Looking at weblogs and discussion threads brings to mind looking at each from the point of view as a teacher and as a student.
As a teacher I can see the benefits of both...the threaded discussion is guided by the teacher and the students and teacher can question and respond in one central location. I also see the benefits of having students create a blog as it allows them to be creative and individualize their learning experience. I know that there would have to be guidance and direction for
As a student I can also see the benefits of both, but my learning style and learning experiences to date prefer the teacher guided discussion. This may be due to the fact that blogging is very personal and public and I find myself feeling vulnerable....is there a structure? Am I being graded on form, content etc.? I logically see the benefits....the asynchronous nature....my own discovery of topics related to the topics and readings provided by the professor....the ability to read other classmates or professional blogs allows me to reflect and comment....this logically makes for a wider learning community and yet my structured, logical, private self is feeling uncomfortable.....a natural reaction to a new experience? I think I'll get through it and hopefully come out of it with the appreciation of the experience...
I liked the Anderson/Cameron article with the premise based on the the "Community of Inquiry Model" as a guide to look at how blogging enters into the social, cognitive and teaching realm to support the discourse of the educational experience. I also have started to read Will Richardson's weblogg-ed that was mentioned in the same article.... I will also look to find some teacher/librarian blogs for inspiration.....
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Good discussion here.
I was pretty interested in the idea of blogging being more "the fact that blogging is very personal and public" and was wondering if that if fact was actually a good thing taken within the idea of "Community of enquiry' from the Anderson/Cameron article it leads to notions of "social presence" which might seem peripheral to the content but Anderson/Cameron found co existed with good online experiences - even though at this stage I recognsise that as you say you prefer the guided instruction that perhaps a "professor" might give.
Just wondering if others agree that in the online environment the roles are some how confused and within the spirit of community of enquiry there are many more opportunities for learning if all participants get opportunities to make their own personal statements and contribute to the building of a body of knowledge. I wonder also if this only works with adults or is there a big shift when you try this in schools?
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