Richardson, Will (2006). Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Pages: 168     Price: $61.95(hardcover); $27.95(paper)     ISBN: 1412927668(hardcover); 1412927676(paper)

Will Richardson, teacher, blogger and writer, has presented numerous workshops about read/write technologies. In Blogs, Wikis and Podcasts he sets out to accomplish three goals:

1. to help teachers understand the impact of these technologies in the classroom and in society;
2. to challenge teachers to think about how these technologies will impact what and how they teach;
3. to provide teachers with information about how to get started using these tools.

The first chapter defines weblogs, wikis, RSS, aggregators, social bookmarking, online photo galleries, podcasting and video-casting. There is an important section about keeping students safe, a subject that is reiterated in subsequent chapters. The Internet and the technologies describes in the book are a part of young people’s everyday life – today’s students are what Richardson calls “digital natives” (p. 6). Teachers however are “digital immigrants” who “carry accents” (p. 7). In chapters two through eight, Richardson explains each technology in depth, and concludes with ten big shifts that are happening in education as a result of these technologies.

Richardson states that blogs invite interaction, reflective thinking and online conversations. Blogs can be used in a variety of ways: a cheaper alternative to course management software; a class portal where the syllabus and assignments are posted and can be accessed by students and their parents; and as an online portfolio and place to store and organize homework. Blogs are an important element of the “new literacies they will need to function in an ever expanding information society” (p. 28). Richardson discusses how blogging can improve reading and writing skills and can be used across the curriculum. Pages 40-42 provide a long list of ideas for implementing classroom blogs. While chapter two focuses on why, chapter three focuses on how to set up a blog. He suggests Blogger.com as a starting point, describing how to set up a blog, post entries, and add links and photos. He also briefly discusses other blogging software teachers may wish to consider.

The book describes wikis as easy to create and update web pages that allow many authors and editors to update the content while maintaining a history of the changes. Richardson suggests one potential use of wikis in the classrooms: “create an online text for your curriculum that you and your students can both contribute to” (p. 65). He suggests that teachers and students make use of existing open source textbooks (pp. 66-67) and provides a number of examples from actual classrooms. He provides links to several free wiki software tools and describes how to create a wiki for classroom use.

Next Richardson describes how RSS allows users to read many blogs through one client, such as Bloglines.com, helping one read more in less time. He suggests ways RSS feeds can be used in the classroom from daily news updates on topics being covered in class to setting up alerts on specific search terms from Googlealerts.com.

Blogs and wikis focus on creating content, RSS allows students to read what others have written, and tools such as online bookmarking allow students to “read and connect with what others read” (p. 91). Richardson describes how to set up del.icio.us and furl.net accounts and how to use them. The text highlights Flickr.com as a way to encourage online discussion about photos posted online. Richardson describes how to set up a Flickr account and provides many examples of teachers using this technology in their classrooms.

Richardson describes how to create and post audio and video files online. He refers to podcasting as the “creation and distribution of amateur radio” (p. 112). Once again this chapter is full of ideas and examples from actual classrooms, such as online radio shows, oral histories, campus tours and orientations. He also describes how to find free server space for homemade podcasts and how to post podcasts in one’s blog. Screen-casting is similar to podcasting, however these files contain computer screen captures with audio. He provides some instruction on creating and editing files.

The final chapter suggests that two trends will continue to impact the read/write web: continued growth of online content, and increased collaboration in creating that content. Pages 127-133 describe ten big shifts that will and are happening in education, including: learning will occur 24/7 and there will be many, many teachers; teaching will become conversation rather than lecture; readers will be more actively engaged; writers will discover new genres; and contribution not completion is the ultimate goal. This section is one of the most critical in the book as it helps teachers begin to understand the speed and depth of the changes occurring in society right now. Richardson suggests that teachers will redefine teaching to view their role as that of connector, content creator, collaborator and coach (pp. 132-133).

Richardson achieves his three goals in this easy to understand book. The only limit to the ideas presented is that of access to computers and the Internet. Some schools still do not have computers in every classroom and some students do not have access at home. Many students are more familiar with these technologies than are their teachers, so while students may be able to teach their teachers about the technologies, teachers need to be able to quickly turn these technologies into appropriate learning tools.

The book is full of examples including web sites and screenshots that provide readers with a deeper understanding of the concepts he presents. The four page bibliography is comprised almost exclusively of online references, and the seven page index provides easy access to the content of this handbook. The epilogue provides a glimpse of what a not too future teacher prep period might look like. To read more by Richardson, visit his blog at www.weblogg-ed.com/.

Reviewed by Kathy Irwin, University of Michigan, Dearborn.