At the recent IT@Cork Conference a school principal/teacher asked Robert Scoble about blogs and school kids blogging. I think the principal/teacher was worried about kids blogging and revealing too much information about themselves. I wonder how much the fear of predators contributes to schools and parents preventing kids from going online.
Trouble is, trying to discourage kids from blogging will be counter-productive. They’re curious, they’ll want to be independent, they have a lot to say. So perhaps kids should be taught how to blog when they are taught how to use computers. Blogging could be a serious tool for the likes of debating, english assignments and learning how to frame arguments. Seeing how your peers blog and how they think would be an excellent means of furthering ones education surely?
I think I mentioned this in another post, but I’ll say it again: Scoble made a great point that he wished that his son’s teachers blogged so he’d know what they were covering in school. I like this idea a lot. A single daily post from each teacher would be good. For primary schools anyway, doubt this would work with secondary schools though, so perhaps a weekly post from each subject teacher.
In an email chat with Ina O’Murchu she mentioned how DERI have given classes on the semantic web to refugees in the area and that Brendan Smith the DERI outreach officer is in the process of setting up blogs for 40 schools in Galway. Definitely something to watch and see how it goes.
I agree that trying to discourage school kids from blogging would be counter productive. If we were to follow that line of thought then we’d have to ban them from mobile phones, email, the Internet, etc for fear that they would either be distracted or targeted by paedophiles. I think we’d get a better return on investment if we educated them on how to use these tools.
With regards to blogs and education I think that there is great potential for them from school to university across a wide variety of applications, be it to show what is being covered in class or to display your knowledge on a given area.
I know my sister doesn’t want my nephew on the net cause she’s worried about what he might come across. She’s letting him, now, thankfully, cause he’s gonna be a great programmer. But for a long time, it’s why she didn’t want DSL at the house.
There are great books out there if you look ::coughChildrenAndTheInternetcough:: that can show people what to do, and how to handle it. But most, I think, are too worried about what to do, cause it’s the Big Bad Web.
With regards to blogs and education I think that there is great potential for them from school to university across a wide variety of applications, be it to show what is being covered in class or to display your knowledge on a given area.
Not only to display their knowledge, but to enhance it. Since I started blogging, my results in exams – especially English – have improved dramatically and become far more consistent. Teacher’s blogging would be interesting too, and could help introduce the concept of accountability into a profession which desperately needs it.
I am a teacher in Dublin and I have been blogging for over two years – initially with The Frog Blog (www.frogblog.ie) on science but more recently on More Stress Less Success (www.morestresslesssucess.ie) – a blog on being a busy teacher. Blogging is a great way to connect with teachers, share useful resources and web-links, post videos and photos, display pupil work or enthuse your pupils about your subject. I recommend it to all teachers, especially newly qualified teachers. Similarly, Twitter is a great tool for connecting with fellow teachers.