Episode 2: The New Web
What is Web 2.0 and why is it important? This episode talks with Michael Cridland, a young Brisbane teacher who is looking at ways to incorporate podcasting and blogging into his classroom.
Some of the links mentioned in this episode are:
- Michael’s Class Blog
- Brett Moller’s Blog
- BOSE In Harmony with Education program
- Adrian Greig’s ICT Learning Inovation Centre
- Bloglines
- Judy O’Connell’s Blog
- The PodBiz Project
As always, any feedback on this episode is welcomed. Just leave us a comment below.
October 11th, 2006 at 12:33 am
Hi Chris,
Michael put me in touch with this episode. Great to see more Aussie educators doing some great stuff with podcasting. Some comments from the show…
1) Want to start by thanking Michael for the plug….
2) The whole “safety” thought is just driving me mad…. great teachers like Michael are getting told to stop being innovative due to the scare of being sued. I understand this is the world we live in but we need to start having open discussions with decision makers on ways that we can use this technology in learning.
3) I have recently done a presentation at a conference where I investigated the particular educational benefits of podcasting. It can be found on the Bose Education Programs News Centre. The podcast series where this is hosted can be subscribed to with this link http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=201193936
4) I would enjoy talking to you further about some of the plans we have in developing web2.0 tools in our learning programs.
October 11th, 2006 at 12:47 am
Me again…. I gave your site a plug on my personal blog http://blog.brettmoller.com/?p=169
October 11th, 2006 at 4:28 am
Hi Chris,
I have only just ’stumbled’ on this website, and your podcasts. What a great find! And your timing is perfect for me…as I am introducing a whole new group of people to the adventures of Web 2.0. So I will introduce them to your podcasts of course
I’ll blog your site soon too…just back from hols in Hongkong and lots of work to do, but will get to it - rest assured. 
Cheers
Judy
October 11th, 2006 at 5:03 am
Great job Chris … I haven’t heard myself speaking that much EVER and I now realise that I say umm WAY too much!
I was a little nervous, knowing that our conversation was being recorded with this podcast in mind, but am happy with the way it’s worked - it’s exactly what it is … and that’s a conversation between a couple of passionate educators. I hope others can get something from it.
Thanks for the opportunity to take part mate!
October 11th, 2006 at 5:14 am
It was a great job Michael and Chris. Let’s see more of this king of dialogue. You hit the mark so many times during your chat that you have created some “quotable quotes”. Cool!
October 11th, 2006 at 6:34 pm
Hi guys…. Me again…. Sorry to keep posting just enjoyed the conversation on here and the links to different folks blogs. I am trailing a blogging project at the moment in my role and I would appreciate a few people checking out this site and adding some feedback…. We desperatly need more blogging teachers!! http://newscentre.bose.com.au
Cheers,
Brett
October 12th, 2006 at 6:49 am
Hi All,
Just listened to the podcast tonight and I really have to pass on my sincere congrats to Chris, Michael and Anne from last week. You guys are fantastic! Chris, you have the levels really good now. It was much clearer than the orignal last week. What I really think comes through in this podcast is the range of experience and perspective that comes through between a very enthusiastic educator new to the game and prepared to take risks and another one who is now going down a path more for reasons of knowing what works with kids and what he should be doing in a classroom in 2006. Love the comments about kids access to technology in the Canadian schools very similar to Hong Kong Schools here. I am reminded of a quote, can’t remember by whom, that the place where our kids are exposed to the least technology in a day is in the classroom!
Keep up the good work guys!
Look forward to putting a HK perspective forward in about 3 months. Will Skype you about this one day soon when I have time Chris.
Cheers
Paul
October 12th, 2006 at 7:49 am
THanks for the positive feedback guys. I appreciate it. I actually relistened to it again myself last night and it’s amazing how much more I picked up from Michael the second time I heard it. (I actually heard it lots when I edited it, but your brain seems to work in a different mode during editing and you listen for different things than just the content)
Anyway, glad some of you are finding these things useful. I’m looking forward to doing lots more!
October 14th, 2006 at 7:12 am
I’ve now listened to the first 2 FABulous episodes of The Virtual Staffroom having subscribed to receive podcasts for the first time ever!
I have learned heaps, just by participating to this stage - finding where the podcasts “are”, figuring out how to listen and subscribe, getting a rough understanding of the various words, acronyms and phrases, then getting other teacher librarians from my school to listen to the episodes too.
The content of the episodes is also wonderful for me, very encouraging and enlightening. I’ll be waiting for the next exciting installment…
Joanna
October 30th, 2006 at 8:16 pm
I really enjoyed this podcast, especially the comments about Canadian education. I’ve been listening to podcasts during my commute to work in order to get a form of “virtual pd”. Keep up the good work!
November 1st, 2006 at 7:38 am
Hi Guys. Great podcast!
Web 2.0 is the way! I love RSS as a means for my own professional development. All of my topics of interest come to me rather than me trying to hunt it down (or remember to go check again if someone’s updated their site). GREAT!!
I was the one who had chats with Michael C regarding his school blog site. Being a state school system (ie Government system) we do have restrictions, like it or not! The concerns are mainly around the requirements for child safety (innapproriate language, images, etc). However, there is a big issue of copyright. I have seen many teachers and students ignore copyright laws. For example the risk of branding a podcast as a school one (teacher or student based) and then have illegal content sitting on a website is highly innapropriate. As Michael mentioned we are meant to publish within the web hosting service provided by the Department. If such content is spotted, complained about, being threatened to be sued over (which happens more than people realise), the department can quickluy remove the content. If outside of the managed interent servic then this cannot happen easily.
Additionally, children or their parents can (and will at times) withdraw their consent for the childs work to be published online. Again if held outside then it cannot be managed easily, particularly if the teacher has moved on, left the system etc.
To defend the department somewhat, web 2.0 technologies centrally managed are there or are coming soon. Chats, forums, blogs, wikis, CMS, LMS, RSS systems are either in place or are soon to be released. On a personal level Michael has the ability to run his current blogging solution within his own school site. Our Centre’s Podcast Lounge (not mine as you indicate above) is the same solution as Michael’s and it is being hosted in the EQ system. Best of both worlds!! However the problem here is that it does take some knowledge and understanding by the teacher to manage it. In most teachers cases that is too big a leap!
The challenge is to provide a managed system that enables our entire client base (1300 plus schools, 87000 staff, 500000 students) which essentially operates as one school would, access effective tools for sharing and collaboration. Particularly one that removes the harder management aspects allowing for people to get on with the learning. Not an easy challenge considering at times restrictive policy (pros and cons there) as well as bandwidth challenges across the entire state. Its about 1/5 the size of Canada in area. Big place…unique challenges.
Have to finish however with the following. Innovation in education by teachers trying new technologies and approaches to learning enables better understanding of of the benefits along with the pitfalls to avoid. Keep pushing it Michael!
Cheers!
Adrian
November 10th, 2006 at 7:57 pm
A quick comment to say keep up the good work, Chris. I have managed to listen to only the first two podcasts but love hearing other people’s experiences and ideas. There is plenty of food for thought.