Using blogs to build learning communities
Sally Graham, Joy Jarvis together with other staff from the School of Education have been encouraging their students to develop peer-based social networks. One of the best features of blogging is that it allows readers to comment on each others blog entry. The comments can be very supportive, insightful and serve to extend the topic of the original blog entry through discussion. Another powerful element of the blogs is the ability for each blogger to link to the blogs of other students. This allows for the creation of a social network which consists of peers interested in and sharing the same goals/interests. Coupled with the commenting aspect this creates a powerful medium in which knowledge can be generated and shared across a community of peers. Hopefully the students will continue to blog throughout their university career.
In Sally’s own words “Blogging is one of the tools we’ve used to build our learning community and so far it is proving to be very effective. The module team (5 of us) are working with 140 first year students embarking on a 3 year primary teacher training course (1EDU0096 Professional Studies: Learning & Teaching). During the first week of term we ran a study skills session introducing them to Studynet and blogging. In the following weeks we planned pre lecture and follow up tasks that invited them to post entries onto their personal blogs. An example of this was that after a workshop when they taught each other a simple skill for 10 mins they used their blogs to write a reflection on their learning: What are the strengths of your teaching? How could you have been more effective as a teacher? What enabled you to learn effectively?
We were very explicit with the students about processes involved in building learning communities and that we were working together using these processes. This involved staff being explicit about why activities were being undertaken and how this would help them develop their graduate skills. It also involved structured group work that students were required to undertaken in different groups, so that they could build face to face relationships along side those they were developing on line. Staff also modelled their own use of a range of community building strategies, including the use of blogs.
The members of the teaching team have started blogging and often make reference to these during our teaching sessions. Increasingly other colleagues are beginning to read, make comments and even start writing their own blogs.
We have tried to read all of the students blogs and write regular comments. Students appear motivated to communicate and Studynet has provided a means of creating this sharing community. There is clear evidence from reading the students blogs that they are making connections with each other and in their learning. A exciting side effect from this has been thriving discussion groups being launched by the students themselves and needing very little supervision.
We are all very excited about the power of blogging to engage students and provide a means for them to make connections. I’m sure if you’ve read any of them you’ll know what I mean. ”
I’ll second this. The comments by the students on each others blog are very supportive and as such inculcate a community of mutual support.
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