Editors' Note: When this article was posted in Reading Online in May 1997, readers were invited to comment on it through a bulletin board feature that was discontinued when the journal was redesigned in July 2000. Following are the comments posted to that bulletin board. Note that, due to a technical problem, many posts are dated July 1999. They were actually made between May 1997 and July 1999.

Readers who would like the opportunity to comment on this or other articles in the journal are invited to contact the authors directly (e-mail addresses are available on the opening page) or to post messages through ROL Communities.

Post 1

Author: Carol_Madagan
Date: 07-20-1999 17:11

I found this article quite interesting. I do not have much knowledge about electronic classrooms, and reading this gave me a good background on what is possible. In fact, I found myself wishing some of my graduate classes (MEd program) would use something like a MOO. This is my fourth year teaching, and my district does not really use much technology at the primary/elementary level. I believe it is coming, but much more training and experience is needed for our teachers before they are comfortable using technology.

Carol Madagan

Post 2

Author: sandra_mchugh
Date: 07-20-1999 17:10

A very interesting article. The use of the internet in the classroom is very beneficial. However, knowing how to access sites and maximize the use of it is still a challenge.

Post 3

Author: Jon_OKeefe
Date: 07-20-1999 17:10

I really enjoyed the concept of developing a virtual classroom. I don't know that I understand Moo all that well but when I become more familiar with computers, I'll revisit Moo and Graceland. On the otherhand, I found Yessa Goodwoman's personal philosophy of education to be fantastic and sound. However, Mr. Surly's and Mr. Gingrich's comments were from a ignorant and thoughtless pointof view.

Post 4

Author: Jon_OKeefe
Date: 07-20-1999 17:10

Attn: Moo program People, I enjoyed reading about your Moo concept and look forward to replying to this concept, after I become more familiar with computers. However, I did enjoy Yessa Goodwoman's philosophy on education but was bitterly humored with Mr. Surly's and Mr.Gingrich's comments about education. All in all, I enjoyed visiting your program and will respond to you with more intellectual input inthe days to come. Thank you, Jon O'Keefe

Post 5

Author: Thomas_Crook
Date: 07-20-1999 17:09

Forums - Electronic Classroom - Instructional Applications of Internet Technology... Subject: Graceland Relevancy

Author: Thomas_Crook
Date: Tuesday September 02, 1997 04:51:06 PM

To see that people can actually come up with a virtual classroom that goes along with what (hopefully) most undergraduate students are learning. I found Berkley Babes classroom the ideal classroom in any elementary school in the country. This site should be visited by all undergrad elementary students in the country. Tom at GSU

Post 6

Author: Brian_DAmico4
Date: 07-20-1999 17:08

I would like to say that I thought the idea behind the electronic classroom was a great one. It was very interesting and very creative. Was there anything like that planned for a future date? It is great to see people using the internet for educational purposes.

Post 7

Author: Teresa_Wadcan
Date: 07-20-1999 17:08

I found this article very interesting. As a future educator, I find good use of applying the computer in the classroom. A MOO type program is useful in bulding literacy. The type of role playing that occurs in a MOO setting can be benefical to a student. Students learn by modeling and the MOO stimulates learning through interaction. Although, one problem I came across was following the transcrpits in the Graceland MOO. It seeems that a MOO would work better with older students. It may be too confusing for young students to follow the conversation in a MOO. The MOO seems to be a good way to introduce students to using the internet and interacitng with others in a different setting.

Post 8

Author: Gayle_Marek
Date: 07-20-1999 17:12

Internet? Middle School? I must be crazy, right? Maybe, but exposing my 8th graders to Internet technology was an overwhelmingly positive experience.

I student taught last fall at a rural/suburban middle school which had just received a technology grant and purchased an entire lab of Power Macs. My cooperating teacher and I were eager to get our kids in the lab and get them using the Internet.

Permission slips were distributed at the beginning of the school year which had to be signed and returned in order for students to use the Internet. Most parents gave their kids permission, especially since the district had filters on the computers in an effort to prevent kids from gaining access to inappropriate websites.

My cooperating teacher and I planned to use the Internet for the research part of our essay assignment towards the end of the fall trimester. The students were writing a type of literary essay which had to include a research part, a story part, and a deep thinking part. Students chose topics that they wanted to learn more about and topics that they felt they wanted to think deeply about.

We prepped the kids for the lab by giving minilessons on how to use search engines, and how to evaluate the websites. This I believe is crucial--students need to know that just because it's on the web, it isn't necessarily a factual, reliable source.

The day we went to the lab the students were anxious to get started. Some of them had used the Internet before at home, but for many, it was the first time they had tried it out. I was amazed to see that my reluctant readers as well as my hard-to-motivate students were throroughly engrossed in their Internet searches. Everyone was learning by doing--and having a lot of fun in the process. Students were amazed at the incredible pictures and information they found, as well as the sheer volume of sites dedicated to their topics.

I believe that schools fortunate enough to have this kind of technology need to use it as much as possible. I took a computer class a few years ago that called our society an "information society." In order for us to prepare students to live in this society, we need to give them plenty of opportunities to find and evaluate information through technology.

I am currently looking for my first teaching job, and no matter where I get a job, technology will be included in my teaching. My students will use it whenever possible to enhance lessons and gain valuable skills. Even schools that do not currently have many up-to-date computers can work towards this goal. Technology grants are out there waiting to be tapped into--it just takes persistance and a commitment to our students' future--essentially the future for all of us.

