Weblogs

This reading impacts my thinking about technology’s role in teaching and learning because it made me aware of all the different avenues weblogs alone could provide.  They would not only be great for allowing students to analyze and write about certain topics, it would also be an effective way to help them and their parents know what we did in class or upcoming events.  It keeps everyone on the same page, while removing the hassle of printing off so much paper.  Weblog’s goal of interacting with others is a new approach to teaching in itself. Our education system and society has a very individualistic approach, but the way in which we are using weblogs is the most beneficial when we work together and communicate our ideas.  To me it seems like we are slowly moving towards a more community environment where we can work together to further advance our knowledge and accomplish more tasks than we could by ourselves.  I also feel that by having others play a part in sharing their thoughts about topics that a student may have wrote about gives them an additional source of motivation to continue their homework.  They will take pride in having their own webpage that they are the creators of and when someone gives them a positive response to it, they will want to continue blogging.  It is great that kids can keep in touch with others and stay on top of current events happening by talking about or viewing links they can interact with.  Kids will use technology regardless if they learn it in school or not so it is up to the adults to teach them safe and beneficial ways of using it. 

                As a future teacher, I need to embrace new changes in technology and not just learn how to use it, but to continue to do so all the time.  Students need a role model when learning the technology because if I don’t feel it is necessary to continually update my blog then they are also going to share the same feelings of worthlessness towards it.  It will also be essential to always keep in mind what I want to accomplish as a teacher.  Just because there are new ways of teaching doesn’t necessarily mean that they are all beneficial and I have to decipher what tasks I feel will most help the students.  One activity with blogs that I anticipate the most is being able to communicate with different people.  In the reading, there was an example of how they invited the author of a book they were reading to join in on their responses.  I think this would be an awesome way to learn and it would get the students more excited.  I think it would be a great experience to integrate weblogs into a history class, for example, by communicating with a fellow student in another country and compare it to their own lives.