Thursday, February 12, 2004
Blogosphere
I agree overall with the author's promotion of Blogs and their positive effect on student learning.
However, the extent of the learning is dependent upon the structural confines and guidelines placed on the blog content and the motivation of the student. Granted, by using such a medium, one has access to outside resources and the opportunity to integrate those, but the success of such tools depends on one's use and desire to learn from them.
The idea that publication will enrich the student's use of and learning from a blog I find to be questionable, depending upon the context. If required to contribute to a class blog, yes, I think a student would be more aware of audience and the fact that his/her writing is going to become viewable to the public. On the other hand, when a person creates a blog for the sole purpose of thought release, he/she has the option of whether or not to allow anyone else to see it - it would be rare that a person would randomly stumble across the blog if it was not advertised in some manner. And, if someone did find it, how likely is it that the viewer's opinion/thoughts/reactions to it will make any difference to the author since they most likely will not know each other?
Any sort of reflective writing on a topic aids in learning - reflection and analysis is from where true understanding comes (and from God too -- which brings about another question; am I allowed to say that? I'm writing in a Blog for a class - and more people than just the instructor will see it... should I censor myself? Am I allowed to express such an opinion?)
I'm considering using blogs in my composition course as a method of journal writing - cut down on wasted paper and allow me easy access to student journals. Save paper - Blog.
However, the extent of the learning is dependent upon the structural confines and guidelines placed on the blog content and the motivation of the student. Granted, by using such a medium, one has access to outside resources and the opportunity to integrate those, but the success of such tools depends on one's use and desire to learn from them.
The idea that publication will enrich the student's use of and learning from a blog I find to be questionable, depending upon the context. If required to contribute to a class blog, yes, I think a student would be more aware of audience and the fact that his/her writing is going to become viewable to the public. On the other hand, when a person creates a blog for the sole purpose of thought release, he/she has the option of whether or not to allow anyone else to see it - it would be rare that a person would randomly stumble across the blog if it was not advertised in some manner. And, if someone did find it, how likely is it that the viewer's opinion/thoughts/reactions to it will make any difference to the author since they most likely will not know each other?
Any sort of reflective writing on a topic aids in learning - reflection and analysis is from where true understanding comes (and from God too -- which brings about another question; am I allowed to say that? I'm writing in a Blog for a class - and more people than just the instructor will see it... should I censor myself? Am I allowed to express such an opinion?)
I'm considering using blogs in my composition course as a method of journal writing - cut down on wasted paper and allow me easy access to student journals. Save paper - Blog.
Monday, February 09, 2004
What is your reaction to this article about blogs in online learning?
