Blog About Blogs and Don’t Forget RSS

Reflections on the process of learning about the tool (3 points)

Blogging about blogs. I really worked hard at trying to make an alliteration with this, but I came up short. So I really have to give Tom top marks for his “B.L.O.G. - B for breaking news, L for latest updates, O for only what you want, and G for global”. Darn you for stealing my thunder![heavy on the winky ;)]

Again, I feel that the learning process and curve for this week’s tool, blogs and RSS wasn’t too steep. I feel like I have become quite adept at the technical end of blogging and this has freed me up to keep working on finding my voice.

At the beginning of term, I set-up my blog for this class and since then I have set-up a few others. If you count the blogs, I have seven on Blogger and two on WordPress. I am just playing with WordPress, but I don’t like it because it's too busy. Blogger is clean and simple! I also set-up my RSS feeds at the beginning of the term with GoogleReader and they have worked flawlessly. I mention them (12 and 19) in more detail in a bit.

Of course, all of the reader feeds were made easy by Joanne providing us with a really good base to start from. I think it’s amazing (and I’ll talk more in the next section about this) how just a few names (Blogs) to follow can grow into a very big network (PLN) in a very short period of time.

Another tool area I did some learning in was with one add-on that WordPress has that Blogger doesn’t. Specifically, I like “Cumulus” cloud tags (tell me this isn’t cool!) and the WordPress iPhone app. Blogger has an app called BlogPress and it’s pretty good and I do use it from time to time, but I like WordPress the best for its sophistication. Both apps are easy to use and post to your blog very nicely.

As far as RSS feeds go, I jumped on Google Reader at the beginning of the class and have stuck with it thus far. It is super easy to use and it integrates perfectly with my iGoogle page where I get updates for new posts several times throughout the day. Using an aggregator like GoogleReader is the only way to go. It saves so much time by not having to look for relevant information. It’s always better when things come to you. Kinda like that TD Bank commercial with the two old guys! I also like the balloon feature that GoogleReader has. When you click on an interesting post, it gives you a short synopsis of the post and if you like it, you can check it out. See the picture below.

Discussion of the tool in terms of your personal learning (e.g. me as a learner, me as a parent, me as part of a social group) (3 points)

My personal learning using blogs, their tools and RSS feeds has been the area I think I’ve grown the most. Maybe even become more sophisticated in. All of the readings this week have been great. The course books, the Trailfires and their related gems have really stretched my mind and made me think of all the possibilities.

The 25 Blogging Styles reading/slideshow was significant as I really opened my eyes to the possibilities of blogs. Knowing what types of blogs to write, how often and the likelihood of being read is extremely useful. I really do see the merit in using blogs personally, but I see an even greater opportunity for using blogs in schools with kids. Therefore, I really, really see the merit in using blogs with pre-service teachers so they know about blogs and how to use them in their classrooms. I think knowing this type of information (blogging styles) would help in the classroom when creating and posting student blogs.


Richardson and Davies and Merchant in their respective books state that in order for kids to be using all of these Web 2.0 tools meaningfully, teachers must have a firm understanding of the tool and the pedagogical implications of using these tools. So Joanne, you need to offer this or a course like it to undergrads! I think it should be a “C & I” course that all Education students have to take in order to graduate!!

The Seth Godin video, albeit short, was incredible. It really left me wanting more and thinking about my meager blog offerings in a more positive light.

I’d like to provide the text of what he says in this posting, but it is way more powerful when listened too! Text just can’t do it justice. Okay, just this bit. “…The metacognition is what matters”. I guess every time I say, “it really got me thinking” it’s a bit of metacognition!! So…, reading blogs and writing a blog has really got me doing this. Thinking about what’s in my head and trying to articulate it using a variety of mediums on my blogs!

Another reading I found interesting was the Student Blogging Guidelines. I think this is important because it gives teachers a framework in which to begin their blogging with kids. All teachers and parents are worried that their kids won't be safe on the internet. In a recent study I read, only 41% of parents thought teachers were keeping their kids safe while on the internet at school. I think this ties nicely into Davies and Merchant's chapter on Responsibility. 

