Text Media for Idiots

• Online Publications

Online publications include many educational journals often with their current and          archived articles available via the Internet. These electronic publications typically offer a page of  related links that may prove useful.

 

Once found, electronic articles can be saved or printed for use. Many articles that can be viewed on the web have been converted from their original word-processed format into HTML or PDF formats.

 

• Online Professional Organizations

Most major professional organizations now have a web presence. Organization websites typically provides calendars of events, current and archived publications, online stores, and news about issues critical to the organization.

 

• Wikis

Originally created for fast collaboration and communication via the web among programmers, a wiki site is a website in which content is written collaboratively so that anyone with a computer and an internet access can edit and add to the information provided. A wiki results in a free and dynamic collection of information that anyone can alter.

 

Although vandalism (misinformation and deliberate deletions) may occur, the many individuals interested in maintaining wiki integrity typically correct such problems quickly. Vandals are banned from future contributions, thus weeding out disruptive elements. The potential vandalism and inadvertent misinformation that is the disadvantage of a wiki is balanced by the unique opportunity to offer and maintain very up-to-date topical information.

 

Ex. Wikipedia and its sister websites; Wikitionary, Wikibooks, Wikinews, and Wikiquote.

 

• Weblogs

Weblogs, or blogs, are virtual online spaces that support the posting of personal comments or ideas on the web. Blogs provide primarily one-ay communication, but with the inclusion of comments and links, blogs become powerful writing tools. Since weblogs allows the writer and the audience to engage in an online communication cycle via the web, blogs have unique educational applications.

 

In much the same way that our attention turns from one person to another in a classroom discussion as each expresses a view, blog readers can jump from one online blog to another to read comments in a posting thread. With these capabilities, educational blogging sites (edblogs) have evolved that have given online space to students from elementary age through college. Edblogs have been used successfully to give students an opportunity to publicly post daily journal entries; to comment on peer postings; to collaborate on a group project even if participants are a world apart; to search what other bloggers have said on a topic; and to connect to resources they have found. Educational blogs have provided a unique forum for the expression of ideas and for the thoughtful consideration of other viewpoints.

 

• RSS Feeds

Often found on blog sites, RSS (which stands for “Really Simple Syndication” or, alternatively, “Rich Site Summary”) feeds refer news or other topical updates that are continuously and automatically renewed via the web. RSS feeds provide a constant stream of headlines and links to help you stay abreast of topics that are of interest to the user or that are relevant to the blog site on which they are displayed.

RSS feeds and feed readers offer busy teachers and students an opportunity to preselect areas of interest and stay abreast in these areas without having to visit favorite websites to check for updates. Feeds can offer an easy way to receive headline-style updates that can be followed up when time allows. Feed reader lists can help students to filter and manage the sometimes overwhelming information available on the web.

 

• Governmental Sites

The US Department of Education and most government departments have comprehensive websites with abundant resources for educators.

 

• Education Portals

Educational resources found at portals may include teachers’ guides to the internet, lesson plans, Net events, educational games, information about schools and colleges, and a variety of instructional resources accessible by grade level and content area.

 

• Classroom Management Tools/ Academic Tools

Several sites offer software that creates online or paper tests and, if they are online, grades them and sends the results. These test generators can create tests by randomly selecting questions within their database of questions or allows their users to select the questions to be included. Many textbooks have added these types of resources to their faculty websites.

Other internet-based management tools include formal and informal diagnostic tests to assess learning preferences, tools that generate class rolls with seating charts and electronic gradebooks that stores and easily average student grades.

 

The above content was taken directly from the book Teaching and Learning with Technology, Fourth Edition 2011 by Judy Lever-Duffy and Jean Mcdonald. Pearson Education, Inc.

 

 

Advantages

 

• Up-to-date. Materials sourced from the internet can provide up-to-date information that is not contained in the textbook or other commercially available media.

• In-depth Treatment. Such materials can provide in-depth treatment of a topic. If classroom quantities are available, printed materials from the web can be read and discussed by students as textbook material would be.

• Variety of Uses. Individual students who want to explore a subject of interest can use the internet for self-study or presentation to the class.

• Student Manipulation. Students can assemble written information online as reports for individual or group projects.

• Individualized. Web structures allow users to navigate through information according to their interests.

The content above was taken directly from the book Instructional Media and Technologies for Learning, Fifth Edition 1996 by Robert Heinich, Michael Molenda and James Russel. Prentice-Hall, Inc.

 

Limitations

• Getting Lost. Users can get confused or “lost in cyberspace,” because of limited clues as to where they are in the material. (1)

• Lack of Structure. Students whose learning style requires more structured guidance may become frustrated. Students may also make poor decisions about how much information they need. (1)

• Acceptable Use. Like any technology, the internet can be abused. In a school setting, it is therefore necessary to identify and enforce the acceptable use of a school’s network and internet access. (2)

• Filtering. The internet includes websites and information that may not be appropriate for children. (2)

• Special Interest. Some sponsored materials that do not contain outright advertising oftentimes promote special interest in a less obvious way. Propagandistic or more subtly biased materials can thus enter the curriculum through the backdoor. (1)

 

(1)The content above was taken directly from the book Instructional Media and Technologies for Learning, Fifth Edition 1996 by Robert Heinich, Michael Molenda and James Russel. Prentice-Hall, Inc

(2)The above content was taken directly from the book Teaching and Learning with Technology, Fourth Edition 2011 by Judy Lever-Duffy and Jean Mcdonald. Pearson Education, Inc.