Well, here it is - the end of the blogging assignment for EDTC625. Throughout the past few weeks, I've learned a lot about how blogging can be used as a tool within the classroom. Through discussions with my classmates, as well as through exploring different websites, I discovered just how effective and useful blogging can be.
So, as I write this final post, I want to begin thinking of how I am actually going to use a blog within my classroom. I've mentioned some ways that blogs can be used in a previous post, but now it's time to really apply what I've learned to my own teaching.
As I have already mentioned, my class is currently participating in a pen pal project with students from Turkey. When discussing how blogs can be used to connect students around the world, I stated that I would love to incorporate blogs into this project. Well, that's exactly what I think I'm going to do! According to Lisa, the author of the article "15 Awesome Ways To Use Blogs in Your Classrooms", pen pals can now be changed to "blog pals". Students can create blog posts and respond to the blog posts of others. I am definitely going to suggest this to the teacher in Turkey. If they have the appropriate technology within their school, I would love to see "blog pals" come to life!
Furthermore, another step I plan to take is using blogs as a method of readers response. Students can currently use our online private message board thread to post their thoughts about our book of the month. However, now that I know how effective blogs can be for posting responses to books, I would love to replace this message board with a blog. In fact, blogs can be used as "Five Minute Reading Response" tools according to this article. More specifically, Scholastic suggests using Kidblog as a way to create and manage student blogs. This is definitely a website that I would like to check out and use in the near future.
Overall, I've really enjoyed this assignment! It was great being able to explore Blogger, read and respond to my classmates' posts, and maintain a blog of my own. This experience definitely opened my eyes to how blogs can be used within the classroom!
References
G Connell. (2013, Feb 14). Five minute reading responses [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/top-teaching/2013/02/five-minute-reading-responses
Kidblog. (2014). Retrieved from http://kidblog.org/home/
Lisa (2012, Mar 12). 15 awesome ways to use blogs in your classrooms [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://blog.simplek12.com/education/15-awesome-ways-to-use-blogs-in-your-classrooms/
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Friday, February 28, 2014
Connecting and Collaborating Globally - How Blogs Can Help Achieve This Goal
We live in a diverse society. We are constantly interacting and working with those from other backgrounds, lifestyles, cultures, and ethnicities. According to blog user bholland (2013),
Bholland goes on to further discuss how blogs can be used to connect with students around the world (bholland, 2013). Classrooms can set up their own blogs which can be viewed, and commented on, by students from other classrooms. Blogs can be used for the purposes discussed in my previous post; however, rather than simply sharing the blog link with the class, it can be shared with students around the world.
Furthermore, global collaboration has various positive impacts. In her blog post titled "5 Ways To Inspire Students Through Global Collaboration", Schwartz (2012) discusses the reasons why global classroom collaboration is important as well as ways we can inspire students through collaboration. She states that when students collaborate with students from different cultures, their curiousity is sparked and they practice problem-solving skills (Schwartz, 2012). Blogs can be used to inform other students about specific cultural traditions, practices, and ways of life. Students can teach other students about a topic, interest, or hobby. Overall, using blogs for global communication promotes teaching, learning, and collaboration.
Lastly, The Edublogger contains a blog post in which two teachers discussed their personal experiences with global collaboration through blogging (Morris, 2012). Both Linda Yollis and Kathleen Morris are two teachers who used blogs within their classrooms. Linda Yollis lives in the United States and Kathleen Morris lives in Australia. After connecting via Kathleen's blog, the two teachers embarked on a blogging globalization project.
Through connecting and collaborating through classroom blogs, the students in both classrooms learned about different cultures, locations, and ways of life. Students not only talked to each other, but also completed collaborative projects via Web 2.0 tools. In fact, Morris' students even took a trip to the United States to visit their new friends. Blogging truly sparked lifelong friendships and a sense of collaboration.
My class is currently participating in a pen pal project with a fifth grade class in Turkey. Students are writing letters to each other, which we are scanning and sending through e-mail. Additionally, students wrote handwritten post cards to each other. After exploring ways to use blogs to promote global collaboration, I would like to incorporate blogging into this project!
References
bholland. (2013, September 26). How to redefine your classroom by connecting students – from Holly on Edudemic [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://edtechteacher.org/blog/?p=2113
K Morris. (2012, July 2). ISTE 2012: Flattening classroom walls with blogging and global collaboration [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://theedublogger.com/2012/07/02/iste-2012-flattening-classroom-walls-with-blogging-and-global-collaboration/
K Schwartz. (2012, November 19). 5 ways to inspire students through global collaboration [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2012/11/5-ways-to-inspire-students-through-global-collaboration/
It would be great to see a shift in the way we look at learning. One where we begin to think of our students as not just learners but as connected and global learners. After all, they are connected in unprecedented ways once they eagerly leave school. As connected learners there are certain skills they need, new literacies they must develop, and if we are going to get them ready for their future – we must expand on our definition of learning.As teachers, we need to help our students be successful in a multi-cultural, diverse world. Blogs can help us achieve this goal.
