What I Think of Blogs in the Classroom Now...

I chose to read Bridget Thompson-Hall's EDM 310 Blog. Bridget is in my class and we are always having to help each other out with assignments. Bridget and I are also both from rural areas in Alabama and our respective hometowns are relatively close to one another. I, like Bridget, was very new to blogging when I started this class and although I had heard of blogging and have friends who blog religiously about their lives, I had never thought of using blogs in an educational setting.
I covered my views of classroom blogging in my podcast earlier this year but I really think that blogs have the potential to be great tools. In the classroom, blogs can be used in many constructive ways. As always though, there are always pros and cons to a tool and blogs are no exception. I see blogs as a great way for parents to keep in touch with what the students are doing. If a parent can log on and see what the assignments are for the week and what the students are learning about, that will save them from having to dig through their child's backpack for a note from school that may not have ever really made it into the backpack. Notes should still be sent home, since not all parents have Internet access. Also, students could use classroom blogging time to perfect creative writing skills in a "grown up" sort of way. Students could also spend time typing their spelling words. If a student has to type the word "cat", they must think "c", "a", "t" and put the letters together in the correct way. Typing spelling words is a way to spice up practicing words. Student may blog about things they like or dislike about school, such as they wish they had more bathroom breaks or times to go get water from the water fountain or that they really like when they get to act out their reading stories. Students could blog about things they are learning our in Social Studies or Science and maybe even type some Math Rules like writing out in words, "Two times two is equal to four."
However, in order for this wonderful classroom blogging to be able to work, the students must have Internet access. Many students will have Internet access at home but some may not. While the public library will probably have Internet access, the student must have a way to get to the library. If a student rides the bus straight home from school and Mama doesn't get home from work until 5:30 or so, then there is no time to go to the library. If the teacher wants the students to blog in class, which I think would be preferred so that the students could be well monitored, the teacher must be able to find time to allow the students to blog. Finding time for one more activity in the classroom is difficult but since the blogging could be integrated with other subjects, perhaps finding time to squeeze in some blogging would not be too difficult.
I have found blogging to be enjoyable but it is difficult to remember to blog. Since blogging must be done from a computer, it's not something that can be done on the go. Some homework can be taken and completed easily between college classes but blogging isn't like that. Also, if students do much of their homework on the bus ride home, then blogging must wait until later and probably will end up being forgotten. I do like blogging and I do think that in the appropriate classroom with students who are mature, blogging can dramatically reinforce classroom objectives.