WEB 2.0 has changed the world

According to Cast, “Universal Design for Learning is a set of principles for curriculum development that give all individuals equal opportunities to learn” (Cast Inc., 1999-2012). Every student should be given the materials needed for them to succeed in an educational setting. “UDL provides a blueprint for creating instructional goals, methods, materials, and assessments that work for everyone--not a single, one-size-fits-all solution but rather flexible approaches that can be customized and adjusted for individual needs” (Cast Inc., 1999-2012). Web 2.0 and UDL go hand in hand in today’s society. Every student has their own individual needs which can be assisted with the advance in today’s technology.

Web 1.0 had a great start when it was first introduced into the world. People who used Web 1.0 could entertain themselves with games, documents and pictures. On the other hand Web 2.0 has taken society to a new level. With Web 2.0 individuals can communicate with others across the world. Web 2.0 provides endless information on any topic. Students can research, write emails, and send photos to loved ones around the world or to their teachers. Not even considering the basics with computers and internet, there is so much more a person can do on this system. In an inclusive classroom, students can be doing many different things at once because they are on different levels. Computer software helps assist the different levels of ability in a diverse classroom. Web 1.0 was sharing information one-to-one, where Web 2.0 is sharing many-to-many at once (Rosen & Nelson, 2008). Web 2.0 has so much to offer a person; it is hard to distinguish the restrictions. Many new applications or websites appear every single day. Social networking is a great way to share things that have happened in your life or to share something you found that others can use. Educators can share ideas and lessons with the click of a button. Teachers can also monitor students as they are using software. In an inclusive classroom, teachers and students can recieve many great tools on aiding eachother with just the click of a button. Teachers can just click print and the students will have information they need instead of sending out a single piece of paper to have copied. Even though internet lacks face to face social interaction, and social skills with having a conversation, students can become a part of a group and feel good about belonging somewhere. With the increasing amount of technology, I can webcam my family that lives across the world. This will benefit students who have pen pals by seeing where their friend is actually from. I can Skype with a click of a button on my phone no matter where I am. It is crazy to say but I do not know how we lived in a world without Web 2.0. There is so much valuable information that I check daily when I wake up or before I go to sleep at night. Local news can be sent directly to you rather than waiting for the paper the next morning.

The World Wide Web has turned into something specular. After watching the video, “What is the Internet, Anyway,” that was on the Today Show, I began to smile. Ever since I was young, we had computers. At a young age, I had to learn all about how they work. To think there was a time where this great technology was not in effect. When using this technology, and explaining something to another person, we need to treat them as they have no idea how to use this machine. Once a person works at the computer there is so much you can do with them. When the Today Show panel was discussing what the meaning of the @ symbol, that showed me how much society has changed. From a young age I knew the meaning of that symbol. This makes me look at text messaging, this happens every second of every day. My mother, who is someone who did not grow up with this technology, sends me slang terms in a text message. Some of these slangs are things I do not even know what they mean, such as btw (by the way), ppwk (paperwork), and vm (voice-mail). I would say that internet has changed society for the better as a whole, and in a classroom.