In the Classroom, Web Logs Are the New Bulletin Boards

Another article in the New York Times got me thinking about the various ways in which blogs can and are being used in the classrooom:

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/19/technology/circuits/19blog.html?scp=6&sq=blogs%20and%20classrooms&st=cse&pagewanted=all

I found this article especially relevant given that it was about a 2nd grade class.

I have drawn out a few of the most interesting ideas expressed in this article....

"School Web sites are labor-intensive and are left up to administrators and teachers," said Mr. Grunwald, whose consulting firm in Washington focuses on the technology link between home and school. "With blogging intended to be a vehicle for students, the labor is built in. The work that is required to refresh and maintain an interesting blog is being provided by students."

Mr Gunwald predicts that blogs will eventually become a more successful teaching tool than Web sites.

One way teachers say they use blogs is to continue spirited discussions that were cut short or to prolong question-and-answer periods with guest speakers.

"With blogs, class doesn't have to end when the bell rings," said Will Richardson, supervisor of instructional technology and communications at Hunterdon Central Regional High School in Flemington, N.J., who maintained blogs for two journalism classes he taught last year.

It is exciting to think that blogs allow for the expansion of the learning space beyond the classroom door.

Blogs, Podcasts and Virtual Classrooms

I found this an interesting article in terms of the kinds of things that classroom teachers are doing in the US in terms of using blogs. It was interesting to see the arising conflict between collaborative learning and testing......

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/03/technology/techspecial3/03ethan.html?scp=1&sq=blogs%20and%20classrooms&st=cse

"If interactivity becomes the fundamental basis of the educational process, how do we judge merit?" asked Robbie McClintock, a learning technologies expert at Teachers College of Columbia University.

The push by some teachers for greater interactivity in the classroom also goes against the current emphasis on testing. Testing requires a known body of material, but interactive learning often involves students' seeking out topics on their own.


Fortunately we don't have the same pressure in NZ primary schools in terms of testing and therefore have greater freedom to use these kinds of collaborative technologies. However, I think it is important to think through the possible concerns you may get from parents about the use of these technologies. It is important to involve parents in the process, and to have a strong set of beliefs and justifications for why you are using these technologies and new forms of literacy in your classroom.

Monday Morning - Week 3

It's scary to think that I have already had 2 weeks on this project. In many ways I feel like I haven't got that far with things. I seem to keep hitting road blocks, or deviations which take up valuable time needed to get me to my final outcome. I took a break over the weekend which I think was helpful for giving me perspective on this project and what is achievable in the time I have.
So.....I am approaching this week with a new attitude. I have learned a few things on reflection so far:
a) it's very easy to take the project vision beyond what it achievable in 5 weeks
b) it is harder to re-focus and make decisions about what 'can' be achieved, especially when you feel like you are having to let go of some of the research 'excitements' in the process
c) roadblocks are all part of inquiry - and some of the best reflecting takes place at these moments when you have to make decisions about 'where to from here?'
d) Inquiry is definitely not a linear process and this can be both frustrating and liberating in terms of the research process
e) Making a list of things to do each day helps me stay focussed and feel like I am getting somewhere (reflecting at the end of the day can help with this too)
f) Some days are frustrating, some days you feel like you have got nowhere, or gone backwards. This is all part of the journey, and tomorrow is always a new day. Learn from it, but don't dwell on it too much.

So this week.....what are my plans?

I would like to continue with my literature reviews/research of blog use in classrooms to gather information to use in my website which I will be building next week. I am unsure at this stage what the different sections will be - but I am trying to keep it open at the moment and just see how much is possible.

I am spending Thursday afternoon at Fendalton school speaking with the Principal and spending time in a classroom talking with students about their class blog site. This is the highlight of this week as it will allow me to see in practice the things I have been reading and thinking about.

I am hoping by the end of the week that I will have had a meeting with one of the profs at tcol about setting up a website. I have spoken with a few different people about different servers that I could use, and just need to see which will best suit my minimal skills and time constraints.

If you were this teacher, how would you respond?

Frustrating Day - Have I Bitten Off More Than I Can Chew?

