As I read Richardson’s chapters on Weblogs, I found that I love the concept. It is a fantastic tool for professionals to collaborate and share resources, fine tune lesson plans, edit work, and offer suggestions. The possibilities are fascinating. For example, I was amazed at the resources and collaborative insight at The English Companion Ning, which Dr. Crovitz previously pointed out (though I’m not sure if it’s considered a weblog or not). It encompasses all the possibilities imaginable in regards to networking. I am definitely supportive and excited about the idea of professionals collaborating on Weblogs, especially the linking of resources and creative ideas.
I start to get hesitant when the chapter begins to discuss Weblogs in the classroom. Again, the theory of a relationship building interactive classroom resource sounds ideal. And maybe if the use of the Weblog was kept strictly to the classroom, I would be more comfortable with the concept of a class weblog. But it would have to be inaccessible at home, as I fear it will never be accessible to all students once outside of the classroom. Is it fair to offer a Weblog resource (and in some cases mandatory out of class participation) to students when it is not accessible for everyone? And in that vein, is it causing an even wider educational gap between lower socioeconomic students, who may not have a computer and/or Internet access, and other students with Internet access? On page 22, Richardson comments on how parents enjoy the ability to monitor and stay on top of the class activities and work. This ability to hold their students accountable and assist them after school will not be available to all parents. Again, it is creating a gap in the educational development of the students due to socioeconomic differences and restrictions.
From a personal experience as a social worker, I recently worked with an 8th grader who had an IEP and was failing two of his classes. His teachers continually referred the student and his mother to the school website for the online tutorials and extra homework assistance. This student lived in a home that could not afford a computer or Internet, nor did they have a car to go to the library and get on the computer, as one administrative person suggested. Granted, this is an individual circumstance, however I fear this will be a trend. Where schools used to have homework hotlines that parents could call to get homework assignments, class websites have taken their place. Even in circumstances where alternative options are accessible (phone, notes, etc) I still feel there will be an unfair advantage to students who have the Internet. A parent’s quick access to information and “inside knowledge” because they can read a teacher’s Weblog, will give the student a greater advantage in the class.
With all of that said, I love the idea of using a collaborative Weblog for classroom use only. Richardson’s example of the collaborative activity with Sue Monk Kidd was amazing. I loved the suggestion of students communicating with other students in different states and even different countries. It encourages such creative discussion and interaction, which will dramatically enrich a student’s educational and life experience.
Ultimately, the instruction of creating a Weblog discussed in Chapter 3 was clear and insightful. I did not find it nearly as difficult as I feared in the implementation of a Blog in class.
This is the “digital divide” that many are concerned about, particularly as web 2.0 technologies and social media become increasingly the norm in our educational and professional lives. What happens in communities where, as you note, tech resources are limited or unavailable? On a single teacher level, you are correct in critiquing mandatory home use of technology for its assumptions and possible built-in inequities.
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