It used to be that if you wanted to know what was being said about any given subject you had to go to the local barber or beauty shop. Now, with the net, you just have to google search the subject and a multitude of available sites pop up right before your eyes. Go ahead - try it! Type google.com in that long white space at the top of the computer screen and then type anything you want to know about in the shorter white space on the right. Hit the magnifying glass and it will take you to your own "card catalog" of information available. Place the cursor over the underlined words and click - you are magically taken to a new site with just the info you wanted to know.
Now, imagine you are a student that has been given the assignment of writing about the dangers of a wiffle ball game (it is dangerous, just ask Jason Habisch!). Where would you go to find that out? Just a couple clicks of a mouse and you have a ready made report at your finger tips.
You can even keep up with the changing ideas through the use of RSS (really simple syndication) sites. You can subscribe to your favorite news sites, teachers sites, encyclopedia sites, etc. and "store" their site addresses in a convenient space (such as google reader) where with one click you are swept away to that site. It gives an educator the ability to screen the resource sites for reliable information, assuring the safety of their students. This speeds up the process of acquiring knowledge resources and, with gas prices what they are, saves money, too.
Education and the internet is a whole new world of discovery. There are soooooooooo many tools that are available for internet use. The only thing standing between them and the classroom is the availability of the equipment and the knowledge to use it.
Morning coffee over the newspaper has a whole new look!
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