Hypothes.is: A Digital Annotation Tool

 With an increasing trend toward using digital resources rather than printed texts, there has become an increased need for digital engagement tools. Hypothes.is providers users with the ability to annotate digital texts, without having to download or print the resource.

Even though I would identify myself as being a tech-savvy person, I will admit that I am still someone who prints articles that are online rather than reading them digitally. I am also a person who will always prefer a hard-copy book to an e-book, but my experience this week with Kindle may actually change that... but more on that another time. My experience with Hypothes.is may be the catalyst that transitions me from a printed to digital reader, based on its ease of use (not to mention benefit to the environment!). Hyopthes.is is an internet browser extension that allows users to engage in collaborative annotation, although it can also be used for individual use. It can be used on any website or PDF that opens in a web browser. Hypothes.is works best with Google Chrome, but it can be added as a bookmark to any internet browser, if preferred. Accounts are free, and the extension can be downloaded for easy access with any online resource.

After trying Hypothes.is both in an individual and group context, I have found many benefits to using this program. The first benefit is that it can be used both for personal and collaborative use. I appreciated that it could be utilized for students to engage collaboratively on annotating an assignment without having to share their work through another program. Students can see annotations in relative real-time, meaning that can work on a digital resource simultaneously. I also appreciated how Hypothes.is can be used for personal use, as they allow you to set the share settings of work to "private". As I stated above, I typically steer away from using resources in their digital form, but believe that Hypothes.is will allow me to engage with materials online in the same manner that I would if there were printed. Plus, what a benefit to the environment when I do not have to print some many pages! Below, I have included an image of my personal use with Hypothes.is to annotate a webpage, including demonstrating the ease of use in digital annotations.

Click here to explore Hypothes.is for educational purposes!

A potential downfall that I could identify would be the fact that Hypothes.is is geared toward higher education, meaning that it is great for my own graduate studies, but is likely not a resource I would use with my elementary students. As we are continuing with our digital citizenship work and use of digital resources, I do not see this platform as being an appropriate resource for my students right now. Part of that may be the context - we are not currently reading digital resources for any particular learning engagements. I think that this resource could very likely be integrated into middle and upper school, but would most likely not be the most effective resource for elementary classrooms. If you have any thoughts on how Hypothes.is could be integrated into an elementary classroom, I would love to hear your ideas in the comments! Overall, I am excited to begin using Hypothes.is for my own studies, and potentially integrating into my professional work at school, even if it is not necessarily a tool I will use with my students.