For the record, I am a 5th grade teacher and I mainly teach science, but also teach reading and language arts.
So how do we really make use of this blog-o-sphere as teachers?
Well, for starters, use it to give them all equal voice. In any classroom you go to, I don't care where or when, there will be kids who don't stop talking, and there will be students who don't make a peep. This handy-dandy 21st century marvel allows the timid to speak up without having to actually open their mouths. Suddenly, we have a brand new viewpoint to base discussions from and further our thoughts.
Also, I would definitely use my blog as a sort of informal assessment for a days discussion. For instance, say we spent the day in the computer lab searching around a website on the human body. In the last ten minutes of the class, I can post a question for them to answer based upon what they learned during the hour. Voila! On one web page I have the data showing how much my students learned during the hour.
To give a prime example of how I'd use a blog in a class, the best example would be in reading. Currently, we are working our way through Where the Red Fern Grows. A great use of the blog for this novel would be to create an online discussion for each chapter. As we finish a chapter, I can post a question for all of the students to respond to. As the week progresses, we can periodically go back to see what others are posting on each others posts, and use those as in class discussion points. We've created an enriched learning environment by using discussion questions that the students created and came to themselves.
The great thing about the web is that, when used correctly, it becomes a worldwide community of learners and educators. By allowing our students to post their work online, it opens up their ideas to the ideas of countless others. These differing viewpoints can offer a glimpse into the lives of others across the globe. And as we all know, when you let a student use a computer as opposed to writing by hand, we almost always tend to get better results.
I love the idea of using the blog as an outline discussion. So many times, students lose their papers and therefor cannot study off of it. This not only keeps information in one place, but it allows students to access the blog anywhere they have internet. I will definitely try to incorporate that idea in my blog!
ReplyDeleteGreat point. It is nice to have all of their class resources located in one spot. However, I feel like one of the things I am supposed to teach students is responsiblity and preparedness. This is a handy tool, but there is still soemthing to be said for the responsibility that is built with a homework assignment.
ReplyDeleteI think you are right on about using technology to give a voice to students who are normally silent. There is something about blogging that encourages students to speak their minds. This method is also much more efficient than paper and pencil assessments. What I love best about having students add comments to blog entries is that they can see each posting, which pushes students to give their best effort.
ReplyDeleteRight on! Also, in a classroom, the discussion usually stays on a fairly linear path. There needs to be somebody leading the discussion. However, in a blog or discussion board format, it allows the discussion to go in any direction that the students need it to go in.
ReplyDeleteI love this post! I also want to use the blog as a way of discussing books. I think it is a great way to get students to open up like you said. I also like the idea of using the blog as an "exit ticket" by posting a question at the end of the lesson. My question is though, how would you have all of the students respond to this? I have three computers in my classroom so that could take a while to get through everyone. Would you just have a select few post in a day and rotate through for everyone to have a turn?
ReplyDeleteGreat post Mike. Do you think it would be difficult to grade blog posts? Would you use a rubric? That is one concern that I have that I would get "blogged" down with the blog and it might get overwhelming.
ReplyDeleteCheri
I think the bulk of the grade would be in the participation itself, and the offering of strong discussion points. A rubric would probably be the best way to do it.
ReplyDelete