Week 6, Thing 14: Technorati and Tags

Technorati is a helpful tool for navigating web content.  I especially like the unique design of the searching tool, allowing you to either click on a blog search or a posting search.  I found that both yielded relevant material to a search about "Classroom Learning 2.0".  However, if you wanted a blog that was focused on this particular topic, than the blog search would be recommended.

In an age where user-created material dominates as a primary source of information, tools such as Technorati are essential.  They provide the guidance we need to find the material that we are looking for.  And because there is so much material, the idea of having a controlled vocabulary as a way to index material is impossible.  Sure, tagging might not make it possible to find all relevant material, but there is a high likelihood that the language you use in your profession or avocation, will also be used by the bloggers in that field.  For example, I know that I can find blogs about literacy, middle school, and PLCs, because this is a language is commonly used in my field and most likely act as tags.  The benefit here is that tags are made by people who care about and know about that material.  The deep understanding helps them tag in a way that describes the heart of the material, making the tag a true representation of the work.  I know that don't think like a cataloger and my guess is that most people on the web don't either.  So maybe when looking for blogs or other web-based material, it might be less of guessing game to find what heading will get you what you need.

I don't know that I would using Technorati with students, but how about tagging?  Most likely, some are already assigning tags to material.  But even if not, what a great way to work with students on determining the main idea of a passage.  Especially for students with who are English Language Learners, this could be a positive and less remedial-looking way of teaching them how to find the main idea.  Students could tag materials written by other people or could tag their own material.  This could be kind of motivating, don't you think?  Just a thought...