October 2005 — Features
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The New Student-Teacher Channel
Self- Disclosure: Theory, Research, and Therapy, Valerian Derlega and John Berg, eds., Plenum Press, 1987), “It seems essential that we not take the word reciprocity too literally. Reciprocity refers to a mutual giving and taking … however, it d'es not mean equality.” In other words, an educator’s blog establishes the flow of subsequent response posts by the students, and the proper utilization of that authority influences the ultimate learning outcomes of critical thinking and disclosure.A variety of tools are available through the blog software to aid in this new type of classroom management.First, the educator should always select the “e-mail posts” option. In doing so, each new response post will be sent electronically to the instructor so that improper posts can be quickly removed. Another important control pertains to whether students can respond to the posts made by their peers. By allowing this option, the blog migrates into a typical discussion thread, and the instructor no longer guides the blog.Although this democratic approach to the blog can be quite helpful in some situations,most instructors will want to focus their students’ attention upon a specific topic.
Blogging:
The Ability to Extend Learning
When all of the issues are taken into consideration,
a blog can be an incredible tool to
generate self-disclosure between educator
and student. And although a blog may be
more advisable with mature learners, with
the content controls afforded by the blog
software, it is also an appropriate technique
to introduce younger learners to online
interaction. In the end, a blog extends the
learning experience well beyond the face-to-face classroom, creating a more
complete learning experience.
For more information on blogging in the classroom, visit educational.blogs.com.
Vernon B. Harper Jr. is an assistant professor of communication technology at Christopher Newport University in Newport News,VA.
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