Will Richardson

World Without Walls: Learning Well with Others

Will,

A year after your article was posted on Edutopia.org, Barb Benford's comment that followed on 12/6/08 has really hit home! With frozen or non-existing school budgets and no relieve in sight, our current economic situation has created a perfect storm for a Web 2.0 technology revolution. Teachers no can no longer AFFORD to deny the existence of fantastic, free and fun alternatives to their traditional teaching tools and practices. Ironically, in the worst of times, I couldn't think of a better time to take teaching and learning to the Web! My theory is that the few teachers who are successfully re-tooling and expanding their curriculum with FREE Web 2.0 resources will eventually convince even the reluctant to take the plunge, sooner than later.

My job as technology Ed Tech is to make the connections between the technology tools, teaching & learning, teachers & students, school & home. More so than ever before am I committed to helping teachers discover the educational value of Web 2.0 tools - it's no longer an option, it's an unavoidable necessity. "Sorry, no money for field trips this year..." and "We need to curtail our paper use..." announcements during staff meetings this fall clearly put change at the classroom door and the teachers in my school know it. To get folks on board to Web 2.0 is a huge undertaking especially given the wide-ranging perspectives on technology use in the classroom, not to mention different levels of tech proficiency. My goal to help teachers transition and adopt 21st century teaching tools for classroom instruction and changing from linear to expeditionary instruction is not going to be an easy and quick process. I'm afraid that it will take longer than 25 days.

Although I am, I am trying not to be overwhelmed or overwhelm those I am trying to help. The class "Teaching and Learning with 21st Century Technology" I decided to take with Alice Barr this fall (usmepc512) has been a terrific first step for me in my plan to personally get a grip on Web 2.0. Attending Alice's lectures, learning with and from others online, and working my way through reading assignments such as your article and the comments people posted in response are helping me sort out ways to expose this enormous shift in education at my school without scaring people away.
Thanks for your inspiring words.
Janny