Jaclyn,
This is a great strategy. I am very impressed how you embraced social media for students to meet their educational goals. It does take work and you have done quite a bit of "heavy lifting".
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
For the institution that I teach with, we utilize discussion boards within the classroom. This is a great way for student's to post their thoughts on a topic and respond to other students' postings. We can get some interesting conversations going here. It is a way for the students to interact and have a discussion, especially for a class that is 100% online. This helps build a sense of community, and that the student is not there alone.
I see a blog serving the same purpose. It would be a useful tool if you did not have a discussion board available to you in the classroom. It would have the same benefits that I mentioned above.
However, if you do have a discussion board that it utilized, then a blog seems unnecessary. To me, they are basically the same.
The only difference would be if you opened up the blog to others outside of the classroom. This could be done as the course material suggests to get additional thoughts, such as from others in the field of study.
However, having a blog that is open to others outside of the classroom could have some privacy issues. One thing that is not discussed in this course is what if the student wants to remain anonymous and not have their postings in a blog or micro-blog visible to others outside the classroom? What if the instructor does not?
Stephanie,
That is a great point. The anonymity in the public domain could be legitimate issue. Do you create naming conventions to protect students or is it worth it. That is an instructor decision.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Stephanie,
That is a great point. The anonymity in the public domain could be legitimate issue. Do you create naming conventions to protect students or is it worth it. That is an instructor decision.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I understand blogging can be integrated and accommodate different learners but what can be another benefit of blogging. This could be a way to get higher participation percentages from students.
Rickey,
I find if I can bring professionals or experts in the field into the conversation it enriches the conservation. It can also count toward participation grades. I know others who set up assignments using Blogging. It can be tied to research in a field.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I heard about blogging, but until I read this lesson, I did not understand the valuable that it offered instructors, students and as well as individuals. Now I see the benefit of blogging by having a place to sit down, write and reflect on what ones has learned.
James,
Great, remember the key is to set expectation for the student with using the tool. That is so important.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Blogs are a great way to encourage peer to peer interaction/collaboration. I think the simple fact that the ideas of students are "published" challenges the student to be thoughtful in his/her communications and be able to articulate expressive thought.
Simply put, it helps students build meaningful dialogue in an online platform. I think the challenge lies in the topics that students are to discuss. I have seen discussions/blog topics that are just not conducive to continuous dialogue. To that point, we have to be strategic in the way we use them.
Victoria,
How would you evaluate their work in this medium?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Blogs are not a good educational tool -- they are an excellent resource! Blogs provide collaboration between students, professors, and outside global sources. Additionally, blogs push students to learn more about a specific subject and allows for networking with possible job connections in the student program of study.
Andrea,
You sound like someone who participates in blogging! It does provide a canvas for students to share and meet others. It is important that students put their "best foot forward". You never know who is watching. . .
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I was in the same situation understanding Blogging! After I read this I now have a better understanding of what it offers. This course was very interesting!
Kimberly,
Do you have any ideas regarding how you would use them? I love to hear ideas!
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I have used blogs in the past to help continue a discussion, provide safe environment for controversial topics and also assess participation.
Grace,
How do you assess their work in a Blog?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
The institution in which one teaches my have a concern that extras such as blogs will detract students from focusing on the elements of the course that the course developers have provided. I think this is likely to be the case in online courses where the syllabus is likely to be firmly fixed.
Lois,
I guess I don't understand that concern. If it supports the outcomes and helps learning why would this be an issue. It is part of the learning and addresses a different way of learning. Interesting. . . .
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Blogs are a great way to learn about other points of view and perspectives given a certain topic. In an online class, the blog can be correlated to the "in class discussion" of a ground based class. Each student presents their point of view on a given topic.
Another plus with a blog is that it gives students who are shy about speaking up in the traditional classroom a chance to present their point of view in a forum that may be more comfortable for them.
Also strengthens a student's writing skills - a nice sideline benefit!
