I have a small tool kit in my desk drawer at school. It includes a hammer and a variety of screwdrivers. I’m set for any emergency ... until a student creates a hole in the wall when he trips over a desk. My hammer is not going to fix that hole. Knowing how to fix a problem means knowing how to use the right tools.
As teachers incorporate technology into our classrooms, we can’t just add random tools; we have to understand how the tools work and how to appropriate each tool for the right job.
At first glance, a blog seems like an ideal tool for an English teacher. Where students once wrote a research paper, they can write a blog. Voila, a 21st century assignment. However, it’s not that simple!
When blogging was first exploding on the internet, Vicki Davis, blogger of Cool Cat Teacher, explained that blogs are not meant to replace research papers and other forms of academic writing (2006). In fact, she cited research saying that there is “no significant measurable difference in engagement and effectiveness of blogging used in [the] classroom” (2006).
Among the advantages of blogging, Davis notes that a good blog is a “part of a conversation” (2006). Students can read, write and respond to each other. This means their blogs should not be everyday expository essays, but rather topics which ignite their passion and enthusiasm and which allow them to express and defend their opinions.
Another blogger, Kathleen Morris suggests 18 benefits of blogging that range from expanding new literacies and revisiting traditional literacies to creativity, digital citizenship and global connections. One of the strongest benefits she gives is allowing students to learn social skills and confidence. Students are able to practice their conversation and communication skills and they can practice using empathy (2018). We cannot assume that students are learning these skills on their own. I need to be TEACHING them how to communicate effectively and how to read and write with empathy. Blogging gives real world practice.So, rather than using duct tape to fix a hole in the wall, I found a drywall patch kit, sandpaper and some paint. The right tools made a simple fix. And rather than using blogs to teach students to write a literary essay, I can use blogs more effectively to teach students how to use 21st century skills.
References
Davis, V. 2006, April 24. The mistaken identity of blogging: why educators are missing out. Coolcatteacher.com. Retrieved on 7/21/20 from https://www.coolcatteacher.com/the-mistaken-identity-of-blogging-why-educators-are-missing-out/?highlight=student%20blogs
Morris, K. 2018, March 14. Why Teachers and students should blog: 18 benefits of educational blogging. Kathleen Morris: Primary Tech. Retrieved on 7/21/20 fromhttp://www.kathleenamorris.com/2018/03/14/benefits-blogging/
I like your comparison of real tools to digital tools. These classes are offering us a huge variety of tools to use in our teaching. We definitely need to sort through these
ReplyDeletegoogle apps and decide which ones we think will be most effective in our individual educational environments. I want to use them all because they all seem so wonderful, but that would be overwhelming to me and my poor children. Thank you for the reminder of being selective.
Great blog post! Did a student really make a hole in your wall?! I love the analogy you used with that- I am a visual person; so thinking about fixing problems using the right tools will be easy to remember. I love how you pointed out the importance of not only giving students an avenue of expressing their passions and opinions through blogging; but, also a great way to teach and practice talking, listening, and empathizing with one another (something that I feel can be lost and not nurtured enough through many social media platforms the youth of today are engaged in today.) Thanks for your post. (I think duct tape works for everything, though!)
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