Blog Shmog!
So how do I get techno-nervous teachers at my school to read my blog, write their own blogs and encourage their students to write one too? It seems that in order to ease them into this phenomena of blogs and their promise of expanding ones creativity, writing and collaboration skills, I might need to disguise it as journaling. Langauage Arts and Reading specialists will love that! Right? How do I convince them that their students are thirsty for the knowledge they want to share but not the same way that they themselves obtained it? These kids are 21st century students and are adapting to a digital world that they are eager to learn from. Adam Bellow of edutecher.com said at the 2011 ISTE conference “Every teacher has a right to live in a cave. However, they do not have the right to drag their students in with them.”I don’t think that some teachers live in a cave....but maybe an outdated wood panelled apartment! Blog Shmog!
So how do I get techno-nervous teachers at my school to read my blog, write their own blogs and encourage their students to write one too? It seems that in order to ease them into this phenomena of blogs and their promise of expanding ones creativity, writing and collaboration skills, I might need to disguise it as journaling. Langauage Arts and Reading specialists will love that! Right? How do I convince them that their students are thirsty for the knowledge they want to share but not the same way that they themselves obtained it? These kids are 21st century students and are adapting to a digital world that they are eager to learn from. Adam Bellow of edutecher.com said at the 2011 ISTE conference “Every teacher has a right to live in a cave. However, they do not have the right to drag their students in with them.”I don’t think that some teachers live in a cave....but maybe an outdated wood panelled apartment! Blog Shmog!
I think the best way to expose them to the latest and greatest collaborative environment of blogging is to show them how blogs can benefit them personally with a hands-on professional development opportunity. Or maybe a screencast of me explaining it or even skyping from their own home! Might as well throw it all at them at once! I want my fellow educators to see up close and personal that creating a blog and populating it with information to share is as easy as Word processing. In addition, I think that if I involve one enthusiastic teacher and class in a classroom blog pilot program, I will have substantial evidence to show how fabulous it can work for them and how their students will jump on the idea. Showing them successful teacher blogs online will also encourage them like Kathy Schrocks blog with her amazing ideas on tech infusion in schools and Tammy Worcester with her creativity and genius tech ideas and lessons for all grades. If blogs area already out there for them to use, how can they refuse!
