This week in class we looked at a number of resources. The first resource we examined was Noodle Tools. I have to admit...I was skeptical at first glance but after checking out the site for some time, I've decided that it is a pretty cool site. I'll be sure to share it with other teachers in my school system; I think it will be especially helpful to the middle school teachers/students to help narrow down search results so students don't feel so "lost" when searching the Internet. It might just give them the right amount of guidance to be able to find what they need & in an efficient/effective manner.
Another item we explored for this week was Google Alerts. Like I mentioned in class last week, I've used Google Alerts in the past to gather resources for an entrepreneurship website I used to do work for. It was very helpful to be able to set up the alerts for key words or phrases & let Google do the work in finding the information and delivering it to my email inbox. However, I've migrated away from using Google Alerts because I've become much more active on Twitter. I can just as easily find resources on Twitter and also have a person to then ask questions if I need additional information about something he/she posted about a resource. Besides using Twitter to gather resources, I also rely on my Delicious & Diigo accounts to find me new resources. I've joined a few groups in Diigo and have my account set up to email me any new additions to the group's resources on a daily basis which is essentially like creating a Google alert but with a different site/application.
Finally, the "To Wikipedia or Not To Wikipedia" debate is a good one. I look forward to reading the rest of the responses that are yet to be posted on this topic. It seems like most of the classmates in the MEIT cohort are in agreement that Wikipedia is a good place to start but not a source that should be counted on for correct information/included in any quotes/citations/bibliographies. I think checking out Wikipedia as a springboard for gathering key concepts or areas to research is a good way to use Wikipedia. Once an individual has a few ideas about a topic, he/she can then use other sources to actually find the correct information that was originally discovered on Wikipedia.
One more final thought before I sign off for the night....Last week we were able to create a website evaluation worksheet that we'll be able to use with our students. I felt so good about that assignment while I was completing it - knowing that I'll be able to use the activity with my students/use the activity again in the future besides just creating it to get it done & fulfill the assignment for class. I think wherever activities like that can be put into the courses in the MEIT program would be a great addition to what we are already doing/learning. As we approach the start of school very quickly, I think it will be really neat to hear how people are using the things we are learning about in their classrooms. I think sharing how one is using a resource with others often times creates those "ah ha" moments and connections are then made about how each individual might adapt what was given as an example to fit his/her needs/classroom. I look forward to those types of conversations as the school year approaches.
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