Blog #9 - Blogging/RSS

Have you ever wanted to be a journalist for the New York Times, a writer for Good Housekeeping, the photographer for National Geographic or a restaurant reviewer for Dish? Well the time has come where anyone, yes even you, can be the writer they have always wanted to be and your writing may even attract a few or potentially millions of followers. Of course this can be accomplished through blogging. There are multiple free sites available such as Blogger, Wordpress and Movable Type, that enable the general public to create their own blog without needing to be familiar with HTML codes. Because blogging has become so popular in the last few years (see Wikipedia for more information), Real Simple Syndication – RSS (again check out Wikipedia for specifics) has been designed to help manage posts from blogs or other sites that you may be following. Follow this blog post as I explore how blogging and RSS work and how these web 2.0 technologies have impacted me personally and professionally.

Reflections on learning to use Blogs/RSS

If you’ve been following my blog you’ll know that many web 2.0 tools are easy to use. Thus, it won’t be a surprise to hear that it is incredibly easy to set up a blog and an aggregator (technical terms used for an RSS reader). For the sake of discussion, I’m going to explain how to use Blogger, simply because this is the site that I use and more obviously the one where this blog post is located. In order to get started, you’ll need to register with an e-mail address and some basic information. Then simply follow the easy steps of setting up your blog – you’ll need to create a title, choose a layout, select a colour scheme, and modify your settings as desired. When you’re ready to post, just click on the ‘New Post’ button located at the top of the blog or the dashboard. It should be noted that postings typically include text, but many other things such as videos and photos can also be posted. Other multimedia technologies, such as an Animoto video, can also be included in posts by copying and pasting the embedded URL into the HTML version of the post. You can switch between the ‘Compose’ – WYSIWYG screen and the ‘Edit HTML’ screen by using the tabs at the top of the posting. The ‘Layout’ tab enables you to add and arrange your page elements and, even for beginners, this is extremely easy to do. Although, Blogger suggests a number of widgets, please be advised that you can access thousands more by simply conducting an internet search for widgets. When selecting your page elements, be sure to keep your readers in mind and add widgets/badges that would both useful and appealing to your audience. Depending on the type of blogging you plan on doing, you may also want to write to engage your audience.

Whether or not you’ve decided to become a blogger yourself, I guarantee you will want to set yourself up with an aggregator to manage the latest news of all the blogs and websites that you follow. Again this is easily done with the click of a mouse. There is a plethora of aggregators available, but Google Reader will be used as the example in this post. If you have a Google account for anything, than you already have an account for Google Reader. In order to use Google Reader, all you have to do is click on the ‘add subscription’ button at the top left of the screen and enter in the URL of what ever you want to follow. You will get the URL for desired sites by finding and clicking on the square orange symbol (it has a quarter of a rainbow picture on it) and copying and pasting the URL. You can manage your feeds (fancy name for incoming news/posts) by creating folders and reading the short excerpts to decide if you want to keep reading the rest of the story. It should be noted that although aggregators can reduce your information overload, you still need to make sound judgments about sites that you choose to follow and you may want to periodically review your subscriptions, otherwise you may feel overwhelmed. Watch the following video for more specifics on how Google Reader works:



Blogging/RSS – For my own Personal Learning

Up until a few months ago I had read the odd blog, but wouldn’t have even considered setting up my own. In fact, I’m not even sure that I would have known what to do – much less think of a topic to write about. This course about web 2.0 has created a platform for me to be gently pushed into the unknown. For this I am thankful! Blogging has provided me with the opportunity to experience what many others have been doing for the past few years. Writing is not one of my favourite pastimes, therefore, blogging seems more like work rather than a pleasurable activity to me. However, this blog is for a specific purpose and I do feel that it is meeting the goal of sharing my web 2.0 learning experiences for this course. I have really enjoyed playing with the layout, selecting the widgets and attempting to use the HTML function to incorporate multimedia items in my posts. Since I’ve been a blogger, I’ve realized that I have taken much more notice of other people’s blogs and in doing so have considered aspects of my blog such as how I engage the audience and which widgets/badges would be most useful to myself and my readers. My writing style/voice has also changed over time. Now that I’m familiar with blogging I would certainly consider using it in the future to share exciting life events with my family and friends, such as when I’m travelling and/or a major family event is taking place.

On another note, Google Reader has saved my life. My reader has helped to manage my information overload, as I now just need to read the short blurb about the latest news to decide if I’m interested in reading the whole post or article. It has also saved me a lot of time by reducing my need to go to every blog or website that I’m interested in to see if it has been updated. On the other hand, I have found that, in some cases, as a visual learner I miss seeing the actual layout of some of the websites as the appearance can sometimes help me to remember the author and the content of things that I’m particularly interested in. And ok - I admit that I also periodically miss checking out the cool widgets that are found on some blogs. Nonetheless, I’ll be relying on my reader in years to come or at least until a new product is designed.

