Class 8 Reading Responses

When the Book? When the Net?

Although this commentary makes a few notable remarks about the filtering benefits of books over the Internet, it is worth mentioning that thirteen years ago when this was written, the web was a much more immature creature.
With the advent of Web 2.0 tools, the information available to the amateur researcher is much greater than when this article was written. However, I do agree that searches for older data such as the Cuban Missile Crisis example frequently lead to hard copy publications and more distilled, vetted information. I tell my students that info from books carry more credibility simply because that information is usually checked carefully before someone is willing to pay money to publish it. Yet, as more and more people feel compelled to correct collaborative websites, the reliability of the data on those sites is also improving.

Critical Issue:
Using Technology to Enhance Literacy Instruction

As a writing teacher, I have seen the benefits of using word processing, multimedia, and electronic communication with my students. For one research assignment, I required students to share their paper with me through GoogleDocs instead of submitting a hard copy. I found that I was able to give more timely feedback electronically than I could have if I had sat down to read each individual hard copy. Students were able to make revisions immediately and resubmit. In essence, this electronic capability has allowed me to extend my writing workshop conferences beyond the school day and classroom to evenings through electronic communications.
I can relate to the “moving target” comment that just as we begin to understand the benefits of a particular technology, it becomes obsolete. A few years, I started using PALM handhelds in my classroom. Ironically, just as we are finding better ways to use the handheld in the classroom, the PALM itself is quickly going the way of the dinosaur. Many of the things that we did on the handhelds can now be done better on laptops with full applications.