Here’s a great little article about how blogging is beginning to gain serious currency in the educational field, because it incorporates a number of new literacies necessary to successfully exploit the rapidly changing information and communication technologies in our world. Read the full article here.

However, the writer warns that teachers must first learn to use blogs throughout their curriculum to foster these new literacies. For example,

  • How to address writing for a public audience
  • How to cite and link and why they should do so
  • How to use the comment tool in pedagogical ways
  • How to read web materials more efficiently as well as explore other ways to consider pedagogical uses of blogs
  • How to teach students to critically engage media, including blogs
  • How to teach students to become efficient navigators in digital spaces where they will be obtaining a majority of their information

The author goes on to provide a list of reasons regarding why blogging is educationally sound for teaching students:

* Blogs provide a space for sharing opinions and learning in order to grow communities of discourse and knowledge — a space where students and teachers can learn from each other.

* Blogs help learners to see knowledge as interconnected as opposed to a set of discrete facts.

* Blogs can give students a totally new perspective on the meaning of voice. As students explore their own learning and thinking and their distinctive voices emerge. Student voices are essential to the conversations we need to have about learning.

* Blogs foster ownership and choice. They help lead us away from students trying to find what the teacher wants in terms of an answer.

* The worldwide audience provides recognition for students that can be quite profound. Students feel more compelled to write when they believe many others may read and respond. It gives them motivation to excel. Students need to be taught skills to foster a contributing audience on their blog.

* The archive feature of blogging records ongoing learning. It facilitates reflection and evaluation. One student told me that he could easily find his thoughts on a matter and he could see how his thinking had changed and why.

* The opportunity for collective and collaborative learning is enormous. Students have the opportunity to read their classmates’ blogs and those of others. This is not possible in a regular classroom setting.

* Blogging provides the possibility of connecting with experts on the topic students are writing.

* The interactive nature of blogging creates enthusiasm for writing and communication.

* Blogging engages students in conversation and learning.

* Blogging encourages global conversations about learning–conversations not previously possible in our classrooms.

* Blogging provides the opportunity for our students to learn to write for life-long learning.

* Blogging affords us the opportunity to teach responsible public writing. Students can learn about the power of the published word and the responsibilities involved with public writing.