Pick One to Get Started!

[Julene]

When I give workshops and keynote speeches on "Harnessing Web 2.0 for Education," I advise educators to start by choosing one of the "basic three" web 2.0 applications to try as they start to implement them for teaching and learning. It is very overwhelming to look at the big picture, so this helps educators focus on a more concrete, short-term goal that is a good beginning step.

The tops three I recommend for beginning web 2.0 users are:
1. Blogs/Forums (Blogmeister, EduBlog, Blogger, etc.)
2. Wikis (Google Docs, WikiSpaces, PBWiki, etc.)
3. Social Bookmarking (del.icio.us, Digg, Furl, etc.)

I recently introduced wikis to students, faculty, and students on my campus, and they have gone "wiki wild!" Students are collaborating on projects, teachers are working on anecdotal comments for report cards, and administrators are planning for future growth at our campus - all through wikis!

Which one will you start with? What are your favorite web 2.0 applications?

[Susan]

It may sound strange, but Twitter is my favorite new web 2.0 tool. And I've had luck introducing it to two colleagues. Within a couple of weeks, they had contacts for projects within their discipline. I can't imagine how I kept up with things before Twitter!
(That said, wikis are now the rage around my school, too)