Value of Blogging
I've spent most of the last five or six days either sleeping or reading education blogs (with a brief time-out to go to Inservice at BCCC--more on that later). I started wondering, is this a worthwhile activity? Especially since I seem to be using my own blog mainly to bitch?
I've decided that the answer is a cautious "yes". I'm not getting many specific ideas or strategies from my extnesive reading, since most of the blogs I've been reading are by teachers in radically different settings and subject areas-- Sex Ed in Higher Ed is a college prof who teaches Human Sexuality, for instance, and the one I'm in the middle of right now, MsFrizzle, teaches middle-school science in the Bronx. However, I've definitely spent more time thinking about teaching practices in the last few days than in any other comparable period of time, except maybe my grad school teaching orientation. And I've come up with a few neat ideas--a new first-day diagnostic to use in my writing classes, is one, and I'm also toying with the idea of replacing my journaling assignment in Freshman English with a class blog. There are a lot of logistics to work out with that idea, and I definitely won't be starting it this semester, but it's something to think about for Spring.
Besides, if I wasn't doing this, I'd probably be either trying to catch up with all the programs I've got saved on my Tivo or else reading fanfic--it's not like I'd be whipping up the cure for cancer, or even finishing my Canterbury Tales lesson plan.
(Note: I'm bloggng from my front porch/stoop right now. It's about midnight, and I live in the city, in kind of a dicey neighborhood. Two guys just walked by, and I wondered if this choice of activity/location may lead to a sudden change in ownership of my laptop. Now I'm mind-f*cking whether that worry is reasonable or a sign of unconscious racism. Sigh.)
I've decided that the answer is a cautious "yes". I'm not getting many specific ideas or strategies from my extnesive reading, since most of the blogs I've been reading are by teachers in radically different settings and subject areas-- Sex Ed in Higher Ed is a college prof who teaches Human Sexuality, for instance, and the one I'm in the middle of right now, MsFrizzle, teaches middle-school science in the Bronx. However, I've definitely spent more time thinking about teaching practices in the last few days than in any other comparable period of time, except maybe my grad school teaching orientation. And I've come up with a few neat ideas--a new first-day diagnostic to use in my writing classes, is one, and I'm also toying with the idea of replacing my journaling assignment in Freshman English with a class blog. There are a lot of logistics to work out with that idea, and I definitely won't be starting it this semester, but it's something to think about for Spring.
Besides, if I wasn't doing this, I'd probably be either trying to catch up with all the programs I've got saved on my Tivo or else reading fanfic--it's not like I'd be whipping up the cure for cancer, or even finishing my Canterbury Tales lesson plan.
(Note: I'm bloggng from my front porch/stoop right now. It's about midnight, and I live in the city, in kind of a dicey neighborhood. Two guys just walked by, and I wondered if this choice of activity/location may lead to a sudden change in ownership of my laptop. Now I'm mind-f*cking whether that worry is reasonable or a sign of unconscious racism. Sigh.)
posted by ProfessorDog at 11:49 PM
3 Comments:
My blog is over three years old and has had roughly 300,000 hits. AOL has chosen it twice as Editor's Pick of the Week. It has been featured on various boards, and a few newspapers have contacted me to interview my family. Of course, I use my real name and location, since I am self employed. :-)
I think the primary reason for blogging's popularity is that in our culture we are becoming increasingly isolated. Blogging creates an online community, a sense of intimacy. People often write a lot more intimately than they would speak to a stranger. It is a safe place to vent, and a way to reach out to the world.
In May we traveled to Colorado to meet a Hopi family whose Mom is a blogging friend of mine. Even though we had never met in real life before, since we have been reading each other for three years it truly was like being with an old friend.
I guess it all depends on what you are seeking for your audience. I am still startled that people are curious about my family...but I love people, and I love to read about lives that I am not leading.
love, Kas (who is trying very hard not to post on HIS until someone else does, even though the Rolling Stone this month has an incredible article about torture.)
http://journals.aol.com/hestiahomeschool/HomeschoolingJournal/entry/5063
I was JUST thinking the same thing last night! My blog is SO much about bitching about my students (at least during the school year), but the best thing I've gotten out of it? (Besides all the fantastic and hilarious folks I've "met") I know I am NOT alone. The past two years I think I've been so frustrated with teaching because I just kept thinking, "What? Huh? Am I doing something wrong? Why isn't anyone ELSE complaining about these students? What is wrong with ME?" And now I know, for better or for worse, that it is the unfortunate state of "higher" education in the U.S. Although, I will admit, I'm still a freak magnet. Keep on bloggin'! Can't wait to read your posts once school starts.
A great post. Sometimes I also wonder if there is any point in blogging. I wonder how many people read what I write. I enjoy the writing and would enjoy writing in a journal. But, since I'm writing on a blog I want people to read it. In case you are interested, every day I post two articles. The first is a link to a newspaper article and suggestions for lesson plan ideas that go with it. The second is a link to another blog. Thanks for interesting reading.
Andrew Pass
http://www.Pass-Ed.com/blogger.html
Post a Comment
<< Home