Summarized by Melissa Motes
Educators are beginning to discover the power of blogging as an education tool with our media literate students. This case study involved a high school math teacher and his students as they used blogging in their classroom. This study's findings support the concept of using blogs as a teaching tool.
This case study explores the focus of a high school calculus blog to provide a snapshot of ways support learning through blogging in math and science classrooms. The problem as stated by the authors is as follows : "How does one high school mathematics teacher, Mr. K., capitalize on blogging to enhance classroom-based instruction?" The authors focused on teacher intent, classroom use and perceived value to the students.
Mr. K had each one of his students take turns at being classroom scribes that recorded what happened in class each day. Students posted class notes, example problems and highlights of class discussions. They also reminded each other of possible pitfalls in problems. The student
scribe would also post the assigned scribe for the next day. This was a fun way of making sure all students checked the blog daily. Mr. K also had students blog reflections on their learning in each unit before taking a test. Posting a game or problem on Sunday nights was another practice by this teacher. Mr. K had students post to a del.icio.us accounts to keep up with relevant resources for the course and linked these to the classroom blog to allow students quick access to resources if they needed them. Students commented in post study interviews their learning was clearly being supported by the classmates' posts to the blog.
I found this study quite interesting. I believe the this was a very thorough case study that provides a great example of a learner-centered classroom. Students were the authors and thus took responsibility for their own learning. I absolutely love the idea of a daily classroom scribe entering a blog. I would also like to see teachers use the blog similarly to this study in posting reflections. This allows students to again take ownership of their learning. I would also build upon the idea of the blog as an enrichment tool to post additional resources not given in class time. I have long believed that peer review is one of the greatest motivators for students as opposed to turning in work for the teachers eyes only. Blogging accomplishes this perfectly and allows students and teachers to build relationships as described in by the author. Another way that I would instruct teachers in blogging as a classroom tool would be to design activities that create interactions with other students' posts. I have been guilty of posting isolated assignment post that only require the user to answer my discusion question. I would use blogs in every subject area similiar to Mr. K in this study. So often I am asked how do you blog math. This is a prime example. A slightly different situation that I would apply some of these strategies mentioned in the study would be to have teachers blog highlights of professional development sessions. Every teacher that posts gets entered into a drawing for a small prize to be delivered to your mailbox post training. Everyone wants to win, that is the nature of human beings.
I feel that this teacher did an outstanding job of using blogs a tool to extend the learning in his classroom. The examples provided will be an invaluable resource to me as I work with faculty members this school year in the area of classroom blogging as a teaching tool.
Capitalizing on emerging technologies: a case study of classroom blogging.(Case study)Publication: School Science and MathematicsPublication Date: 01-MAY-08Author: MacBride, Robyn ; Luehmann, April Lynn
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Melissa, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this blog. I, too, am excited about the prospect of having a classroom blog and using assigned scribes to keep the webpage going. As I started reading, and saw that this was a calculus class, I thought "how could a calculus class possibly use blogs and be content driven?" Well, this is an excellent example. If one can do it in a calculus class, other disciplines can certainly find ways of incorporating blogs if the desire is present. What I like about this concept so much is the fact that the class is so very learner centered as opposed to teacher centered-at least that is how I see it. In an online class I took in the past, each week a student was assigned to be the discussion leader. When it was my turn, I went to great pains to make sure I had read the material, understand it as best I could. Then I posted questions and thought provoking discussion topics. To say I was engaged was an understatement. At the time (this was several years ago) I thought "this is a great strategy." The student scribe concept on a webpage is kind of like that, except it is better; it seems to me the level of accountability (peer review plus) is higher. I also think the idea of having a school-wide blog highlighting professional development experiences among teachers is awesome. Again, along the same lines, it holds us to a higher degree of accountability, and not only that but knowledge increases school wide as opposed to only the individual receiving the benefit. Great blog; great math teacher, and great ideas! Loved it!
ReplyDeleteMelissa,
ReplyDeleteI like your selection of blog articles. They all are nice. I found the article about the math teacher interesting because the techniques he used to keep students engaged with Web 2.0 tools. Using del.icio.us along with blogging was an excellent idea that is far beyond the typical classroom lecture or online discussion board. The idea of selecting a different student daily to act as scribe does ensure everyone is using the technology. Calculus is a higher level math class and different techniques of keeping students involved can make learning more meaningful and fun. I noted that you were going to share the different blogging techniques available that teacher can use in their classrooms. I have learned a lot from this class in using Web 2.0 tools myself. I had never written a blog before this class.
Yes, Melissa the days of teaching in the industrial age is gone. Students become bored easily and we as educators must ensure they are engaged and want to learn. Students have digital technology such as iPhones, so let them used what they are comfortable with to learn. I am sure you will maximize the use of Web 2.0 tools in your learning environment. Good luck in your career and future studies. It was fun have you as a classmate and thanks for the comments on my blog site. I like you point of view that learning in the military and civilian environment have similar characteristics.
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