Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs

From LiteracyTentWiki

Subject: [PD 4797] Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: Jackie A. Taylor
Date: Tue Jul 13 10:10:34 EDT 2010

Hello, all,

Yesterday, we heard a lot about the importance of social media in learning: to survive in a high tech world, to reach students in the spaces between home and the classroom, for ex. We discussed a lot about learners and practitioners skills and access to social media, overcoming technology fears, and breaking down some of the "1950's boxes" within which we have been living. We explored ways to get around tech barriers that prevent us from accessing social media and why, and we talked a little bit about what we bring to these spaces that makes them valuable as education tools. Let's explore that more in-depth.

How are blogs, microblogs, and associated tools, useful for teaching, learning, and professional development? (Definitions are below). [I'll break this into two messages: "teaching with blogs and microblogs" and "blogging and microblogging for professional development" in case the differences are enough to warrant that. :-) ]

Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs

Please consider the following questions. Respond to one or more by replying to this email, or sending a new message to professionaldevelopment at nifl.gov:

Thinking back on the POST Method: People, Objectives, Strategy, Technology:

  • For what purpose would you use blogs or microblogs in teaching?
  • What is the value in using them?
  • What are some examples of effective use of blogs and / or microblogs you've seen in teaching?
  • What are some successes you've had? Challenges you've faced?
  • What are some technology-related considerations for using blogs and/or microblogs?
  • What outcome(s) do you hope to achieve using blogs and / or microblogs?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Jackie Taylor
PD List Facilitator
jackie at jataylor.net

Blog: A blog (short for "weblog") is a website with commentary, news, opinions, and such, often from one person. Some blogs have multiple contributors and allow comments from readers. Comments are used for discussion, expressing other opinions, providing more information, and correcting errors. Blogs are created from programs that allow easy Web publication.

Examples:

Microblogging: Sending short posts such as those found in Twitter, which are limited to 140 characters. Microblogging lets users tell each other what they are doing throughout the day, in short bursts.

Examples:

Associated tools: Allows users to manage their Twitter account, such as being able to check Twitter without being logged in to one's Twitter account, share photos on Twitter, automatically feed one's blog content to Twitter, etc.

Examples:

Subject: [PD 4798] Blogging and Microblogging for Professional Development
From: Jackie A. Taylor
Date: Tue Jul 13 10:19:57 EDT 2010

Hello, all,

(Message 2 of 2): How are blogs, microblogs, and associated tools, useful for professional development? (Definitions are below).

Please consider the following questions. Respond to one or more by replying to this email, or sending a new message to professionaldevelopment at nifl.gov:

Thinking back on the POST Method: People, Objectives, Strategy, Technology:

  • For what purpose would you use blogs or microblogs in professional development?
  • What is the value in using them?
  • What are some examples of effective use of blogs and / or microblogs in PD?
  • What are some successes you've had? Challenges you've faced?
  • What are some technology-related considerations for using blogs and / or microblogs?
  • What outcome(s) do you hope to achieve using blogs and / or microblogs?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Jackie Taylor
PD List Facilitator
jackie at jataylor.net

Subject: [PD 4799] Re: Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: Carolyn Cothran
Date: Tue Jul 13 10:32:52 EDT 2010

Good morning,

Online courses that I've participated in have had students share and collaborate thru email. From my minimal experience with blogs I would think that they would facilitate collaboration because messages, links, etc. would be in one place and much more readily accessible to refer back to.

The VALRC site has an excellent 14 hour blog based online tutor training. I have worked through it and we refer our tutors to it for indepth training.

Carolyn Cothran
"Reading is Knowledge. Knowledge is Power."
Volunteer
Literacy Volunteers-Campbell County Public Library Rustburg, VA

Subject: [PD 4800] Re: Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: Staci VanArt
Date: Tue Jul 13 12:33:18 EDT 2010

Hi, All,

I'm a distance instructor with the PA Distance Learning Project. About a month ago, I started an online reading club for students at www.freeforums.org. I chose the forum format over the blog format because I thought it would be better suited for this purpose.

