Teachers, Blogs & the Law

Research Update

2005-08-10T17:13:00.000-07:00

I'm in the process of writing up my pilot study that I presented at the University of Barcelona over the summer to submit to a journal. Additionally, my research on autism is getting underway. Will write more soon...

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2005-08-10T16:47:00.000-07:00

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Back to School Time!

2005-08-04T13:40:00.000-07:00

Wow! It's back to school time. This summer seems like it has flown by. I'm getting excited about the new year. This year I'll be teaching a 4th grade special needs class in a rural elementary school in Florida. I've decided to have the kids read Willy Wonka as our first book of the year. Along their reading journey I'll bring in all kinds of goodies for the kids based on the story line. I figured I'd start out announcing the book by hiding "golden tickets" all around the classroom and having the kids each find their golden tickets. Then I'd have bubbles for the "bubble chapter" of the book...and of course chocolate.

Additionally, I will be exploring using our school's new SMART Board and I'm really looking forward to that. Lately, I've been so inspired to keep learning more about educational technology. My summer experiences abroad really taught me a lot regarding ed tech. The whole ILET experience really inspired me both as a scholar and as a teacher. Thus, seeing ed tech and special ed from an international perspective was truly a blessing. Well, thanks for visiting Teachers, Blogs, and the Law. I'm off to work on some of my lesson plans...including blogs of course. : )

Summer Break 2005

2005-06-04T15:57:00.000-07:00

Signing off for holiday! Have a great summer all : )

Update on blogs in the Classroom: Violence and Video Games

2005-04-14T15:48:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

Today I tried something new with my students. I taught most of my class how to make blogs, rather than just a handful of students. I must say it was a daunting task teaching students with special needs how to create a blog. Hands were flying up like popcorn. Thus, I learned a great deal from my little experiment.

Anyhow, I managed to teach 22 middle schoolers to blog on Blogger.com. Eventually, I want the kids to be able to on-line journal daily. However, for now it will have to be once a week because we are all sharing the computer lab with other classes.

I had the kids answer a prompt to get the ball rolling on their journaling. The question was, "Do video games cause violent behavior?" I was interested in this topic because the kids have been wanting to discuss a recent event involving one of their schoolmates (and former student of mine) involving violence. The student was arrested for nearly beating his two-year-old cousin to death and blamed a video game for his behavior. (The student will not be returning to our school and has been placed in a residential school setting). However, I thought this could be a "teachable moment" within our classroom since the kids really wanted to discuss the topic and debrief their feelings (e.g. fears, confusion, surprise) about it.

Hence, I will note various sides of the debate from student perspectives as noted per their blogs and we use this as a springboard for a class discussion about violence. Alas, my most of students responded really well to the blog format once they got through their initial frustrations. One girl wrote a whole page. I also noticed that a few kids who typically aren't concened about grammar and spelling really paying attention to detail, which was good. Hopefully, knowing the blog has a wide audience will inspire more students to pay attention to grammar and spelling. Most of all though, seeing the kids faces light up as they saw their work published on the web was great. I'll soon post some of the student responses for you to see. Please feel free to comment. Once again thank you for visiting Teachers, Blogs, and the Law. : )

Here's a link from the Davis & Company Law Firm
http://www.davis.ca/community/blogs/video_games/archive/2005/04/08/75.aspx

Diversity and Blogs

2005-04-10T02:11:00.000-07:00

Does the blogosphere have a diversity problem? According to a recent Newsweek article, "At a recent Harvard conference on bloggers and the media, the most pungent statement came from cyberspace. Rebecca MacKinnon, writing about the conference as it happened, got a response on the "comments" space of her blog from someone concerned that if the voices of bloggers overwhelm those of traditional media, "we will throw out some of the best ... journalism of the 21st century." The comment was from Keith Jenkins, an African-American blogger who is also an editor at The Washington Post Magazine [a sister publication of NEWSWEEK]. "It has taken 'mainstream media' a very long time to get to [the] point of inclusion," Jenkins wrote. "My fear is that the overwhelmingly white and male American blogosphere ... will return us to a day where the dialogue about issues was a predominantly white-only one."

