Technology+Book+Report

**//Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms //**

 * //by Will Richardson //**


 * //Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms //** provide practical tools for teachers to use with the students in the 21st Century classroom. Richardson ‘s book provides a clear explanations of how to implement Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, Flickr, RSS and social networks into the educational setting.  The book is divided into 10 chapters with each chapter focusing on the different 2.0 Web Tools that people use regular with emphasis on how to use these tools in the school. The author discusses many of these tools and provides teachers with ideas on how to use them safely in the classroom. Richardson states, “The world is changing around us”, but the school systems have been very slow to react to the change. (Richardson, 2010, p. 6) Our students are using digital tools in their everyday life and in many instances when they come to school educators require them to leave their hi-tech devices outside of the school.

In the first chapter Richardson describes the conversion from the World Wide Web to the Read/Write Web. “In 1993 Berners-Lee dream came true because the Internet went from a text – and numbers-based research tool for the few to a colorful, graphic world of information that is an essential communications and research network connecting people around the world.(Richardson, 2010, p. 1) This conversion has implications in our lives, but especially in education since it allows students to publish and edit easily as well as getting comments from people everywhere in the world.

The next two chapters focus on Weblogs. Weblogs are websites that are created and easily updated and published by an author or author. (Richardson, 2010) He starts with the pedagogy and practice of Weblogs. Richardson provides a list of possible uses of blogs in the classroom along with detailed instructions on how to start. His detailed instructions and visual figures are clear, concise and helpful. Richardson recommends helpful ideas for use in the classroom and provides a wealth of resources such as websites for further information and examples. Furthermore, Richardson discusses the challenges for implementing these Read/Write Web 2.0 tools in the classroom and the safety of the students.

The fourth chapter addresses the development of Wikis. Wikis were first created in 1995 by Ward Cunningham, who wanted an easy authoring tool for people to publish. (Richardson, 2010) “A wiki is a collaborative Web space where everyone can add content and anyone can edit content that has already been published.” (Richardson, 2010 ) The author discusses the challenge of Wikipedia and ways to use Wikis in school in this chapter. The rest of the book is discussed in the same manner as the previous three chapters. The next tool discussed is RSS feed. Really Simple Syndication (RSS) is the one tool that Richardson believe every educator should start using today and then teach their students how to use. The RSS feed will allow the reader to “read more content from more sources in less time.” (Richardson, 2010)

Next, the book addressed the social web Twitter and social bookmarking services such as Diigo.  It addressed the Social Networks: Facebook, Ning, Connections, and Communities, and presents information about how apply them in our personal and classroom. Richardson also includes practical examples of how different schools have applied these tools.

In the last chapter Richardson describes the ten “Big Shifts” in how best to teach students, shifts similar to open content, 24/7 learning, the social, collaborative construction of meaningful knowledge, teaching with conversation, and the Web as a portfolio. He makes no bones about the challenges these shifts present. “Finally, teachers who use the tools of the Read/Write Web need to be //change agents. // The ideas will not be easily embraced or readily supported at first because of the transparency they create.” (Richardson, 2009, p. 155). In conclusion, Richardson states the Web is a Read/Reflect/Write/Participate Web that continues to change and improve students’ learning.