Clusty and Grokker - Unique Alternatives to the Almighty Google Search

Many students initiate any and all research projects with a Google Search. While this generally provides a plethora of responses, many of the hits are only loosely connected to the subject, or are completely irrelevant. Google is a very powerful tool for research; however, there are several alternatives to Google that each have a unique way of organizing the search results.

Clusty, at first glance, looks like any other search engine. The difference is in how results are reported. The full list of search results appears on the right side of the window. On the left, results are clustered by subject. This allows students (and teachers) to look at results that are more likely relevant to the particular issue or topic they are researching.

You can see an example of the results page below.



Grokker provides two options for viewing search results. The first is an Outline View that groups the results by keyword or subject. You can see below the results from a search on Project Based Learning.



You also can select the Map View which provides a visual representation of the categories and sub-categories that appeared in the search results. You can see an example of this below.

Engaged, Online Communication through Blogs

The ways we communicate are changing dramatically. Web 2.0 tools have broken down walls and built bridges between people divided by age, culture, socio-economic class, and geography. In the United States, we celebrate and treasure our right to free speech; technology has now provided us with the ability to be heard...loudly.

Blogs (short for "web logs") have allowed individuals to publish their thoughts, observations, and opinions to an almost limitless audience. Now, from the comfort of your living room, you can be an author, a reporter, or a columnist. This "participatory journalism," in part, lead to Time Magazine's 2006 Person of the Year - You!

This shift in how we communicate could be an invaluable asset in classrooms at any level. Blogs, in particular, allow for a new frontier in classroom communication and collaboration.

First, blogs can be accessed both in and out of school. So, the conversation does not need to end immediately when the bell rings at the end of class. In fact, the conversation could continue indefinitely. In addition, conversations on a blog are not limited by geography; students in different classes, schools, states, or even countries can all be a part of one conversation.

Second, blogs provide a written record of the conversation. In any small or large group project, at least one student is given the task of recording the information. When the conversation is done through a blog, all responses are stored and available for later review. And, you do not need to worry about sloppy penmanship!

Third, blogs allow students to focus on ideas, not personalities. Presenting information in front of a class can be, for some students, a very awkward, uncomfortable experience. Some students are so intimidated by public speaking that their voice often goes unheard. Blogs allow a means for students to freely share their knowledge, ideas, and opinions, without worrying about their voice, or appearance, or fashion sense. This can, in some cases, be a life-altering moment, bringing someone from the fringes into the classroom community.

Some educators are concerned about blogs in the classroom because of the possibility of students posting inappropriate material. Most blog sites do allow the author to determine who can see the site and who can post to the site. In addition, the author can choose to moderate comments; posts and comments will only be published with the approval of the author.


Blogger is one of the many available blog sites. It is a free service owned by Google. You can see some examples of blogs created for student communication and collaboration below:

SHS Inauguration Project 2009

SHS Presidential Watch

SHS Constitution Project 2008

Use Cellphones to Your Advantage

www.textmarks.com allows you to configure a blog, wiki, or any webpage to send a text message to a phone when requested. Imagine that you have assigned homework and have put the assignment on your webpage. Students would be able to utilize the text mesaging feature of thier cellphones (standard charges apply) to easily access that information no matter where they are.

Try it...text "mrnelson" to 41411 and see what you get.

Ask Here PA - Live Librarians, Ready to Help You!

Despite the fact that the internet is seemingly saturated with information, it can often be difficult to separate the accurate, relevant, credible information from the myriad of data that is available online.

Students often start and finish online research with a simple Google search, or a brief review of Wikipedia. While these can be helpful tools for a research project, they do not always lead students to the best sites and resources.

AskHerePA.org is a website that allows individuals to contact a librarian via a live web chat. This is a free service, staffed by trained librarians who will help you find any information you may need. You can also have a transcript of your web chat e-mailed to you. In addition to helping individuals locate information online, the librarians at AskHerePA have access to other resources such as databases and electronic journals.

AskHerePA provides individuals with all the benefits of a visit to the local library without having to leave the living room.

AskHerePA is primarily a resource for residents of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. There are similar services provided by the Library of Congress and the Internet Public Library. Also, many other states provide a similar service such as Florida and California.

An easy to use classroom response system.

Do you want to use classroom response systems but don't want to setup one for just one or two questions? You may want to consider using www.polleverywhere.com. This website allows you, after a quick setup, to gather responses by using the student's cellphones.
The free version allows 30 responses per question and also allows you to make different versions of the same question to use in seperate classes. The poll can be embedded in blogs, wikis, or just used as a stand alone webpage.

The live poll updates as students vote, take a look.


Texting charges do apply, however the website provides an option to use a classroom computer as a polling station

Creating Word Clouds with Wordle

Word Clouds can be a great tool to help students dissect complex text. In a word cloud, the text is arranged and sized based on usage in the particular text. For example, the most frequently used words will be larger and more prominently featured.

Wordle is a Google application that will generate a word cloud based on text you have entered (by pasting the text, or entering a URL for the text location).

Below, you can see an example of a Word Cloud that I created in Wordle based on the text from Obama's speech on race that was delivered at the National Constitution Center on March 18, 2008:

Obama's Race Speech Wordle