In wrapping up my MEd, I've been taking this online course called "New Media & Literacies in Education". It's required me to do a lot of reflecting and practice, and it has inadvertently inspired me. In fact, this course has inspired me so much that I now know what I want my research for my MEd thesis to be: blogging. Yes, go figure- I'm blogging right now. But, right here is where it all began. I truly believe in the purpose of a blog- a way to genuinely share information publicly about a given topic to support a common theme- and the authentic dialogue that ensues. I love it. And I can't help but wonder if my students will love it and benefit from it as I have. My curiosity has led me to conduct some research about blogging- it's definition, purpose, and role in the classroom. I've found a rich array of sources along my search, and today I'm going to share one of those sources. See attached link:
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/blogging-in-21st-century-classroom-michelle-lampinen
This source details one teacher's experience with blogging. What I love about this source is that she includes the assignment she gave her students when she presented the idea of blogging to them. Her assignment is a great starting point for any teacher who is looking to incorporate blogging into their curriculum. A "starting point" is key here, because you want to be sure to tailor the assignment to your class purpose and your student body. Right now, I'm in the process of tailoring her assignment to better suit my AP class purpose and students' needs. I plan to present this assignment to my students some time this week so that they can begin blogging right away. I'm excited to see the successes of this assignment, and I'm curious of the speed bumps I may encounter along the way. I, of course, will be sharing the results of my findings with all of you next week!
Whoa, I like this! I think it's so important for students to see the usefulness of blogging, not just that it's another way for the teacher to make them do work :) It gives students a way to see that there is a real person behind the ideas out there on the Internet (albeit some aren't "real" per se, but you catch my drift). BOOKMARKED!
ReplyDeleteWhoa, I like this! I think it's so important for students to see the usefulness of blogging, not just that it's another way for the teacher to make them do work :) It gives students a way to see that there is a real person behind the ideas out there on the Internet (albeit some aren't "real" per se, but you catch my drift). BOOKMARKED!
ReplyDeleteLaura, awesome article! And I want to point out, that it's always tricky when we are searching online for articles, but as you all know Edutopia is a rich, valuable and credible source right from the teachers!
ReplyDeleteWhat I liked the most about this article (and there was more than this, indeed!) was that the teacher noticed that the students writing was "improving by leaps and bounds." I think audience awareness definitely played a role in this. Look at what happens when students are writing authentic pieces that will be read by more than the teacher. To me, that's gold!