Not a day goes by in education without the mention of technology, 21st century teaching and learning, Web 2.0 or social media. Along with this chatter one cannot forget to note the rise of blogging. Blog use in education has grown considerably in the last decade, and the amount of research that has focused on the use of blogs in education is significant. Churchill (2009) notes that blogging can be effective educationally where “a teacher can create an ambience in which students feel themselves to be important parts of the classroom community” (Churchill, 2009, p. 183).
According to Scheidt (2009), blogging became popular after the opening of two commercial services, Livejournal.com and blogger.com, in 1999. A blog is simply a web-based journal in reverse chronological order, which allow users to create, publish and share information with others (Dyrud, Worley and Flatley, 2005; Richardson, 2006). Dyrud et al (2005) noted that there were over 4 million of these simple online journals on the worldwide web by 2004. As a result, doors were opened to the instructional, technical, ethical and organization criteria, which is necessary to content and pedagogy in the classroom (Papa, 2010).
Educational blogs range from school websites, class websites, class blogs, educator blogs, professional learning and for ePortfolios. Such blogs allow students to post text, share hyperlinks, images, and multimedia and to create an asynchronous location where readers can provide feedback, hold discussions, and foster a collaborative learning environment (West, 2008). When blogs are used, students are given opportunities to connect what is being learned in the classroom (Hungerford-Kresser, Wiggins and Amaro-Jiménez, 2011).
Read Write Think (2014) notes that teaching with blogs provides the opportunity to engage students and to share their writing with an authentic audience. When students blog their writing becomes an “integral part of a lively literacy community” (Read Write Think, 2014). More important is the transparency of learning, which occurs with blogging. Student bloggers, as with all bloggers, have the opportunity to write not just for their teachers but also for a global audience.
MacBride and Luehmann (2008) propose “the realized benefits of classroom blogs depended largely on how teachers choose to structure and use the blog” (p. 182). Simply using technology will not guarantee student engagement, learning or the effectiveness as a pedagogical tool. In looking to use blogging with students, teachers must maintain their focus on planning and decision-making as it relates to their goals and standards. Despite the flexibility and the literature, which share the benefits of blogging in the classroom, teacher awareness of student needs should remain the utmost priority. Macbride and Luehmann (2008) warn teachers “that the benefits purported in the literature will not be automatic” (p. 182).
Essential to student learning is student “buy-in.” Yang and Chang (2011) proposed dialogues in the form of blogging are associated with positive attitudes towards. Ellison and Wu (2008) conducted a study that investigated students’ attitudes toward blogging in the classroom and its effect on comprehension where the majority of the participants showed positive attitudes toward blogging.
Hossain and Quinn (2013) suggest that blogs be incorporated into middle school mathematics education to improve teaching and learning of mathematics. Technologies such as blogs can be used widely and responsibly, with the goal of enriching students’ learning of mathematics (NCTM, 2000). And with the average teenager using some form of digital media between 15 and 20 hours per day through “multitasking,” or using several different types simultaneously, venturing into blogging in the middle school mathematics classroom might be a goal to set (Rosen, 2011). Are you willing to venture into the mathematical blogosphere?
References
Churchill, D. (2009). Educational applications of Web 2.0: Using blogs to support teaching and learning. British Journal Of Educational Technology, 40(1), 179-183.
Dyrud, M. A., Worley, R. B., & Flatley, M. E. (2005). Blogging for enhanced teaching and learning. Business Communication Quarterly, 68(1), 77-80.
Ellison, N., & Wu, Y. (2008). Blogging in the classroom: A preliminary exploration of student attitudes and impact on comprehension. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 17(1), 99-122.Flatley, M. E. (2005). Blogging for enhanced teaching and learning. Business Communication Quarterly, 68, 1, 77–80.
Hossain, M.M. & Quinn, R.J. (2013). Investigating Relationships between Attitudes toward the use of Web 2.0 Technologies and Mathematical Achievement. In R. McBride & M. Searson (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2013 (pp. 3916-3922). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.
Hungerford-Kresser, H., Wiggins, J., & Amaro-Jiménez, C. (2011). Learning From Our Mistakes: What Matters When Incorporating Blogging in the Content Area Literacy Classroom. Journal Of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 55(4), 326-335.
MacBride, R., & Lynn Luehmann, A. (2008). Capitalizing on emerging technologies: A case study of classroom blogging. School Science and Mathematics, 108(5), 173-183.
National Council of Teachers in Mathematics (2000). Principles and Standards for School Mathematics. Reston, VA: NCTM.
Papa, R. (2010). Technology leadership for school improvement. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Richardson, W. (2006). Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Rosen, L. D. (2011). Teaching the iGeneration. Educational Leadership, 68(5), 10-15
Read Write Think (2014). Teaching with Blogs. Retrieved on March 22, 2014 from http://www.readwritethink.org/professional-development/strategy-guides/teaching-with-blogs-30108.html
Scheidt, L. A. (2009). Diary Weblogs as Genre (Doctoral dissertation, Indiana University).
Yang, C., & Chang, Y. S. (2012). Assessing the effects of interactive blogging on student attitudes towards peer interaction, learning motivation, and academic achievements. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 28(2), 126-135.
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