I've been considering starting a blog for students as well, as a way to disseminate information about the DLP (session schedules, etc.), as well as to promote such peripheries as the reading club, and to post videos, podcasts, and recordings of webinars for students to review. I would also like to include a brief video/bio of each instructor so that students can have a better idea of who the person is at the other end of the phone.

Staci Van Art

Distance Instructor
PA Distance Learning Project
TIU #11 Community Education Services
PA CareerLink-Mifflin County
Lewistown, PA

Subject: [PD 4801] Re: Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: George Demetrion
Date: Tue Jul 13 13:06:16 EDT 2010

Hi Stacy,

Can you tell us a bit how the free forums work and how you utilize it? Based on the link it looks intriguing, but if you can provide additional information that would be great.

I've recently developed a blog for the purpose of both thinking through and sharing some of my ideas. Much of what I've posted to date is directly related to areas of adult education that I am or have worked on while I wrote the blog posting, which has allowed for more extended commentary than I would typically place in a listserv. I uses to draw on listserv writing for that purpose, but currently find the blog a more durable format.

I think a blog for (and ideally, developed with some of) your students , if well conceived and managed has much potential, both for the publication of student writing and for the dissemination of additional information as you state. I believe there's a lot that could be done through blogging in many venues.

Coming into computer-driven technology later in life; beginning in my late 40s, I'm more comfortable with 4-5 primary applications, which then I attempt to use in depth. These include

  • The ever timely listserv post, which yet have not realized their full potential

Internet researching

  • Blogging, which I think has a great potential for all aspects of our field which is just beginning to come into its own in adult education
  • Teaching online, thus far via Blackboard
  • Powerpoint--recently learned
  • Word

I'm aware of other technologies, including "microblogging," but prefer formats that allow me to present and work through lengthier texts.

Regards,

George Demetrion

San Diego, CA
The Comprehensive Adult Educator
http://thecomprehensiveadulteducator.blogspot.com/

Subject: [PD 4807] Re: Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: Marian Thacher
Date: Tue Jul 13 21:10:12 EDT 2010

Blogs were one of the first ways that it became easy to publish on the web - no HTML, no server needed, no web address to purchase - just type and then click to publish. Teachers were some of the first to take advantage of this opportunity because an audience is an important part of learning to write, and suddenly we were able to give our students an international audience. Teachers are still using blogs to build online community with students and to publish assignments and student writing.

OTAN has been collecting examples of adult education blogs [ http://webtwopointohinadulted.wikispaces.com/Blogs ]here (http://webtwopointohinadulted.wikispaces.com/Blogs) and I hope to add some more from this discussion. While there are examples from many state, most are from California. Here are some classroom blogs that stand out:

http://arlingtonhillsjobs.blogspot.com/
I like to show this blog for beginning ESL students from Minnesota because it's a nice use of low literacy activities that takes advantage of the ability to post photos. This teacher has her students post their assignments as comments to her blog post. The students didn't need to register or login, so their posts are anonymous, but she has them add their name at the top of the comment.

http://elidinamarca.blogspot.com/
This Intermediate ESL teacher in Oceanside, CA, posts slideshows created by her students to illustrate various grammar points, such as "used to." The slideshows are narrated by the authors.

http://tayloresl.wordpress.com/
Here is a blog by and Advanced ESL teacher in Buffalo, NY. She uses her blog to post assignments, with students responding in the comments, and to post a recap of her lessons for those who miss class. Her audience is her students, the objectives are to build community and share student writing, Her strategy is to make her lessons and her students' writing easily accessible, so she chooses a blog to do this.

http://voicesfromloysville.blogspot.com/
I like to promote this blog from a teacher in a juvenile correction facility, even though she is no longer teaching, because it's such a great example of using technology to give voice to those whose voices aren't often heard. I loved reading the student writing, and I tried to always leave a comment so that they would know someone out there is hearing them. The students didn't have Internet access, but the teacher would print out the posts and comments and bring them to class. Also, she's a great writing teacher and you can get some ideas from checking out her assignments.

There are many more examples, and please share your own. Next week we will start experimenting with Blogger for those of you who signed up for that tool, and hopefully you will have a blog ready to go at the end of a couple of weeks if that's your goal!

