Social Networking:Connecting You,Your Students,

The World

Tom Welch

tom@twelchconsulting.com

www.twelchconsulting.com

FLTA

December 12, 2008

Everything* is available on the FLTA ningsite:

www.fltanetwork.ning.comOr my website:www.twelchconsulting.com

* Some things I show you today will be spontaneous responses to your questions. (Those will not be on the website.)

DISCLAIMERS

No axe to grind

No product to push

No approach to endorse

Nobody’s job to protect

I’m very ignorant when it comes to technology . . .

But I’m a learner!

Just a few “wild” beliefs:

1. Learning to communicate in another language and understanding other cultures are valuable for every single child.

2. You can help make that possible.3. You should be leaders in seeing that it

happens.

Let’s lay some ground rules . . .

1. Ignorance is different from stupidity.

2. Ignorance is curable

3. We’re all ignorant when it comes to some aspect of technology

Now you know a little about me, so tell me a little about you!

S.U.S.DMental and Physical

SUSD – You have a computer with Internet Access at your host site.

SUSD– You are on Facebook.

SUSD – You brought a laptop with you.

SUSD – You have checked your email since you got to DC.

SUSD – You have done “school work” since you have been here (graded papers, prepared a lesson plan, etc.)

Tom’s Bravery Test

Who will be willing to start us out by introducing themselves as ignorant?

SUSD – You consider yourself to be “brave”

Introductions

My name is _____ from _____

I’ve heard of ____ but I . . .

[don’t really know much about it.]

[don’t know how to actually “do” it.]

Who can describe

A ning site and give an example?

www.fltanetwork.com is set up so that your days here are not JUST a few short days.

They should be part of a longer, on-going connection of you to each other, your students to each other, and you and your students to the world.

In fact . . .

SUSD if you have NOT been on the FLTAning site.

A key to your success today is how much initiative you take.

PLEASE do not sit with feet flat on the floor and wait for me to show you.

Listen, learn, experiment, try, dabble, write, gasp, whisper, laugh, frown, sigh, wish, refl

I’m hoping we won’t get through everything (fat chance with over 100 slides).

You can have control over what I don’t get to (and frankly even what I cover) by going to the www.FLTAnetwork.ning.com

website.

What’s the room rate here tonight?

What’s the room rate in 5 weeks?

Why?

What’s that have to do with how you work?

You were here during an incredibly historic period!

It was the culmination of something unbelievable!

Obama’s team did not run a better campaign that John McCain!

Obama’s team ran a DIFFERENT campaign than anyone had ever run before!

How did “O” do it?

NOT by fine tuning the “well-oiled” political machine.

He did it by understanding and using the power of social networking!

So think about your current “campaign” as an FLTA.

Are you trying to improve?

Many of your peers and professors will try to tell you how to do a better job of doing what they are doing or experiencing . . .

Don’t listen to them!

Here’s what I’m afraid of . . .

“Nightmare on Elm Street”

This was someone’s answer to “How could we use technology to help kids in our classroom?”

The problem is it was the wrong question!

I don’t want YOU to “use technology better” to help the kids in any classroom!

I want YOU to figure out how your kids can use technology to be better language learners and users.

Let me explain another way

I don’t want you to improve as an FLTA!

I want every learner you come in contact with to benefit wildly because you all were here!

HOW?

Well guess what . . . ?

I’m not going to tell you!

You (and your students) are going to figure it out . . .

Together!

Obama’s campaign team did NOT ask “How do we use the political machine better than Mc’Cain’s team?”

They asked . . .

“How can we use a 2.0 environment to propel Obama into the presidency?”

Even though I may not tell you HOW to do it,

I can tell you HOW NOT to do it!

DON’T use technology or Web 2.0 to do a better job of what you are doing!

Let’s start with a basic example

Web 1.0 – There’s a website where you can look at the FLTA program.

You can see the titles of the breakout sessions.

e-mail updates on a list-serve keep you up to date on the latest information.

SO . . .?

How can YOU use 2.0 technology to connect yourselves, your students and the world?

Web 2.0

You introduce yourselves,

Talk about your goals for these days

“Make friends”

Post photos

You take control and add value to the sessions

Don’t listen to conference speakers and “lead better”, or use conference info about hip-hop and present that to others, or follow the tips to manage your time better, or to speak better, or . . .

I want you to listen carefully to all of these sessions . . .

And then . . .

I want you to figure out together how to take them to the next level!

What if you made a list of 5 things that you are doing as an FLTA

And then used the FLTA ning to take it to another level?

Example:

Think about foods or dishes that you like to eat from your country.

What are typical ways that you present that?

How could you use social networking and 2.0 to do that?

What if . . .

You put together an FLTA cookbook on the ning . . .

What could you do with that?

What are the latest coolest apps you know of that could help learning?

Why don’t you share those with each other????

Maybe you could list both sites and apps

Oh, by the way . . .

There are some GREAT Web 1.0 sites

What are some of your favorite 1.0 websites for language teaching?

Freewebs.com

What about GoogleEarth?

What are 10 ways that GoogleEarth can be used in the world languages classroom?

And speaking of Google . . .

Yes, of course I know . . .

Not every student has a laptop or even access to the net . . .

Why let the inadequacies of the present limit your thoughts about tomorrow?

What do you know about the XO?

(Hint: Google “OLPC”)

What’s ahead?

For the XO2

For other laptops?

What are the implications?

What are the implications for YOUR practice as an FLTA and for your roles after this?

Do you know about the Kindle?

What about the Digital cams?

Could you get value for your students if all the FLTA’s had students contribute videos to the FLTA ning??

What about Web 2.0?

Are you there yet?

So what about wikis in the world language classroom?

And of course, your students don’t need big laptops . . .

Image source: http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=iPhone

What apps do you have on your phone?

By the way . . .

What’s your district’s cell phone policy?

Policy Detail The School District of Kettle Moraine prohibits a pupil from using or possessing a cell phone or other electronic paging or 2-way communication device during instructional time while on premises owned or rented by or under the control of a public school. The rules may allow for the use or possession of such a device by a pupil if the principal determines that the device is used or possessed for a medical, school, educational, vocational or other legitimate use.

Who has had students use cell phones for class this year?

What did you have them do?

What about texting?

Have you thought about sharing useful sites, apps, hints, with each other??

Let me share another one with you.

See the little “coffee stain” at the top of the screen; that’s JING

www.jing.com

For capturing your desktop on a video

One of the BEST sites:

www.itv.com

Live streaming video

from countries around the world.

Let’s move to Web 2.0

The opportunities here have just about exploded!

One of my favorites is:

http://www.go2web20.net/

http://edu20.org/tour

You can even download the TeacherTube toolbar

So what if sites like YouTube or TeacherTube are blocked?

What’s your focus as an FLTA?

Great teaching?

Great learning on the part of eachindividual you come in contact with?

What concrete ways can you work on the transition?

Go to FLTAnetwork.ning.com and figure it out!