Wednesday, September 11, 2013

“Blogging: Pros and Cons for Adult Learners”

I am a novice at blogging, but I have enjoyed my limited exposure because it has permitted me to be creative but not overly concerned with academic formality.  I think this would appeal to most adult learners.  In the chat room setting it appears more formal and structured; this may just be an illusion on my part.  A major issue I have with the Chat Room format on KSOL is that it is so easy to get lost in the exchanges with the newest information at the bottom; I like the idea of newest entries on the top.

Blogging is an interesting avenue through which to pursue thoughts and build on ideas.  It feels like a great way to gently integrate communications, creativity, and technology into a classroom or program.  I hope to apply the Engagement Theory to my own feelings and situation.  The concept of Relate – Create – Donate fits many things that I believe and do in my everyday life.  I can Relate personal stories and practical applications related to many theories and concepts that I have studied in the Adult and Continuing Education curriculum.  The blog will, hopefully, permit me to Create a meaningful and readable site and Donate or share useful knowledge with others (Santos, 2011).    
There are many applications of the practice of blogging and the integration into education is a practical idea and widely practiced.  Orvaec (2002) found that Journalism students used weblogs as a method to train and emulate professional journalists.  Maintaining weblogs over time can give these students a sense of the discipline needed to become a professional (Orvaec, 2002). 

As I begin the journey of blogging about the topics in this course, I am excited to see where it will take me and what I can contribute to the knowledge of my classmates.  I hope you enjoy and maybe even learn something from me over the next few weeks.
 

Oravec, J. A. (2002). Bookmarking the world: Weblog applications in education.  Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 45 (7), 616-621.

Santos, A. N. (2011). Blogs as a learning space: Creating text of talks.  Contemporary Issues in Education Research, 4 (6), 15-19.

 

7 comments:

  1. Hi Lynn,

    Great blog.

    I love the template with the shelves of books in the background. It reminds me of a library, which reminds me of my childhood. I would spend hours at the library re-shelving books (I was probably the youngest volunteer), feeding the resident guinea pig, and enjoying story time.

    I am still getting the hang of this "linking" business in the blogs. Oravec (2002) describes how links provide more information to the reader, “hyperlinks are essential aspects of weblogs; readers are invited to follow the hyperlink to the material in question” (p. 619).

    As I was enjoying your blog, I noticed a potential linking opportunity. You could consider linking the definition of Engagement Theory to a website that provides a definition or more information about engagement theory. This way, if a reader is not familiar with this term, they could immediately link to a definition for clarification.

    I am using this website to better understand how to create links in the blog: https://support.google.com/blogger/answer/41379?hl=en

    Thanks for the great read and the trip down memory lane!
    E.Wilde

    Oravec, J.A. (2002). Bookmarking the world: Weblog applications in education. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 45(7), 616-621.

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    1. Thank you for the help site! I bookmarked it on my favorites to refer back to. I really liked the book shelf template, I did not see it the first time I was looking for a "look".

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  2. Lynn,

    I also enjoyed reading your post. You mentioned, "Blogging is an interesting avenue through which to pursue thoughts and build on ideas. It feels like a great way to gently integrate communications, creativity, and technology into a classroom or program. I hope to apply the Engagement Theory to my own feelings and situation."

    I agree with these thoughts. Blogging can be an excellent form of constructivism and promote active learning due to the fact that blogging can allow learners the opportunity to create meaning from their experiences and be actively engaged. "Constructivism emphasizes the synthesis and integration of knowledge and skills into an individual's experiences. Learners can interpret incoming information through an individual's unique lens, which includes his, or her personality, beliefs, culture, and experiences." (Stavredes, 2011 p. 37-38). Without question, due to their nature, blogs can provide students with a learning experience that can allow them to accomplish these tasks.

    Stavredes, T. (2011). Effective Online Teaching: Foundations and Strategies for Student Success. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

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    1. Thank you for the note on "Constructivism" I will have to explore this theory.

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  3. Lynn,

    The content you provided was very high quality and I can tell you put a lot of thought into it. The one line that really stuck out to me was "Create a meaningful and readable site and Donate or share useful knowledge with others" - which is so true about blogs and other open publications on the internet. While this sort of thing could be a one way street (such as newspapers or journals), blogs have really opened things up to the other side of the road, allowing for comments and discussions.

    I also really like the layout of your blog. It is perfect for the content that will be on here in the future. Overall, great job!

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    1. Jacob, I loved your creative Blog, however, I could not seem to leave a comment there. Lynn

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  4. Lynn,
    I enjoyed reading your post. This is a new form of communication for me and I enjoyed reading your post because it demonstrates so many of the benefits of a weblog. I like that you tied the literature with your own creativity. I too like the chronological order of the blog better than a discussion board. It seems easier to stay in the conversation with a blog and also more personal. Since the blog is less formal, one can better understand the author with this style of writing. Nice job. Thank you for sharing.

    Santos, A.(2011. Blogs as a learning space: Creating text of talks. Contemporary Issues in Education Research. 4, 15-19.

    King,K., Cox,T.(2011).The Professor's Guide to Taming Technology. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

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