A LITTLE BLOG WILL DO YA…. NO BLOGGING BABIES HERE!

I wish I'd known about blogs in 2008, when I spent many hours with Dreamweaver, fiddling with some sort of new foreign language called HTML, learning over the phone from that my son. I totally would have done a better job of creating short, sweet and regular updates if I'd been blogging. But that is what a blog does, and a website is different. I feel quite reflective writing about blogging at this point in the course; this journey began with a total immersion experience in January. I am, finally, after three and half months, bloggin' about bloggin'.

No Blogging Babies allowed in this classroom! It was sink or swim from the first assignment. Although I didn't quite swim, more of a doggy paddle really, this has been boot camp blog-wise. It hasn't mattered what we were learning, we had to blog it.

BLOGGING AS A TOURIST TO BLOG IMMERSION: REFLECTIONS ON THE PROCESS OF LEARNING ABOUT BLOGGING AND RSS FEEDS

It all began with curiosity. I'm always asking questions and wanting to know NOW something new. I wanted to figure out swimming as a toddler at Indian Lake in Quebec, so I threw off my lifejacket and jumped off the deep end of the dock. My father, who seems always to be running after me for some reason, threw down his rye and coke, cigarette in hand and fully clothed, raced off the beach to rescue me. I didn't need it! I was the one who always found the Christmas presents and at the tender age of 6, perfected the art of unwrapping and rewrapping them days before Christmas. I was the teacher librarian who tireless advocated for automating my school library in 1984, just because I wanted to figure out something new (and I was sure was better). I dabbled in a library blog in the fall, because I knew it would be useful and a new challenge, but tied to being in a new school, returning to Teacher Librarianship after a long hiatus, and taking on an administrative role as well, it was really just like a tourist who picks up a few words of the foreign language. January began with that full immersion experience. Just like those children who go to French Immersion, their eyes pop wide when they are first exposed to the French only language. They have to quickly figure out how to say 'Je veux aller aux toilette, madame' very quickly to prevent embarrassment. I had to learn how to use a blog effectively very quickly.

It took me my first blog and a careful critical look at other classmates' blogs to realize I didn't know how to link anything, didn't know how to cite anything, but at least I had bitten off a fair chunk. I graduated into grade one. It took me several blogs before I could embed a file. I figure out how to cite… grade 4. Now that those basics have been mastered, we get into the tough stuff. The skills are less defined, the processes involving higher level thinking.

From the start, I'd set up, as suggested, a Google Reader account, and subscribed to the blogs of my classmates and my prof's recommendations. Task done, then ignored. I spent the next many, many blogs surfing for articles, following trails from one blog to the next, and Trailfires, while Google Reader worked silently away, completely ignored. Occasionally I'd read in a discussion that a classmate had discovered that her reader was her new best friend, or that the reader was the savior of the day. I made promises to myself, I will go say hi to my Google Reader, but, for shame, I left her alone even longer. Not one work of complaint did I hear from my hard working colleague.

I vaguely understood that my reader had a slave that did her work. RSS feeds, (Real Simple Syndication) were just like the Dragons in How to Train a Dragon, feeding Reader with everything I'd asked for. It was the tool that made Reader work. I'd implemented it in January, and just left the two to get my work done. This pair of tools together can save me so much time, I can subscribe to even more blogs!

Where is the best place to get information? The Trailfires have provided the most directed information, as they are clear and linear; providing an excellent scaffold to learning about both blogs and RSS Feeds. The blogging world is very immediate, far more so than print materials and often more immediate than electronic publishing. Searches for blog information on the Google Blog. The textbooks have been useful; the feed that I have to my email from Amazon has led me to two excellent books published in 2010 that made my thinking about blogging clearer. (November, 2010; Brook-Young, 2010)

