Learning and Teaching with Web 2.0 Tools

Last year I took a course from the University of West Georgia on Advanced Technologies for Teaching and Learning. The focus of the course was on learning to use Web 2.0 technologies (blogs, wikis, rss, video, audio)for integration into the higher education classroom. Most members of the course were instructional designers like myself who support faculty at their respective institutions. This year I have decided to reactivate my K-6 teaching certificate and am taking 3 courses toward that end. One of the courses is designed to teach elementary, middle and high school teachers to integrate these same tools into their classrooms. In fact I am posting this as a part of an assignment for my Web 2.0 course to "create a blog".

Without intending to, I immediately began to compare what I've been learning about using these tools in K-12 with using them in higher ed. While the mechanics for using these tools are the same, the pedagogy is quite different. In the K-12 environment, teachers are very focused on standards and making sure students meet those standards during the prescribed period of time they are in a grade. Every course goal, objective, and activity must be designed to help students develop mastery of a particular standard. In this environment, technology tools must be mapped to tasks and skills development in a very conscious and deliberate way, forcing teachers to look at outcomes, and identify the tools that will help students accomplish them. Technology tools are chosen based on their ability to help students achieve very specific outcomes.

In higher ed, we are not bound by standards per se. Departmental goals are identified for each discipline, but these goals are not tied to strict outcomes. Because outcomes are somewhat vague, I don't think many faculty in higher ed are as likely to tie technology tools to tasks or readily recognize how technology can help students learn, comprehend, problem solve, and think critically. Perhaps its because we expect students to have already mastered these skills. In the few short weeks I've been in these courses, I've seen hundreds and hundreds of examples of how K-12 teachers have and are using technology to help students develop mastery. I've seen unique ways in which basic programs like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, as well as more advanced technologies like blogs, podcasts, audio, and video, are being used in very unique ways in K-12 classrooms. I'd love to see statistics on the achievement rates of students in schools where these tools are being used regularly.

I'm looking forward to continuing with these courses and making more observations about technology integration in K-12 and higher ed classrooms.