"Blogs are not about writing, they are about a conversation." (2007, 7)
Blogs are not a new way to keep journals; they are a new way to have conversations about ideas, thoughts, reflections, and analysis (Utecht, 2007). Simple transferring current assignments and projects to a blog does not necessarily enhance or add value to the assignment. In order to take advantage of the benefits of blogs, teachers needs to give their students time to read, respond, and reflection on their blogs and their classmates' blogs (Utecht, 2007). The blogs needs to be brought back into the classroom through conversations and discussions - whether through comments online or class discussions.
I think this directly goes back to analyzing web 2.0 technologies and the two questions Judi Harris encourages educators to ask themselves before implementing new technologies into the classroom:
- Does the tool enable us to do something we couldn't do before?
- Does the tool enable us to do something we could do before, but better?
References:
Harris, Judi. (1998). Harris, Judi. (1998). Wetware: Why Use Activities Structures. Retrieved March 5, 2009 from http://virtual-architecture.wm.edu/Foundation/wetware.html
Utecht, J. (2007, April 20). Blogs are not the enemy. Posted to www.techlearning.com
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I really think that blogging fits into the #2 question. It allows us to have better conversations. Great points were brought up. A student has a whole different purpose if they are aware that the "journaling" will be shared and read by other peers.
ReplyDeleteYou brought up a valid point; one that I was discussing with a colleague recently. There are so many new technologies out there, and there's quite a push for us to incorporate them in our teaching. However, I struggle sometimes trying to find a valid reason for using some of those technologies in class. At the end of the day, I don't want to introduce a new technology tool that seems to have little educational value just to say I'm using it. That said, I believe a blog needs to be used purposefully in class, or it will never reach its potential as a tool for learning.
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