After reading an article about blogging, I have very conflicted feelings on the matter. I don't have any experience with blogging, other than to come across the occassional blog by mistake in my online quests for science lessons I can use in class. Blogging seems to be a very connected and emotional response to events that are occurring. People seem to blog because they have something important and relevant to say and they welcome the responses of others to their comments. It is very journalistic in nature. And very personal on some level. I absolutely feel like this could change the classroom environment. There is ample opportunity for students to relate to each other, to respond to each other, and to connect in a safe format. However, I don't know if I feel like this is the right forum for an eighth grade class. My students have a lot on their minds, and a lot to say about all that stuff on their minds. That's great, and I welcome the opportunity for them to connect with each other in a structured setting to discuss comments and hear each others' voices. As a matter of fact, my most emotional reaction to the possiblity was the comment made that blogging lends equality to all the voices involved. Everyone has an equal opportunity to post, and read, and be heard. This is great for student involvment. Also, blogs are really easy to use. I find that most of my students are comfortable enough learning about new technologies to actually adapt more quickly than I do. I can teach them something one day and have them point out new applications to me the next. There is an ease of organization that is useful and a simple format that isn't intimidating. Blogging appears to be a great way to teach students about how to be a purposeful participant in a conversation without being insulting (although there does seem to be a fair amount of criticism in the blogging community - at least it is usually backed up with facts). I see many benefits to the use of blogging in the classroom, and I see how it could change the classroom environment. I also see the disadvantages.
The daunting thought of policing their comments and structuring their responses does seem to take away from the inherent purpose of blogging to begin with. If a student has an impassioned response to a certain blog, than it seems like they should be able to respond in a way that expresses their interest. Also, many of my students have very poor writing skills. It would be difficult for them to participate in this type of online conversation. The blogging participant has to be fluent enough in the language, and good enough at writing and composing comments, to be a contributer on any level.
I plan on experimenting with blogging next year to see whether or not this adds or detracts from student participation. Forcing someone to have an opinion is difficult, but maybe my students can come up with a topic they feel passionate enough about (within the scientific community) to blog about. I am using science journals for reflection for the first time this year. That might be a good place to start with blogging. Students can use the blog as their science relflection journal. Hmmmmm...ok. The ideas are starting to roll in. I might jump on this bandwagon...
As a teacher, I see the potential positive impact of blogging and how it could turn the classroom into a more global and interactive environment. This is an amazing thing, for students to see their input read and responded to by people that don't even know them. It also presents a problem when dealing with students on a maturity level that may prevent them from objectively absorbing the input of others and being able to process it without reacting in an inappropriate way. I guess I'll have to find out for myself...
Debbie,
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that you have connected to both the positives and negatives of blogging for the classroom environment. I am one to admit that I had a bit of trouble with the idea initially; as an English teacher, I find that the most positive form of learning is the face-to-face interaction that students receive in the classroom; however, I admit I was wrong. Initially, I found that the blogging world would minimize ideas, allow students to become lazy in their thinking because of the easy access to all other internet sources, yet I have found a different side to educational blogging. You state that "blogging lends equality to all voices involved," which I believe some students do not always feel in the classroom, regardless of how safe of an environment the teacher creates. Blogging is a way for students who are shy in personality to become more alive; I do not believe it is a site that "forces an opinion," rather a site that allows students to read and learn from other peoples' ideas, which ultimately "sparks their own." This blog alone has opened my eyes to many more possibilities and perspectives. Due to the fact that I am able to learn from you, I am able to respond with new and improved versions of what I had originally thought. Personally, I believe that blogging does encourage "connected and emotional response," while allowing students to take these responses on varied paths.
If you are fearful that you are forcing students to participate, why not test it out as an extra credit at first? As an English teacher, I would post questions on a blog that were debated about in class, in regards to a current event or reading from that day, and have students take the discussion in the classroom to the virtual classroom. Why not conduct an "experiment" of your, considering what science already tests? It could be fun, and ultimately, you would learn much more about your students if you made the classroom readily available in more locations than one!
Good luck :)
-Lauren
I strongly agree! Different situations can cause different outcomes and that’s the reason why teachers (us) are experimenting. I feel like using technologies with younger students will be definitely harder than middle and high school students. That’s the reason why I believe that we need the right grade and group of students to use blogging. Like Lauren said, in her class is better to have face-to-face communication. My point is, it might be hard to use blogging in every classroom, for instance, math. As good educators, of course we need to experiment new situations and risk. That’s the reason why we are here to make students learning better and interactive.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of using the blog as an extra credit. I think is a great way to start the engine and gain students interest. Of course, you will need to give them choice! Because that’s what students love! Learning will be fun if students can relate to their interest and compare with others or even with students who have similar interests. It will be a healthy learning environment to share ideas and thoughts. In addition, I feel like netiquette is the key here, before students start to communicate via internet with others, they will need to agree with the instructor about the rules and regulations.
Good luck with your experiment!
Daniel
Thanks for all the constructive comments! It's fun to check in and see what people think of what you wrote. Lauren, how do you control the blogging forum so that inappropriate language or responses do not become a problem? I am concerned that I'll get into trouble with the administration and parents because of potential misuse of the blog if I open it up to my students.
ReplyDeleteI have not done an extensive search, but there are tools that I think can be used to help alleviate some of your concerns. Doing a quick search www.gaggle.net seems to show some promise, but I understand your fears and concerns. They seem to provide a way for students to safely blog. It may be an idea to look for another teacher whom you can collaborate with. Many blogging software suites allow ways to set up very tight restrictions but admittedly doing that for each student can be a challenge.
ReplyDelete@dani
I actually came across a website that had a student math website. The teacher gave them problems and they had to blog out their answers. It surprised me to see it working so well and the teacher commented on their answers with a grade and breakdown of how he/she came to that grade. There were a number of math oriented post and I like the idea that it worked on not only their math skills, but their ability to communicate their answers effectively.
This is a great conversation! I'm trying to think of ways to adapt a blog for third-graders. I teach reading strategies to children and then ask then to note their use of the strategy when they read, ie. predictions, reasons for predictions and whether or not they came true, or structural analysis of unknown words--how they deconstructed the word and made sense of its parts to reconstruct a meaningful whole. It might be interesting to have a daily blog journal, sharing their utilization of these strategies...just thinking...
ReplyDeleteGreat conversation. Remember that you blogs should require a login to comment - inappropriate comments will be accountable. In addition, the opportunity for the teachable moment is priceless. We are not often able to provide guidance when our students make inappropriate mistakes online, yet those mistakes can have serious future consequences.
ReplyDeleteGaggle is wonderful, although I strongly encourage you to look at Edmodo - you will be very impressed, and might provide a safe place for students who might be ELL or have trouble writing. Take a look!
I just checked out edmodo and I'm really excited to give it a try. It's simplistic in terms of set up and the group code for your class makes it safer (as long as they don't share it with anyone else). It's hard to sift through it all when technology changes so quickly. By the time you use something there are five hundred other options, but I guess you just have to jump in and give things a shot. I have to admit that I am a little nerve wracked with all the different accounts. Between my optonline, blogging, twitter, google, yahoo, delicious and my school email I'm starting to feel like I'd like some sort of package that could inform me of all my different messaging services all at once and allow me to respond from one source to all the different accounts. Anyone working on that?!!
ReplyDeleteAgain, thanks for all the input. Coordinating with another teacher sounds like a good way to start and help keep track of all the responses. And I agree with Dani that I don't want to squash everyone's freedom of interest! Keepin 'em interested is what it's all about!