Assignment 9:
Over the past three years I have been conscious of a new technology called blogging. I was unaware that this was not as new as I had perceived, as it actually had its beginning in the late 1990's. Since that time, blogging has become more of a household word, and not only for the those persons with technical backgrounds.
How can I use blogging in my classroom::
After creating my class Website, I add a welcome message by podcast. Later, I will create a blog site so that students or parents might leave a message in a forum manner.
Since my District currently blocks blog sites, my goal is to be able to demonstrate the educational benefits of blogging.
If I am successful, I will want the students to create a class blog where they can discuss class materials as peers. This gives the students a sensense of ownership with their own education. After school, my plans are to offer tutoring and introduce the students to blogging and podcasting technology.
If possible, I would like the students to go to educational blog sites so that they might experience real life communication with experts in a particular field. One site in particular is the Mathgrad site which also offers podcasts of topics in math. The students will probably find this novel and therefore have an interests in viewing/listening to these sites.
Back in the eighties, the use of computers in a classroom was viewed as another method of playing, not a viable educational tool. Our society has advanced way beyond this thinking, as now it is unlikely that classes do not contain at least one computer. By properly using blogging as an educational resource, it will be possible to change the opinion that blogging is the new "toy" for students in the classroom.
Over the past three years I have been conscious of a new technology called blogging. I was unaware that this was not as new as I had perceived, as it actually had its beginning in the late 1990's. Since that time, blogging has become more of a household word, and not only for the those persons with technical backgrounds.
How can I use blogging in my classroom::
After creating my class Website, I add a welcome message by podcast. Later, I will create a blog site so that students or parents might leave a message in a forum manner.
Since my District currently blocks blog sites, my goal is to be able to demonstrate the educational benefits of blogging.
If I am successful, I will want the students to create a class blog where they can discuss class materials as peers. This gives the students a sensense of ownership with their own education. After school, my plans are to offer tutoring and introduce the students to blogging and podcasting technology.
If possible, I would like the students to go to educational blog sites so that they might experience real life communication with experts in a particular field. One site in particular is the Mathgrad site which also offers podcasts of topics in math. The students will probably find this novel and therefore have an interests in viewing/listening to these sites.
Back in the eighties, the use of computers in a classroom was viewed as another method of playing, not a viable educational tool. Our society has advanced way beyond this thinking, as now it is unlikely that classes do not contain at least one computer. By properly using blogging as an educational resource, it will be possible to change the opinion that blogging is the new "toy" for students in the classroom.
posted by Coach lynn @ 9:56 AM
7 Comments:
At 8:19 AM,
dengman said…
Robert, woudl you hvae the computer access to implement Blogs? Or team up your kids in 'Blogging groups' to ease the burden for one comptuer per student?
I like that you will try to get this new technology up and running n your room.
You and Keith (Joe maybe would join in to) will have a lot to talk about, given you both will be teaching math this year,maybe Newmiddleschoolmathteacher.blogspot.com is open for you guys :-)
At 5:06 PM,
DiscoverEDU said…
District not allowing students to access blogsites...
While I understand the districts' undertones about security and student safety, the issue should also involve the IT/MIS people. These are people that can help make supportive teaching technology work by providing a safe intranet (here's a clue!) environment for students.
These day's there’s a new entry into the safer student blogging arena every couple of weeks. David Warlick’s Blogmeister, http://classblogmeister.com/ (free) is gaining quite a following, and the well-established ePals gang has just released its very robust SchoolBlog software, http://schoolblog.epals.com/ (not free.)
I also found a site where a classroom teacher can make a free, password-protected wiki as easily as a peanut butter sandwich (well, that’s the promotional pitch says, anyway!). This site is located at: http://pbwiki.com/wiki.php
PS: Got Milk...with that P&J?
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At 7:09 PM,
Coach lynn said…
BigJoe,
Thank you for your encouragement.
Robert
At 7:13 PM,
Coach lynn said…
Dale,
My class has 4 student computers and one teacher (which I am willing to give up so that I may use my laptop), so I do have the resources. The question is whether I can persuade the District to unblock blogging Sites. I feel more confident that I will be able to get this changed. Throughout this course I have read sound educational arguements as to why a District should permit access, so I am hoping by next month this isssue will be resolved.\
Robert
At 1:40 PM,
DiscoverEDU said…
WordPress Security Problems:
WordPress has been battling security update difficulties since the end of last year (2005) and continuing to the present. In a school environment especially with children, I hesitate to place any trust in security update practices that fall short in any area that could compromise the safety of a child.
The problem at WordPress seems to be in the area of organizing their security announcements, releases and providing reliable and stable security updates.
In regard to WordPress’ latest update and claims of providing improved security stability, the education environment is not a place for experimentation nor is it a place where IT or MIS should grasp a wait-and-see approach in reference to a potential security risk.
That’s irresponsible!
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At 5:41 PM,
dengman said…
Robert,
My district will unblock a specific blog (ex:www.676engmsn.blogspot.com) but will not unblock the entire www.blogspot.com or www.blogger.com, except for my administration portion.
I agree with the district on the need to block these blogs due to the adult nature of some blogs. Until the Blog companies come up with a rating system for blogs that we can set user access levels to I am backing my district.
I would recomend that you st your blog up ahead of time and petition to get jsut yours unblocked. You may need to have student blogs pre created then as well.
Good Luck Dude,
dale
At 12:07 PM,
Coach lynn said…
I also have tried to come up with alternative plans in case I am denied the use of blogs. The first thing I came up with was the loading of audacity in the room and having the kids record then I will post them at home. However, this does take the kids out of the technology loop as they are unable to finish their product.
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