Journal # 9

Reynard, Ruth (October 2008). Avoiding the 5 most common mistakes in using bogs with Students. The Journal, Retrieved December 2, 2008, from http://www.thejournal.com/articles/23434

The article is simply about how to use blogs in the classroom environment, and five rules on how they can be ineffective. The five rules are 1) ineffective contextualization. The writer of the article stresses the importance of clear and concise context within which the blog is being used. If it isn’t clear for the students, then they will find the idea confusing and ultimately reject the idea of the blog. The second rule is unclear learning outcomes, which the writer describes as if the teacher is unclear as to what the outcome of the process will be, then the potential of the blog tool may not be maximized. The numbero three rule is misuse of the environment: the writer describes what blogs are NOT, reaffirming that they are self-posts from individual students, and if the teacher or student forgets the intended goal, then all hope is lost. The fourth rule is illusive grading practices, which the writer adds that blog grading rubrics should be very clear, because blogs aren’t as simple to grade as a test. There aren’t always correct or incorrect answers when grading a blog, so the write says to be clear of what you want as a teacher. The final fifth rule is inadequate time allocation, which the writer means as giving the students enough time! Let them maximize the use of their blog, and since it is a self-post, to give them weeks, months, or even the whole semester.

How would a blog help the classroom community?
A blog would help the classroom unite by allowing fellow students to log on to their friend’s blogs, make comments, and read what each other has to say. This would form an online network of the classroom, allowing students to interact outside the classroom.

Are there any other negatives of blogs in a classroom?
Some of the negative could be cyber-bullying and simply writing inappropriate things about other people, but nothing that wouldn’t be said or written if it was in the classroom.