Blogging along - a reflection.

In this Blog we are to create a reflection on the potential of blogs in the teaching context and to scaffold that exercise in a SWOT style so as to create an analytical landscape. It is to be focused on learner centred styles and the teacher as the facilitator.
So this is a reflection on how I may see the use of blogs in the classroom environment. Firstly a SWOT diagram as explanation.

image link.

I will begin with the SWOT analysis and then move further into the uses of blogs within a classroom environment.

STRENGTHS:
Ease of use, accessibility in time and location, connectedness to community, builds chronological time line of work, student feedback easy with comments, multimedia format / use video graphs, pictures, open to strong scaffolding tools (link), brilliant tool for reflective learners (see learning styles), excellent tool to encourage writing, Perfect platform to develop ICT learning, safe places available e.g. learning place, can create a real sense of class belonging (see school link below),( Blackstone,B) states, "accessability beyond traditional limits of the classroom", "can encourage autonomous learning", "personalised and student centred",                                                                          

WEAKNESSES:
Difficult to monitor all of class, can be opinion based, can create isolated working situations if poor pedagogy employed, others can not share other than comments, may not be as useful for collaborative exercises e.g. wiki, not so good for active learners (see learning styles), dependant on individual student motivation.

OPPORTUNITIES:                                                          
Possibility to include parents, possibility to involve community, ability for others to make comment. Inter / Intra-class collaboration, Inter  / Intra-school collaboration,  gain understanding of student feelings and thoughts, ongoing assessment to gauge effectiveness of pedagogy, students learn from others students, possibilities to use with special needs students, brilliant tool to encourage children to write,

THREATS:
Limited by available technology, risk of inappropriate content, others comments inappropriate, poor student technology skills, students publishing private info, time frames, school policy / procedures,  classes changing each year what happens to the students blog?

Following is a diagram that covers the practical uses well.

 diagram link

Another link that is very useful is the QSA Information and communications technologies, cross curriculum policies. Reading between the lines I can see a use for blogs in almost every aspect of the document. A great site to encourage creativity.

Here is a LINK to a website that proposes 33 ideas for the use of blogs in the classroom. What is wonderful are the comments afterwards, as others include their thoughts and ideas. Connectivism at full speed.


TEACHING IDEAS:

I will be teaching primary students so I will be applying ideas to that situation. As I am very new to both teaching and deeper ICT I would take a lead from the expectations of Education Queensland and their expectations from ICT. Understanding my students and their individual and collective needs and learning styles will factor in all of this.
(ACARAv4.2) gives clear indications of "applying social and ethical protocols and practices", when using ICT. A blog is an exceptional format for learning how to reference and use ICT information and to learn to operate safely in the web environment.  Any decent pedagogy will have these issues front and centre. I have created a wiki page that has reference sites for safety that I will implement in the class setting. I have a long way to go and realise that my knowledge must continue to grow.
I have seen many references on the positive effect of blogs and technology on written literacy (example), (Winch, G., p.254) states technology, "may enhance writing and even make certain stages of the writing process( such as drafting, editing and preparing easier, more interesting and ultimately more satisfying. The end result may be better and making collaborative work easier and reinforcing the social nature of learning". This is perhaps especially true for some students such as those with Dyslexia and Autism spectrum disorders.

A link here to a class web blog in Victoria. The excitement of the children at their tasks is obvious and wonderful. The inclusion of web safety protocols within the blog is vitally important.

Following are a few teaching ideas:

As stated in the opening preface, the goal here is to be facilitator and focus on learner centred approaches. This tool delivered / scaffolded appropriately engages students and creates motivation for learning. 

Early primary: 

• very early primary run a class blog that we contribute to as we progress, group activity will begin to induce collaborative learning and will help to scaffold learning for those less technologically able. If two or more groups are created, ethical commenting, evaluation and analysis can be explored.
• A great vehicle for  reviewing or referencing previous class work, develop self assessment and progress and encourage collaborative engagement and ownership of work.  
• literacy and spelling work can be created and stored in the blog, which relates to point two as progress can be evaluated, like a work portfolio.
• caution must be exercised to develop a safe working environment and web searches may need to be guided.
• when searching the Internet work in pairs as a minimum.

Mid primary:

• ask individual to have blogs and ask students to make comments. 
• Collaborative work may be more effective, use blogs as portfolios of learning, use as an inducement for literary skills, by learner centred focus and relevancy by asking students to create own literature.
• Create a personal blog, teacher only other access. Excellent resource for those less willing to share private thinking or feel embarrassment of work, a safe place to share their poetry, writing, feelings etc.

Later primary: 

• Create personal blogs as best work portfolios.  
• Blogs as term project portfolio e.g. in climate studies building answers to problems much in the way we are doing here, gathering data and it would be especially useful in the higher order Bloom's Taxonomy level as the student's revise and reflect on their work.
• Ask parents to comment on blogs, 
• Involvement of community by collecting comments from actual people in that line of work, scientists etc. when students do projects.
• Most importantly of all, other than personal blogs, students can engage with the blogs of the world. For a literacy assignment I produced, a part of the after reading task was to access Blogs of scientists on Macquarie Island, to ask them questions and to make comments. Talk about connecting to the world.

As with all teaching we are intent on helping our students learn through creative thinking if possible, Learnonline has some great tools.

Stephen Downes is prolific in further thoughts on blog use, too many to include here.

After reading Lynette's blog I was inspired to add her page to this discussion as it has some excellent links to blog ideas and some inspirational examples of how blogs can be used to help bring relevance and engagement to the class with ICT's and particularly Blogs.

References:

Blackstone, B, Spiri, J, Naganuma, N, Blogs in English language teaching and learning:

      Pedagogical uses and student responses, Reflections on English Language Teaching, Vol. 6, No.       2, pp. 1–20

Downes, S.(2004), EDUCAUSE Review, vol. 39, no. 5 (September/October 2004): 14–26. Retrieved (March 2013)

Winch, G., Ross Johnston, R., March, P., & Ljungdahl, L., Holliday, M. (2010) Literacy, reading, writing & children/s literature (4^th ed.) South Melbourne: Oxford University Press.