Blogging in the Classroom

Inquiry Week 1

The process of setting up WordPress was difficult as expected when learning anything new, I’m hoping as I get more comfortable I will keep discovering new ways to use WordPress and explore all the different ways I can spice up my weekly reflections and inquiry updates. I consider myself quite dense when it comes to technology and get very easily frustrated with it so I am going into this class with a positive mindset and patience.

I think blogging is a great tool to use in classrooms. I have always really liked the idea of having journals as a part of my daily classroom routine as they have a multitude of activities and benefits to go along with them. The weekly blog posts allow us to reflect on what we worked on in class, in between our lectures as we go a whole week before coming back to technology. I also love that we can easily apply what we learned in class into the blog posts as a way to add a formative assessment without it feeling like an assessment. The inquiry projects allows us to explore the use of WordPress on our own and find useful tips and tactics we may not have from the weekly reflections. Like a journal, I think having the blog is a great way to see the more personal side of students and get to know their character and life outside of school – this creates a connection between teacher and student that will benefit both parties and generally enhance the mood and productivity of a classroom. I appreciate the use of the blog over a hand written journal because it allows for things like embedding videos, pictures, and audio that wouldn’t be possible in a physical journal, and I love the learning curve of discovering a new website and learning how to use technology as a tool for learning.

The only fear I have with blogging is of course the safety concern. Especially with younger aged kids who may not understand the navigation of the internet. If I were to implement this into my class I would wait until middle school and heavily monitor my students websites. I would also ensure that everyones blogs can only be viewed by myself and classmates and that no pictures of their own will be uploaded without parent permission. I think the introduction of a blog would be a great way to teach kids entering their social media stage about internet safety and their digital footprints.