Blogs as teaching tools

As I finished the assigned reading, more than ever I realize that there is no avoiding the presence of technology in today’s society.  And, technology in education is only going to increase over time.  Even if I don’t like it, even if I am resistant to it, I cannot ignore it.  I need to strive to be at least half as knowledgeable about these technology tools as my students. 

As I am getting on the ramp to the information super highway, I found the information in these chapters to be enlightening.  I had my own opinion of the usefulness of blogs.  Before starting this class and the reading, I had looked at very few blogs and had certainly never posted to one.  I had decided that blogging was for the most part egocentric.  The authors of the blogs I had viewed seemed very self concerned wanting to make sure that everyone knew their opinions on the stated topic.  They did not seem inviting or interactive.  I much prefer the notion that blogs are collaborative, interactive communities where learning could take place.  I also realized that I fell prey to one of the pitfalls of maintaining a blog, which was electronic journaling.  In my last post, I simply wrote but did not attempt to engage the reader in an exchange of ideas.  I wonder, how many other potential educators fail to see blogs as more than an electronic journal?

I now see that blogs are one place to exchange ideas.  As stated in the book, “writing stops; blogging continues.”  However, as a teacher, I can see a problem with that.  At some point shouldn’t the discussion on one topic stop to make way for the next?  If individuals are given an infinite amount of time to reflect and respond, few topics could be covered over the course of the year.

My final concern with using blogs as a teaching tool is finding balance between the blog and the content area of my discipline.  I want to avoid giving a student who is weak in content a good grade because the presentation, that is, the use of the blog was fabulous as well as avoid giving a student who is strong in content a bad grade because the use of the blog was weak.   I need to match the way I use technology to the way my students learn from it and can manage it themselves.  I am still quite uncertain how to achieve this and evaluate it.