Craig Colgan has
written an excellent overview of blogs in this month’s American School
Board Journal. The article is “What’s in a Blog?”. In his short history of blogging he begins with this:
“This is a story of potential.”
What an opening!
That really made my day. It is a story of potential and this author
told it well. I thought, “At last, an article that focuses on the
possibilities blogs can provide in education.” He covers a broad range
of topics in the blogging world in education. He gives examples
of “how blogging puts give-and-take into web publishing.” He
writes about how teens are leading the way, how most educators
have not even discovered this tool, and even
provides tips on how to become a blogger. He paints a picture that
shows the
possibilities and the unrealized potential.
He tells the story of a superintendent blogging from Florida’s Pinellas County
Schools. This school system has had a year full of tragedies with two students dying
and then the handcuffing of an unruly 5-year old. Other issues
have played out and the superintendent has asked the
community to react. He does this through his blog, The Classroom.
Clayton Wilcox is the superintendent. Wilcox says, “It has been
powerful.” The superintendent is using his blog to engage the community
and foster discussion. I sure hope more superintendents follow suit.
Check out a few quotes in the story:
Will Richardson (supervisor of instructional technology and communications at Hunterdon Central Regional High School in Flemington, N.J.):
“The key question is whether schools want to speak to
constituents, or speak with them using this technology. One strength of
blogs is the ability to carry on asynchronous conversations.”
Jeff Weiner (senior vice president of Yahoo!):
“I’m amazed people don’t get it. Never in the history of market research has there been a tool like this.”
Thor Prichard (president and CEO of blog developer Clarity Innovations):
“Weblogs enable the ‘read-write Web’ to happen.”
Anne Davis: (Information
Systems Training Specialist of Georgia State University)
“Blogs can be
places to have honest, open dialogue about issues of the day.”
Florence Johnson (president of the Buffalo, N.Y., school board):
“Because real educational reform doesn’t just happen
at weekly school board meetings. We need a continual dialogue to effect
dramatic change.”
Joyce Hooper
(principal of J. H. House Elementary School in Conyers, GA):
“Although
I greet the students and chat with many of them every morning and wave
good-bye every afternoon as they board the buses to go home, I don’t
feel that I really know how they feel about things or what some of
their concerns might be. Blogging is another avenue of communication
with them.”
Tim Lauer (principal of
Lewis Elementary School in Portland, Oregon):
“The weblog gives me the
opportunity to share content with my community and at the same time
keep an archive of that content. It’s just one of many ways that
schools can work to be more connected with their communities.”
Craig
Colgan writes that blogs have broken the chain of the one way street. I
like his way with words! You have got to read the whole article.
Articles like this just may spark other educators to explore the
possibilities of the compelling tool of blogging. Craig Colgan
also frequently writes for Board Buzz, the daily blog of the National School Board Association.