If I Can Do It, You Can Too!

[Blog Cartoon]. Retrieved August 7, 2009 from http://ammaryasir.files.wordpress.com/2007/04/blog-cartoon-2.jpg

Blogging. Children do it, adults do it. In fact as of 2003, nearly half a million people did it (Bartlett-Bragg). Blogs of various assortments have become a very popular way for writers to offer critical reflections on any variety of topics. My pastor blogs his thoughts on readings he feels are important. My former student blogs on his thoughts regarding drama. Many educators also blog on any variety of subject from curriculum to technology.

Paquet (2003) provides a description of five characteristics of blogs. These include:
1. Personal editorship
2. Hyperlinked posting structure
3. Frequent updates
4. Free public access via the Internet
5. Archived postings

Having been an official blogger now for just over a month, I have had time to reflect upon the impact that blogging can have for both students and teachers alike.

Student blogs

Blogging has the potential to be an incredible learning tool for students of practically any age. Lesley Instone argues that blogging allows for a "freer flowing, creative, and contextualized discussion that is more like a conversation." Having students blog allows for them to shift from surface learning to deeper learning. Distance learning students are able to feel less isolated as they can collaborate and share ideas with peers. Students have the ability to reach out to a larger audience offering them a real world experience. Russell Beale concurs and adds that blogging creates a sense of community among students. It forces students to reflect and challenges them to form an opinion. Also, blogging is a high interest activity for students and requires them to have minimal technological skills.

Bartlett-Bragg suggests several ways in which blogs can be used for educational purposes. These include:
-group blogs
-publishing student writings
-field notes
-publishing personal opinions
-learning journals

The Inspiring Teacher blog suggests that blogs can be used to keep parents involved and informed in a quick and economical way. There are suggestions on the blog for structures that you may want to use if setting up a parent blog site.

If choosing to blog with students there are some things that you may want to consider. Teach students how to tell a story of what they are learning rather than just regurgitating what they have read. Also, give students lots of support as they practice writing about learning both before they begin blogging and as the blogging process starts (Davies, 2008).

In his blog, Will Richardson asserts that there may be some obstacles to overcome before teachers will embrace blogging as a classroom learning tool.
1. Fear of kid's safety: Given the stories that teachers hear about children being lured via the Internet, this may be a legitimate concern. To help lessen teachers' worries, they may want to consider blogging using a source that the school can support internally, especially when young children are blogging.

2. Fear of change: To quote Barbara Ganely

…the fear of free-falling, of moving away from the known, of relinquishing control and of the impact on our time and the resulting pressure on how we train our teachers. It’s one thing to talk about subject-centered, collaborative-centered, connected learning (via blogs or not); it’s another thing altogether to make it truly a reality in classrooms employing blogs in ways many edubloggers write about, including me.

Richardson suggests that teachers need to celebrate the success of teachers as they raise the quality of learning in their classrooms.

3. Lack of time: Teachers are very time-strapped professionals. They need time to learn the technology as well as time to think about how to incorporate the technology into practice. One suggested solution is to incorporate the learning of these technologies into pre-service teacher education.

4. Standardized tests/assessments: Richardson says that teachers feel pressure to teach to these standardized tests as their professional status and sometimes pay cheque relies on them. He says that in order for this change to occur, philosophies need to change at a higher level.

5. Lack of research: Blogging is a relatively new teaching tool. Therefore, little research has been conducted regarding its benefits for students. This makes it difficult for administrators to build a case for its implementation to teachers.

6. Lack of support: Many schools have tight technology budgets and, therefore, little teacher supports. One suggestion I would offer is for districts to hire teacher technology specialists to support teachers as my division has done. These "e-learning" teachers can offer support at the ground level for teachers wanting to learn new technologies.

Blogging for professional development

Blogging can be a great tool for professional development. Blogging encourages self-reflection and one's opinions can be challenged as you research and respond to comments on your blog. Through blogs/blogging, you can gain access to a community of professionals. Blogger Ken Allan, also suggests that blogging engages teachers in real action research. Many business-people blog, yet teachers seem to be lagging behind. Greg Whitby offers his thoughts by asking

Why is the education sector lagging behind? Why isn’t our industry leading the thinking and application of such capabilities? Surely we must be on about questioning, challenging and innovation, isn’t this part of our core business? Aren’t things like communication, collaboration, personalisation central to the work we do in schools?

He followed with this:

I am beginning to suspect it’s because educators rarely venture out of their own networks or jump into this world themselves. I don’t think you can effectively engage in this agenda in the abstract, you have to be an active participant. This means that educators have to blog, use wikis, have a facebook page, use del.icio.ous and the like.

So what do educators need in order to become bloggers? Anne Davies suggests that teachers need time to be set aside for reflection and learning. They also need an administrative team that is supportive of their endeavor. Most importantly, teachers need to recognize that each of us has a voice that is worth being heard. Chan and Ridgway add that teachers will need persistance in order to continue with their blogging.

Blogging: Personal reflections

As I stated previously, I have been blogging for just over a month. Would I have became a blogger unless it was needed for the requirements of the course that I am taking? Probably not. My excuses? No time, no technology knowledge, nothing to offer, no interest. Let me address each of these excuses.

No time: I am a busy mother of two who is beginning a new position in fall, so truthfully, I don't have a ton of free time. However, I have noted that most blog posts are very succinct and focus on one issue. Each usually has a couple of sources to either back up your point or offer thoughts on. Every year we are required to complete a professional growth plan that discusses some goals that we will work towards each year. Why not make maintaining a blog a part of my growth plan? I know that it is not realistic to assume that I will blog daily, perhaps not even weekly. I could, however, offer thoughts every couple of weeks. I would love to reflect upon the life of a new administrator/elementary educator as I begin my journey in a new school.

No technology knowledge: Yes, it was true. I really didn't know what I was doing a month ago. However, trial by fire seems to be the best method for learning. I have become good friends with the Blogger help files and have been able to personalize my little bit of web space quite nicely. While I don't have fish to feed or personal avatars like some of my classmates, I do feel quite comfortable using the blogger site and can now add in anything that I need to. So much for that excuse.

Nothing to offer: I know that each of us has a voice that needs to be heard, but why do I sometimes feel like I must be the one exception in this world? I still struggle with believing that I have something to offer others in terms of my knowledge. Sharing that knowledge is even another story. However, I do feel that my blogging can be a personal reflection that I engage in for my own betterment and professional growth. If someone else can learn from my blunders and wonderings all the better.

No interest: This excuse likely was a result of all of the others combined. When you don't know anything about something, how can you be interested in doing it? I had never previously stopped to read anyone's blogs and did not realize the wealth of information that was shared via blogs each day. I am now subscribed to receive feeds from a few blogs of interest to me. Even if my life as a blogger is not sustained, I do believe that I will continue to look to blogs as a source of information and as a means of professional development.

In short, blogging offers students and teachers alike a venue to reflect, learn, and grow. The open forum offered by blogs enables writers to be as creative as they wish as they engage in a higher learning process. Remember if I can do it, you can too!


[Cat Blog]. Retrieved August 7, 2009 from http://www.pittsburghlive.com/photos/0427bish-a.jpg