Blogging

No news on the blogging front. Sonja and I will be presenting a workshop on blogging and NiceNet in the spring. We'll make a good team (I think). So....no real news or progress, just wanted to write a little here. I can't talk (no voice) so writing seems more appealing.

NWP national meeting in Pittsburgh

The sessions are over, now comes the synthesizing and putting into practice. I have lots to process and lots to read and way more than lots to do/learn. It is exciting.

The trip here was horrendous, but then I arrived and it has been great. The first session I attended was the wrap up general session on Thursday afternoon. They did such a good job that I nearly felt as if I had been there. We discussed blogging, podcasts, TLs (I have added another jargon acronym...(T)ech (L)iaison to my vocabularyO needs and intentions, digital storytellling, the need for tech "teams," the creation of a social bookmarking site, and the exciting future of technology. I came away with enough knowledge and hope for contacts that I knew I would be able to be a decent TL and hopefully be able to do this for sometime to come. Many TLs are third, fourth etc. year TLs. I could easily see that being part of my summer for quite sometime. There is still a lot of other time to travel, etc.

Back to what I learned....Day two...The morning session was quite inspiring. The first story and the last were ones about teachers who change people's lives. I always get teary about those and fervently hope that I am that kind of teacher. The idea of Video Games as learning tools was presented by another speaker (and fervently concurred by a blogger at RCWPs blog site). The nearly two hours went much faster than I had anticipated (good sign). Then there was a little time to absorb that before I attended the first afternoon session.

Session 1--Tech Lit Pair by Leah Keuscher and Denylle McDowell. (This was a great session. They have such high energy and are so excited by what they are doing. That is part of the what I find so envigorating about NWP. Almost everyone that I have encountered here or at either of the SIs (another new acronym--Summer Institute) have been so full of energy and enthusiasm that I get infused with energy and enthusiasm, too...but I digress.) Together they have created a cross school partnership. Leah teaches AP English to seniors and Denylle teaches 7/8th grade (moves with class) depending upon the year. The AP students have a blog buddy (or 2 or 3) to whom they coach/teach literature concepts via their weekly blog contacts. They read what the younger kids are reading (additional assignment for AP) and reinforce what the middle school teacher has been working on during that week or the recent past or maybe even hasn't gotten to yet. They use NiceNet and the Manilla site from NWP. They prefer NiceNet for its ability to thread.

Session 2--Digital Portfolios by Troy Hicks and assosciates from RCWP. I have a copy of the collaborated ELJ article that encompasses the project that they demonstrated. Their concept was Portfolios as evolving WebSites. They used blogging to support the process and to facillitate each person's research, development and overall progress. It was funded with an Inquiry Grant and was an independent study that followed the SI. An excellent example of Visual Literacy and a way for the teacher leader/learner to pave the way for colleagues and students.

Session 3--Blogging in the Classroom by a variety of people from several states. (TLs??) They all have used/are using blogs in the classroom, from elementary to graduate school. The uses were varied, but reinforced that the blog is the tool driven by the content, not vice versa. It is obvious that they all enjoy the apparent success of their blogging projects. Again the need for monitoring, the potential desire of closed blogs, the variety of applications and the student enthusiasm was emphasized. Danelle (FGCWP) said that he requires 10 posts; his research shows that by the time a student has responded/posted ten times they are hooked and do a lot more than required. Lesser requirements (say five) don't necissarily acheive the same level of engagement.

My research, by finding more information, and by applying what I have learned to my classroom blogs will continue. I am excited to have stumbled upon something so "cutting edge" and so interesting for me. I love new interests.

Today it's the NCTE vendor exhibits and more reflecting.

Status Thus Far

Well, I know it is helpful in psychology. I don't know if it has really been any better than class server (and maybe not as useful) for the math classes. I need to make it a discussion forum for them, but that will take a little more time and research.

The management of the blogs and the time in class need a little work. Organization, organization, organization.

Baby steps...goosefraba.

One Week (mostly)

Well, they all have responded at least once. It will be interesting to see whether it helps in the mathematics classes. I believe it already has in Psychology. They had a great discussion after the blog about girls vs boys in the "tough life" department.

Getting everyone "invited" was a little annoying. I need to investigate whether there is an easier method. Actually, once they all have student emails activated, I could imput them myself. Week two starts tomorrow.

Day One

It didn't go too badly. As always a few people don't listen to instruction and I should have had something in writing. So, my first suggestion is that you have written instructions for your students.

The second suggestion is that you make sure your question requires some thought and writing to answer. Otherwise the blog will become meaningless, both for you and your students. At first the object is to learn how to post and how to respond, but it needs to be meaningful quickly in to the process.

Day two today. Hope it goes smoothly.

Classroom Blogs Begin

Well, the psychology class used the blogs as a jumping off point for our first discussion. It went well. If it continues to be such a good springboard it will be just what I was looking for. They all commented read each other's comments and then I gave them one day to digest that before we discussed in class. They all had imput and were definitely engaged in the discussion. So, one success.

Yesterday I invited the Geomentry class to their blog. Today I intend to invited Algebra II and Precalculus to their respective blogs. I hope that they also will be beneficial and aid in the students ability to both understand and communicate that understanding.

I am still concerned about management and whether blogs are the way to go since there is Safe Net and we have Class Server (but, the ability to read each other's comments is what I was looking for and I don't believe that Class Server supports that). So, anyhow...my field research is beginning.