Tuesday, September 10, 2013
blogging for homework
If I were an eleven year old given the assignment to blog on the computer for homework I think I'd be highly motivated. This task is making me question the balance of technology and written work. I personally like to write. I like how my ideas look on paper. I organize my thoughts and can see the trail. I don't backspace and delete a line and forget about it; it is a record of the writing process. However, I know several students that would love to have blogging be an option because it makes them feel comfortable. Why not encourage writing any way possible? I feel this would motivate reluctant writers and allow fluent writers a different vehicle for expression. As teachers we must remember to keep the balance. We must provide choice, but teach the beauty of it all. I also think of parents and hope that while they install a new app that is teaching their three year old largest and smallest that the next day they show them how to stamp a thank you note and mail it to a friend.
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I agree totally with your reflection about homework. I know my son would love to alternate between the 30 minutes of reading every night with 30 minutes of blogging. It could teach a multitude of levels including academic, social, and typing skills. Not all classrooms get the opportunity to talk socially with their peers. They might share easier through blogging with each other. think of all the possibilities for those nonverbal or nonsocial learners, and still be writing at the same time! Each child would benefit from the differentiation allowed for homework. Teachers need to take leaps within curriculum boundaries allowing everyone to flourish.
ReplyDeleteI work with a variety of students who are at many different levels in their learning. I agree that allowing that balance between writing and blogging would be a great arrangement that many students would likely be on board with. The balance part is important as you mentioned. It is important to embrace technology and use it for all that it offers. I also believe that we should not shy away from the true writing process and everything that it includes as well.
ReplyDeleteBlogging is a great idea for homework. I'm generally against homework for so many reasons, but blogging I imagine, would be appealing to students. Anything computer related seems to excite children and engage them in a way that book work does not. As educators we do need to recognize how students learn and provide the tools that would best help them learn. I am constantly reminding myself that children today are so technologically inclined and therefore do not learn in the same way as I did so many years ago. Is my impatience and judgment of students who are bored with school and make no effort because I am not computer friendly? Do I judge because I am not familiar with how stimulating the computer is for students? I have no experience with video games nor did I grow up 'surfing the web'. I do see the enormous benefits of the computer age but I can't help but feel uneasy about what it will all eventually mean. Will the negatives outweigh the positives at some point? Only time will tell.
ReplyDeleteI like how you mention that, as teachers, we must find a balance. I don't think it it advisable for educators to move either entirely towards technology or entirely away from it. We need to expose students to the technologies that will help them to understand and achieve more. At the same time, we need to teach them to do exactly what you said...write a letter, stamp it, and mail it to a friend. Moreover, I think that when we present various opportunities such as these to our students, we are offering choice. I don't think it is rocket science to understand that when students have options, the learning process becomes more interesting and the work that they produce as a result is more substantive and of higher quality.
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