Will Richardson, author of Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, has made it his job to keep track of new web technologies. He examines both their usefulness and relevance when applied to educational settings. Richardson frequently uses the term ‘Read/Write’ web a term that can be traced back to Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web. The ‘Read/Write’ web describes Berners-Lee’s vision of a virtual place where information, and knowledge can be exchanged by all.
Richardson, a former school teacher, encourages educators to experiment with these new technologies before introducing them to their students. Only by understanding ‘how these technologies can facilitate global connections and conversations’ could Richardson himself integrate these tools into his own educational practice. He believes that it is very important that educators make use of these new technologies, as the students of today’s schools and universities face futures where technology and the Internet will play a central role. Students not only need to be computer literate, they also need to be ‘network literate’.
Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms is recommended to OLLI instructors and students as the book is highly accessible and informative while explaining these new technologies in very clear language. After all, if we plan to stay engaged in the world around us we all need to be ‘network literate’! Richardson devotes two chapters to an explanation, and exploration, of blogging within education. He also addresses the use of Wikis, RSS feeds, the social web, flickr and podcasting. This is an excellent book for a class that is being introduced to blogging, it balances between being a ‘how to’ book whilst also generating many thoughtful insights into the implications of technologies upon students, classes and the world beyond the classroom.
[...] Via Meta-OLLI Blog [...]
[...] Via Meta-OLLI Blog [...]