I Read Blocked Blogs!

The Internet world of many teachers I mentor at several different schools has been shaken up recently by the installation of “new and improved” school filtering systems. It is not the fault of these schools’ tech coordinators, who are struggling valiantly to unblock good resources and keep within the boundaries of the law while they are doing it. Rather, the schools have been sold services by vendors who seem to believe that the ‘read only’ web is easier to deal with in educational settings and do not understand the learning power of Web 2.0.

Tonight, trying to catch up on some blog reading of my own, I found there is a project that just recently started up to promote more informed use of school filtering systems. Using the slogan, “I Read Blocked Blogs”, a Wiki at: http://ad4dcss.wikispaces.com/I+read+blocked+blogs, and “Word of Web 2.0 Tools”, the word is spreading rapidly.

To quote the wiki site, “Read/Write Web resources provide valuable and necessary experience with 21st Century communication and collaboration tools, and we believe that it is in the best interests of our learners if we take the time to TEACH them how to use these tools appropriately, safely, effectively, and efficiently rather than just block their use altogether.”

I strongly concur! Help spread the word yourself! Follow the links from the wiki, check out the bloggers in my blogroll, many of whom are participating and are posting more information, and help us help learners everywhere! Filter intelligently and knowingly, and help all our learners become strong digital citizens.