Dr Alison Ruth - Educational Blogging

Dr Alsion Ruth makes some very valuable comments in her blog; Educational Blogging Creates a Unique Partnership between Third Grade Students and University Students. View her blog for more information.



These following quotes i have taken from her site clearly illustrate some of the benefits of using blogs in the classroom.

She mentions the safety issues i have disscussed in a previous blog "who should blog in the classroom" and touches on the significance of feedback and how blogging can enhance quality feedback in the classroom.

I feel these quotes are worth sharing;


"Blogs in the classroom can serve at least four basic functions: classroom management, collaboration, discussion, and student portfolios (Crie, 2004). Teachers can use the blog as a form of communication with students and parents. The comment feature makes blogging a forum through which students can communicate and collaborate. This can be done from the perspective of the whole-class, within smaller groups or individuals. Students can also use the blog as a means of communicating with children at other schools or even in different countries. The blog can serve as a discussion forum, open to all Internet users, or limited to the students in one class. Individual student blogs provide an ongoing portfolio of that student’s work because each entry is dated and placed in chronological order".


"The ability to comment on a blog offers the opportunity for others to provide feedback and therefore "scaffolding of new ideas" (Ferdig and Trammell, 2004, p. 1). Blogging can extend students beyond the classroom to the rest of the world by providing a venue to gain perspective from others. These multiple perspectives should offer countless new opportunities to reflect and learn. In addition, students can become subject matter experts through exposure to vast amounts of information, which increases student interest and ownership of learning (Ferdig and Trammel, 2004). There is so much more opportunity for diverse perspectives when the ability to comment is extended to the whole world".


"Some teachers, parents and school administrators discourage blogging, concerned that the security of the child is at risk. Sadly, there are instances of adults taking advantage of children using the Internet. With this in mind, many schools prefer to limit access to the blogs or at least limit commenting privileges. Some blogging platforms offer the teacher the ability to approve the comments before the students have access to the content. While this method may place a little more administrative duties on the teacher, the depth and breadth of the comments may make it all worth it".


"When teachers understand the educational value and implications of blogs, as well as, the security concerns of blogs, the decision to integrate blogs into the curriculum is natural".