How will I write it? Blogs, I've come to believe from the hundreds I've now read, need to be short and to the point. My verbosity gets in my way; I believe a wider audience will be gained by shorter, more frequent blogs. The hook is vitally important too; that is drawn from the content but also from the personality of the blogger and is one of the ways to build voice and readership. We all love to read Brandi's blogs because she has voice, she has a hook and she makes the reader want to learn more. I want to write like that. I enjoy most the blogs I've read that are personalized. Perhaps this addresses the slightly voyeuristic needs in all of us and our desire to connect to the world when we read blogs. Technically, I will write it on Word 2007! That belated discovery was an aha moment and has decreased a lot of frustration that occurred writing in the draft format. How I design and layout the page will be an important first decision; if the design frequently changes, the repeat reader may not hook to it as easily. Think first, act later… remember that! I've been playing with widgets of which there are millions on the web. Do I want my reader to know he is only the 17^th person to visit? Do I want them to see that only Edmontonians have been on the blog? Will that information help readership or reduce it? Do I want a search key, do I want to link to twitter or Facebook or have a follow button? Design will be a great attractor once someone is on the sight, so like writing, it has to be done effectively.

Key to a good blog will be good writing. Copyblogger, a favourite blogger I subscribe to, in 11 smart Tips for Brilliant Writing, knows that KISS rule. Short sentences and paragraphs, simple words, active voice, don't overwrite, edit, don't be redundant or ramble, don't use fluff words. I definitely have LOTS to learn. (Remember that both 'erudite' and 'verbose' can be replaced with simple words that will engage all readers. (The temptation is in me to go back through this blog and erase, cut, shorten, and perhaps I will do blog version number two at the end… ie the Twitter tweet). Readers connect if it is personalized, real and entertaining; these ingredients engage and connect the reader to the blog.

Who will read it? The perennial topic of voice that confounds every novice blogger, but is compounded by the dual purpose of writing for a curriculum expectation and a rubric and a mark, and balancing that with my desire to write for a different audience. Dean Shareski in Ideas and Thoughts believes that audience is critically important. He defines three types of audiences.

1. Audience as eyeballs: This is the teacher who keeps the class entertained and engaged but doesn't contribute anything. This is the blog that is linked to others without and real connection. This might be like the Twitterer who started following me this week with 25,000 people they follow, but less than a 100 who follow them.
2. Audience as teachers: These are the bloggers that result in some commenting, and therefore creating a purpose for writing and disseminating their ideas. Commenting on other's blogs can be difficult, particularly if the comments are reflective and thought provoking. Blogs become a discussion.
3. Audience as co-learners: These are the powerful bloggers who are sharing as co-learners. Blogging needs to be shared beyond the classroom to be most effective as a classroom by itself cannot by any means reflect the linking of learning that can happen through a global audience.
   

I believe we made lots of progress and certainly became co-learners as bloggers by the end of the course. Time limitations certainly affected the number of direct comments I've posted, but our course blogs are often being read by our classmates and the ideas and thoughts that each of us our posting directly relate to the shared learning that is happening through the reading of each others' blogs. I believe this audience factor will be critical if I continue to blog. I believe that the course focus limits the audience. For now, the main readers of my blog are classmates and colleagues, although it is growing if cluster maps and Feedjits are accurate. I would like to be writing with an audience as co-learners; writing this blog has been about professional development and learning. With the pace of technology change, what we have learned is the beginning of a journey that I can see has no visible end in sight. The learning and growth that is possible through a blogs is unlimited and I do not want it to stop. I look forward to the day where commenting and linking with other blogs, reposting and learning is co-operative across the teacher librarian world.

Why would they read it? If
you want to get, you've got to give. I've learned that I can't just blog and believe that anyone will find me in cyberspace. I've got to read other blogs and comment. I've got to be thoughtful and reflective and not just say, 'great job'. If my comments spark an interest then we take first steps on a reciprocal journey. If I can share the blog on other social networking forums, I can attract readers. Feedjit tells me that significant percentage of the people who read my blog found it on a Facebook post or on a tweet. I felt like a boaster, sending out tweets about my blog, but it has been effective. Reposting others blogs has built a few followers who are thankful that I have read and shared their ideas. I've learned that I need to advocate for my readership; if someone doesn't understand blogging, which includes the majority of elementary teachers, a simple message will not lead them to read my blog. It particularly won't get them to set up an RSS feed! No one in my school blogs, uses Google Reader, or understands an RSS feed. There is still a deep rooted traditional understanding of professional development; it is delivered to them in a block of time and the agenda (learning) is designed by an instructor. People will read it because it is an idea they want to explore, but it has to be short… to quote an old advertisement little dab will do you. And if it comes right to you, and you don't have to look for it, then you are far more likely to read! Professional development with RSS feeds is person, self directed, timely, engaging and cheaper.

