This week was all about blogging. Blogging presents so many possibilities both with students and myself as a professional. Some benefits of blogging are quick and instant assessments. Students can create work and I as the teacher can respond immediately. In addition students can assess each other’s work, and work collaboratively. I think one of the challenges we as educators will face is getting students on board using blogging in a different way. I know they will like the technology and the tools, but really have you seen the grammar? The challenge will be getting them to break the “texting” habits on line. Once we break through that, I believe they will be excited about it. Then there are parents, the parents will finally see all the work their older children never bring home to show them.
Blogging can be used across the curriculum. It can be used in younger grades to make sentences, spelling tests, writing projects, daily journal writing, to name just a few. Older students could use blogging for any type of research project or writing assignment.
As a professional the possibilities are endless. We can record and share our challenges and successes. By doing this in a blog, I can have access to it anywhere and anytime. It’s nice to look back and see how much you’ve grown. In addition, by blogging others can provide feedback. We can share resources and collaborate online. I am currently in the process of creating a classroom website. It takes some time to create, but once it’s done it will be nice to have.
Tammy, I agree that attempting to implement a new online tool, such as blogging, can be met with a lot of resistance. There are so many unknowns from the school and parent perspectives, and as you mentioned the students have already developed online habits that may be difficult to break. What strategies will you use to break your students of the "texting" habits? Is there a place for the "texting" style of communication in today's classroom?
ReplyDeleteYou are on the right track regarding “blogging in a different way.” I too think that this will be the hurdle to figure out – maybe getting the parents on board first will make them your ally instead of an additional hurdle. The grammar of our students are (usually) terrible and needs to be addressed and worked on. This may be just the medium to do it in! Once the students have blogged a few times you could start to incorporate more and more writing/grammar skills into the mix.
ReplyDeleteIs blogging a place for "finished" work or is there leeway for grammatical errors and free-flowing thoughts. When might you accept them as "rough"?
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