Research+Notes

This page is for our research notes

To add page numbers to a google doc If you'd like your document to include numbered page in the PDF or printed version of the document, follow these steps: While the PDF or the printed version will show the numbered pages, the editable version of your document, within Google Docs, won't reflect these changes.
 * 1) From the document, select **Print settings** from the **File** drop-down menu.
 * 2) In the settings window, select the checkbox next to 'Include page numbers' and pick where in the document you'd like the numbers to appear.
 * 3) Click **Print** to create a PDF version of your document.

Research paper notes:

Teacher-created, Teacher-centered Weblogs: Perceptions and Practices Beverly B. Ray and Martha M. Hocut []

Volume 23 / Number 1 Fall 2006 Journal of Computing in Teacher Education 1 Copyright © 2006 ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), 800.336.5191 (U.S. & Canada) or 541.302.3777 (Int’l), iste@iste.org, www.iste.o

The study used a qualitative approach to address the following broad research question: What are the perceptions and activities of K–12 teacher bloggers concerning the usefulness of Weblogs? In particular, the researchers sought to examine the usefulness of Weblogs in supporting reflective practice. Participants were also asked to identify ethical issues associated with blogging

The sample consisted of 16 (n=16) K–12 inservice teachers

Results indicate that the majority (15) found the blogging experience to be very positive

Twelve participants reported that blogging supports their **reflective** **practice** “[Blogging] provides an opportunity to record [an] experiences, reflect on it, [and] organize my thoughts. I think it also benefits others who may be looking for…inspiration.” post as a journal on teaching activities post as a sounding board to illicit feedback from other professionals

**Collaboration and Social Interaction** Thirteen of the participants wrote about the importance of peer communication and social interaction while blogging. Within this category, several sub-categories emerged: 1) the sharing of ideas, 2) the discussion of issues of concern, 3) the overcoming of geographic or professional isolation, and 4) the venting of frustrations

The following quote is illustrative of the broader theme: I love reading other teacher’s blogs, to find out what they’re thinking, what works for them, what doesn’t, and also to get some vindication. It’s such a relief to know that I’m not the only one who has trouble with classroom management, or is irritated at the testing frenzy, or cannot WAIT for each vacation. Others were more specific in their thinking: “[B]logging is a fantastic way to open a national (or even international…) forum among teachers. If we want to effect change or try new and different practices, this is a free, fun way to do it!”

**Ethical Issues** Participants were also asked to identify professional concerns related to blogging. Fourteen participants specifically cited privacy as their primary concern. Issues such as whether they were in violation of school or district policy were addressed, as was the need to avoid being “outed” by students, parents or administrators. As noted earlier, 15 of the 16 participants blogged anonymously.

“Looking back, I was really pretty naïve in the beginning. I wrote posts that included my principal’s name and details about my students and the school. When I realized that a quick Google search of these names and details yielded a direct link to my site, I was mortified. I quickly set about deleting several posts and changing the names and details in others. Not until Google’s cache had gotten rid of old pages was I able to rest comfortably.”

**use these quotes**

Discussion

We were interested in determining the usefulness of teacher-created, teacher-centered blogs. In particular, we sought to examine the usefulness of blogs in supporting reflective practice. Another question that shaped the research related to the ethical issues teachers must face when blogging.

Teacher Centered Weblogs can be effective reflective devices. For most participants, their blogs functioned as reflective journals where they could write about and reflect on events occurring in their classrooms. A majority of teachers in the study demonstrated what Rodger’s (2002) refers to as a “disposition” for critically questioning what is going on in their classrooms. They used their blogs not only to think about their teaching, but also to assess their own performance as teachers. As Rodger argued (2002), this particular disposition is critical if teachers are to successfully integrate theory into practice.

Hillocke’s (1999) assertion that expert teachers engage in continuous reflection about the effectiveness of their work.

Study participants found blogging software to be very user-friendly. In addition, because the software allowed teachers to not only store posts long-term, but also quickly retrieve or revise a post, their blogs functioned as effective, reflective tools.

Collaboration and Social Interaction As stated earlier, most inservice teachers receive little or no feedback from peers (Darlington-Hammond, 1996). However, participants in this study were able to overcome this limitation by establishing a community of practice that supported one another’s work.

Ethical Issues Blogs also can provide an anonymous forum for educators to express their concerns and vent frustrations about the issues and events they encounter in the educational environment

However, issues relating to privacy and ethical practices must be addressed if Weblogs are to fulfill their early promise.

The Prose of **Blogging** (and a Few Cons, Too) Ramaswami, Rama **Source:** T.H.E. Journal, v35 n11 p21-25 Nov 2008. 5 pp.

http://www.thejournal.com/articles/23562 blogs and wikis are perfect for experimentation because the software is readily available and often free.

Those findings are expanded upon by a study involving University of Florida preservice teachers and published last year in the //Electronic Journal for the Integration of Technology in Education//. "Collaborative Blogging as a Means to Develop Elementary Expository Writing Skills" examined the effects of collaboration via blogs between the preservice teachers and third-grade students at a west central Florida school. The 18 participating students were assigned to write a five-paragraph essay on a Native American tribe and create a related online presentation, all the while maintaining a blogging correspondence with the university students. As the students posted ideas, comments, and questions, the preservice teachers would respond with suggestions. Then the students wrote the essay, one paragraph at a time, and posted it to the blog, receiving more feedback.

The unanticipated results were even more striking: The third-graders transferred knowledge learned during blogging to other academic and social aspects of the classroom, such as building models of Native American villages during recess. Also noteworthy, the students developed their technology skills even though they didn't receive formal technology- related instruction during the project. The preservice teachers reported that the third-graders became more proficient at keyboarding, formatting, conducting internet searches, toggling between several open programs, and cutting and pasting content from the blogs to their presentations.

conserns It's a finding that gets to the heart of what educators like Bud Hunt-- and Principal Chris Lehmann earlier-- warn against: putting the technology ahead of the instruction.

Unfortunately, academic networking is not immune to the menaces of social networking, as Marciano found out soon after debuting her blog. The blog was besieged by spam, forcing her to shut off the collaborative component of the technology.