RSS = Ready + Set + Siphon!

(http://joevans.pbwiki.com/RSS+Feeds)

Is this where we are headed? What an exciting prospect!

WHAT IS RSS?:

At the beginning of our EDES 501 course, we were asked to set up an aggregator to have a better understand of how this Web 2.0 feature worked before commenting and reflecting on it in our blog posting. As with any new technology, I asked my husband what an RSS aggregator was...he had no idea. His answer to everything is "Google it!". Before jumping onto the net, I knew there was a chapter in Will Richardson's book so I read the beginning and set to work creating my aggregator (note: I didn't read the whole chapter back in September). I was ready to summarize what I had read to my husband but he was already on the internet and setting up his reader account. He LOVES it! He had several blogs he enjoyed surfing but was always using his bookmarks to locate them. He couldn't believe he hadn't heard of this RSS thing before!

RSS stands for Real Simple Syndication (in some of the other articles I've read, they call it Rich Site Summary). One of my favorite definitions and explanations for RSS was in a video created by Wes Fryer "simply" titled "What is RSS?" ( A fun way to learn for this visual learner!) I loved his analogy of RSS, referring to open water as all the information "out there" and your RSS aggregator acting as the faucet that brings it together in a condensed version and you access it as you wish (OK, so you have to see the video!). In my own words, I would explain RSS as a way for you to receive your favorite blog updates and other social networking tools all in one place so you are not "clicking" all over the internet. It's a great way to stay on top of the latest news, trends, sport's scores, techno tips and much, much more!


SETTING UP MY RSS FEEDER AND INITIAL EXPERIENCE:

As a Blogger and "friend" to google I decided to keep all my accounts in one place (sort of) so I set up a Google Reader account (instead of Bloglines as recommended by Will). I started by subscribing to my fellow classmates' blogs (so cool!) and then began subscribing to the Web 2.0 expert bloggers as I found them during my research of our Web 2.0 topics for this course. It was kind of neat how their blogs would contain Blog lists that they followed so I'd check them out and add them to my Reader. (This Web 2.0 thing...it's all so connected!!! LOL) I kind of got addicted to subscribing to these blogs and my feeds started growing at a rate faster than I could read them. Thus began my first "sifting" experience as I had no choice but to delete the ones I found I wasn't reading anyway or that didn't really provide any knowledge that was helping me at this time.


The next step for me in dealing with RSS, was when I added it to my personalized homepage account (igoogle). Everytime I open Internet Explorer my igoogle homepage appears with my Google Reader account updated and ready for me to read. And read I did! This was not always a good thing as I was initially logged onto the computer to get my course work done or check my e-mail and would then find myself "sidetracked" and consumed by the posts that I'd found in my Reader. Fun, yes...productive, no! (Don't get me wrong...I still love my Google Reader feeds!)

So as you can see, my intial experience with RSS was really for me and my learning and I hadn't quite made the connection to how this could help my students.

FURTHER READING AND INVESTIGATION INTO RSS in EDUCATION:

With our post on RSS feeds finally looming, I began to do more investigation and reading. Time to pick up that chapter by Richardson and REALLY read it this time..no skimming!

Wow...now that's a lot of technology jargon that I wasn't prepared for. I was beginning to see the use in the classroom but I was pretty confused by how to access all these feeds, how to subscribe to them and how to group them all together!

Along with Richardson's chapter on Killer Apps, I also read an extensive article (PDF) by Quentin D'Souza entitled Web 2.0 Ideas for Educators: A Guide to RSS and more. (He covered many of the same topics as Richardson but enlightened me to the fact that I could be adding my bookmark network addresses to my Reader so I could be updated on any additions they made to their Delicious accounts! I'm sure many of you have already figured that one out!)
With Richardson's and D'Souza's indepth look at how RSS can be used, I was little overwhelmed with all the ideas so I tried to organize my thoughts in a web. ( My students are currently involved in a project at school using Inspiration so...not to be too puny but I was inspired to use a graphic organizing tool to web out my thoughts.) Since I don't have Inspiration installed at home, I thought I'd try out the web-based version called Webspiration (yes...another collaborative Web 2.0 tool).

On this web you will find what I have learned about the uses of RSS for educators and for students. (Click on image to enlarge)





Since this is a Web 2.0 tool, the whole idea is to have collaborators to help build on my web. In order to be able to collaborate on my web, you need to be invited through your e-mail address. So just for fun, I have sent out an invitation to a few of my classmates that have been part of my discusssion group. Please feel free to make changes and add to it!

In my other explorations in learning about RSS, I came across the Google Reader blog with tons of tips and ideas for using Google Reader and RSS feeds and better late than never I found this Common Craft video of Google Reader in Plain English. I also found a few blog postings with different ways to use RSS such as Louis Gray's 30 Different ways to use RSS.

WHAT IS THE "DOWNSIDE" TO RSS? IS THERE A "DOWNSIDE"?:

I can't say as there is a lot in the way of a "downside" where using RSS is concerned. Here are a few thoughts I have:

• I've had that feeling of "information overload" when I haven't visited my aggregator for a while and my list of subscription updates has exceeded 100 (I think I actually reached 208 at one point!).
  
• It would be a lot of work to initially set up a reader and fill it with sites/subscriptions on a specific subject or topic that students were researching (although it would "pay for itself" in the end I'm sure)


• I have a hard time imagining younger students using and reading feeds off of an RSS reader (I wrote that with a bit of sarcasm...I hope you can tell!)
  

As you can see, I really don't see a lot in the way of problems with using RSS!

To try to alleviate my stress with too many feeds, I decided it was time to organize my subscriptions into folders and only access the feeds that were pertinent to me at the time! Currently I have 5 folders (my EDES 501 bloggers, Personal fun, Web 2.0 experts, Librarystuff, Technology and now I'll need to make a folder for my Social Bookmarking Network updates!).

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Looking at all the Web 2.0 tools we've been learning about in this course, this is one tool that as an educator of K-8 students I don't feel will be as commonly used for me ( beyond my own personal and professional growth). I also feel like that is a lot more I need to learn about RSS and using aggregators in the classroom.

Since I never read any blogs before this course and now I am getting updated blog postings sent to me on a regular basis, I can't believe how much more intune I feel with the world of "edutechnology"! Referring back to the cartoon at the beginning of my post, it's hard to imagine but I wonder if this IS what our students will be reading more of than books in the near future?

To summarize how students and the general public can benefit from RSS, I will quote the words of Will Richardson, "...it will make you and your students smarter, more effective consumers of information. RSS is a technology that will change your life, if you let it."