Thing #8 RSS and Readers

RSS is certainly a handy Web 2.0 tool. For teachers and administrators who have limited time to access information on the Web, setting up blogs can be a huge time saver. As we teach our students to critically evaluate information, we need to emphasize that blogs are mostly opinions and certainly not always from experts. For the most part, I feel that blogs can provide helpful and updated access to information in fields of interest. Also, it is helpful to read what others are thinking in a particular subject area. Finding quality blogs can be a challenge and it is important not to become overwhelmed with too many blogs. Quality blogs by professionals such as an author could be used in the classroom to create a relationship with the author and bring that author closer to the students. Blogging with the author could be fun and perhaps spark an interest in reading. Blogs are alive in that way. From a library standpoint, EBSCO allows feeds for research purposes. The concept is like a blog, but the articles come from within the database and are more authoritative. At this time, blogs are restricted in our district. Perhaps if districts begin to allow students to use their personal mobile devices many possibilities will open. When teachers and students are not able to use the tool in school, educational opportunities are blocked. I would be curious to know how many of our students actually blog.