My digital immigrant thoughts on blogs

As a busy working mom, I don’t usually have a lot of time for blogs. In fact, for the most part, I feel like they are EVERYWHERE and who has time to read them all, let alone find the ones that are worth reading or even interest me. This might sound strange coming from a writer. I also have thought it strange writing when the entire world can see everything you’ve written. I’ve definitely stayed away from that. But I do find blogs intriguing – your own published column where you can say whatever you want, whenever you want. Your own op-ed piece or creative inspiration that doesn’t end up with a big fat rejected stamp on it.

But I am definately more intrigued after reading the articles for class. I like the idea of using them for specific reasons, with specific goals in mind.

Blogs in the media center and use in the classroom

After finishing my readings, I have discovered that blogs in the classroom and the media center has a variety of uses, including connecting students and teachers to each other, connecting classroom to classroom, connecting students globally, and giving students an outlet for their voices.

I think blogs are not only useful for students but can be just as useful for the media specialist and the classroom teacher. Teachers need outlets and need to connect with the wider community as well and this is certainly a means to do just that. Justin Ashworth comments, "when you publish a blog post..its almost a guarantee that your writing and ideas will impact someone with a vested interest in education (Ashworth, 2007, p. 64).

Blogs can be especially useful in combining literacy instruction and technology. The TalkBack Project is one such example of this. Not only did students get to connect to one another - they connected with another generation and different kinds of learners in exciting ways. I thought it was interesting how engaged students were with the blogs and noted when a problem arose, "by taking away our access to the TalkBack Project blog, you have taken away my voice" (Witte, 2007, p.95). Research has demonstrating that new technologies like blogging has dramatic effects on instruction, especially literacy instruction. For example, Leu and Kinzer (2000) found that "the convergence of literacy instruction with Internet technologies is fundamentally reshaping the nature of literacy instruction as teachers seek to prepare children for the future they deserve" (Witte, 2007, 93).

Another topic I found interesting during my readings was learning about how students, through their expanded knowledge about blogging and other technologies, are teaching the teachers in some regards. Teachers need to get updated and need to be comfortable as sometimes digital immigrants teaching digital natives. (Castek, Zawilinski, Barton, Nierlich, 2008, 506).