Try it Mikey You Might Like It

Do you remember Mikey?

One of my biggest pet peeves is the misuse or under utilization of technology in the classroom how can such powerful tools for creating knowledge and aiding communication be ignored by so many educators?  How do teachers dig in and refuse to utilize computers in the classroom for anything more than a word processor or electronic flashcards?  There are sooooo many exciting and new Web 2.0 tools out there and educators are behaving like children refusing to try new cereal.

I found it ironic that last week in the height of looming deadlines for both school and work along with a particular hectic schedule on the home front I was asked in my Technology in Education class to utilize a VoiceThread for a class discussion tread.  The problem was this was a new communication tool that I had no previous exposure to and a very limited time to learn.  My initial gut response was not positive I resisted even opening the site let alone posting I would have given anything to avoid using something new at that point.  I get it ...I understand we have limited time but sometimes if you try it you may like it just like Mikey.

While I do find listening to posts more time consuming than downloading or copying a text thread for later review I found posting to be less labor intensive as I could choose to speak, video or type my responses into the thread without the excessive worrying about grammar and spelling errors.  I pushed my internal demons aside and gave it a try and I have to say like Mikey I liked it.

With VoiceThread you are able to create more of a "living" online collaborative space. VoiceThread is a totally web-based application that allows you to place collections of media like images, videos, documents, and presentations at the center of an asynchronous conversation. A VoiceThread allows people to have conversations and to make comments using any mix of text, a microphone, a web cam, a telephone, or uploaded audio file. VoiceThread runs inside your web browser, so there is no software to download, install, or update.

Here are some additional resources for ideas on using VoiceThread in the classroom: 

VoiceThread 4 Education - comprehensive collection of VoiceThread examples from students and teachers of all ages and groups. The purpose of this wiki is to gather examples of how educators are using Voicethread in their classrooms (or for professional development) and to share those examples.

7 Things You Should Know About VoiceTread - Educase


Digitally Speaking -  Using VoiceThread for Digital Conversations
Beginning with email and instant messages and stretching to texting and synchronous video web conferencing, digital dialogue has gradually become a common element of everyday life for today's students - another opportunity to "gather."

What are some ways you could see VoiceTread being used in the classroom? 

To Assign or Not to Assign- Homework is the question.

The Homework Debate

Image by Emma Winsor Wood

Last week at work we got into a debate on whether or not homework was an effective means for extending learning for elementary school children.  Later that same evening during my Emerging Instructional Technology class we were sitting in on the #edchat and the subject for the evening was ... you guessed it HOMEWORK.  While sitting in on the chat I noticed that many of the tweets I found insightful were posted by Jerry Blumengarten also known on twitter as @cybraryman1.


The convergence of these two discussions made me curious about the research regarding the subject of assigning homework to elementary students.  I began my research by going to Jerry Blumengarten's website Cybrary Man's Educational Web Sites where I found a wealth of information regarding the homework debate.

Prior to my research I was of the opinion that often times homework is unnecessary and over used but it did have merits on occasion. As a parent I have made myself available to my children to support their homework needs but have many times felt resentful of teachers infringement on our time as a family with busy work.

I found a fair amount of information on making homework assignments more relevant and meaningful for students one of which was Five Hallmarks of Good Homework by Cathy Vatterott

Homework shouldn't be about rote learning. The best kind deepens student understanding and builds essential skills:

1. Clear academic purpose
2. Task efficiently demonstrates student learning
3. Promotes ownership by offering choices and is personally relevant
4. Instills a sense of competence - can be fully completed without help
5. Aesthetically pleasing.

The majority of the information and research statistics however argued against the use of homework as a meaningful contribution to learning with elementary school children. 

The Truth About Homework: Needless Assignments Persist Because of Widespread Misconceptions About Learning by Alfie Kohn. 

"decades of investigation have failed to turn up any evidence that homework is beneficial for students in elementary school.  Even if you regard standardized test results as a useful measure, homework (some versus none, or more versus less) isn’t even correlated with higher scores at these ages.  The only effect that does show up is more negative attitudes on the part of students who get more assignments."

I found additional insight I agreed with on John T Spencer's blog posting Anti-Homework where he pointed out that those who have have already mastered skills why is it necessary to practice for hours and for those that have not mastered the skill what happens if they practice the skill incorrectly? If the argument is we need to provide students with better activities than watching tv each night then what about those students who are active in church, sports, clubs or family are those not also learning opportunities that foster whole students. As far as extending learning into the home Spencer points out that many students who used to read books, draw or play games with parents now slog through worksheets that are tragically causing them to their natural love of learning.

Another blog I found very interesting is for the love of learninghttp://www.joebower.org/p/abolishing-homework.html by Joe Bower.  He has posted a multitude of blog posting discussing the misuse of homework.

"Homework is not something to assign, rather it is something to inspire. Where there's interest, achievement follows. Traditional homework has exactly the opposite effect on children's love for learning. In fact, I can think of no better sabateur of passion for learning than homework."Joe Bower

In this edition of “Assignment America” 5^th grade student, Ben Berrafato eloquently compares homework assignments to slavery.

The real question: Does homework enhance a child's lifelong desire to learn?