Post 9

Author: Mike_Neri
Date: 07-20-1999 17:12

As a preservice teacher I have had the opportunity to witness some excellent teaching strategies in my field experiences. One of these was the use of the internet and Claris Works slideshow to do oral presentations. Although this was done in one of my college classrooms it would make the transition to high school and middle school with little to no modifications. The assignment was to do a five to seven minute presentation on whatever we wished. (It could be an informative or persuasive speech). Using the internet the students found pictures, facts, sounds, and even video for their presentations. What this all added up to was an increased retention rate of the presentations. By employing Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, the presenters were able to to build off each of our strengths, allowing us to learn the material from a variety of perspectives. Variety also become the word of the day, and all the presentations fell upon engaged and listening ears. Oftentimes speech days=sleep days because the same dry tone of voice and monochromatic posterboard/overhead props that are used. With the slideshow approach, color and sound provided us listeners with enough stimulation to pay attention to what was being said. Finally, it gave us practice in something that any business man or woman is required to do; give a presentation using other tools than just an easel and posterboard. I think it is vital to get our students to get out and explore the internet, but at the same time, by giving them a purpose for their search their learning will take on that much more scope andlife.

Reply 9a

Author: Krista Nylen
Date: 04-06-2000 20:19

This is a great way for students to interact with their peers. When giving a speech the students in most cases are scared to death; however, when having a device such as power point, it helps the students stay on track. This also is a great way for a student to organize his or her ideas; instead of using the traditional note cards. The visual gets the audiences full attention and the presentor feels much more confident and organized. The new technology is enhancing our ability to demonstrate our skills in a positive way.

Post 10

Author: joanna_cann
Date: 11-11-1999 14:50

This article on MOO's has provided excellent insight into the use of technology in teacher education. MOO's exhibit an excellent use of technology in the learning process. The major question that reading this article raised for me was: What role does anonymity play in this type of virtual interaction?

As a pre-service teacher in a program with a technology component, I have often wondered how anonymity would enrich the use of technology. Does being anonymous allow for a more diverse discussion and learning environment? In our program we use a bulletin board, where we are able to post messages on anything from current hot topics to social events. But these discussions are not anonymous. Communicating on-line is a very important aspect of our program because we are able to hear a variety of opinions that are not normally heard in the classroom setting. I agree with the statement from the article about the role of technology that says, "Students can take time to compose their remarks, are not locked into turn-taking, and perhaps feel less inhibited than in a traditional classroom discussion".

Not only do the MOO's use technology to the fullest capacity, it also promotes critical thinking. It is obvious that the students involved in the MOO had to think critically about their roles and their responses to what was happening in Graceland Elementary. For those of you who have been involved in a MOO, when you were dialoguing between participants, did it feel like real time or was there a lag? And how much did the traffic load inhibit the 'real' experience of Graceland?

When using a MOO in a teacher education program, is anything taken away? Is the MOO replacing a real life practical experience in the classroom? Overall, I think that a MOO could be a tremendous asset to any teacher education program to promote critical thinking and whole class involvement.

Post 11

Author: Dee_Karras
Date: 12-05-1999 23:59

I have been involved actively with using the internet in my student teaching classroom. When I walked into my first day of teaching tenth grade English--I knew I had to figure out what sort of project I was going to undertake at the hand of a required inquiry project .Ironically, I had everything laid out for me-- 20 beautiful older but still wonderful Macintosh computers and an all school goal of improving technology in the classroom--what a better choice than the Internet! I began the inquiry with a small what I called "WebQuests". These consisted of smaller less difficult quests--finding the word "ritual" online and looking up a type of ritual... and then I ended the semester with a huge background search on ancient Roman life with source options of the internet and books and what a huge success! I wanted to make sure that all of the assignments included deep thinking about the topic and understanding. That was the ultimate trick for planning the quests. For example, one of the quests was during our King Arthur unit. The students went online looking for Arthurian art and paintings about chivalry to get a beter idea of the ledgend of the story. Then after they found these paintings, they were to write as if they were a character in the painting using proper nouns and correct terminology of the times. Students had a ball with this and their imaginations ran wild. This was especially exciting to the lower level classes who could shine through writing and creativity. From the beginning struggles and tribulations, the students have all visibly improved their knowledge and usage of the internet. In my research, I have found that college professors expect students to be able to produce internet information over night. Since computers are becoming the new wave of education, electronic classrooms are what I expect to see within the next ten years. The majority of my students now can all use the internet to a great extent and I feel that I have prepared them for the future and led them through a semester of deep thinking and creativity.

Reply 11a

Author: Rebecca_Wangenheim
Date: 12-06-1999 08:04

Dee, What a great bunch of ideas! I hope you don't mind if I adapt them (for example, the painting ideas) to my own methods/student teaching experiences, and then also in my classroom. I can only begin to imagine the possiblities that using the Internet in the classroom holds for students, especially as we enter the new millenium and the Internet is becoming a major resource for research and communication. My question is, how did you prevent the students from being exposed to certain "things" on the internet? I can imagine for example, doing a search on "rituals" and coming up with a variety of things that are totally inappropriate for classroom use, as well as teenage eyes (or anyone's eye for that matter). How did you go about guding the students' searches so that they came up with pertinent, fruitful information? I know from my own experiences that one can search for days and still not find good information on a topic. Does anyone else have any good advice as how to guide students internet searches, so that they come up with really good information?

Still great ideas Dee! thanks for sharing!

-Becky =)

Reply 11b

Author: cheryl_mellen
Date: 04-18-2000 16:22

What a wonderful, expansive idea! I have worked with students using the internet as a research tool, but never to the level you've taken it. This is a fabulous way to involve students in an exciting learning experience with the extra benefit of gaining experience not only with traditional skills, but with highly prized web skills.

Do you have an secrets to share about finding good sites? It sounds as if your assignment had few glitches. I know when doing research, the students and I had difficulty finding the wheat among the chaff. Is there a secret to the wording you used during searches?

Any information would be welcome. Thank you! Cheryl

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