Thing #5: Perspectives on Web 2.0

After reading Web 2.0: A Guide for Educators and Minds on Fire: Open Education, the Long Tail and Learning 2.0, I feel that "School 2.0" is a shift in focus to a more collaborative, social-based, technology-driven form of learning that extends past the barriers of the school house. I was very impressed by the learning tool developments and educational experiments discussed in the Minds on Fire article. I had no idea that classrooms have actually been developed within the Second Life realm. I knew the technology was out there for gaming purposes, but I did not realize it was being applied to modern classrooms for learning purposes.

The idea of "School 2.0" is very exciting; it almost has a science fiction or futuristic attraction to it. The fact that "School 2.0" ideas are within the capabilities of modern technology is amazing. When I think about my high school educational experience and compare it to the ideas fostered by "School 2.0", it brings back the harsh reality the American K-12 school system is so far behind. To imagine "School 2.0" learning in the school system today seems like a futuristic ambition. For schools in the future to adopt "School 2.0" learning strategies, so many innovations would need to be made in the amount and level of technology equipment in the classroom, the training and preparation of teachers, and the conviction of society (parents) to support such an initiative in education.

However, with that in mind, time passes quickly. I think, before we know it, we will start seeing "School 2.0" ideology creeping into the American school system.