BLOGGING IN THE CLASSROOM SETTING

How it is benefiting students and teachers

Introduction to Blogging

A blog can be summarized as a typically self-maintained website that a person includes regular entries into that are about the subject of their choosing. A blog can include all forms of technology ranging from video casting to even simple paragraphs. Blogging is a great way for people to make others aware of what is going on in their life, but through this presentation you will also learn how teachers are using this inventive technology to teach students.

Above is a picture of my blog which I use to assist in my technology class. The picture will link you to it.

Kid’s Are Blogging Their Brains Out

DescriptionThis article explores a classroom in Glenwood Springs, Colorado in which the teacher is using the class blog as a way for the students and the teacher to communicate and share. The blog also allows for other family members to blog on their child’s page or on the class page. The teacher also posts class pictures and updates.

http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20070407/NEWS/70405039

Vail Daily Pete Fowler April 7, 2007

Kid’s Are Blogging Their Brains Out

“Everything gets screened by the teacher and only students’ first names are used.” Says Pete Fowler. Screening and only using first names ensures the students safety while using the blog.

Students are able to blog in class as well as at home

Parents can blog with the teacher or other students

Intriguing to students because it offers a new form of learning

Students are encouraging the teacher to assign more homework that involves the blog because they seem to enjoy it

Kid’s Are Blogging Their Brains OutI found this article to be very helpful in

explaining one useful way to use blogging in the classroom. The article provided insight into the idea that parents, grandparents, relatives and so on can provide feedback to their student-relative from hundreds of miles away. The idea that the teacher uses it to communicate with students and guardians alone is a clever concept for keeping everyone informed. It can almost eliminate the idea of children forgetting their note home, because the teacher could possibly just communicate directly to the parent via the use of the blog.

In The Classroom, Web Logs Are The New Bulletin Boards

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/19/technology/circuits/19blog.html?ex=1250568000&en=33627811ca310596&ei=5090

DescriptionThe article discusses

one teachers idea of using blogs as a different approach to learning. Within the classroom blog students can get help from other students on problems, the can post their homework, and they can interact with the teacher and other students. The article states that teachers feel that this venue for speaking allows those students who are often shy in class to come out. Many students tend to be more creative and expansive in their responses on the blog.

Jeffrey Selingo The New York Times August 19, 2004

The Classroom, Web Logs Are The New Bulletin Boards

"I used to have this stack of hard-copy journals on my desk waiting to be read …Now I can react to what they say immediately, and students can respond to each other.“ Said Catherine Poling in the article.

Not only is it a new form of teaching but also a new form of grading

Blogging extends class activities beyond the basic hours of school

Fast feedback from both teachers and peers

More thought and effort tends to go into blog writings because the student knows that others might read it

The Classroom, Web Logs Are The New Bulletin BoardsIn this article it discusses many different school personnel’s experiences with blogging in the classroom. The article depicts many different ways that the blog can be used. I found this article to be very helpful because of it’s expansion on different uses. The article didn’t just focus on teacher to student communication but also on student-student communication as well as teacher-parent communication. I think it is very effective when students are evaluated by their peers, and by allowing this to happen on blog posts this helps the student to develop their writing skills as well as personal skills. The article also expands on more than just an elementary setting for blog use, but it also delves into the idea of high school students using it as well. The main idea of the article was to add ideas to a typical classroom as well as enlighten teachers to the idea that students tend to enjoy blogging more than typical class work.

Blogging Classroom Connects To Parents

DescriptionA fifth-grade teacher

in Pinellas Park allows his students to write about what they did each day on their class blog, along with reading that parents can check their students grades.

Emily Anthes St. Petersburg Times August 9, 2005

http://www.sptimes.com/2005/08/09/Tampabay/Blogging_classroom_co.shtml

Blogging Classroom Connects To Parents

"If I needed help on my homework, she could help me because the log would have what we did in class.” This was said by one girl in the article talking about her mom helping her.

There are teacher training programs that are trying to bridge the technological gaps

Helps parents understand what the child is learning in class with detailed instruction

Still beneficial to those who do not have home computers because of its use in the classroom

Blogging Classroom Connects To Parents

Above are a few still shots of the Pinellas Parkway classroom blog that was talked about in the article. The article made me think that using a blog to provide assignment information and grades to parents is a very valuable tool. I think that allowing the parents to access their child’s grade will keep the parent more actively involved in the learning process. I also think that providing the parents with the daily rundown of what was being taught in the classroom allows the parents to be better capable of helping their child with homework. There are also calendars on the website that help parents to see upcoming events and assignments. The above links are a great example of using a blog in the classroom setting. Each picture has a link to it’s spot on the website.

My Personal Thoughts

Reasons Blogging In The Classroom Is A Good Idea:

-instant feedback

-peer feedback

-interactive

-allows creativity

-helpful for parents

-communication tool between parents and teacher

Before reading these articles I felt that blogging in the classroom was a smart concept but never saw myself using it. Now after reading these articles I am excited about creating a classroom blog to allow for the new way of learning and communication. I am a big fan of providing the parents with a rundown of the day as well as some information about what the students learned so that parents are able to help their child with homework. I think this will be a tool I will use daily in my classroom.