Why Use Web 2.0 Tools?

Because our students have changed and we have to think of ways of engaging them.

I mentioned in my previous post that we are digital immigrants as opposed to our learners, who are digital natives. As Marc Prensky points out:
- Digital natives think and process information fundamentally differently from the generation of digital immigrants.
- It is wrong for us teachers to assume that we can use the same methods that were successful with previous generations to teach digital natives.
- Therefore both content and methodology need to be reconsidered.
Here's the link to the whole article by Marc Prensky. (By the way, I felt really identified with Prensky's description of the 'accent' that we digital immigrants cannot get rid of)

The second part of this article is also worth reading. Prensky addresses the issue of learners' attention spam, the need for reflection and critical thinking, and advocates game-based learning.

For those of you who are more auditory, here's the link to Michael Wesch's presentation, a cultural anthropologist at Kansas State University, discussing Web 2.0 in terms of social impact. He makes similar points to Prensky, and what he says has deep implications for educators. (It's about an hour long but it's great for listening practice as well).