I was reading through Kathy Cassidy's book and I read a section that really stuck with me. Cassidy mentioned that when her class made online connections with other classes around the world, she found that her students began to genuinely care about those other students. When her students learned that a class they had been connected with lived close to a volcano, the students cared about their safety. In the past, I have read a book called Escaping the Giant Wave which is about how a boy and his sister are caught in the middle of a tsunami. Usually during or after reading this book, the students begin to question how likely we are in Connecticut to experience a tsunami. They are typically not worried about other parts of the world that are more likely to experience these events because there are no connections with people who live in those areas.
I began to think how different my students' reactions might be if there were more connections with people in areas that are more likely to experience a natural disaster. Would they pay more attention to news around the world? Would their questions throughout the story be different? Having those connections, I would have to say that yes, they would be more interested in what is happening in other parts of the world and their questions would be different.
Having a blog or skyping with other classes in different states would be a great way for my students to expand their worldly knowledge.
Like you, I feel that both blogging and skyping provide students with an opportunity to "cross borders". These and other types of social media not only allow children to develop empathy for other human beings, but also to grow in their acceptance of other cultures. It excites me to think of the ways in which our world might change for the better if more schools incorporated these types of social medias into their classrooms. Even if it is just one child at a time, perhaps our world can eventually change into a more peaceful place; one that is compassionate and accepting of the individuals who inhabit it.
ReplyDeleteMarissa, I too was struck by Cassidy's observation of how children developed empathy from their connection to another class. I believe children definitely are capable of great empathy, especially of someone they know. More and more I am understanding the value of blogging and skyping with another class. It could become part of the everyday classroom routine. It could be part of writer's workshop or social studies, or students could work with another class on a science unit hatching chicks. Through Skype or blogging, two classes could collaborate and get excited together about how many of their eggs are hatching. When I worked with 1st grade and they were incubating chick eggs, it was always a valuable learning experience when some of the eggs didn't hatch. The children always showed great empathy. What a wonderful experience it would be to share that with another class. Until I read Cassidy, Richardson, and November, I didn't think about blogging at all. Now I see how valuable and rich it can be.
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