Module Ten;
Today we looked at Wikki and Ning. Not having used either before it was good to see what these actually are. With the limited knowledge I have I would suggest that Wikki has more educational benefit for primary students.

I really liked the Wikki rules...simple, straightforward and clear. I also find that it is very simple for students to click on edit, so they can write, and it is a document ready to use. They then click save and it is ready to make further changes in the future. It brings together a variety of online tools in one place eg you can embed videos.

Ning appears to work in a similar way to Facebook i.e. a way of organising social networks together. It could be used more safely than Facebook with students by setting up a certain group of users with certain features and only able to do certain things, but I would be rather careful with it.

Module Nine:


Scootle is a search engine for teachers. It is based on Australian and New Zealand curriculum areas. Teachers can locate interactive learning tasks for students and share them with other teachers. They can also search for resources and organise for students to log in to access them then work on them together or individually. You can also copy and paste an address to create a hyperlink directly connected with the teaching program.



Teachers should not be communicating with students via Facebook or Myspace accounts. Facebook is a social networking device...a way of connecting with friends and friends of friends. It is important to make sure the account is private and the settings are secure.



Twitter is also a form of social networking. It is for personal use and should be set up from home to ensure students do not have access to it.



I am struggling with how these experiences are labelled 'social networking' sites when they actually disable social and personal interaction with limited direct, real contact with others. I recognise that this is the world in which our students live however I wonder about the extent to which these experiences are going to deskill our students in their capacity to deal with the real world and interact personally with others in a sensitive and human way.



Perhaps this is our 21st century challenge, particularly as Catholic educators?!?

Module Eight:
RSS, which stands for 'rich sites summary', is a good way to keep track of news and blogs. News stories that would be useful to keep students up to date with information regarding what is happening in the world is readily available and examples to use with students of expositions and factual recounts can now be located without searching for them. Because google reader allows you to subscribe to new sites it is easy to access new sites as well as share them. It also is very time efficient and negates the need to check your favourite sites on a regular basis...instead the updates will come to you! I LIKE IT. The orange wireless button or the addition sign also allows you to subscribe easily.

Module Seven:

Module Six:

This is the most difficult module so far. Having worked through it now I can see that students who do not like to write very much text would be motivated to use Bubbl.us as the 'bubble' begins quite small and expands as they add they text...not as intimidating as a blank piece of paper for a reluctant writer. It would also have appeal as a real audience can be generated in allowing parents, other teachers and students to have access to it.

Module Five:
Today I learned the difference between Podcast and Vodcast. Podcasts (personal on demand) do not rely on traditional media and no satellites are needed. The three main stages in preparing them are: recording, publishing and publicising. Vodcast is a form of podcast except the difference is that video, voices and images are included, hence the V for video.

The photostory three program is free and can be used K-12 for digital storytelling. The process for developing a photostory is clearly explained and I can see great opportunities for students of all ages to use this, particularly in literacy. It would be a very attractive opportunity for students who learn so very differently these days and can utilise technology for a broad range of purposes.

Module Four:
Flickr is an online photo management application where you can store, share and edit photos.
I like the way you can do an advanced search on flickr instead of going to google images all the time. With regard to copyright it is important to use common sense and acknowledge the source. Using free for education websites is also a good idea as they are copyright free.