Blogging in Education

Web 2.0 is a catchphrase that describes the latest changes to the web. Web 1.0 was basically static; search for information, and information you received. The information was most often provided by an “expert” in the field. Web 2.0 is dynamic. It is interactive. It has given us all a voice. No longer do we just read the news, we comment on the news. Now the consensus of the people is the expert source we look to for information. When we want to know the basics of any given topic, Wikipedia is often the source of first choice. When we want to purchase a product, we search reviews. Web 2.0 has many applications (many for free) with this interactive component and our students are familiar and comfortable with many of them. The wise teacher will use their student’s expertise in this area to enhance their educational experience.

A blog is one of the tools that Web 2.0 has made available to us. A blog is a site that you create. It is a place that you can share a wide variety of information, photos, and video. You generate the content and so can focus on a particular subject (like this blog) or make it more general, even something like a diary. Thanks to Web 2.0, others can comment on your blog and it can become a source of conversation and shared ideas. Teachers can create a classroom blog to share the latest happenings in their class, homework assignments, upcoming events, or anything else they’d like to share

But even more than just a place to share information, a blog has pedagogical potential as well. Because students are comfortable with and excited about technology it can be much more enjoyable to respond to questions generated on a blog. Or, what if every student had their own Blog and it became their learning notebook for the year? This avenue of expression lends itself well to all learning levels. More advances students can research and link information at their level of learning. Students who struggle academically can respond at their level or maybe even choose to respond in a video format. Student driven blogs open a door to community learning as students and teachers can view and comment on the blogs.