Rationale for Use in the Classroom Using Diigo in the classroom allows for teachers to incorporate 21st century

skills into learning. Diigo allows for easy collaborative research, and utilizes essential information literacy skills. Cultural, Ethical, and Societal Issues The digital divide is the biggest issue I see with using Diigo or any online tool for that matter. Students who come from lower income families may not have access to computers and the Internet at home. If theyre from a low income area, their schools may have a lower student to computer ratio also. Therefore, higher income students may have a huge advantage over these students in classes that utilize Diigo. Possible Uses of the Tool in the Classroom This tool could be used for basic bookmarking, allowing students and teachers alike to access their bookmarks from any computer that has an up to date web browser with Internet connectivity. Additionally, this tool can foster collaborative research between students. The teacher (with an educator account) can create groups and the students can share resources theyve found and comment on one anothers findings. The teacher can also comment on the findings allowing them to point out when acceptable resources are not being used. Teachers can collaborate with one another in teacher groups on Diigo. Students and teachers alike can highlight important information on the webpages, allowing them to remember why they thought the website was useful. Annotations can be made through sticky notes, allowing the student or teacher to point out specifically what they were thinking at the time the resource was found. Finally, teachers could utilize Diigo to comprise a list of resources and share the resources with the group. The possibilities of using Diigo in the classroom are too numerous to list here, these are just some highlights. Types of Products Students can Produce This tool can be used by the teacher to produce a list of acceptable websites for students to use on any number of projects. Additionally, students can use this tool to produce their own bibliographies. Finally this tool could be used to log activity for students to show teachers theyre actively working on assignments (Diigo shows what date sites were added to the library). Assessing Diigo To assess if Diigo is a worthwhile tool in the classroom, I think it would be best to first have a group of the instructors try Diigo out and see if they find it useful. Next I would select a group of students that have no learning difficulties and are technically inclined to test out Diigo and see if they have any difficulties using the tool. If they do not, I would make use of the tool school wide and allow those students to help others if they have issues. If the teachers, or the first group of students have any issues with Diigo, the school may decide that it is not worth the time, or may be able to speak with technology professionals to find out why they're having issues.

Curriculum Standards Supported by Diigo Diigo supports the following ISTE National Educational Technology Standards and Performance Indicators for Students 2. Communication and Collaboration Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. d. Contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems Diigo allows students to contribute to project teams to produce original work or solve problems. Teachers can create groups in which students can share resources with one another and discuss those resources. 4. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources. c. Collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions. Diigo allows students to collect data by bookmarking and highlighting. When used in a research setting, Diigo can facilitate students working together to analyze that data and identify solutions to proposed problems, or make informed decisions regarding issues. 5. Digital Citizenship Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior. b. Exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning and productivity. Diigo allows students to collaborate in groups. Students need to actively use technologies such as Diigo in order to develop a positive attitude toward them. Without actually using the technologies, and realizing how beneficial such technologies can be, students may always exhibit negative attitudes. 6. Technology Operations and Concepts Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations. d. Transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies Most students have already completed research projects in groups without assistance of technology. By utilizing Diigo's group feature, they will be able to transfer that knowledge of how to conduct research in a group to using Diigo to facilitate that research. Additionally, most students are already familiar with bookmarking and social media. They can apply this knowledge to using Diigo, a social bookmarking tool.

Student Learning Supported by Diigo Using Diigo in the classroom can help support the following types of student learning: eLearning -- Diigo can support eLearning by allowing students from different locations to be put into groups to share resources and complete a group project. communication -- Diigo can support communication by allowing groups to communicate about resources in a group project. problem solving -- Diigo can support problem solving by providing students with a central location to store and share resources Modifications for those with disabilities If an instructor is assigning a research project for example, the instructor could setup a set of approved websites to use as resources for ELL students or those with learning disabilities that do not allow them to fully evaluate the validity of resources. Furthermore, teachers can utilize the technologically inclined students to help train other students in how to use Diigo. One of the best features about Diigo is it's availability on mobile devices. Therefore if a student cannot be near a computer, they may be able to utilize a tablet or other handheld device to conduct their research. For visually impaired students, simply using the zoom feature on the web browser can greatly improve their use of Diigo.