After completing some research this summer, I sat down and structured the implementation of the blogging - which was a bit bumpy last year. Students completely invest themselves in this. With inspiration from Jim Burke and Bob Barsanti’s ideas, I was able to restructure my website into a workable system for the 175 students I teach during the school year. One of the keys I have found to effectively getting students comfortable with the activity, requires a phasing in of the process - especially since the majority of them have never participated in this type of activity for an academic purpose. I have implemented the assignment in 9-week bursts that align with my grading periods at school. The first nine-weeks the responses are emailed to me, thus limiting the exposure of student writing until we have had time to begin making improvements and build self-confidence in that realm. The second nine-weeks, students begin responding in blogs on the site. The third nine-weeks, students will not only respond in the blogs but also respond to each other. The final nine-weeks, students will create their own blog sites with responses and conversations. Bottomline: I want my students to demonstrate BEST THINKING in their writing.

Let me know if you have questions. Please feel free to check out my website as well; however, school has just begun, so we are only in our first nine-weeks of the roll-out plan.

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Not sure I have any new ideas regarding access but if you can encourage those students who have access at home to blog, I think you’ll find it continues to expand the idea that learning takes place everywhere. That’s where the real transformation takes place.

I am running a workshop on blogging at my school and your blog has saved me twice now!!!

Also, Jan Smith makes an excellent and (at least in some cases) overlooked point about the importance of RSS feeds. I don’t have my own blog (I know, I know) but I subscribe to a dozen or so blogs through google reader. The subscription feature makes it so easy for me to access the blogs I enjoy and keep up on my reading and commenting. I appreciate the reminder about the RSS feeds - I’ll remember to have my students implement a similar tool.

to Jan - what are your creative ideas for access? we also have the lab, plus one or two classroom computers (that sometimes work) and i would be grateful for any input

I think the lines of responsibility are blurred here. If you use a service like classblogmeister there is virtually no risk. You as a teacher moderate every post and comment if you choose. I often think this is a great place for teachers to begin however even if you simply have students create blogs on their own, the work they produce is ultimately their own. Students already have the power to create spaces outside of school where they can post whatever they like. Schools often choose to turn a blind eye to this and distance themselves from this and avoid creating any similar spaces in schools. This is sad choice since it relegates students to learn how to be responsible and thoughtful with no guidance and support.

As far as inappropriate comments coming through, other than spam, it’s rare. Clarence Fisher who has been blogging openly with classes for 4 years has had 2 inappropriate comments in that time. He used those as teachable moments.

The bottom line is expect things to go wrong, expect students to make poor choices but be determined to learn and teach from these situations.

Here’s the first of a series from my blog, from early 2007: Is this SSR 2.0? Oh, and the comment thing. Gordon Brune, a classblogmeister early adopter, called it Comment Love. Kind of like getting letters in the mail, like my folks always said - gotta write ‘em to get ‘em.

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I really feel like too many people get the concept of blogging confused with “online publishing” or “journalism”. This is probably only worsened by every periodical needing to have a “blog” affiliated with their paper or magazine. The bottom line is that it puts blogging in a box and adds a structure which can really undercut reflection and dialogue. Online publishing has it’s place, but I tend to see it as a different animal.

Your comment about reading is key. This is especially true if one expects student blogs to succeed. If “blogging” is imposed on a class, and the teacher doesn’t learn to be a reader and sincere commenter, how can we expect students to see it as anything different than another writing assignment?

Thanks for the insights.

My thought is to use a service like edublogs or wordpress. To me this is more personal and takes away the idea of it being tied to an institution. Unless you’re able to provide great in house hosting, I think this is the better way to go. It’s more likely they’ll continue on if it’s not associated with an institution. As well I’m thinking they’ll be more likely to post more personal stuff, which can be a good thing as well. With older students I think seeing this as part of their digital identity and portfolio is an important concept.

That said, blogmeister and 21 classes work well for K-8 students as a starting point.

The trick is thinking about comment’s like Ben’s regarding structure. What I might try in your situation is spend a couple of weeks reading and discussing offline. Get them to start having some deep conversations and intelligent discussions in an environment they are familiar with and then get them writing.

The first time I taught undergrads, I had one out of 14 continue blogging. My last term I’ve got 3 out of 23. Not that that was my goal but certainly getting students to see value whether as bloggers or readers is definitely the goal. I don’t think everyone has to blog but to be aware of this participatory medium and its role in culture and life in general is what I think is important.

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I will be attempting some major blogging in my classroom. I have set my routine to 15minutes a class to read and reply to blogs and 30mintes a week to writing blogs. (this is in my IP10 class)

Do you think this is a reasonable amount of time to get students interested enough to read blogs at home?

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Anyway, my biggest fear is that they will balk at going public with their reflections…that they will either avoid doing it, or be very careful, cautious and bland with what they share. Your idea that blog postings “must flow from personal meaning” is important, but I’m really hoping they will be willing to share things that are both personal and meaningful. I’ll let you know how it goes.