Cycle 1 Project

Kleinman, Zoe. "BBC News - Children Who Use Technology Are 'better Writers'" BBC News - Home. Web. 02 Feb. 2012. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8392653.stm>.

1. This source from BBC News talks about how technology has improved children in becoming better writers. It gives numerous statistics about the advantages of technology for children. For example, “Of the children who neither blogged nor used social network sites, 47% rated their writing as "good" or "very good", while 61% of the bloggers and 56% of the social networkers said the same.” They also pose the question, does technology damage literacy? They came back to say that their research was conclusive in that the more forms of communication exposed to children, the stronger their core literacy skills were.

This source is a great reference for the cycle one project, especially if you hold the belief that the new social media does not hinder but strengthens literacy. I found it very interesting to look at all the data they collected. It gives you a better sense of how involved children are in technology. People probably do not realize it as much, but children are taking advantage of all the tools at their fingertips and are exuberating new forms of creativity.

McIntosh, Ewan. "Blogging Improves Young People's Confidence in Their Writing and Reading." Ewan McIntosh | Digital Media & Learning. 17 Dec. 2009. Web. 02 Feb. 2012. <http://edu.blogs.com/edublogs/2009/12/blogging-improves-young-peoples-confidence-writing-reading.html>.

2. This article, “Blogging improves young people’s confidence in their writing and reading”, is also about the evolving social media having a positive impact on literacy. It takes numerous statistics that form around its belief. It says that the social network, such as blogging which has the ability to publish your own ideas, improves students’ attitudes towards writing. At the end it addresses the concern of having people take a closer look at the implications of the new technology and having it implemented into school environments.

I also found this article to be useful for the cycle one project. I like how they used statistical evidence. I thought it was essential for them to mention that the technology in the classroom won’t be as effective unless the student’s are in the hands of a good teacher. I believe that the new social media can only go so far but with the help from educated ones you can progress to new levels and improve your skills. Those skills can they be utilized in creating productive and successful pieces of work on the internet.