Blogs may be used in the classroom for a variety of different reasons. Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, by Will Richardson is a useful resource if you are considering using weblogs in a classroom setting. Some of the uses that stood out to me was posting prompts for writing, gathering Internet links to appropriate sites for students to visit, posting photos and comments on class activities, and having students react to thought-provoking questions. (Richardson, 2009, p. 38-39)
I teach fourth grade Math, Language Arts, and Science. I have two 40 minute Computer Lab blocks a week. One way I would like to use a blog in my classroom would be to have students read a relatively short passage and respond to an open-ended question about that passage. After watching a video clip where a sixth grade teacher, Kathy Martin, discussed teaching her students to appropriately answer a question, I realized using a blog where the students can see each others work would be an effective way to encourage the students to write grammatically correct paragraphs when answering an open-ended question. The state tests my students have to take each year emphasize teaching students to answer open-ended questions with details from the passage and supporting information. This activity would promote the students to answer these open-ended questions correctly in a more interactive, engaging way.
Another way I would like to incorporate a blog into my classroom is to create a Science scavenger hunt. The students would search for the answer to various science questions on the topic we were studying. A blog would make this activity more efficient because I would be able to post the links for the students to access to answer each question right on the blog. Therefore, the students would spend less time typing in the web addresses and more time focusing on the content found at each link.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Understanding the Impact of Technology on Education, Work, and Society [Motion picture]. Teacher as professional. Baltimore.
Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wiks, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
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ReplyDeleteAfter reading what Will Richardson had to say about students using the internet, do you think unleashing them with reading a passage and responding them is safe? Sites such as My Space and Facebook pose some questions. "Many adolescents who use these sites include full names, addresses, and provocative pictures of themselves" (Richardson, 2009, p. 13). Hopefully we can train our students to know internet safety. At our school, the counselor goes over safety tips with the students. What other ways can we provide safety for them? Just like the suggestions from our book, maybe you could have them put anything they complete online into a portfolio, which will force them to not include personal information. I think the biggest thing we can do to help students with this is to make them aware.
ReplyDeleteResources:
Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Allison
ReplyDeleteThe idea of using links in a blog to guide students through projects such as a scavenger hunt is a great idea. My students don't have a lot of computer experience, so giving them guidance through links is a great way to help everyone at once, thanks for the idea. I'm looking forward to trying this with our state reports after the 1st of the year.
Allison,
ReplyDeleteI think that you have many great ideas about incorporating blogs in classroom activities and assignements. How would you support the ongoing work of your students on the online scavenger hunt? Do you think that a true assessment of their learning and understanding could be established via their blog postings only, or would you utilize a final print-out or written component to the assignment. I have written about my desire to do a similar assignment with mathematics and I believe that it will be a challenge to truly monitor the work that each child completes and their understanding of the concept. I agree that I think that viewing blog comments might be more efficient, but as I have never incorporated blogs into my instruction, I am not really sure if this is true.
Thanks for your thoughts!
-Nancy
Having your students respond to an open-ended question through the use of a blog is a great way to encourage developed responses that are supported by specific examples. Once the responses are posted, will the students have time to respond to other classmates' posts? "Although it may seem that the final step in the process is to finally publish the post to your Weblog, this connective writing genre actually continues post publication" (Richardson, 2009, p. 30). Perhaps, your students could be required to read and respond to at least one other post. Reflecting upon what others say in response to a post is a critical piece of blogging. Do you think this would be practical in your classroom setting?
ReplyDeleteReference:
Richardson, W. (2006). Blogs, wiks, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Great ideas, Allison. With the scavenger hunt, how would you regulate the use of "answer" websites such as wikianswers.com and ask.com? A student could use one of these websites exclusively to find answers to any questions.
ReplyDeleteLinzie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the thoughts. Safety is always something to think about when using the Internet. I was going to post a specific passage on my blog for the students to read and respond to so I would know exactly what they were reading. When I posted comments on other blogs, they only asked for my first name in order to post so I think the students would be able to post without revealing a lot of information about themselves.
Allison
Nancy,
ReplyDeleteI agree that it can be difficult to monitor this type of assignment. I would definitely have a final printout of questions with the students answers to assess the students' findings.
Allison
Erika,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your ideas. I especially like the idea of the students responding to at least one other post. I think this would build classroom community as well as get the students sharing ideas. The students would be able to learn from each other.
Allison
Allison,
ReplyDeleteI think that students will learn how to follow those rules that we give them to keep them safe on the internet. If your students are anything like mine, they will just be excited to try something new. Especially with technology. "Blogs archive the learning that teachers and students do, facilitating all sorts of reflection and metacognitive analysis that was previously much more cumbersome" (Richardson, 2009, p. 27). The success that could be made from blogs in unbelievable, and I am surprised that more teachers have not already integrated them into their classrooms. Good luck as you incorporate blogs.
Resources:
Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wiks, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.