I try to attend Bernie Dodge’s sessions when I can because I admire how he has been able to generate significant ideas out of courses he teaches (e.g., webquests). I mean this comment in a positive way. My research and teaching concern the same general field of study, but I can’t say any class project I have ever generated has been the basis for any serious scholarship.
The presentation “when teachers blog” concerned work by Dodge and Molebash evaluating the blogs of preservice English and language teachers. The general rationale for exploring blogs with this group was based on the assumption that such students would be “pro” writing and may be positively influenced by the opportunity to eventually engage their own future students with this tool.
The activity of encouraging preservice teachers to blog has extended across two semesters to this point and has involved the collection of some data (activity level and questionnaire responses) and some basic “manipulations” (whether blogging and reading the blogs of others was voluntary or worth 10% of the course grade (see paper paper to be available). Response to the experience of blogging was positive, students felt quite capable of blogging, and there was increased activity with incentives.
Some of the ideas shared at the session were very interesting. The authors wanted to provide teachers an opportunity for reflection and noted changes in what teachers had to say as they became more experienced in their student teaching. The idea of “saving” a record of this part of one’s life is interesting. Following the presentation, the group became caught up in a discussion of concerns associated with blogs – what younger students might reveal that may endanger them, what preservice or practicing teachers may say about their private and professional experiences that may endanger their professional futures. For example, student teachers reflecting on frustrations with students, colleagues, supervisors may encounter repercussions. In my opinion, it is difficult and perhaps inappropriate for people who are passionate about what they do to separate their professional and personal lives. Perhaps, this is especially true for those just discovering and shaping a professional identify.
It seems a sad trend that self-expression can also be self threatening (must be something in the constitution about this). I guess this means I should not post my pictures from last night’s excursion to “The Quarter.”
