BLOGGING IN THE CLASSROOMBy: Kayla Wiseman

MENU

Blog Revolution: Expanding Classroom Horizons with Web Logs

Exploring Educational Use of Blogs in U.S. Education

Blog On: Building Communication and Collaboration among Staff and Students

Conclusion

BLOG REVOLUTION: EXPANDING CLASSROOM HORIZONS WITH WEB LOGS

Author of the article, Blog Revolution: Expanding Classroom Horizons with Web Logs, Will Richardson, explains the growing world of blogs. Richardson states that a new blog is created every second, and about two million blogs are updated every week. He also states that there are over 900,000 blog posts everyday.

BLOG REVOLUTION (CONT.)

Richardson also explains the use of blogs in his school. He states, “At my school, Web logs are used as collaborative spaces where students, teachers, and guests can build content together.” Richardson says that in a Holocaust class his students use blogs to communicate with students in Poland. Richardson is aware of the dangers that blogging can create, however, he believes that proper teaching can create a safe blogging environment.

PERSONAL REFLECTION

I really enjoyed reading Richardson’s article and learned a lot about blogging. I could not believe that a new blog is created every second! I really enjoyed this quote from Richardson, “Blogs are one of many new disruptive technologies that are transforming the world. They are creating a richer, more dynamic, more interactive Web where participation is the rule rather than the exception.” This quote really made me realize how big of a part blogging is becoming to this world.

EXPLORING EDUCATIONAL USE OF BLOGS IN U.S. EDUCATION

In the article Exploring Educational Use of Blogs in U.S. Education, Wang Hong explains the use of blogs in the classroom. Hong first explains what a blog is, which he states as, “an online chronological collection of personal commentary and links.” He also states that blog was announced “Word of the Year,” by Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary.

EXPLORING (CONT.)

Hong then goes on to explain the use of EduBlogs, or education blogs. These uses include, communication, instructional resources, as well as, a place to showcase projects. Teachers can use EduBlogs to post announcements for parents and reminders for students. Teachers can also post links to websites that may help students with their homework.

PERSONAL REFLECTION

I learned a lot of great uses for blogs in the classroom from Hong’s article. This quote really stuck out to me, “Blogs also provide instructors an opportunity to extend learning and engage students beyond the walls of the classroom.” I never really thought of blogging as a means of learning, however, I do believe that students would really enjoy learning this way.

BLOG ON: BUILDING COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION AMONG STAFF AND STUDENTS In the article Blog On: Building Communication

and Collaboration among Staff and Students, Catherine Poling explains the different types of blogs and their use in the classroom. Individual blogs are the majority of the blogs on the Internet. However, this type of blogging should be used with older students rather than elementary students. Classroom blogs allows students to communicate and collaborate among each other. In this type of blogging, students can write a response to a book they have read, as well as, respond a fellow classmate’s response.

BLOG ON (CONT.)

Another type of blogging is collaborative blogs. This is where students from one class work together with students from another class. Students can work with another class from the same school, or even another class from a different school. The last blog that Poling talked about is the staff development blog. This type of blogging is where teachers and staff members can easily communicate with each other.

PERSONAL REFLECTION

Blog On really taught me about the many different types of blogs. In fact, I did not even realize that there were different types of blogs before reading this article. Poling states, “Technology can help support and enhance the development of reading, writing, and the language arts, which are the foundation for success in school and in life.” As a result of the advancements in technology, students are now able to learn in more ways than ever.

CONCLUSION

Hong, W (2008).Exploring educational use of blogs in u.s. education. US-China Education Review, 5, 34-37.

Poling, C (2005).Blog on: building communication and collaboration among staff and students. Learning & Leading with Technology, 32, 12-15.

Richardson, W (2008).Blog revolution: expanding classroom horizons with web logs. Tech & Learning.