To Blog or Not to Blog...

Okay, sorry, I couldn't help the cheesy allusion in the title.  Chapter 6 in my book, Web Literacy for Educators is about...you guessed it, blogs!  As well as RSSs, Podcasts, and Wikis, but the majority of the chapter focused on blogs, more specifically, how we as educators can and should utilize blogs as part of instruction.  In the first paragraph of this chapter, November makes a powerful statement, that the focus "is connecting students to an authentic audience and challenging them to create work that can have an impact around the world."  What a mind-blowing concept, that our little 8, 12, 16, or whatever age students you work with, can have an impact not just in our own little classrooms, but in the world.

In the portion of the chapter that focuses on blogs, November addresses the concern that many educators and parents have when we think of students using free blogging sites, the questionable content that is out there.  He challenges educators not use this as a deterrent, rather ascertains that it is a learning opportunity as we "revisit the upside of preparing students to understand the ethics and social responsibility that comes with all of this global power."  He then goes on to point out that, while many blog sites may be blocked by school filters, as this seems to be an "easy fix" for the problem of questionable content, students are still going to have access to those sites outside of school.  So, rather than "blocking" or ignoring the issue, why not take it as a teachable moment/s, to teach students how to deal with the questionable material that exists and enforce the notion of the responsibility that comes with the use of sites, such as blogs.  Also helpful in this portion of the chapter, were ideas for how to use/ways to use blogs in classrooms, including:  discussion topics, build community (post events, homework, etc. for parents and students), publish student work, create a forum for collaboration, and build a body of knowledge.  He gave a fascinating example of one math teacher who gave his students the task of producing notes, illustrations, and examples of concepts taught in class on a blog, which resulted in a "Student's Guide to Understanding Calculus" at the end of the year.  Therefore, rather than reading a calculus textbook, students basically created their own textbook.  That blog, http://pc40s.blogspot.com/, has actually been linked to hundreds of Web sites, "including conferences and commentaries by leading educationalists and other math teachers," talk about a global audience!   This is another point made by November, that by utilizing blogs, "Teachers are no longer the sole or even the primary arbitrator of student work.  It is even possible that teachers do not have to work as hard to motivate traditionally failing students or to set much higher expectations for excelling students.  parents can now have access to the writing of an entire class, compared to only what their own child brings home written in their hand."

Since the majority of the chapter focuses on blogs, I'm just going to briefly touch on the other components of the chapter.  One was the use of RSS, which is a way to "automatically receive new content produced on the blog without having to go back to the blog Web site."  This is a good way, as an educator, to receive new information about any topic you desire.  He also suggests students can use the tool to get information for given topics, for example, a research topic.  Next in the chapter is information about Podcasts, which are audio or video files which can be downloaded to numerous devices.  Teachers can use Podcasts to relay information to students, or can even have students create their own Podcasts on a given topic.  And last, but certainly not least, is the section on Wikis.  A wiki is "a Web-based tool that allows people to work together on a single piece of writing or body of work."  November explains that this format is an easy to use tool that "will allow teachers and students to work collaboratively in a protected environment."  Teachers can choose to protect their wiki page, so only people with a password can contribute to the wiki.

Along with these valuable tools, comes valuable learning experiences, and responsibility, for both students and teachers.  Students must learn to be socially and ethically aware and responsible for the words they choose to use in any of these mediums, and we, as eductators, are charged with helping students learn these responsibilities.  After all, "Over time these tools will change, but the ability to expand our boundaries to a global community and open up new methods of authentic assessment is here to stay.  These are technologies our young people are currently using and many will be expected to use once they enter the workplace.  Providing them with guidance and positive role models about how to harness their power is essential."