TIE.net Finds 12/12/2009

• Cloudworks - Homepage

  Cloudworks is a social networking site for finding, sharing and discussing learning and teaching ideas and designs. A Cloud can be anything to do with learning and teaching. Each Cloud is 'social' in that it is possible to have a conversation around the Cloud. A Cloud could be: a short description of a learning and teaching idea, information about resources or tools for learning and teaching, detailed learning designs or case studies of practice or a question as a starting point for a discussion.Clouds can be aggregated into 'Cloudscapes' associated with a particular event, purpose or interest. For example you can have Cloudscapes associated with a conference aggregating Clouds about conference presentations or tools and resources referenced. A Cloudscape can be set up for a workshop where Clouds might include workshop resources, tools or activities. Cloudscapes can also be more general for example to stimulate debate about a particular teaching approach. Clouds can be associated with more than one Cloudscape.

  Tags: cloudworks, education, web2.0, collaboration, PLN, tools

  • - By Marge Runkle

• Study: Children Who Blog Or Use Facebook Have Higher Literacy Levels

  "A research by The National Literacy Trust on 3,001 children from England and Scotland showed that schoolchildren who blog or own social networking profiles on Facebook have higher literacy levels and greater confidence in writing."

  Tags: facebook, blogging, research, literacy, writing

  • - By Michelle Krill
  • 57 per cent of those who used text-based web applications such as blogs, said they generally enjoyed writing compared to 40 per cent who did not.
  • Pupils who write online are more likely to write short stories, letters, song lyrics or a diary, the research revealed.
  • Even social websites such as Facebook, Twitter and Bebo are causing alarming changes in the brains of young users too, claimed neuroscientist Susan Greenfield. “My fear is that these technologies are infantilising the brain into the state of small children who are attracted by buzzing noises and bright lights, who have a small attention span and who live for the moment.
    • - By Michelle Krill

• 20 Free Tech Tools for Learning and Communicating | Blogging & Technology | So You Want To Teach?

  Tags: social studies, language arts, resources, history, English, multimedia, collaboration, web2.0, tools, science, math

• DOTGO • Users • How It Works

  Use a cell phone with no data plan to retrieve information from a website in the form of a text message.

  Tags: cell_phones, mobile, SMS, texting

  • - By Aly Tapp
  • - By Aly Tapp

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