http://www.futurelab.org.uk/resources/publications_reports_articles/web_articles/Web_Article569
Mary Ulicsak, Futurelab
Blogging, or web-logging, was a phrase coined in 1997 by Jorn Barger to describe web-based pages usually characterised by a series of short postings, listed in reverse chronological order, that can describe anything of interest to the people or groups that created them. In addition to the frequency with which they can be updated, a blog's main distinguishing feature seems to be the strong expression of the author's identity, which is usually hidden in more objective journalistic websites. One image suggested for a blog is that of a radio. It is a means to publicise one's own story and opinions but apart from the obvious choice of whether to 'tune in' or not, a listener's interaction is not synchronous; some blogs offer opportunities for them to comment via e-mail - but they cannot interrupt the broadcast.
Most blogs - approximately 70% of the 1.8 million estimated - comprise of personal journals, impressions and travelogues for immediate friends and family. However, blogs can be used for other purposes, such as fundraising (Blog for America gives its contributors the opportunity to donate money as well as offer their opinions); providing a forum for a community, both voluntary and in the workplace; grouping relevant information, as in Slashdot ('News for Nerds'); a means of recording impressions during an event (for example the blog for Colston Symposium); and, it is proposed, a tool for learning.
The latter seems a possibility given the nature of a blog. All entries are automatically archived, unlike Chat or MUDs (Multi-User Domains), and they are more accessible than a journal as they can be accessed by multiple readers anywhere with internet access. Although the easiest way to use a blog in education is as a method for a teacher or tutor to publish course material, the students are more likely to find them useful if they can create and contribute to them. Unlike traditional compositions, blog entries are usually short and impressionistic yet still give the author the opportunity to work out ideas through writing, elicit feedback and suggestions, share information, and express themselves in a manner appropriate to the audience. The author must decide whether to add text or incorporate relevant hypertext links, photographs and other media, as well as how frequently they should post.
Researchers at Stanford University argue that it is this process of considering the audience that develops transferable critical thinking skills and the ability to form constructive working relationships. This is one of the three core competencies needed by undergraduates to become good citizens and employees. Thus the blog must have a hook, such as an interested audience, address a need of both the author and reader, and allow for feedback (controlled interactivity) to prevent a common perception that blogs are an opportunity for self-indulgence.
However, just because a blog structure has been set up it does not mean it will be useful. For example, the researchers at Stanford describe a blog that was designed to support archaeology students by listing up-to-the-minute findings, fostering a sense of community, and providing a forum for the development of ideas. But despite being heavily publicised, it was found that there were no contributions to the blog apart from entries made to fulfil course requirement. Yet if successful, blogs can generate genuine communities which share views and support learning, for example those created by student teachers as part of their technology module at the University of California, which give them the opportunity to record their own experiences and provide support for their peers.
Currently the debate still continues about whether blogs will have a role in the classroom. The emergence of software capable of posting spam comments in response to genuine entries in blogs threatens their usage - who wants to read ads? But prohibiting and limiting access through password protection will reduce the audience - already reduced by the sheer volume of blogs available to read and those who have stopped reading because they infer the increase implies a reduction in quality. Yet if the Stanford researchers are correct, without an audience students will fail to develop the transferable skills that having a blog supports.
Links
NITLE blog census: www.blogcensus.net
Blog for America: www.blogforamerica.com
Slashdot - news for nerds: slashdot.org
Weblog for the Colston 2004 Symposium - The Evolution of Learning and Web Technologies: Survival of the Fittest? blog.ilrt.org/colston
Blog for trainee teachers incorporating class data and personal entries: hybrid28.ucr.edu/breilly
References
Nardi, B et al. I'm Blogging This: A Closer Look at Why People Blog: www.ics.uci.edu/~jpd/classes/ics234cw04/nardi.pdf
Nardi, B. Learning and Web Technologies in Evolution: Creativity and Catharsis in Blogging (a presentation): www.ilrt.bris.ac.uk/news/conferences/colston2004/programme/nardi.pdf
Thompson, B. How Spammers are Targeting Blogs: news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3210623.stm
Thompson, B. All Over for Blogs?: news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3134629.stm
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