Teacher Concerns

What do we do about privacy?  How do we make sure these assignments are really authentic?  How are we supposed to teach students to cite their work?  These were all questions that I thought of when researching this subject, and I’m sure you could come up with a thousand more.  Hopefully, I've addressed some of them in other posts, but I’d like to hit a few others below.

Commenting: It can be a concern that some students may not comment or that the commenting will be very forced, but Wilber speculates that “Even if only a few comments are made, this represents tangible evidence that a blog is being read (64).  Thus, students are still learning valuable skills and are responding to a live audience.  This is something that you may have to figure out through trial and error, but it will be worth it to see students really engaging in each other's works.

Privacy:  Most blog options require a sign in that can keep others from altering or misusing the students’ works.  If other concerns come up about work being public, I noticed in my searches though that it has been suggested that  students post under a nickname or number.  As a teacher you can also monitor these posts to makes sure students are keeping to safety guidelines.  It’s probably a good idea to ensure that students have a background in internet safety.  There is also a website called Kidblog that is create specifically for this kind of assignment.  It's important to recognize, though, that the platform used for posting may effect the authenticity and audience of the blog.

Abusing Technology:  Not all schools are welcome to the idea of technology in the classroom because students may abuse it or use it as a distraction, but there is plenty of evidence to support it as a valuable tool.  As one researcher said on the subject, "Unfortunately, many school administrations respond to this new dynamic by attempting to restrict or ban online contact between teachers and students, when it would be more useful and instructive to model appropriate behavior and etiquette before students become adults" (Pahomov).   Even though technology can be distracting, it's a distraction that these students are going to have to deal with and learn to use wisely their entire lives. Embracing and using technology in healthy ways will help students develop good habits with this resource that will be invaluable in the future.  

Welcoming the internet into the classroom is not going to be easy for many teachers.  “Opening up what counts as valuable communication requires thinking differently about the ways in which we evaluate and respond our students’ work” (Wilber 76).   This isn't how things have been done before.  It's new, and new can be good.  It's this kind of thinking differently is what will help us to transform our classrooms and find more authentic experiences for students to engage in.  So, go out there, take a little risk, and try your hand at bringing the amazing technology we have into the classroom.