Richardson, Pew, and Weblogg-ed

After viewing Will Richardson’s videos, the Pew report, and the conversation on weblogg-ed, I realized how beneficial blogging can be to students and professionals. Even though I experienced the benefits of blogging in ENG 374, the information presented on these sites reinforce the importance of blogging.

The videos on Will Richardson’s site show that blogging can teach more about ones’ profession and technology. Blogs and other social networking technologies allow individuals to have intellectual and engaging conversations. Richardson makes it clear that blogs are not online journals;they are learning spaces where individuals can interact with others. Blogging provides a space for authentic learning and interactions. Furthermore, Richardson also illustrates that blogging promotes reading and composing. The “read and write web” is a new type of internet that not only lets people access information; it allows people to write content. The internet now allows individuals to “consume,” “create,” and “share” information with others on the web.

Another reason that blogging and social networking are important is found in the Pew reports. The Pew reports illustrate that teenagers are the predominat age group that create different types of works onling. In the first Pew report, it is stated that “[f]ully half of all teens and 57% of teens who use the internet could be considered Content Creators. They have created a blog or webpage, posted original artwork, photography, stories or videos online or remixed online content into their own new creations.” This quotation coincides with Will Richardson’s videos, for he asserts that the internet or web 2.0 allows people to not only consume information but create it. Furthermore, the second Pew report indicates that teenagers are already using the internet for social networking. Specifically, “[m]ore than half (55%) of all online American youths ages 12-17 use online social networking sites.” With this information, teachers must use the social networking habits of teenagers as a gateway into writing.

Finally, after reading the weblogg-ed conversations, I saw the real-life benefits of integrating a blog into a classroom. The first Weblog conversation that stuck out to me was from Kaironews. In this weblog, the individual discussed a conversation he or she had with students about the reading and writing they did out of class. Many students didn’t think that the y wrote out of class until the teacher brought up instant messenger and email. It seems as though students enjoy this type of writing because it is authentic to them. Furthermore, this author goes on to say that “If we hope to have students continue to write outside of our class, having students use Blogger or WebCrimson gives them complete ownership of the text. Authentic learning is the most important instruction one can have. And this illustrates that blogs or other social networking devices encourage students to become writers. Another benefit of blogging is from the author Terry Eliot who believes that blogs give students “freedom” to write about what they want. Again, this ties into authentic writing, but freedom in writing helps students become life-long writers. In addition, weblogs also help “students exercise critical thinking, take creative risks, and make sophisticated use of language and design elements.” They help student become technologically savvy, and they help students improve their writing skills. Finally, weblogs can be a place for further instruction where teachers post assignments and other learning materials.