Blogging/RSS – for my Professional Learning

As hopefully demonstrated through this blog, blogging can be a highly useful professional development tool. Not only is it possible for you to share your experiences and opinions with others, but you can also visit and participate in other people’s blogs which may offer you much insight into your own pedagogical practices. By connecting or networking with like-minded individuals the possibilities are endless in terms of sharing, asking questions, collaboratively solving mutual problems, and simply working together to ultimately support the needs of our 21st century learners. Here are three of my favourite blogs that I frequently consult to improve my practice:

The Blue Skunk Blog – Doug Johnson is an educator who often shares relevant information regarding the use (or lack there of) technology in schools.

2¢ Worth – David Warlick, another educator, often has fresh ideas when it comes to using web 2.0 tools in schools.

weblogg-ed – Will Richardson is my favourite blogger as his posts often push my professional thoughts into those of a 21st century learner.

In addition to using blogs for professional development, they can also be used by, with and for students. Lorrie Jackson wrote the following information in an Education World post that explains the benefits of having students blog:
“Blogs, because of their ease of use, and because of the context of news and editorial column writing, have become a highly effective way to help students to become better writers. Research has long shown that students write more, write in greater detail, and take greater care with spelling, grammar, and punctuation, when they are writing to an authentic audience over the Internet.”
Teachers are often trying to ensure that their students are engaged in authentic experiences and it is obvious that, with the ability for feedback or comments, blogging helps to fill this function. For these same reasons blogging also benefits English Language Learners, particularly because it provides an authentic medium for these students to practice their language skills (see Aaron Campbell’s article – Weblogs for Use in ESL Classrooms for further information). According to a post on the BBC British Council blog, blogging may also provide a forum for shy or more reserved students to express their opinions, help to create a sense of community and perhaps, most importantly, stimulate out-of-class discussions. If all of these benefits are enough to convince you to have your students blog, but feel you need a bit more support – check out these blogs to see how other educators are using them:

Mrs. Kolbert’s Class Blog
Mrs. Cowan’s Student Blog
Meghan’s Math Mania
Doodle Bug Writes
http://classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=150372
Science Girl Em’s Blog

Since blogging and RSS tend to go hand-in-hand, you can safely assume that this is another useful web 2.0 tool for education. The potential of using a reader in the classroom is as endless as one’s imagination. Here are a couple of Traci Gardner’s tips that she included in a blog post entitled – RSS: Bringing What’s New to You:

- “Have students set up blogs for writing activities or in lieu of writer's logs. To build community, have students subscribe to each other’s blogs. Students can easily share their work, and you don't have to set up a class website with all the links. Likewise, once you’ve subscribed to their blogs, you can keep track of every student’s progress from one site (instead of having to go to each one to see if there have been changes).”

- “Have students working on research or inquiry projects on contemporary topics? Show them how to set up news searches on their topics so that the most recent articles come directly to them. With younger students, you might set up a similar feed for the whole class to share. If you have a computer in the classroom or LCD projector, students can read through the news on their inquiry topics with you, without having to filter through all the other news (some of which may be inappropriate for their age levels).”

Here are some of the pros and cons regarding the use of blogging/RSS in the classroom:

Pros
Easy to use
Saves time
Promotes writing skills
Encourages collaboration/networking
Supports professional development
Authentic activity
Can stimulate higher order thinking skills
Connect/share with others locally or from around the world
Real audience
Allows for differentiated instruction
Creates excitement (engaged students)
Safe forum to share opinions for shy/reserved students
English Language Learners can practice their language skills
Creates classroom community
Deepens understanding of a topic
Supports inclusive education
Educators can collaborate with colleagues
Able to adjust the privacy setting

Cons
Number of subscriptions can become unmanageable
Inappropriate comments could be made
Students may use it to just socialize
Privacy could be an issue
Negative outcomes (e.g., embarrassment)
May not feel confident or comfortable to use/share
Inaccurate information is possible
Content may not be considered professional or appropriate

Today I’ll end this blog post with a few thoughts from Greg Schwarts (WebJunction blog) who writes about why you should write your own blog or contribute to one (just incase you’re still wavering on the topic):

“Reason #1 - Writing a blog keeps you current. You'll want to know what's going on in the world before you start talking about it. Posting regularly to a blog encourages you to actively engage the process of information seeking and current awareness.

Reason #2 - Blogs are an advocacy tool. If you want change, you have to talk about it. Blogs are a great forum, not only for exposing the world to the issues facing both libraries and librarians, but also for thinking through your ideas and cultivating means of expressing them effectively.

Reason #3 - Blogs build community. Some of you are probably thinking that no one will read what you have to say. When I started my blog, Open Stacks, I shared your skepticism. As it turns out, no matter who you are and what you write about, there will be others who share your interests. I was surprised to discover that, as a librarian, you already have a built-in community of people interested in you and your perspective. You can, and probably will, meet people that you may not have met otherwise, becoming part of a very progressive segment of the LIS community.

Reason #4 - You are unique. One of the problems with librarianship is image. Stereotypes of librarians abound. Publishing a blog is an opportunity to demonstrate your individuality and thereby work to dispel some of those pervasive myths. Even if you don't think of yourself as unique and fear being redundant, your voice is yours and yours alone, so join the chorus.

Reason #5 - Do it for you. Never discount the power of writing as catharsis.

Reason #6 - Lastly, it's easy, so no excuses.”