Vermont Educator^2.0

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Alice Rodgers

1.  Pros:  students are able to access class information quickly and stay abreast of their grade status.  Students are now pretty well trained to go to EDU 2 to find information and, in general, it is a comfortable forum for them.   Cons:  even though the tabs are intuitive, teachers tend to locate information under different tabs...for example, one teacher may place the syllabus under "overview" while another may place it under "resources".  This can lead to confusion for students...they are not always certain where to look and this can become an excuse for not doing an assighnment ("ignorance = bliss").  Students tend to overreact to grades when grades are posted (in contrast to when work is returned in a mailbox....time to reflect).

2.  I have enjoyed posting different materials ...videos, audio, threaded dialogue.  Benefit = teaching to different learning styles + enriching classes.  Negative = very time consuming but this is an initial investment....I do find it difficult to stay on top of posting grades.

3.  Assignments for Civics seem to be most adaptable to online work because material is so contemporary....Youth for Human Rights videos....glogster posters....Threaded discussions worked best for Ancient Greeks as a replacement for missed seminar time.

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Andrea Harris

1.

Pros:  EDU 2 is a solid way to keep students informed and a part of discussion when they are on the road.  

Cons:  At GMVS students and staff struggle with not having enough time.

Students: EDU.2 contributes to this in a couple of ways: EDU assignments give students an excuse/reason to need internet later in the evening.  Sitting at the computer tends to use time "faster" than students are aware.  This extra time can take away from other classes.    

Teachers: Because I am slow with technology, EDU.2 grading takes me soooooooo much longer than just a gradebook and calculator would.

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Matthew Henchen

Cathy, for some basic edu20 how-to's check out last year's GMVS course - gmvstech.pbworks.com/GMVS-Summer-Technology-Course or the current course I'm teaching for Harwood - www.vermonteducator.com/resources/harwood-edu20-course.html

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Jen Robillard

 Pros and Cons

1.  Pros:  it has been great to have all of the school on the same platform!  It has created consistency for the kids, and some of the school wide features such as grades have helped, though there has been a learning curve.

Cons:  Some kids where behind the curve in learning how to use the platform effectively.  These were the same kids that struggle w/ organization anyway, but they needed more support.

2.  Personally:  It was great to have everyone on the same page, but it sure took a lot of energy this first year.

I used the lesson feature during the first half of the year, but stopped when I started having trouble w/ the whiteboard (grrrr).  This was frustrating.   Also, I found that my focus on EDU meant that I was less creative with other technologies because of the energy and focus EDU took.   Hopefully this year I can refocus on this.

3.  Best lessons:  

- use of lessons

- some online discussions (challenging with some of my classes this year)

- kid's creativity w/ projects when they used technology

Flops: 

- dependance on the whiteboard when it didn't work.

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Sarah Despres

1.  The kids have easy access to grades and assignments.

2.  I didn't use EDU to the fullest this year.  I started to post assignments and then went to strictly offline assignements

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Missy Shea

1. It's been good to have a common platform for communication, a way for kids to monitor their own assignments and progress. There is tremendous potential yet challenging to invest time needed to explore all that EDU20 can do. One downside is that students' sometimes perceive EDU20 as onmipotent over the actual teacher communications. Can be cause for confusion/conflict.

2. In some ways it has helped me organiz, and it is definitely helpful with tracking grades.

3. I have not yet really engaged inusing the tool for online assignments.

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Grace Emelett

Joyce and Grace's responses:

1.  Pros---student access to grades, no shock factor at the end of the term, edu 2.0 assisted with travel instruction, easy for kids to see what assignments were missing, easy access to syllabus for students

Cons--changing grading terms was difficult, almost too dependent on EDU 2.0 (relied on classmates less, etc), students claimed lack of internet on trips,

2.  Helped-- organization, grading efficiency, parent communication

Hindered--

3.  I had success with video tutorial lessons (both original and borrowed tutorial videos from the web)

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Linda Duran

1.  When the school internet is having issues and you depend on a connection for the class.

2.  Nice to let students check their own grades - gives me more time.

3.  Video lessons for kids that travel and for review.---sometimes the students do not want to watch a video for review but want  face to face personal help.

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Randy Graves

1. a) Standardization of grading, assignments, uniformity of teaching philosopies.

b) a few quirks

2. Helped....easy to use. No real hinderences at all.

3. Aiding in discussions with students (forums) in prepsartion for written assignments / essays.

Re: Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Cathy Plas

Since I'm completely new to edu20, I'll be interested to see what the responses are and how I can use edu20 in the coming year.

Pros and Cons of Edu20

posted by: Matthew Henchen

Your Task:

Respond to each of the following prompts below and then read through your classmates' responses:

1. What have been the pros and cons of school-wide use of edu20? (school-wide level)
2. In what ways has edu20 both helped or hindered your practice? (personal level)
3. What are some of the best lessons/activities/assignments that have been done this past year?  What are some of the flops?