Workshop given at Western PRTESOL Conference at UPR, Mayaguez on April 18, 2009.

1. Enhancing Literacy
using Web 2.0
Western Puerto Rico TESOL Conference
Prof. Arlinda López
University of Puerto Rico, Aguadilla
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2. Objectives
Discuss what is literacy in the 21st century.
Discuss what is Web 2.0.
Identify and describe educational uses of various Web 2.0
online tools.
Provide examples of various Web 2.0 online tools used for
educational purposes.
Practice using various Web 2.0 online tools.
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3. Literacy in the 21st Century
How do you define literate?
• ability to read and write (merriam-webster.com)
• able to read and write (answers.com)
• ability to read and write (UNESCO.org)
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4. Literacy in the 21st Century
How is literacy defined in the 21st Century?
• expanded notion of “literacy”
• core are the basic higher-order critical and creative
thinking skills
• knowing how to identify key concepts
• how to make connections between multiple ideas
• how to ask pertinent questions
• formulate a response
• identify fallacies
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5. Literacy in the 21st Century
-Students need to explore, to question, to
experiment, to discover!
-Teacher role is to be a “guide on the side:”
encouraging . . . guiding . . mentoring . . .
supporting the learning process.
-Learning needs to be engaging and active.
The information age is why a new way of
learning is critical in the 21st century.
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6. Literacy in the 21st Century
“Literacy today depends on understanding the
multiple media that make up our high-tech
reality and developing the skills to use them
effectively”.
-( Solomon & Schrum, 2007)
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7. What is Web 2.0?
2nd generation of the World Wide Web: especially the
movement away from static web pages to dynamic and
shareable content.
Aims to facilitate creativity, information sharing, and, most
notably, collaboration among users. These concepts
have led to the development and evolution of web-based
communities and hosted services, such as social-
networking sites, wikis, and blogs.
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8. Web 2.0 Online Tools
Blogs
Wikis
Social networks
Social bookmarking
micro-blogging
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9. Blogs in Plain English
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10. Why blog?
Web + log= blog
Blogs have permitted anyone with a
computer, the ability to type and an
Internet connection to become a
published author!
Blogs can be a personal diary: a personal
chronological log of thoughts published
on a web page.
http://weblogg-ed.com/ - Will Richardson discussed the use of Web
logs in education.
http://puntoactivo.blogspot.com/ - Sandra Perez created blog for
teachers of Puerto Rico.
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11. Wikis in Plan English
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12. Why use wikis?
Wikis – invites participation at a level of input that will
contribute to the understanding and application of the
information shared.
Uses collaborative writing- writing that depends on the
participation of several for its completion and success.
Wikis allow authoring and editing where every change is
captured and the process of the final product is tracked.
Teachers set the goals for each stage of writing and the
synthesis takes place through the process.
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13. Why use wikis?
Wikis “promote evaluating, synthesizing,
elaborating, analyzing, problem solving,
decision making, knowledge base
construction, argumentation/justification,
and learning communities” (Reynard,
2009).
Wikis enable student to collaborate within a
share, openly accessible digital space.
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14. Social Bookmarking in Plain English
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15. What is social bookmarking?
Social bookmarking is a method for Internet users
to store, organize, search, and manage
bookmarks of web pages on the Internet.
In a social bookmarking system, users save links
to web pages that they want to remember and/or
share.
Delicious Bookmarking
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16. Let’s see some examples!
Blogs
http://connectingtoweb20.blogspot.com/
http://123elearning.blogspot.com/2006/02/supporting-
literacy-with-technology.html
http://thestorytellersblog.blogspot.com/2007/10/flower.html
Wikis
http://edpe3018.pbwiki.com/Synchronous-
Interaction_Collaboration-with-Skype
http://nmsu-otl.pbwiki.com/Student-Adobe-Connect-
Rooms
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17. Let’s see some examples!
Social Bookmarking
http://delicious.com/arli2u
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18. Let’s create our own!
Blog
Blogger
Wiki
PB Wiki
Social Bookmarking
Delicious
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19. Q&A
Prof. Arlinda Lopez
prof.a.lopez@gmail.com
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20. Conclusion
Web 2.0 tools can help students enhance their literacy
skills for the 21st century.
I encourage you to use these online tools.
Blogs can be used as personal journals or group journals.
They can provide a space for storytelling and for
reflection.
Wikis will provide a space for collaboration and group
brainstorming. Groups can create stories together and
share with others.
Social bookmarking will allow students to share the wealth
of information they find on the Net.
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21. References
Anderson, P. (2007). What is web 2.0? Ideas, technologies
and implications for education. Retrieved on April 11,
2009 from http://www.scribd.com/doc/300024/What-is-
web-20-Ideas-technologies-and-implications-Paul-
Anderson
Blake Yancey, K. (2009). Writing in the 21st century.
Retrieved on April 11, 2009 from
http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Press/Yancey_fin
al.pdf
Solomon, G. & L. Schrum. (2007). Web 2.0: New tools, new
schools. Washington, D.C.: International Society of
Technology in Education.
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22. References
Reynard, R. (2009). Why wikis?. Retrieved on April 11, 2009
from
http://www.thejournal.com/the/printarticle/?id=24279
Reynard, R. (2009). 3 Challenges to wiki use in instruction.
Retrieved on April 11, 2009 from
http://www.thejournal.com/the/printarticle/?id=24206
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