This week I was very impressed with some of the edubloggers I read. What stuck with me most was an enthusiastic posting from huffenglish.com about digital books. A few apps are now available on the Istore that let students read classic works such as TS Eliot's The Waste Land, and Shakespeare's sonnets interactively and digitally. I even commented the following:
As a graduate student in secondary education, I love these digital books and I'm so excited about the possibilities the content offers. One question I have is perhaps overly optimistic, but I'll ask anyway; do you think it's possible for (advanced) (high school) students to develop their own versions of these books? How complex is the technology to create such an app? Wouldn't it be great if students were able to not just use digital books, but create them?
Maybe I have too much faith in my students' reading abilities, but wouldn't it be great if they could make apps to share with their classmates, parents and even future generations of students? I've never made an app before but it sounds promising. This process would also allow students to experience just how different everyone's reading and interpretation of a given book can be. The digital possibilities are exciting.
I'm glad that you're finding new resources front he edubloggers. I am too.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that anything is overly optimistic. You may seem crazy to some for suggesting it, but I think students would be capable and excited to create their own digital books. They would be able to make them very professional looking and share them easily. I think that it is a great idea, have them reach for the stars.
Do you think that you would try this in your classroom?
It makes me want to try and do something similar with my advanced Spanish classes.
I have never thought about having students to create their own apps and essentially a retelling of the classics in a modern way. I know that this has been done in a storybook format (my sister did this for the Scarlet Letter), but I think that having students to use technology in such a way is promsing and great way to get them involved in the material and the task. Although I have never been fond of online books, being able to get students engaged in and interested in the classics this way is a great idea!
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