A current technology that has emerged in the last few years is blogging. Blogging can be a formative innovation that can shape learning and productivity in the proprietary school industry. Blogging can be exciting and can include images, photos, links, video, audio, or simply text. The students seem to enjoy blogging. Blog posting is a good way for students to improve their grammar, reading, writing and critical thinking skills. Students can collaborate with other students as well share ideas, opinions and valuable/significant information about their course of study.
Problem and challenges associated with this technology is (1) some teachers and administrators associate blogging with social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace. (2) some schools have not upgraded to Web 2.0, which enhances blogging capabilities. Web 2.0 offers a faster and more reliable access to the Internet and the World Wide Web.
The societal need that blogging meets and the benefits, are supported by research done by Farmer, B., Yue, A., & Brooks, C. in 2008. Farmer et al., (2008) did a case study of the development and use of a blogging resource in a large-cohort first year arts subject at the University of Melbourne. Evaluation is ongoing, but initial results offer support for the potential of blogging as an enabling learning tool in higher education. The dynamic capacity of blogging as a communicative channel for both individual self expression and social connectivity has fuelled increasing interest in blogging as an educational resource (Williams & Jacobs, 2004; Burgess, 2006).
What would make this technology even better, plus avoiding the pitfalls I identified? Professional development workshops for teachers and administers which elaborates on the viewpoint of the proponents of educational social networking tools. Proponents of educational blogging proclaim it as an effective tool for user centered, participatory learning; arguing that it contributes vitally “to a reconceptualization of students as critical, collaborative, and creative participants in the social construction of knowledge” (Burgess, 2006, p. 105). Drawing on the social constructivist educational theories of Vygotski, Ferdig and Trammell (2004) usefully explicate the four central pedagogic benefits of blogging for students:
·Assisting students to become subject matter experts through a process of regular scouring, filtering and posting.
·Increasing student interest and ownership in learning.
·Giving students legitimate chances to participate and enculturating them into a community of practice.
·Providing opportunities for diverse perspectives (Farmer, et al., 2008).
Another component that would make this technology even better, would be to interface blogging with a networking system that has Web 2.0 installed on it server.
http://www.thereadingworkshop.com/.../benefits-of-blogging.html
Farmer, B., Yue, A., & Brooks, C. (2008). Using blogging for higher order learning in large cohort university teaching: A case study. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 24(2), 123-136. Retrieved Sept. 19, 2010
http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet24/farmer.pdf
Thornburg, D. D. (2009a). Current trends in educational technology. Lake Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.
Farmer, B., Yue, A., & Brooks, C. (2008). Using blogging for higher order learning in large cohort university teaching: A case study. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 24(2), 123-136. Retrieved Sept. 19, 2010
http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet24/farmer.pdf
Thornburg, D. D. (2009a). Current trends in educational technology. Lake Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.