REFLECTIONS ON BLOGGING FOR PERSONAL AND SOCIAL USE

With so many types of blogs (The 25 Basic Style of Blogs) out there, and so many functions that blogging has filled, I can foresee a continued growth in the blogosphere despite the periodic reports that Social Networking sites are attracting more clients. Blogging fulfills a different purpose with more comprehensive information. Twitter and Facebook are excellent pointers to blogs where readers can get more information. When I've shared with connections that I have been blogging, I have repeatedly heard about people who blog about their trips and holidays (life blogging). What a fantastic way to keep a memory in picture, writing and video. I've been following a blog for years (Daveberta) and have often found that that has been a first source to learn about provincial politics and to read interpretations and opinions (insight blogging). I might eventually use a life blog, and intend to keep up a technology education blog of some sort, I have learned that whatever blog type I do, it will be short and simple. Simply understanding that there are differences in functions of blogs themselves will help me interpret and understand the blog I'm reading

My Netfirms account expired and although it is on the list of things I've been meaning to do, I am wondering if I really do need to keep a web page. I can blog easily and if one style of blog does not meet my needs, then there are others (Weebly with pages as well as blog, even wikis can be used like a blog and have some different functionality). The first decision will have to be to figure out the intended purpose of the blog, what audience am I reaching for l targeting, and the best marketing and advocacy I can use to get there. This will determine how I design and write, how noisy or quiet the page is, (do I use many widgets?), what colour will it be, what colour is the writing. Just like buying a car, what it looks like is darn important because that is what the reader notices first. If they like the look then they might step inside the car, look at the engine, take a test drive (metaphorically speaking). If I do decide to do a blog, I have to be committed. I've spoken about loyalty and true love before when talking about delicious, and then I abandoned my relationship for the more hip diigo with its yellow highlights. I'll have to be careful that I truly make a lasting commitment that I don't just follow another lark. Perhaps I need to be careful that I don't take another blind jump off the deck before I get my water wings badge!

Part of my most recent personal learning was realizing that I can RSS feed from my bookmarking site! When I want to know what new bookmarks are there from my network, I can have a feed! My students all use a social bookmarking site (some classes on Delicious, some on Diigo) and now I can RSS feed the sites they are adding! I can get feeds on my favourite subjects. Steve Harris shows the steps to accomplish this. I can see I have learned so many new tools and discovered so much on the blogosphere that I will need to quit my day job to keep up with my web life. I need a second life…
Greg Schwartz, in his Web Junction article, succinctly summarizes the reasons one should blog:

Reason #1 - Writing a blog keeps you current.
You'll want to know what's going on in the world before you start talking about it. Posting regularly to a blog encourages you to actively engage the process of information seeking and current awareness.

Reason #2 - Blogs are an advocacy tool.
If you want change, you have to talk about it. Blogs are a great forum, not only for exposing the world to the issues facing both libraries and librarians, but also for thinking through your ideas and cultivating means of expressing them effectively.

Reason #3 - Blogs build community.
Some of you are probably thinking that no one will read what you have to say. When I started my blog, Open Stacks, I shared your skepticism. As it turns out, no matter who you are and what you write about, there will be others who share your interests. I was surprised to discover that, as a librarian, you already have a built-in community of people interested in you and your perspective. You can, and probably will, meet people that you may not have met otherwise, becoming part of a very progressive segment of the LIS community.

Reason #4 - You are unique.
One of the problems with librarianship is image. Stereotypes of librarians abound. Publishing a blog is an opportunity to demonstrate your individuality and thereby work to dispel some of those pervasive myths. Even if you don't think of yourself as unique and fear being redundant, your voice is yours and yours alone, so join the chorus.

Reason #5 - Do it for you.
Never discount the power of writing as catharsis.

