Penzu Review

Review of Penzu

The first part of my review can be seen here in this slide rocket presentation.




Check out this example of how to navigate your journal entry...







Some final thoughts about Penzu:

• Please describe a scenario of how you might use this tool in a teaching environment (150-250 words).

From time to time when I have residents that struggle with professionalism issues, I ask them to write a personal reflective essay and turn it in to me.  I read their submission and I provide them with feedback.  I think that encouraging these residents to journal would be a better way to promote regular reflection, and I could then require the submission of one entry per week to me through the share feature.  Using penzu, I could then comment on the residents journal entry.

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of using this tool in a teaching environment? 

The advantage of using this tool in a teaching environment is that it is free and very user friendly.  Also, it is highly accessible since all you need is a computer.  The disadvantage of using this tool in a teaching environment is that journaling tends to be a highly personal experience, and many learners may not feel comfortable journaling and then sharing that experience with others.  It may be difficult to separate journal in the educational setting with journaling for personal growth and development.  That being said, I was asked to keep journals in college when we would go on trips and turn them in for grading.  I still have those journals today, and consider them a wonderful memento of my college educational experiences.

• Would you recommend this Web 2.0 tool to others, or suggest that they explore a different tool?

I think that if you are looking for an online journaling tool, penzu is an excellent program.  I plan to keep on using it, particularly when I travel.