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Web 2.0 and Illinois Learning Standards


 * // This is a group project created for EPS 415, Technology and Educational Reform, taught by Professor Nicholas Burbules at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Authors: Greg Van Hoorn, Andrea Partyka, Stephanie Thien, David Troyer, and Morgan Allen. //**


 * What Can This Wiki Help Me With? **media type="custom" key="6577427" align="right"

The educational systems that we grew up in are gone. Technology is growing by leaps and bounds and the methods and tools that we use to teach needs to change with it. Web 2.0 has changed the face of the internet and has many features that will allow teachers to connect with students from long distances and organize them into groups or teams. With so many schools offering distance or online education packages Web 2.0 will give teachers more flexibility by not only allowing teachers and students to interact with one another, but it will allow students to work as teams to collaborate on projects, websites. No longer do students have to be passive viewers of information on a computer screen, Web 2.0 give students the opportunity to interact with each other in real time. Web 2.0 will take the distance out of distance education.

This wiki is intended for those interested in applying Web 2.0 technologies to their classroom to fulfill the teaching standards. As technology develops, it is important for teachers to utilize what is available within the classroom. The world is becoming more dependent on and revolving around technology. While fundamental skills and knowledge are vital to the education system, it is becoming more and more important for teachers to cover those fundamentals and standards using the newest applications and technologies available. This balance will allow for students to be fully prepared to enter the working world upon finishing their education. Gone are the days of teacher lectures and reading chapter upon chapter of a textbook as homework. Web 2.0 allows the curriculum to be more hands on for the student, and gives them accountability for covering the material and using the sources available to them.

For information on Web 2.0 and how it helps achieve the standards, click on the individual standard names on the left-hand navigation bar.

media type="youtube" key="67ie6XKOB4s" height="293" width="445" align="left" >>>>>>>>>>>> ** What Is Web 2.0? **

>>>>>>>>>>>> Web 2.0 refers to sources that allow users to work with material interactively. These applications are user-centered and engaging, allowing the user to be more hands-on and to interact with the content on the page. Before Web 2.0, users were simply viewing information rather than participating. Some well known Web 2.0 applications include blogs, wikis, video sharing sites, podcasts, and electronic portfolios. To see definitions of popular applications, see the Web 2.0 Tools page.

** Where Did Web 2.0 Come From? ** media type="youtube" key="Hhsr8-RqaEg" height="293" width="445" align="right"

Web 2.0 developed over a period of time. In 2004, a conference took place with O'Reilly media. Here, the idea of Web 2.0 was "introduced" to the world. Web 1.0 focused more on websites with pre-created information that only the creator could change. It was predominately text based. Web 2.0 allows any user to anonymously add to, edit, and alter pages as they see fit. It incorporates video, audio, music, etc.