Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Eileen Buescher
eileen.buescher@cms.k12.nc.us
November 16, 2010
This white paper was written as an assignment for Dr. Marshall G. Jones’s EDUC 651 class at
Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SC. All rights reserved by the author. Permission is granted to
use this white paper provided the user notifies the author in writing prior to use.
What is Edmodo?
Edmodo is an educational program that allows teachers and students to participate in
microblogging discussions, respond to polls, and manage and submit assignments. It is a private
platform, meaning its content is not available to
the general public. To access Edmodo, students
must enter their “access code,” given to them by
their teacher. Only teachers can create and
manage Edmodo accounts. Edmodo is a free
program available at www.edmodo.com. There
are no licensing requirements to date. Teachers
and students do not need to download anything, but rather simply register and create an account
within the website. Edmodo has an interface that is similar to Facebook, which eases the
difficulty level for most students because they likely are already familiar with Facebook and
other social networking websites from their personal use.
Drawing inferences
Students will read and understand the content-related literature and then draw inferences
and conclusions that can be developed through teacher guidance and questioning on the
Note feature of Edmodo.
through the quality and quantity of replies to their other classmates’ messages and
questions.
The chart below outlines a list of issues present in many classrooms that Edmodo helps to solve.
NETS Standards
With the use of Edmodo in the classroom, the following NETS standards are addressed:
Using Edmodo in the classroom meets this standard because of the interactive nature that
Edmodo entails. Because students and teachers work together to clarify, evaluate, and
analyze literature, through questioning, argumentative, and well thought-out responses, they
are essentially working to construct knowledge.
Edmodo addresses this standard because when using it, the teacher has essentially adapted
the face-to-face discussion aspect of the curriculum to become a virtual aspect. Students can
be assessed in a variety of ways through Edmodo. They have the ability to submit
assignments and view grades through the Gradebook feature. Teachers can also require
students to participate in polls and evaluate students based on the quality and/or quantity of
their responses.
Assignments Gradebook
Edmodo: A White Paper 5
(Edmodo, 2010)
The use of Edmodo tackles this standard because when used in the classroom, teachers
should inform and request permission from parents and school members first. In doing this,
the students have other adults on their side to help monitor their learning. Therefore,
students, teachers, and other adults are essentially collaborating and communicating using
digital tools.
Edmodo addresses this standard because the teacher has an active role in posting and
responding to comments on Edmodo just as students do. The teacher can post homework
assignments, discussion questions, and links to other relevant information that students
should be cognizant of.
Edmodo meets this standard because prior to using and while using Edmodo, teachers should
outline a set of rules that they expect students to follow while using this program. Students
should be held accountable for abiding by all school rules, which specific to the program can
include proper language use, avoiding virtual bullying, and respecting their teacher and
peers. Teachers should also model and convey to their students proper ways to interact and
make argumentative responses in a respectable manner.
Environmental Factors
Required Tools and Equipment
1. A class set of laptop computers or access to a computer lab. Depending on the age and
level of computer skills that your students have, it is best to initially start using the
program where the teacher can present the information and guide the class accordingly.
The teacher will need to distribute the access code and may want to monitor or require
Edmodo: A White Paper 6
the students to have a particular password. After the first trial with using Edmodo, the
teacher can assess his or her students’ access to technology to decide whether or not all
future Edmodo sessions need to be done together.
2. Access to the internet. Because of the nature of the program, access to the internet is
required. While use of the web site is free, students need to have the internet to use
Edmodo.
Required Skills
1. Basic computer abilities. Using Edmodo requires the teacher and students to have the
skills needed to complete basic computer operations. If students utilize other social
networking web sites, such as Facebook or Twitter, then they will likely already have the
skills needed, as Edmodo requires a very similar skill set. This includes: basic
keyboarding abilities, proficiency in browsing for and attaching documents, and
recognizing and responding to alerts from the teacher and other students regarding online
posts and announcements.
Step One
Teacher signs up and enters classes.
Step Two
Personalize your settings.
Step Three
Invite students to join your groups.
Step Four
Begin posting.
(Edmodo, 2010)
Drawbacks Explanation
Since the nature of Edmodo is an open forum where
students can express their answers and opinions, it can
also lend itself as an opportunity for students to openly
Possibility for Students’ Misuse
discuss inappropriate or off-topic issues. Teacher
cautioning and monitoring can help to avoid this, but
the possibility is always present.
Because Edmodo necessitates the use of the internet,
parents should be notified and required to allow
permission for their child to use Edmodo in the
classroom. Given that other social networking
Acquiring Parental Consent websites, such as Facebook and Twitter, can have a
negative reputation from the perspective of adults and
the general public, some parents may be wary or
completely opposed to the idea of their child using
Edmodo.
Although Edmodo only requires access to the internet
and a computer lab at school, the benefits of the
program can be further extended if students are able to
Lack of Access to Technology
use Edmodo from home. Conversations, polls, and
messages would be more active from further use and
misconceptions can be clarified quicker if students
Edmodo: A White Paper 9
Conclusion
As blogging has become more ingrained into our society to the point where it has affected
politics, the judicial system, and popular culture, it is not hard to imagine that it also has its place
in education. The value of Edmodo and other educational blogging programs to the classroom
setting is expansive. Edmodo allows students to communicate about literary and other
educational topics freely and in a manner that is familiar to them. Students today are writing
more than ever and Edmodo provides a means to make this happen (Thompson, 2009). Because
of the small amount of skills and resources that this program requires, Edmodo is an easy way to
incorporate technology into any lesson. Just as blogging has become embedded into our
everyday lives, teachers should work to include Edmodo into every school day.
Edmodo: A White Paper 10
References
AppAppeal: Reviews of Web-based applications. (2010). Edmodo. Comcoaster.
Edmodo. (2010). The Edmodo guide. Retrieved on October 12, 2010, from
www.edmodo.com/guide/
Horizon Report: 2009 K-12 Edition. (2009). The New Media Consortium. Retrieved on
International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). NETS for teachers 2008.
teachers/nets-for-teachers-2008.aspx
Thompson, C. (2009). Clive Thompson on the new literacy. Wired Magazine. Retrieved
09/st_thompson.