Why Blog?

My first experience with blogging originated within a course related to my Master of Arts in Education at the University of Ottawa. Creating and presenting a blog on course readings was one of the course requirements.  At first, I was hesitant as to how creating a blog could support any of the learning outcomes for the course. I was unfamiliar with the goals of blogging and knew very little about how it could promote discourse. However, I rolled up my sleeves determined to figure it all out. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I not only learned about the course content, but how blogging could be used as learning spaces for students.

So, why do we blog in the field of education, anyway? Martin Weller (2007) offers a few reasons for why we should blog in education:

- Blogs are an excellent way to engage with subject matter

- They are a viable medium to exchange information, knowledge, views and perspectives

- Blogging can help you stay informed about current theory and research

- Blogs can expose you to other technologies in a meaningful context

- Blogging fosters a high degree of personal reflection and critical analysis of one’s professional praxis

Perhaps the most important reason why we should blog in education is to promote deep learning in students. Blogging can encourage collaboration, reflection and sharing of links. Contextualizing learning through blogging enriches learning. At times blogging is also more successful at promoting interaction with students than in some face to face settings. In general, use of blogs as learning spaces has been successful in both promoting discourse and deep learning in higher education. Research has been conducted that explores use of blogs in promoting deep learning. Check out research conducted by Williams and Jacob (2004).

Update
I want to emphasize that blogging can begin at all levels of experience. Many of our students are already familiar with online communities such as Facebook and others have their own blogs or websites. Essentially, anyone who has access to a computer and can write an e-mail can be a successful blogger. The software is so easy to use and accessible that anyone can be a blogger.

What do you think?