Google Docs

I really like the idea of a place to store documents, powerpoints, spreadsheets and forums that I can access anywhere at anytime.  I think this is a great idea for those who work away from home or on many different computers because there is no need for an external hard drive and no potential for forgetting it when you need it the most.  I am a little wary of trusting all of my work to one site that is suppose to 'forever and always' store my information like an external hard drive but it is handy when you need to access work at multiple places.  I think that the only way I would use Google Docs is if I had a back up to the work I would have saved on the internet...but that is just because it is nice to have a back up...just in case! 

It is handy and the software is great to use because the options in creating documents, powerpoints and spreadsheets are pretty similar to Microsoft Word just in a more simpler form which is fine because most the options given in Google Docs are all an average person would really need.  This is something I can see myself using in the future...

Twitter...hmm

First thoughts on twitter are not positive.  I feel like the benefits that would come out of using twitter in the classroom are not to an extent that would make me use it in my classroom.  I do see the benefits of sharing information fast and concise with students and parents, collaborating among classmates and making sure there are updates on homework or any other class material but I do not think that these reasons are great enough to make me want to use twitter.  I think it would actually create more work and almost a disconnect from the teacher-student relationship and student-student relationship.  There is a disconnect from the teachers and students and teachers and parents that I see could happen if every thing is placed on the internet via blog spot, twitter, wikis....So even though I think twitter could be a cool and innovative way of communicating I do not see the necesity of it at this time...my opinion might change as time goes on and I become more familiar with it...?

My thoughts on wikis...I think they are a great tool to use when bringing many different ideas, information and resources together on one subject.  Many people can work on them while constantly making changes to the information so the information is current and correct.  It is always a good idea to have different minds working on updating information because there is more than just one perspetive or one source of research.  This creates a greater probability that the information will be accurate and up to date.  Also, they are quick and easy to use when in need of a quick summary.

The down side to wikis is they are difficult to use when having more than one person work on a page at a time.  Also, no matter how many accurate sources work on a page there are those out there that will have information that is incorrect which is not good because wikis are so quick and easy to read that some younger students may take their information straight off of one without checking the information.

I think that they could be a great tool to use within the classroom but the teacher would need to monitor the content an dkeep track of what is going on the wiki and what is missing.  This would allow the wiki to be accurate and full of beneficial content for the entire class.  I do think extra time and attention would need to be incorporated into creating and maintaining a wiki but if a classroom has excellent ideas on a subject and a teacher is excited and willing to create one with them I think they can be very beneficial. 

Teamwork all the way!!!