Trying to Go 2.0

Ever since I attended Jeff Utecht's sessions at EARCOS, I've been trying to play catch up on the Web 2.0 tools that I learned about. I've bought a domain name ad am just waiting for the summer so I can learn RapidWeaver and make a homepage. Why RapidWeaver? There are heaps of other web design tools out there, but I'm a sucker for apps made exclusively for Mac.

So in the few weeks since EARCOS, I've been using my netvibes page to keep up on some Ed Tech related blogs, which has been going really well. I have an upcoming pd session next week in which I'll introduce fellow teacher to RSS feeds, which I'm really excited about.

The thing I've found frustrating since EARCOS is Internet in Cambodia. It often takes 10x the actual length of a video to load it on YouTube or TeacherTube. I've tried a work-around of downloading without previewing through Zamzar. I leave my computer downloading heaps of videos overnight and watch the videos the net morning over breakfast. The catch is that about half are corrupted. The upside - videos like "Think Before You Post" and "Are You Listening" are powerful hooks for pds with staff or discussions with students.

Another source of frustration is the TED talks. It takes hours to download the file for a 20-minute talk. Some of the videos are so thought-provoking and inspiring, but again I'm working with a 50% corruption rate. I wish I could get a dvd of all the talks.

Despite these frustrations, though, I'm still committed. I'm starting a list of all the videos I'm going to download this summer when I'm visiting the US and have faster, more reliable Internet.

I recognize that the title of this post is Trying to Go 2.0 and that most of the things I've discussed are arguably not technically Web 2.0 tools. The point, though, is that in the face of Internet-related frustration, I struggle with whether, as technology coordinator of my school, it would be responsible for me to teach teachers about the valuable and powerful Web 2.0 technologies available. Would introducing blogs, wikis, streaming video, and other 2.0 tools be a help or a source of frustration to most newcomers?

My inclination is to hold off a little bit longer and to do a field test with my own students using wikis and blogs before doing any pd with my staff. I'll continue to attempt to download videos and share them with my staff. With the Internet still slow and spotty, I think this is the best balance I can find between going 2.0 and avoiding a staff of frustrated teachers.