Blogging is good. So is school. This we know. And when you put them together, they create something even better. This is the main point in Terra Williams and Charles Lowe's article, Moving to the Public: Weblogs in the Writing Classroom.
The article makes the argument that blogging can be an effective classroom tool. I agree. Not only does blogging provide an outlet for student creativity and expression, but it just makes more sense. In my Writing for the Internet class (which we all know and love), Dr. Jerz uses a class weblog to do basically everything. What makes a class weblog so useful is that students can access important information easily. Simply by clicking on the different levels of the blog, I can see the syllabus, my assignments, and important due dates. Without the blog, I would be completely lost.
Another element that makes class weblogs so useful is that student interaction. As stated in the article, blogging is a good way for students to share and learn more about each other. I know all of my Writing for the Internet classmates in person and in their blog. Blogging allows students to see another side of their classmates- a side they may not be comfortable sharing in class, but can write about freely on the Internet. Shy students may express opinions and ideas through a blog than in person.
Class blogs also allow students to help each other and receive help from the teacher. On the class blog I use, students post questions to assignments they do not understand. Dr. Jerz, and often other students, respond to the post and help the confused person. Without a blog, many questions might go unasked or answered.
The article also mentioned that students become more comfortable with blogging and sharing their work online for others to see. At first, I was a little nervous about blogging. I wasn't used to putting my class work out there for everyone to see and comment on. It was just between me and my teacher. Yet, after blogging, I like the idea of posting my work on the Internet. I enjoy seeing other's comments and know that they are just helping me do better- not criticizing me.
Weblogs are perfect for the classroom. They benefit both teachers and students, which makes the lives of each much easier. I wish I had blogs for more of my classes.
Posted by VanessaKolberg at November 10, 2004 1:43 PMI agree, Vanessa... I wish more of our classes used blogs, because I feel they make things so much easier and more relaxed.
Students usually aren't comfortable discussing things with complete freedom in a classroom because they'll immediately have to face the consequences of putting their thoughts and ideas out in the open.
On weblogs, though, everyone seems much more motivated and comfortable expressing themselves, dealing with just about any topic imaginable. They take the pressure off of students to provide immediate, thoughtful responses to classroom material, too, because while sitting at a computer and blogging, students have plenty of time to organize their thoughts and make their points without worrying about that awkward silence so often "heard" in class (quotations because, how can you hear silence? ;P).
Posted by: ChrisU at November 29, 2004 12:19 PMWell, as we went over in class before, it's easier to talk to a machine than a real person. You dont' have to worry about getting talked back to (at least initially typing up an entry), and a student will be more inclind to join a discussion with thier fingers.
This, however, waters down learning because the focus of the work won't really be that in-class internet exercise. With the scope of the internet, many will be disracted or dulled by working over a computer. It's just a strong opinion of mine that invlolving compters apart from research and typing up reports is a bad idea and people won't learn because of it.
The alternative is to have a machine that does only what you want for the class, but that would be too expensive and unplausible. So it's really something that's up in the air and up to a teacher's personal preference.
Posted by: TimothyTraini at November 30, 2004 9:17 PMI've been watching my 12 year old son labour over his MSN Spaces site and am struck by the potential of this tool in the classroom, particularly with reluctant writers. There are, however, security issues. Comments?
Posted by: deb gibson at February 22, 2005 7:30 AM