Brad's Cyber High School Blog

Here are a few links to important educational blogs:

Will Richardson, author of Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms: http://www.weblogg-ed.com/

Alan November's educational technology blog: www.novemberlearning.com/blogs/alannovember/

Marco Torres'  on digital media as educational tool: www.speedofcreativity.org/2006/05/03/podcast56-marco-torres-on-engaging-students-through-digital-media

Shameless self-promotion::
My local history project, nature journal and environmental autobiography: http://blogs.region4.nycenet.edu/communities/lichs/default.aspx

Student Press Law Center's article Schools question effectiveness, fairness of federal Internet act
Opponents say filtering software does poor job of blocking sites
http://www.splc.org/newsflash_archives.asp?id=472&year=2002

This year I'm happy to be the Technology Coordinator of the Bushwick Campus. The teachers at the four schools that occupy the building, The Bushwick School for Social Justice, the New York Harbor School, The Academy of Urban Planning and The Academy For Environmental Leadership, have already begun to integrate technology into their classes

I'd like to open up a discussion here where we can share our ideas about enhancing our instruction through technology. Also, if teachers have questions, concerns and requests, click on Comments and write them here.

Teacher and class blogs are very useful tools for several reasons. Teachers can post not only assignments and homework, but also discussion questions. Students can respond by posting comments to the teacher's post. There are at least two pedagogical advantages to this type of discussion. One is that students are writing, not just speaking. The second is that everyone can participate.

Too often, class discussions are dominated by a handful of students who do all the talking while others never speak up at all. Using a blog discussion forum enables every student to contribute. Furthermore, they can respond to each other, which leads to many possibilities for constructive peer criticism.

Blogs are quick and easy. Comment moderation requires little time on your part, and is a 100% effective way of keeping inappropriate comments off your blog.

Furthermore, you can easily add links to many useful resources specific to your subject. You can add files, pictures, and media to your blogs.

Contact me by commenting here or by email at bvelcoff@nycboe.net if you want to create a teacher and/or class blog.

The Cyber English Project was conceived to provide a forum for sharing, learning, collaborating and communicating within the entire educational community, including students, parents, teachers, administrators and the public. Teachers create webpages that include curriculum, standards and rubrics, lessons, materials, homework and other course-related resources. Students create digital portfolios, or Webfolios, with links to each of their classes. They post their classwork and homework online. This provides our students with an authentic audience for presenting their scholarly work, helps them develop their information literacy skills, and prepares them to be effective global communicators and collaborators, skills that are required for this changing world. Our goal is to make them self-directed learners.

 

Students learn html for several important reasons, primarily literacy. They must refer to html style sheets, then apply what they read to the development of their webpages. Additionally, writing html requires that students carefully scrutinize their work. The necessary proofreading becomes habitual and a natural part of their academic writing process.

Students are more engaged. Attendance and test scores improve demonstrably. Students take owndership of their webpages, using them as means of self-expression and empowerment.

 

Feel free to check out my Cyber English curriculum here.