Today has been a frustrating day. I spent a large part of the morning trying to get back into the website I created yesterday. But for some reason I can't get into it - the username and passwords don't work. It got me thinking that I need to be really careful with the site that I do create because I can't afford for this to happen once my site is actually taking shape.
I'm worried that I may be taking on too much by assuming that I can create a website in the next two weeks with absolutely no prior knowledge of how to go about it.
I have heard back from Niki and am going to catch up with her once she is back in the country to get some assistance with a website. So....my new plan of attack is not to worry about the website for the next week and just concentrate on collecting information to put on my site and maintaining my blog. Then at the end of next week I can see Niki and make a decision about where to go from there. She has suggested that a WIKI might be the best option for sharing my research - so I will look into this.

Inquiry learning.....is it just a 'fad'?

I have been thinking over the past few weeks about Inquiry-based approaches to learning. In trying to get a hold of what it is, I have also been frequently faced with questions.

- Is it really anything new?
- Isn't this just a new 'fad' and 'buzz-word' that will be replaced by something else in a few years?
- Haven't I done inquiry before (we just didn't call it that)?
- Isn't most of inquiry just 'good teaching'?

I have also been talking to other people in the education world about it (lecturers, teachers, students, parents) and trying to get a sense of how they feel about it.

It seems to me that it's not really a 'new' approach to learning. In fact people like Dewy advocated for this type of approach to learning. So I think there is a danger in seeing it as something 'new' and potentially dismissing the multiple ways in which many classroom teachers are already using it in their classroom. Having said that, it does seem to provide an alternative to the highly structured and linear models of teaching that have remained dominant in many spheres within education.

Is it exciting? Absolutely. In my opinion, successful and inspiring teachers should be ones who do many of the things that Inquiry involves in their daily practices e.g. meaningful questioning, exploring, creating meaningful contexts for learning, allowing students to make linkages to the world around them and creating meaningful outcomes to their research. I have always believed that learning is a process not a means to an ends, and therefore an inquiry approach is very exciting. It is liberating as an almost-teacher to think that I can approach teaching in a non-linear way that is both student-centred and student-directed (while also maintaining guidance and support/scaffolding as a teacher).

I think that part of the problem with the taking up of this approach seems to be the 'label'. As soon as we label something in a new way, people make the assumption that it is something new. The cynic in me also starts to wonder whether it's just a short-term policy buzz-word, soon to be replaced by something bigger and better. I don't want inquiry to be 'sold' to me (and the monetary off-spins of Inquiry can't be denied). I want to embrace the concept as part of my teaching philosophy that will remain with me in the classroom right through my career. I don't really mind what it is called, and what particular model is used (in fact I think that ultimately we create new models to meet the changing needs of our students) - so long as I allow my students opportunities to learn in this way.

Setting up my website...

Today I have been working on setting up my website. I have decided that the best way for me to share my learnings from my project is by creating a website that can provide information on blogs for teachers who are 'digital immigrants'.

My blog is functioning well as a reflective journaling space, and I am finding it quite a cathartic part of the journey. However, I have decided that a web-site would be a more suitable way of sharing my information with the class.

What is the website going to look like?

Well.....I have found a server for my site and have a web address: http://wonderingsofaninquiringmind.webs.com/

This was obstacle number 1 to overcome, as I have never set up a website before (and have no prior knowledge on how to go about it). So.....I searched online and found a free server and worked through the initial setup steps.

Now it is a matter of deciding what to include on this website.

I did an initial brainstorm of ideas for sections within the website:

- What is a blog?
- Why use blogs in the classroom? (how can they enhance teaching pedagogy)?
- How to set up your own classroom blog?
- Links to useful websites
- 10 ways you can use your blog in the classroom
- Digital Literacy
- De-demonising technology
- 'Experts in Action' - Case Study - Fendalton Open Air School
- Integrating blogs with other technology - youtube, videos etc.
- Other useful references
- Link to my blog
- Internet safety/security
- MOE and ICT - policy
- Blogs and collaboration (taking learning beyond the classroom)
- Blogs and the Key Competencies

I am going to share these ideas at the mentor group meeting next week. I would like to get feedback on my proposed sections because ultimately I am making it for the class, so I want to meet their perceived needs in terms of blogging.

At this stage I am not planning on progressing any further with the website until I have started collecting and organising my research into sections. I envisage starting on the making of the website in about a week.