Facebook and Collaboration--Who Knew?

Well, first time blogger here so we'll see where this ends up. I have always been pretty satisfied with Facebook and never felt the need to get a Twitter or Google plus account, little did I know I would be signing up for a Google plus account for class.  Surprisingly it's making communicating with class members very simple and I really like that I can post things for only class members to see.

First of all, I loved Johnson's video. The whole drawing pictures to tell the story thing is pretty catchy to the eye if you ask me. After watching the video and doing the reflection the first thing that came to mind to incorporate collaborative learning in the classroom was different kinds of group work.  To my surprise, that's what the article following the video was all about. Johnson's video got me to see things outside the box, particularly with Facebook. Some educators think it's a huge distraction. At my high school, we incorporated a one-to-one laptop program where each student seventh through twelfth grade was issued a macbook for the school year.  After a couple months Facebook was blocked on our laptops at school, and then eventually at home because they thought it was keeping kids from doing homework.  Little did they know, that at home we were asking each other questions about homework over Facebook chat. Why? Because it was quick and convenient and you weren't wasting a hand trying to hold onto the phone. I feel that education and technology is incredibly important, especially with the large increase in technology over the last few years.  I think educators are doing a good job of trying to incorporate it, but at times I think they don't see the use of social networking the same as we do, which may be in part because they did not grow up with technology like we have. Johnson incorporated the "missing puzzle piece" concept into his video, which made me realize he's right about social networking.  You get connections with people that may have that missing piece to make your whole.

Davis's article confirmed my thought of group work. I found the different categories of group work quite interesting and definitely something to consider in the future. In my future classroom, I plan on using plenty of group work in ways that will best benefit my students. I think it's important not only for collaboration but also communication skills and broadening of knowledge by hearing other students ideas, which are essential as students grow older. No wonder I loved it as a student, I love to talk! The statistics of how group work is more beneficial than other ways of learning also caught my eye, which is all the more reason to use this strategy in my future classroom.

Hope everyone enjoys no class on Monday!
Kacie