular audience or purpose.

That’s the beauty of project-based learning! Multiple standards can be covered in relatively short chunks. Students spent 2 class periods researching and 2 class periods writing/revising/practicing for the podcasts. They also learned about social bookmarking as they used Diigo to locate bookmarked information. Check it out: Ms. Wayne’s Podcasts. Expressive voice was a positive, noticeable focus of student writing. To share my opinion of these student efforts, I will quote a student from the Battle of Camden newcast, “Yes, Sir-ee!”