Reason #6 - Lastly, it's easy, so no excuses.
We've got no excuse. We need to build a community. I'm toying with the idea of gathering a group of like minded teacher librarian types to coauthor a blog… any takers? Together we're better… we can blog about it and share the work. Sounds intriguing to me. Do I see any wannabe writers out there looking for a forum? Or, even guest authors? There are blogs that are shared…

REFLECTIONS ON BLOGGING AND RSS FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING


I am always searching for ways to encourage students to write. Writing has to be meaningful to engage students. Engagement is the key to effective learning. The work I have done with blogging has engaged students who never write to write stories and reports and to rewrite and to begin to comment reflectively. If there was no other reason to use blogs in school, this would be enough. Whatever style of writing that occurs, be it functional or narrative, when writing for an authentic, students perform better. I've seen students complain that if they'd known it was for marking they would have tried harder… not a purely authentic audience in my mind! I've seen that on HLATs (Highest Level of Achievement Yearly Writing Assessments in Edmonton Public) where the audience in limited to a possible external marker, students put forth in most cases their best efforts.. I've seen it conclusively with the writing my class is doing, even though it is only shared (for FOIPP reasons) within the school community. I have linked two PDF files, that contain samples of work in progress as the students collaboratively write for their own school community about an issue they have chosen to analyze on their own time, out of school. Group 1 (2 students) wrote about whether the Olympics and Paralympics should be combined; group 2 (2 students), wrote about the Canadian Seal Hunt. Research supports the argument that sharing writing for larger targets increases performance. I see it in myself in writing this blog; if it was only the professor, I know I would have compromised on content during stressful times, but couldn't let myself do that when it was for public viewing.

Lisa Zawilinski in 'A Framework to Promote Highter Order Thinking', The Reading Teacher (2009) defines four types of elementary blogs: Classroom News, Mirror blogs (Reflective), Showcase Blogs (Highlighting student work) ,and Literature response blogs. Within the library context, students can participate on blogs, by sharing ideas about their classroom learning, about the books they are reading, about book clubs, write book reviews, create a school news blog, talk about the technology and skills they are experiencing. It can give them one more reason to come to the library, virtually as well as physically. Students can do the blogging, or we can blog with the student audience in mind. We can blog in the library to keep our staff informed about projects, programs, equipment, new technologies (and old!). Roselle Public Library runs a blog that discusses books beyond its library border youth. Teenreads.com reviews books by teens, kidsread.com carries reviews by children. Both give examples of the kind of writing we can see by students when they have an opportunity to write for an authentic audience. They would be excellent models to use to model what kids can do when blogging about books.

There is always the concern about internet security as we open the world to our students. There is a wealth of information out there providing guidelines and parameters for World Wide Web postings. There are policies and regulations about the use of internet, and there are restrictions for underage access to many web sites. Often, students need email addresses to join a cloud platform that will be secure once they are using it, but are limited in access without one. Many elementary students do not have email addresses. Some school districts provide email addresses to their students. As more opportunities become accessible to students, the issue of monitored and secure email needs to be addressed by parents and students alike. My students write on a site with an imaginary email address so they cannot be sent real email, and all posts are monitored through an RSS feed. Guideline for internet usage should be shared with parents, with guidance on how to monitor their child's appropriate use. I feel that schools and school libraries have a responsibility to teach the school community about the tools and safety issues and protections we are using with their students. The blogs, wikis, tweets and social networking sites are new to most parents and we need them as partners in learning, not isolated and out of touch with the new technologies. We need to connect with parents and make them understand that thy, too, are welcome to post on blogs. In Your Guide to Getting the Most out of 2KM's Blog you can find an excellent poster to show parents how to get involved in their child' blog, step by step.

Kim Cofino's (at ISB) grade 4 students created some excellent student blogging guidelines that they have found apply to all grades, they are simple and easy to understand and include rules, but also questions that lead the student to think about the guideline:


Student Blogging Guidelines

1. As a student blogger at ISB, you are expected to follow these blogging guidelines below. Use the questions in italics to help you decide what is appropriate to post on your blog.
   
2. Only post things that you would want everyone (in school, at home, in other countries) to know.
   Ask yourself: Is this something I want everyone to see?
   
3. Do not share personal information.
   Ask yourself: Could someone find me (in real life) based on this information?
   
4. Think before you post.
   Ask yourself: What could be the consequences of this post?
   
5. Know who you're communicating with.
   Ask yourself: Who is going to look at this, and how are they going to interpret my words?
   
