In the interest of full disclosure, I admit to using RSS feeds numerous times in the past. I currently have a Web site with RSS feeds from newspapers, library and technology journals, and various other Web sites. (See this sample page from my Web site that uses multiple newspaper feeds.) They are a wonderful tool. So my bias toward them even before proceeding onto Thing 3 is overwhelmingly positive. I’ll be curious to see whether my attitude changes, is reinforced, or altered in other ways. Having said that, what follows is a summary and reaction to my experiences in completing Thing 3.
Since my district’s filter blocked Bloglines, I limited my experience to the Google Reader, at least for now, since I did request that the filter unblock the site (although to date I’ve had no luck getting any cooperation so opening that door may seem unlikely, not that there’s anything wrong with that—from their perspective, anyway).
Editorials aside, here is what I found with the Google Reader: To find Google Reader, go here.
Since my district’s filter blocked Bloglines, I limited my experience to the Google Reader, at least for now, since I did request that the filter unblock the site (although to date I’ve had no luck getting any cooperation so opening that door may seem unlikely, not that there’s anything wrong with that—from their perspective, anyway).
Editorials aside, here is what I found with the Google Reader: To find Google Reader, go here.
Finding content is not the challenge. Limiting it is. If a person gets carried away, the benefits of the RSS could be deluded. It was also easy to create new folders and to put the CMLE bloggers into them. It was also easy to unsubscribe by going to the "manage" feature; I found out by subscribing to the wrong blog. Again, the whole idea behind the RSS feed is to save time by having information delivered to a user’s own site. That this process seems to be dominated by Google leaves me a little unsettled; if its domination crushes the competition, I suspect all of these free services will be free no more.
How can teachers or media specialists libraries use RSS or take advantage of this new technology?
I offer a workshop entitled "Online Resources for Teachers," and as part of the "marketing" for this workshop, I make the case that busy teachers should not whenever possible need to seek information related to classroom content, resources, and related professional development materials. The RSS tool addresses these issues very well--along with newsletters and other subscription services. Media specialists may use them for their own purposes and demonstrate for others how to have information "delivered to them."
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