Blog sites are such a common mode of communication, we rarely think of the technology. Instead, our favorite blogs bring to mind such things as resources, best practices, personal enrichment, inspiration, and news to help decide who the next president will be. I have several blogs bookmarked that are categorized by digital tools, trends in K12 education, volunteerism, and personal inspiration. I've always said, "book authors are our friends". We come to know favorite authors as if we've visited over lunch or exchanged email communication. The fact is, most of my favorite authors are deceased, but I still count them as friends. These include :
Elisabeth Elliot author of
Through Gates of Splendor;
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German pastor
executed at end of World War II;
Dallas Willard, greatly beloved philosophy professor from UCLA, and
Dave Jonassen, one of the early
authors of constructivism as a paradigm of instruction.
I've studied their books and reflected on blog posts to form lasting friendships with these well know authors of the past. Blogs are perfect for getting to know someone before you actually meet them. Blog authors tend to write from a more personal perspective on a blog. They take risks and trust their readers to read between the lines--so to speak.
If you can persuade your students to become avid bloggers, they may benefit from the opportunity to becomes friends with blog-authors, or to become author/friend on their own. According to Heidi Jacobs (editor of
Mastering Digital Literacy, Solution Tree Press, p. 10) we live in a time of personalized learning. Personalization is about learner's choice and action; learners are encouraged to make personal decisions about their learning. ...Blogging fits into the trend moving from standardized to differentiated and personalized learning. When we read a textbook, the learning does not end with the final chapter. Indeed, most textbooks merely whet the appetite for topics related to undergraduate and graduate education. Authors are continually adding to their books, updating with new editions, and branching out into related subjects. I think this is representative of our 21st century information society. Information is never exhaustive. Seeking never ends, and learning is limitless.
Great Blogs for Teachers will give you kickstart in your personal blog reading. I think you will be able to mine this collection of blogs and discover many useful resources.
[image from https://blogs.city.ac.uk/ retrieved August 27, 2015]
