Ups & downs
and downs with my high school blogging project. Mostly the downs have
centered around the technology not working well, lack of lab space, and
other glitches that we all experience that have nothing to do with the
instructional part. Plus, never enough time! To make a long story
short, things are starting to come together but for the first time I
find myself with a group that I can’t just write everything I’d like to
write. I really want to honor these students and not betray their
trust. I want to write more specifically about various happenings but
instinct tells me to wait. My posts on the class blogs ring hollow to
me. I can’t just tell it like it is. Partly that’s because I have a lot
of learning to do and I’ve learned to hold back my tendency to judge
too quickly. I learn a lot more if I think, observe, and then rethink
some more. One group comes with a bundle of baggage that
has nothing to do with technology or instruction but you have to drive
right through it to get to the learning part. There are curves, paths
and various disruptions that are part of the daily routine. I believe
that the one with the most flexibility ends up exerting the most
influence and I want you to know that I feel like Gumby! I am flexible!
I love this group and they are good thinkers. They don’t know how to
write. They don’t know how to be “appropriate”. And there are a lot of
other don’t know how tos. It is going to be a very unstable group in
that two have already left the class - one quit school and one may have
to go to another type class. I may not have the same group at the end
that I started with in the beginning. I probably should have this
as a closed blog but that defeats the purpose of what I’m trying to
accomplish. So I am going to persevere and try to learn and see what
will work. One thing is probably a definite - I will learn through
making mistakes. They just can’t be major. The other down which I hope
blogs will help is their lack of writing skills. Initially with every
group I have to pull myself out of the despair I feel when I see the
poor writing by far more of them than there should be. They should be
much further along. So when will we truly make writing a priority in
our schools?
The ups - really neat students who challenge my thinking and still want
to learn despite past experiences that haven’t been the best. I’m
working with a group of fantastic
teachers who want to learn more about blogging and the new
technologies. They are always willing to go the extra mile to make
learning more relevant for their students. Plus a support system of
blogging buddies I can turn to for guidance, feedback and any kind of
help I need as I keep
trying to figure out how to get those voices out there! Yep, as always
the UPS win! That’s why we teach.
—–