6. Consider your audience and that you're representing ISB.
   Ask yourself: Do I have a good reason/purpose to do this?
   
7. Know how to give constructive feedback.
   Ask yourself: What will I cause by writing this post?
   
8. Treat other people the way you want to be treated.
   Ask yourself: Would I want someone to say this to me?
   
9. Use appropriate language and proper grammar and spelling.
   Ask yourself: Would I want this post to be graded for proper grammar and spelling?
   
10. Only post information that you can verify is true (no gossiping).
    Ask yourself: Is this inappropriate, immature or bullying?
    
11. Anytime you use media from another source, be sure to properly cite the creator of the original work.
    Ask yourself: Who is the original creator of this work?
    

Kim also writes about the guidelines for commenting. Students can learn true reflective commenting when guided through the process. Instead of the typical 'Great job' comment, she points out the need to leave a comment, that it must consider the purpose of the blog and be constructive, have a personal connection, add meaningful information, and follow the writing process. Comments are not short form text messages; they are a published piece of work. Teaching students to create appropriate and thoughtful comments would make a meaningful contribution to the quality of responses on the web.

RSS Feeds are useful for teaching and Learning. In our extremely busy personal and professional lives, keeping up with communication is often a challenge. Communication with parents and families is often a challenge when parents are working during the day. Homework blogs set up with RSS feeds to a parent's and/or student's Google Reader account would be an excellent tool for teachers to use. Teachers and students can get RRS feeds from Amazon based on an author or a category such as Young Adult books. Students can use a Google reader account to collect news on a topic of interest or research using an RRS feed, and therefore access news from around the world. I have set up RSS feeds from different Teacher Librarian Sites in order to keep up.

We need to increase communication to build community. School leaders have a responsibility (and in fact it will determine a level of their own success) to communicate extremely effectively. (Schrum and Levin, 2009). School leaders are using blogs to communicate with parents, family and community members and are writing weekly about efforts to meet schools and student's needs. Leaders can blog about how and why teachers are using tools such as blogs, wikis, and Google Docs. Links to school leaders who blog can be found at http://supportblogging.com/. Click on the List of Bloggers and you will connect with school administrators and how they are using blogs as public relations, news, events, field trips, and to post alerts, to report issues related to local politics (ie: West End Facility Usage that leads to school closures!) These types of blogs can be informative not only for the parents in the school community, but for the trustees as well. (Schrum and Levin, 2009). According to Richardson, (2006) in his list of blog uses for school leaders:

• blogs can be used to advocate for what is working and what is not,



• to post school related events ,



• to post informative links,



• to communicate directly to parents, to reflect on administrative experiences,



• to log your learning,



• to share tips with other leaders



• post questions to generate input



• to explain how-tos



• to exhibit exemplary class work



• to explore issues related to 21st Century leadership



• to provide web links



• to share photos of school activities and work



• to encourage and set an example for teachers and students to blog

I'm not doing the doggy paddle any more, but I've got a ways to go before I am a competitive swimmer. Perhaps you could say that I am working on my Bronze Medallion. I'm as a blogger, confident enough to get out there and try it, have a lot of knowledge, and ready to take on the next level, doing it for my own delight. Edmonton Public has talked about student engagement in terms of visible delight; that truly has been my experience with learning to blog. I have had to hold myself back in the staff room talking about what I'm doing, and when working on units with my colleagues, I've had teachers comment that their head is spinning with so many ideas and new thinking. I take that with great humbleness, because it has been the course process that has gotten me to the point that I feel, at each moment, on top of what I'm learning (even when there seems to be too little time to put it all into my blogging!) In the end, my curiosity did not kill the cat, but made me, just a tad, ocd about this great learning blogging experience!

For now, this blogger's going to close. Till next time…

Unlinked Resources Used:


Brooks-Young, Susan. (2010). Teaching With the Tools Kids Really Use. Thousand Oaks, CA : Corwin Press.

Davies, J. & Merchant, G. (2009). Web 2.0 for schools: Learning and social participation. New York, NY: Peter Lang.

DeGroot, Joanne. Bloggin and RSS Trailfires.

November, Alan. (2010) Empowering Students with Technology. Thousand Oaks, CA : Corwin.

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Schrumm, Lynne, and Levin, Barbara. (2009) Leading 21st Centruy Schools; Harnessing Technology for Engagement and Achievement. Thousand Oaks, CA : Corwin.