Cindy alerted to me a blog discussion between David Warlich and Matthew Tabor concerning the value and purpose of educational blogs and blogging. Without a thorough reading of the entire strand and thus without addressing these bloggers, here is my take on the issue.
I tend to have to convert the arguments of others to my own circumstances and language. I suppose this frustrates others, but as I understand the position of the social constructivists to claim to do otherwise would be a misrepresentation. Here are some distinctions I find useful and where I see my view of blogging within these distinctions.
1) Information transmission vs. personal knowledge generation.
I see the teaching/learning process as involving these components. The phrase “knowledge transmission” is probably on the outs these days. It is lumped with other derogatory phrases such as “sage on the stage”. I am not going to take the time to argue that this position is simplistic here, but rather to suggest that learning requires inputs and to argue that I would prefer quality inputs. I don’t feel blogs represent quality inputs. The information “A listers” for me don’t seem to have blogs (at least to my knowledge).
I think blogs come into play in that “personal knoweldge generation” stage. One of my most common work related complaints (according to my wife) is that I don’t have colleagues I can engage to discuss my academic interests. Even at the most educated level, I am surrounded by psychologists and instructional designers, but not instructional technologist. It is very difficult locally to find individuals who read what I read or think frequently about what I think about. Partly through blogging, the Internet provides these types of conversations. There is the opportunity to search for folks who at least write about what I find interesting.
I treat what these bloggers have to say the same way I treat “coffee room” conversations. The give and take in these settings helps me think about what I value and helps me feel connected. However, the conversations drift from current topic to current topic and I can exercise little control over the agenda. I pick up things here and there. Perhaps this should be described as general education rather than something more specific, but at least the topics are within my general field of interest. Even within this context, any blogger is free to generate a post focused on whatever is personally relevant. Like the conversation with colleagues, sometimes this turns the conversation and sometimes it does not. At least you had the opportunity to think about what you had to say.
I have a second way of describing this same distinction. In my research I make a distinction between information acquisition processes and study processes. I create and evaluate technology supported environments and it has been helpful to claim my interest is in applications to the study environment rather than to the acquisition environment. I think of blogging as more of a study tool.
2) Primary vs. secondary vs. everyone has an opinion sources
It probably is beginning to become more apparent where I am going. Somewhere along the way I started thinking about the difference between primary and secondary sources. I think the context had something to do with Cindy’s “Teaching American History” grant because the terminology is common in that context. Whether appropriate or not, I have adopted the ideas to other circumstances. Unless one’s purpose is to comment on the specific practices of blogging, I see blog content when well done as representing a secondary source. Most often, it should actually be positioned in the third category.
I make this observation regarding only the “content” of the blogosphere. As my first distinction indicates, the process of sharing opinions and secondary sources can be beneficial to those who externalize their opinions and summaries as blog posts and to those who treat such sources as opportunities for conversation.
3) Blogging is what you (not they) make it
Somewhere in the archives of this blog is my attempt to represent the main reason why my own blog exists. I was too lazy to search for it for very long and probably did not include key words that would make the post easy to find.
Briefly put, I think what I decided was that my blog was a place I keep personal comments I think are interesting at the time and I may want to use more purposefully later. As in – I think I found a web site with that kind of information or offering that kind of service, I think I remember a book on that topic – now where did I see that. I also assume others may sometimes find these same ideas/services to be useful and my posts may represent a “heads up” for them.
If you blog, your intent may be different. You may be prioritizing the meaningful conversation potential of blogging (even if you are mostly talking to yourself – self-talk is OK). You may even feel you are offering your learned comments for the benefit of others.
Blogging is what you make it. But you can only make it that for youself.
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