I can’t believe I am blogging so soon after this exhauting Web 2.0 course just ended but I’m excited to be moving forward so soon.  I still can’t think of a new catchy name for my blog but I’ll keep thinking about that over the welcomed holidays soon to be upon us. 

Two things happened today at my school that just goes to show that all my hard work in this course is already beginning to pay off.  First, I was invited to be one of four panelists on a provincial library forum (Manitoba School Library Association) focusing on using Web 2.0 tools in the classroom.  Although I’m far from being an expert in the field and the thought terrifies me having to speak in front of so many knowledgeable teacher-librarians, I do feel that after this course and what’s been happening at my school with Web 2.0 that I will have something to offer.  A few short months ago I would have scoffed at this idea but things are really beginning to solidify in my brain about just how important Web 2.0 tools are for today’s educators and students so I’m happy to be asked to share my knowledge with others.  After all, that’s what Web 2.0 is all about  – building a community of learners.

This leads me to the second significant event that happened to me today at school.  One of the teachers on my staff who is relatively new to using technology in schools talked about how she’s beginning to understand that students today are different from those in the past.  This occurred within the context of  teachers discussing that the “clientele” of our school has changed significantly in the past 10 years.  Some see this change as students becoming more difficult to teach for a whole variety of reasons but it was the first time I’ve heard one of our teachers articulate that this “change” could be attributed to students having grown up in the digital age and thus they are “bored” with traditional teaching methods. 

What a breath of fresh air!  Yes, many of our students, often the toughest ones to teach, are disengaged because they are frustrated with the way education is being delivered.  I know of one lad who is difficult to work with at the best of times not having any trouble focusing on the digital story he was creating for Language Arts.  Give that same child instructions to write a short story in a more traditional sense and he’s not interested in the least bit and therefore chooses to misbehave.

I’d love to hear from any other teachers whether they’re seeing a change in attitude in other teachers in the value of infusing Web 2.0 tools in the classroom.  I think it’s time to start celebrating this shift in attitude and begin embracing  our students’ needs to be taught in a different way.