Teachers Attending TCEA2008 bring WEB 2.0 to Fort Stockton ISD

It all really began last spring when I set up my first blog and began to see the immense possibilities web 2.0 tools could give Fort Stockton ISD teachers.  What is WEB 2.0?  This was the big question asked as 13 FSISD teachers drove to Austin to attend the huge Texas Computer Educators Association conference in Austin, Texas this past week.  Well, that "big" question was answered over the course of the week as teachers attended different workshops and seminars on WEB 2.0 applications and how they could be used in the classroom. Tim O'Reilly explains in his article, What is Web 2.0?  Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software,  http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html 

It was so awesome to see our teachers so fired up and excited.  I predict web 2.0 tools will be a large component of their next set of lesson plans, what do you bet?  Then I predict it will spread throughout the district.

It is the era when people have come to realize that it's not the software that enables the web that matters so much as the services that are delivered over the web. Rich Internet Applications, or RIA, bring the Internet "alive" and allows collaboration between teacher and students and students and students.  In a nutshell, web 2.0 applications are interactive apps.  Just think about this for a second.  Applications that allow your students to interact with you online.... Hey.... Wouldn't it be cool if you could post a topic on a blog and have the students respond to it?  Or, post a research topic on a Wiki and have students collaborate online and add to that Wiki. Hmmmm....  Teaching kids in a medium they know and love and excel!  Imagine bringing this richness to your classroom for greater learning experiences. Instead of writing papers and journals, have students post a blog, and more Wow!  How cool is this?

Look for WEB 2.0 apps being utilized in classrooms by Julien and Mary at the High School, Teresa, Michelle, JaneE, Celya, and Misti at the Middle School, Omar and Gail at Intermediate, and Collette at Alamo. Also look for online collaboration from Debbie at the Curriculum Department, and Brenda and myself at Technology! 

Coming Soon:  Trainings will be offered to anyone wanting to take advantage of these free online services.  These trainings will offer integration ideas for you and your students.  It's easy and quick!