Educational Uses of Blogging

The first three chapters of "Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Tools for Classrooms" by Will Richardson confirmed what I have caught onto a few years ago. The revelation that I had 3 or 4 years ago was expressed wonderfully by Richardson when he referred to students today as "Digital Natives" and to teachers as "Digital Immigrants".* As I have recently stated on the homepage of my own website,

"As a former computer instructor at the high school level in Elmira, I was amazed at how much I learned from my students on a daily basis (often feeling slightly threatened and a bit inadequate). However, once I got over that initial “tech-teacher-shock”, I was able to promote a learning environment that my students enjoyed and excelled in."

What I didn't state was how much I was learning! Kids today do not bring many of the learning limitations where technology is concerned. Their brains are "wired" for it, no pun intended. They have been immersed in this digital age since the day they were born. As an instructor, for me to resist this obvious change in today's student would put me at a disadvantage in reaching and teaching them.

With that being stated, and as I consider all of the possibilities, all of the advantages and yes, even all of the risks and potential drawbacks, my head actually spins at times. However, like any new "creation", technology presents both positive and negative aspects to it (See the short story, The Flying Machine by Ray Bradbury). Our job as teachers, I believe, is to educate students about using this new digital medium and allow them to take responsibility for their learning and to be wary of the potential dangers and pitfalls. Oh how refreshing that is! Now we have students who are not coming to school to be "programmed" or taught what we choose to teach them. Rather, they come to learn. They have ownership in their learning and that can make all of the difference in the success of any campaign -- ownership!

With the Read/Write Internet, students are no longer limited in the classroom of their country classroom, their ghetto grade or suburban school. They not only have access to people, cultures, and ideas of students from Moscow, Beijing, or Vancouver, for example, but they can actually communicate and collaborate with their new international colleagues.

As I am helping teachers learn about this new technology, I am seeing many great ideas on blogging in the classroom from Music to Social Studies to Science. I consider myself to be in pretty good shape as far as my technology knowledge (at least relative to my age), but I still can hear my "accent"... I am still a "digital immigrant".

For this reason, I think the approach that many instructors need to adopt is one of team teaching-- and they should not be surprised if the other team member is a student! Let the teacher bring the standards, the content, and the outcomes and then be prepared to teach it using the vehicles that the students are used to driving-- blogs, wikis, iPods, cell phones, and the like. We just have to be humble enough to be learners ourselves and not be surprised if our taskmaster is twelve years old! :)

One idea that comes to mind for use of blogs involves connecting my students with students from countries where the United States has a military presence for discussion on social, economic, and moral issues. The mainstream media has a 50 year old man or woman that anchors the evening news and explains, from an adult perspective, what is taking place in a country like Iraq or Afghanistan. What a revelation it would be for kids to communicate and share their perspectives on these issues with other kids from the other countries affected.

The use of the Read/Write Internet has great potential to filter and balance the spin and hidden agendas that the mainstream media can be so tempted (and financially motivated) to present. Perhaps I am too cynical.. or perhaps I would just love to hear how 4th graders feel about issues of social injustice. :)

References .
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* Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Tools for Classrooms" by Will Richardson, pp. 5-6