In the Audience Matters reading, the “eyeballs, teachers and co-learners” progression really struck a chord with me. This is a natural progression for blogging and thinking. Sometimes we talk about what’s going on in our lives, sometimes we even try to teach/tell people stuff and eventually we progress to involving others in our blogs as co-learners and authors because we see the power of collaborating. This of course is also where we want to take our students, but in order to do that, we need to be proficient at blogging ourselves. Again, this is where a course like this Web 2.0 one helps. I also think that we all need to be advocates for this process and sometimes even force people a bit out of their comfort zone.

This term in my EDIT class, I have posted all my notes and everything else related to my class to my blog. I have even forced my students to post to the blog and read it too!! I have forced them to add a blog tab and three postings to the websites they’ve created at Webs.com. I am hoping in a very subtle way, some of them will see the merit in using a blog as a teacher. Next term, I am going to make each student create their own blog in Blogger and keep a running record of the lectures, post their thoughts about the class presentations and lectures and also to begin (again subtly) a bit of an ePortfolio.

As a parent, I have been trying to help my oldest daughter (an aspiring Calgary Police Service Constable) with technology a bit. I’ve been trying to show her there is more than iTunes, YouTube and other brainless music videos on the internet! So, I’ve turned her onto the Calgary Police Service’s Blog and Facebook page. This might actually be a parental Coup d'état!!

As far as my social group goes, I am following 12 blogs and I have 19 blog subscriptions. Seth Godin’s blog is my latest. I would probably be following more blogs, but I am following a host of other folks on Twitter (being the convert I am) and my Twibe keeps me up to date.

I have also shown my EDIT 302 blog (as humble a beginning as it might be) to many of my RDC colleagues and they are impressed and some of them are starting their own. The same goes for wikis. I have one total wiki convert. His wiki is a Middle Years wiki for collaboration and to use as a virtual staff meeting!

Discussion of the tool in terms of your professional learning (e.g. me as a teacher, me as a school leader, me as a teacher-librarian, me as a member of professional learning communities/networks). This takes into account technology integration, use in schools, pros and cons, etc. (3 points)

I think I’ve covered most of what is listed in the preamble to this section. However, I am Chairing the newly formed IT Steering Committee at RDC and as Chair, I have insisted that all info, decisions and desiderata be posted to a Blog on the RDC portal so we can transparently share information with faculty, staff and students. Of course, I will also request authoring access to the blog!

Blogs like any tool have their pros and cons. See my MindMeister mindmap (one of my new favorite Web 2.0 tools) for my pros and cons.

Evidence of Research and Further Reading (3 points)

See listings throughout my posting.

Some key learning/points from Richardson.

1. The Google and Internet archive projects. It is unbelievable that the biggest collection of books in human history is going to be digitized. I really do think this will go down in the annuls of human history as one of man’s greatest achievements. Maybe Blio will allow us all to read this information for free??

2. I thought the 10 big shifts were interesting and important. Especially the social construction of knowledge which really applies to blogging. I really think that social constructivists really got it right a long time ago and when you nail it, it's hard to argue against it. Blogging fits with so many different learning theories, it is hard to deny how good this type of activity is for kids and teachers.

3. The text a question to “46645” was very cool. I even showed my wife this one!! She was foolish enough to ask what the meaning of life was!! 

Some key learning/points from Davies and Merchant.

This is the first time in this book I thought the information these authors were sharing outdid Richardson!

1. Firstly, I really like the “responsibility” part of Chapter 9. I literally preach this to my undergrads all the time. How their role as a teacher is different. How they need to teach kids to be safe. So it was very poignant for me to have some validation!! 

2. I liked the “learning and reflection unfolding over time” piece when they referred to blogging. I really believe this is true! Blogging is the perfect tool to facilitate reflection. Heck, isn't this what we've been trying to get kids to do for so many years? We just need to blog and have kids blog about important and meaningful things in their lives. NO more "what I did on summer vacation" papers!! If you do, then use Animoto to show us instead of tell us! Or better yet, embed your Animoto into your blog!!

3. Of course the purpose, participation, partnerships and planning diagram struck home with me as well. This gave me some food for thought about how I might find my voice!! Of course purpose is everything and this ties in with the Audience Matters and 25 Styles readings.

4. I also like the reference to all this media being “Social Objects” which people gather around to discuss and grow. This is where I’ve gravitated to. To social objects, to people that let me learn, reflect and then voice my thoughts and opinions about what I’ve learned using literally any medium I want!! And, I don't have to leave the comfort of my home on a cold winter night to do this!! My quilting club (kidding) now comes to me!

Respectfully,

Brad