Bholland goes on to further discuss how blogs can be used to connect with students around the world (bholland, 2013). Classrooms can set up their own blogs which can be viewed, and commented on, by students from other classrooms. Blogs can be used for the purposes discussed in my previous post; however, rather than simply sharing the blog link with the class, it can be shared with students around the world.
Furthermore, global collaboration has various positive impacts. In her blog post titled "5 Ways To Inspire Students Through Global Collaboration", Schwartz (2012) discusses the reasons why global classroom collaboration is important as well as ways we can inspire students through collaboration. She states that when students collaborate with students from different cultures, their curiousity is sparked and they practice problem-solving skills (Schwartz, 2012). Blogs can be used to inform other students about specific cultural traditions, practices, and ways of life. Students can teach other students about a topic, interest, or hobby. Overall, using blogs for global communication promotes teaching, learning, and collaboration.
Lastly, The Edublogger contains a blog post in which two teachers discussed their personal experiences with global collaboration through blogging (Morris, 2012). Both Linda Yollis and Kathleen Morris are two teachers who used blogs within their classrooms. Linda Yollis lives in the United States and Kathleen Morris lives in Australia. After connecting via Kathleen's blog, the two teachers embarked on a blogging globalization project.
Through connecting and collaborating through classroom blogs, the students in both classrooms learned about different cultures, locations, and ways of life. Students not only talked to each other, but also completed collaborative projects via Web 2.0 tools. In fact, Morris' students even took a trip to the United States to visit their new friends. Blogging truly sparked lifelong friendships and a sense of collaboration.
My class is currently participating in a pen pal project with a fifth grade class in Turkey. Students are writing letters to each other, which we are scanning and sending through e-mail. Additionally, students wrote handwritten post cards to each other. After exploring ways to use blogs to promote global collaboration, I would like to incorporate blogging into this project!
References
bholland. (2013, September 26). How to redefine your classroom by connecting students – from Holly on Edudemic [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://edtechteacher.org/blog/?p=2113
K Morris. (2012, July 2). ISTE 2012: Flattening classroom walls with blogging and global collaboration [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://theedublogger.com/2012/07/02/iste-2012-flattening-classroom-walls-with-blogging-and-global-collaboration/
K Schwartz. (2012, November 19). 5 ways to inspire students through global collaboration [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2012/11/5-ways-to-inspire-students-through-global-collaboration/
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Using Blogs In The Classroom
Well, after the first week of this blogging assignment, I can definitely say that I have learned more about blogging. However, not only have I become more familiar with using Blogger, but I have also learned many ways in which blogs can be used within the classroom.
Last week's course discussion gave light to many of the ways we can use blogs within our instruction. It also sparked my interest to do further research on this idea.
According to a handout written by representatives from the Gayle Morris Sweetland Center for Writing at the University of Michigan, blogs are especially useful for helping students develop their writing skills. The handout states,
Additionally, blogger user JBlack, who writes a blog called "Web 2.0 in the Classroom", discusses instructional uses for blogs in her post titled "33 Ways To Use Blogs In Your Classroom and In The Educational Setting". In her blog post, she confirms the ideas suggested by those at the University of Michigan. She discusses how blogs can be used for students to respond to books, as well as to the works of others. However, she identifies additional uses for blogs, such as a communication system for when students are absent, or a place for students to reflect on school field trips. Students can also use blogs to demonstrate how to solve math problems, to create time lines, and to complete K-W-L activities (Black, 2008).
Lastly, ReadWriteThink has created a lesson sequence for how to introduce - and use - blogs within the classroom. I found this website to be very helpful when thinking of how to practically use a blog with students. The idea of starting up a blog, and then using it with students, can be very overwhelming, This website breaks this process down into individual steps, making it a more manageable feat.
Click on the links below to visit the readings referenced within this blog post:
References
JBlack. (2008, October 21). 33 ways to use blogs in your classroom and in the educational setting. [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://web20intheclassroom.blogspot.com/2008/10/ways-to-use-blogs-in-your-classroom-and.html
ReadWriteThink.org. (n.d.). Teaching with blogs. Retrieved from http://www.readwritethink.org/professional-development/strategy-guides/teaching-with-blogs-30108.html
University of Michigan. (n.d.). Using blogs in the classroom. Retrieved from http://www.lsa.umich.edu/UMICH/sweetland/Home/Instructors/Teaching%20Resources/UsingBlogsintheClassroom.pdf
Last week's course discussion gave light to many of the ways we can use blogs within our instruction. It also sparked my interest to do further research on this idea.
