Educational Blogging Revelations

Admittedly, when I began this ePortfolio for 565A, I thought of it only as a digital compilation of my assigned work for this course, a spot where others could view (and assess) my coursework.  However, after reading Stephen Downes “Educational Blogging” article this week, I can see the personal and educational benefits of this space and the optional blogging associated with it.  Until this point, I was waiting to be “assigned” tasks to complete and post.  However, I can now see that this method of educational blogging is not representative of the true nature of blogging and does not foster an authentic post.  Instead, this environment creates “contrived” posts with authors writing for one audience: the instructor.  Conversely, having students personally motivated to reflect upon their learning and communicate it concisely to others is far more meaningful of a task, especially when not generated for the sole purpose of receiving a grade.  Fisch’s video this week in which he asked high school students to discuss their feelings about blogging in the classroom really allowed me to see some true potential for the integration of blogging as an extension to learning within the school day.  When implemented in this way, connections between subject matters can be created: something I personally feel is lacking in today’s classrooms.  Additionally, they can provide a voice to students typically quieter in a traditional classroom discussion environment.  Furthermore, the typically onerous task of catching up students who have been absent from class can easily be eliminated by what these students described as “scribe blogging!”  In addition to my personal enlightenment this week about this web space, I have also been feverishly brainstorming (I also spent some time going this week’s optional reading list of top bloggers in various fields!  I can call that “research” right?!) how I will integrate these ideas into my elementary classroom space for next year!