Safe & Engaged Online LearningSafe & Engaged Online Learning

Collaborative Technology Collaborative Technology

for K-12 Educators, Parents and Studentsfor K-12 Educators, Parents and Students

by Jeff Cooperby Jeff Cooper

Sustained Online Support

Technology may:– Inspire students to become engaged

self-motivated learners

or– Lay dormant without sustained support

for educators, students and parents

Practice into Theory

This presentation offers links to sites useful for K-16 educators, parents and students.

Titles are hyperlinked to actual site. Although these sites were chosen for

pragmatic reasons, the theory behind their choice is to facilitate learning for both students and educators.

Safe Environments No one wants their child or student to be

online where it isn’t safe. Many districts ban any use of synchronous

chat because they fear predators, and end up filtering many safe sites as a precaution

IRC (Internet Relay Chat), Habbo Hotel (a purported kid friendly graphic site) and various instant messengers have few safeguards against “outsiders”

Without safe alternatives and guidance, students may find themselves making poor choices

Multi-User Virtual Environments

Tapped In: Educational Collaborative Community Both Real Time and Asynchronous Safe Student Environment Web Page Projection, File Sharing, Threaded

Discussion, Logged Text Chat, Many other tools

Moodle: Opensource Classroom

Free Online Portfolios, Webquests,

Conference Directory, Student Assessment System

Open Source Portfolio Initiative

Email Systems and Projects

For the same reason many sites are banned by districts, many disallow their students having or using email.

Email is the most useful and important collaborative tool on the Internet.

Email systems and project sites that provide safe access should be encouraged and not banned.

K-12 Email Collaborative Tool

182 Countries65,000 Classrooms2.2 million students

Start online friendships and projects, break down classroom walls

Related links: IECC, I*EARN

T-Mail T-Sail T-Time

T-Mail: Email Translation

T-Sail: Webpage Translation

T-Time: Web Page Creation Translation (coming soon)

International Listserv

Archived Projects Email-based

IECC Intercultural E-MailClassroom Connections

Projects Registry CyberFair News Lists GeoGame Make a Difference Online Expeditions Newsday

Global SchoolNet is an excellent collaborative learning site.

GHS facilitates opportunities for teachers to collaborate, communicate, and celebrate shared learning experiences.

This website is free to all educators.

Online Science and Math Projects

Multidisciplinary projects to join

Takingitglobal.org

International student run projects and organization

Online email listserv manager

Archives messages Public/private option Database manager Calendar and Chat Moderate or not Online File Storage

(20meg per group) Online File Sharing

Blogs

Allow easy webpage creation RSS links blogs together

Weblog or “blogger” Online journal, either

for individual or group work

Free and ad free

del.icio.us

Bloglines: Weblog Organizer

Useful Tools

A workman is only as good as his tools Professional development Public bookmarks for collaboration Easy to use webpage creation Online lesson plans Online quizzes Online rubrics

Social Studies Chatboard

Resources: Gov’t., Law, Geography, History, Social Studies,Maps, Lesson Plans

Grade Level (and other) Chatboards

Edutopia: Professional Development from George Lucas Educational Foundation

N.Y. Times Learning Network: Portal Site

Archived Lesson Plans Highly Articulated Includes Standards

Over 500 K-12 Constructivist Lessons

Interactive with MS Office Suite

Allows teachers flexibility in both content and approach to lessons and tech

Enactz: LessonsPedera: Staff Development

OpenCourse.org: Professional Collaborative

Online Bookmarks Accessible from any

online computer File sharing

capabilities

Related Sites: backflip clickmarks myhq

coopsbookmarks.htm

•URL Redirector

•Make long addresses short

•Free account creation allows you to save and create alias links (example: http://snipurl.com/cooperebay )

•Add toolbar to your computer

•Important tool for getting students, teachers etc. quickly to the right webpage

Online virtual tour or webquest organizer

Allows teachers to create up to 15 links for student browsing

Searchable database for K-12 tracks

Online rubric generator

Editable templates

Data analysis

Quizstar:

•Free Web Based Quizzes•Include Multiple Choice, True/False, and Short Answer Questions •Group Your Students by Class Name•Activate, deactivate and archive quizzes•Search Quiz Database for Ideas, Quizzes by Colleagues

Useful Links: Safe Online CommunitiesThe following sites have hundreds of links for kids and teens to

get online and play, learn, and communicate with their peers. Building Safe Online Communities for Kids Computers in Education: Online Communities for Kids Over 10,00 Reviewed Sites for Kids and Teens Kids and Teens Online Communities Online Communities Online Communities Google Search: Online Communities DirectoryKids.com: Online Communities

Conclusion

Technology best practice requires tools and support

Collaboration with peers and student-centered learning leads to more fulfilling education for teachers, students, and parents

Additional support is available from Jeff Cooper