To Blog or Not to Blog...THAT is the Question (Week Four - 9/19/10 - 9/25/10)

Photo by cambodia4kidsorg on Flickr.

The subject of blogging and schools can be a tricky one.  Some schools are wide-open to the idea with no parameters or privacy settings and others are so against the idea of blogs, they are not allowed at all.  I am a firm believer of reaching a happy medium; I feel blogs play an integral part in the classroom and should be utilized.

For starters, class blogs are excellent resources to keep the lines of communication open between teachers, students, and parents.  Posting current events, homework, and upcoming field trips keeps everyone in the educational loop.  As a class project, I think it is extremely beneficial for students to have a blog.  Not only does it promote communication, it also encourages creativity.  Blogging may also result in a student finding something within themselves that they didn't know existed (i.e. a budding writer or a journalist).  Finally, as mentioned in my board post, I think that blogging promotes accountability.  Students are responsible for their blog postings.  If they do not do their work, they must accept responsibility and find ways to remedy the situation appropriately.  I feel responsibility is one of the biggest lessons (and most important) that students should learn.

Of course, with every good blog post comes the need for a discussion with students on privacy and safety.  As important as using the blog as classroom tool, privacy and safety discussions sure occur before the blog is created and should be revisited every class in some form.  If we teach students the proper way to handle the Internet from the get-go, they will use it the right way from that moment on.