Marian Thacher
[ http://www.otan.us/ ]OTAN

Subject: [PD 4810] Re: Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: Nell Eckersley
Date: Wed Jul 14 00:18:23 EDT 2010

Hi all,

One of the things I like so much about web 2.0 tools is that while they were created for a specific purpose they can be used for so many other purposes. Certianly blogs and microblogs like twitter can be used for their original purposes in education, but I have been so impressed in the ways people have found to use both of these tools for other purposes.

Blogging applications like blogger and wordpress allow for a variety of uses beyond the blogging they were designed for. I have seen blogs used as e-portfolios where each student has a blog and posts photos and written content from projects and classwork they are involved in. I've also seen classes create a single blog and all upload their work onto it. Project based learning can often benefit from having a blog as a place to display the final product (like a cookbook or a class newspaper). The wow factor of seeing your work on the internet get's students really excited, plus they can share their work with people all over the world. And in the process students practice computer skills that will be so helpful for them in life and career.

Microblogging like twitter, where the content is 140 characters long, and can be done through texting on cellphones as well as on computers, can be used as a way for learners to communicate with one another or with their teacher. Assignments can be tweeted by the teacher to a whole class. Recently I started following NY1Noticias on twitter. This is a Spanish version of NY 1, a television news channel. Getting tweets in Spanish has been a huge boost for my Spanish vocabulary. The tweets are like headlines and the grammar may not be exemplary, but if I've already heard a news story in English and now get a tweet in Spanish, I can learn a lot of new words through the context of the story that I'd already heard or read about. I also follow Shakespeare and Samuel Pepys on twitter which can lead to new historical knowledge.

How are other people using these tools in education?

Best,

Nell

Subject: [PD 4816] Re: Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: Lisa Robertson
Date: Wed Jul 14 09:07:07 EDT 2010

Have you found www.reading-rewards.com<http://www.reading-rewards.com>? It is a site for reading clubs. It is geared for kids, but it has features that work great in an adult ed classroom. You can set up a closed class and people in the class can network with each other. There is blogging, recording time read, posting favorite books and comments, and some games. One feature my students like is the rewards part of it. They try to beat each other to gain points and earn gift cards and class perks (like wii time.) As the instructor, one of the best parts of that site for me is that it is all set up. All I have to do it start a group and send invitations.

On a different vein, I have been including blogging in our math lab as a reflective piece. We start class with the blog to get a feel for where everyone is on a topic and then get back to it at the end of class as a reflection of what was learned. It has been going well, learners were excited to blog and did not have as many trepidations as I thought they might. It has not yet blossomed into the out of class online community I am hoping to build.

In regards to your last paragraph about disseminating info and posting videos. what about starting a Google site? It is super easy and can meet those needs, and people can sign up to be a friend so they'll get notice in their email when you update it. Feel free to check out my math lab site.

I've been using this with our students since January.

www.tinyurl.com/luvmath<http://www.tinyurl.com/luvmath>. We put class activities on a page (and actually work in class from that - or if students are absent they can go there and catch up), photos on the photos page, announcements, and a link to our blog.

There is also a place for online books and a list of some favorite websites.

Please feel free to give me feedback.

Lisa Robertson
lrobertson at rsu14.org
ABE Coordinator
Windham Adult Education

Subject: [PD 4823] Re: Teaching With Blogs and Microblogs
From: Staci VanArt
Date: Wed Jul 14 12:37:14 EDT 2010

Hi, Lisa,

I love your site!! This is very similar to what I have in mind for our program. I've not seen reading-rewards before, but it looks interesting. Thanks for sharing! We do use Google sites and Google Docs a lot in our program, but we use them to collaborate on projects rather than with students, although we've been exploring that possibility. There are so many options available that it can be difficult to choose.

We use Moodle as our LMS, and I believe that it also has a blogging application. This would probably work best for us because students are already familiar with it.

Staci Van Art
Distance Instructor
PA Distance Learning Project
TIU #11 Community Education Services
PA CareerLink-Mifflin County
Lewistown, PA

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