Module 9

Scootle has something for everyone. It is a fun, user friendly and informative tool for use in the classroom. The information is broken down into parts that make it easy to understand and follow.
There was a lot of reading and watching video links in this module, the majority of it was informative and showed how the needs of students are changing and as someone placed in the position of helping them learn and absorb this information I felt the more I learn and absorb the better (how much can one person absorb??).
Friend or Foe was informative and, listening to the comments of the experts it outlined the advantages and also the warnings of social networking sites. The video link School Matters pointed out that in order to go forward with students working with social networking sites there is a need to be able to trace back easily to be aware that the user is who they say they are and the content is appropriate. The abuse of these sites sometimes can have serious consequences.
Second Life really allows the imagination to flow. After spending a short time checking it out I can see the benefit of it for Drama, English and History students, in particular special needs students who could lose themselves in Ancient Rome, or examining the ceiling in the Sistine Chapel or being a part of a Shakespearean play. The experience would be like walking in someone else's shoes and they will also be stimulated by the 3D experience.
Am not a fan of Facebook or Twitter, especially Twitter as I don't think that my thoughts and actions are interesting enough for anyone else to want to read about. With the limited number of characters which can only be used on Twitter, could Google Docs be used instead in the classroom?.
Social Networking has been happening since the dawn of time, just in a more basic form. Now it is faster, easier and more accessible to a wider population than ever before, it has gone from local to global. As the Wikipedia definition of Social Networking says; Social Networking sites allows users to share ideas, activities, events and interests within their individual network.