According to a handout written by representatives from the Gayle Morris Sweetland Center for Writing at the University of Michigan, blogs are especially useful for helping students develop their writing skills. The handout states,
By blogging, students can take ownership of their writing, become better observers of others' writing, and develop a more immediate and powerful understanding of audience. Blogs encourage experimenting and risk-taking, seriousness and play, and they foster an increased awareness of private and public writing. (University of Michigan)More specifically, the handout describes how blogs can be used for reader response entries, writer's notebook entires, and personal writing. Furthermore, blogs can be used as digital portfolios or as a place for students to share interesting and/or educational links (University of Michigan).
Additionally, blogger user JBlack, who writes a blog called "Web 2.0 in the Classroom", discusses instructional uses for blogs in her post titled "33 Ways To Use Blogs In Your Classroom and In The Educational Setting". In her blog post, she confirms the ideas suggested by those at the University of Michigan. She discusses how blogs can be used for students to respond to books, as well as to the works of others. However, she identifies additional uses for blogs, such as a communication system for when students are absent, or a place for students to reflect on school field trips. Students can also use blogs to demonstrate how to solve math problems, to create time lines, and to complete K-W-L activities (Black, 2008).
Lastly, ReadWriteThink has created a lesson sequence for how to introduce - and use - blogs within the classroom. I found this website to be very helpful when thinking of how to practically use a blog with students. The idea of starting up a blog, and then using it with students, can be very overwhelming, This website breaks this process down into individual steps, making it a more manageable feat.
Click on the links below to visit the readings referenced within this blog post:
"33 Ways To Use Blogs In Your Classroom and In The Educational Setting"
ReadWriteThink.org - Teaching With Blogs
ReadWriteThink.org - Teaching With Blogs
References
JBlack. (2008, October 21). 33 ways to use blogs in your classroom and in the educational setting. [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://web20intheclassroom.blogspot.com/2008/10/ways-to-use-blogs-in-your-classroom-and.html
ReadWriteThink.org. (n.d.). Teaching with blogs. Retrieved from http://www.readwritethink.org/professional-development/strategy-guides/teaching-with-blogs-30108.html
University of Michigan. (n.d.). Using blogs in the classroom. Retrieved from http://www.lsa.umich.edu/UMICH/sweetland/Home/Instructors/Teaching%20Resources/UsingBlogsintheClassroom.pdf
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Setting Up This Blog and RSS Feed
Setting up this blog and RSS feed were a bit more difficult than I had expected. I'm familiar with online blog tools; however, I have never used Blogger before.
I am not a fan of this website layout. There were too many options to choose from when setting up my blog, and, if I did not have the step-by-step instructions, I would have been confused. The multiple setting options were a bit overwhelming to me. Yet, I know that everything takes time to learn. I'm sure that as I continue using this blogging tool, I'll become familiar with it. Furthermore, there is a lot of information about how to use Blogger within Chapter 3 of the Richardson text, and so I'll be sure to reference the textbook as I'm posting to and customizing this blog.
Additionally, I have never set up an RSS feed before, although I have seen these feeds on one or two other blogs. I'm interested in actually using an RSS feed for the first time and I'm excited to see what this feed has to offer.
I have already linked one of my group member's blogs to my own blog. Finding the RSS Feed link on a different blog was also a bit confusing, and so I'm hoping I did it correctly!
Overall, while setting up this blog and the RSS feed were somewhat confusing, I'm excited to learn more about blogging and manage my own blog.
I am not a fan of this website layout. There were too many options to choose from when setting up my blog, and, if I did not have the step-by-step instructions, I would have been confused. The multiple setting options were a bit overwhelming to me. Yet, I know that everything takes time to learn. I'm sure that as I continue using this blogging tool, I'll become familiar with it. Furthermore, there is a lot of information about how to use Blogger within Chapter 3 of the Richardson text, and so I'll be sure to reference the textbook as I'm posting to and customizing this blog.
Additionally, I have never set up an RSS feed before, although I have seen these feeds on one or two other blogs. I'm interested in actually using an RSS feed for the first time and I'm excited to see what this feed has to offer.
I have already linked one of my group member's blogs to my own blog. Finding the RSS Feed link on a different blog was also a bit confusing, and so I'm hoping I did it correctly!
Overall, while setting up this blog and the RSS feed were somewhat confusing, I'm excited to learn more about blogging and manage my own blog.
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