After reading the chapters in Web Literacy for Educators, I realized there was a lot more about technology and the internet that I had not previously known. While it still is a bit overwhelming, I believe I am truly learning a vast amount of information which will prove to be helpful in my future endeavors teaching high school economics. I myself found it very helpful to know how to actually validate a website. I had no idea that a tilde before the name meant that the site was a personal posting, even though it may have come from an educational website. It blew my mind, I was under the impression that if information came from a .edu site, that it was valid information. While I would not have truly thought that the concentration camps were used to help fight typhus, that information, if found by younger and more impressionable students would be completely detrimental. More interesting information that I learned through the reading was that .org sites could be purchased by companies. I was under the impression that these sites were purchased by reputable companies, but soon learned that companies with alternative motives could buy a .org site as well. I think these chapters were extremely helpful in discerning reputable and truthful sites from sites that could be filled with misinformation.
An interesting wiki site that I found was http://welkerswikinomics.wetpaint.com/. Mr. Welker uses this site, titled Welker's Wikinomics, mostly as a study guide for AP and IB Economics. His students are required to contribute to the site. The site was the winner of the 2007 EduBlog Awards for "Best Educational Wiki" for students and teachers of Economics. This site is a great tool for the teacher and his students to communicate through their discussions on different subjects in Economics. There is a General Discussion forum where anyone can post discussions about Economics, and one specifically for his students to discuss the class. This wiki is filled with a myriad of information on topics in Microeconomics to Macroeconomics to International Economics. The site is a great one for any Economics teacher to get information from, or to direct their students to interact and obtain information from.
Mr. Welker also has a blog for his students that I fell in love with, http://welkerswikinomics.com/blog/. He posts and comments on different Economics articles, many from The Economist, a great source of information in the subject to keep students updated on the current events of our country and the world. He posts excerpts from the articles, and chimes in his comments as well. Then, the part I love, Mr. Welker posts questions, where the students comment on and discuss. Furthermore, the students also have their own blogs, where they do a "by students, for students" approach to learning. The students in his class post and comment on different subjects for their class, and the students have the chance to comment on their peers work. This is a great tool for teachers to use. When students know that their work is going to be published and read by all, it makes them want to put forth their best efforts in writing their assignments. I believe Mr. Welker is a great teacher, and has completely found a way to integrate this new technology into his classroom. And you know what? It seems to work!
I found it increasingly more difficult to find a good podcast in the Economics field. I found a great deal in college level classes, but finding a podcast for high school was near impossible. I was not able to find a site produced by students, but I was able to find a podcast by Jonathan Evans, a teacher of IB Economics, www.podomatic.com/profile/jonathanevans. He broke his podcasts into short sections, most about 5-7 minutes long. They were on specific topics in Economics, like The Phillips curve, or reasons for trade. This teacher had a bunch of different podcasts available for his students to listen to. He also posted pictures of graphs on his website. The problem I feel like I would find with Economics, is that graphs are integral to learning the subject. It is not just theories, the graphs help to explain the subject. I feel like video podcasts would be more helpful for students to learn more. This might be a good tool for students to post their ideas about Economics via podcast, but to instruct students, perhaps it should integrate video in as well.
I found these technological tools to be very useful for teachers to instruct their students, and for students to in turn voice their opinions. They are able to talk about the subject and discuss it, in turn truly allowing them to grasp the ideas and concepts in Economics. I feel that Blogs and Wikis are more helpful in the Economics field, because graphs are such a major aspect of the subject. Podcasts could be a useful tool, but they would have to be paired with supplemental handouts. Podcasts could, however, be a good way for students to get excited about the subject and to voice their opinion about the economy. I am excited to be able to integrate these tools in my classroom!
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