Upon researching, I found that there are many conflicting views on the topic. Thus, is there diversity in the blogosphere? What are your thoughts on the topic? Here are some articles that I found interesting. Thanks again for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

Newsweek Article: Blogging Beyond the Men’s Clubhttp://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7160264/site/newsweek/

Diversity Mongers Target the Webhttp://nationalreview.com/comment/mac_donald200503300758.asp

Journalism & Blogging: It's About Diversityhttp://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=78053

e-mentorship: Blogs and Mentoring (Part 2)

2005-04-09T19:00:00.000-07:00

Reflecting back, I remember my first year of teaching I was involved in a cybermentoring program but it wasn't with blogs. The medium for our cybermentoring was via e-mail. I thought it was really good in some regards because I could tell my cybermentor how my day went and such with my sweet and tender hooligans and he'd tell me about his experiences being a special ed teacher (e.g. lesson plan ideas, classroom management advice). We started out writing once and week. However, after awhile I'd stop responding as much out of the sheer busy schedule of being a first year special ed teacher and told my mentor why. I'd also delete my e-mails after I read them our of e-mail habit. Now, looking back I wish that I kept those darn e-mails so I could see the evolution of my teaching.

But I digress...I think the whole idea of cybermentoring for me was finally shelved the day I discovered one of my students brought a gun to school and threatened another student for sitting next to his girlfriend. That day, I wrote my cybermentor about the incident, but did not really find any comfort in reading a text message with emotiocons. After that I felt really disconnected because I soon found out that he really didn't have as much experience as even I did with the population that I taught...Hence, our mentorship relationship expired. Granted he was a special ed teacher, but worked with another population besides EH with reading levels that ranged from K-8 all in one class. Thus, even he was at a loss for words regarding the population of students I teach. Thankfully, I had a lot of wonderful teacher mentors at my school that I did not have to log on to in order to connect with. Reflecting, I wonder at what point does someone outgrow his or her mentor and what makes other mentor relationships lifelong? Hmmm...

So where do blogs fit in with all this mentor talk? Well, I think that the blog format is better suited for cybermentorship than e-mails, for, the on-line journal format provides you with a diary to reflect back on your experiences and advice from your mentor. Granted, it is my contention that in the blogosphere the mentorship connection is limited in that when major things go on it's often hard to connect with an on-line mentor and often mentees outgrow their mentor. Alas, I believe that cybermentors fill a purpose, but do not compare with a face-to-face mentorship.

In conclusion, I feel the subject of blogs and mentoring are worthy of further study especially in the pedagogy. I wonder such things as how much support can one receive via an e-mentorship? Do cybermentorships benefit some students more than others and what are the limitations? And how much could blogs be used to facilitate emotional-social growth and support with our at-risk students?

e-mentorship: Blogs and Mentoring (Part 1)

2005-04-09T18:08:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about blogs in the classroom and how blogs can be used to help meet not only the academic needs of students, but also the social-emotional needs of our kids. Recently, I was reminded of the value of mentorship when a professor gave me some sage advice inpspiring me to pursue my dreams in spite of a couple road blocks. Thus, mentors can help one dream bigger dreams than one thought possible. Reflecting, it is my contention that mentorship is part of the role of teaching...and I believe any good teacher worth his or her salt will tell you that.

Hence, I wonder couldn't blogs be a valuable venue for mentorship? Thus, could we use the blogospere to encourage peer and/or multi-age mentorships within our schools? It seems all very Vygotskian, for, blogs could scaffold learning both academically as well as social-emotional. For example, I was thinking in my own classroom I could have my eighth graders mentor my sixth graders adjustment to middle school life at the beginning of every school year. As a part of the lesson I would be modeling the attributes leadership and mentorship to my eighth graders as they embark on learning to mentor a new middle school cohort.

Additionally, when searching on-line for mentorship and blogs I also came across a couple interesting blog sites. For example, a veteran teacher was mentoring a first year teacher (which I really liked), a mommie-to-be mentorship blog, and a youth minister's mentorship blog...

...to be continued...

Cybermentoring: An Online Literacy Project in Teacher Education
Article by Dr. Paula Boxie, Miami University, Ohio
http://www.thejournal.com/magazine/vault/A4976.cfm

Collaboratories: Working Together on the Web
http://www.readingonline.org/electronic/jaal/9-01_Column/

Teens Can Now Put a “Keep Out” Sign on Their Blogs

2005-04-03T15:15:00.000-07:00

Yes, now teens can put a lock and key on their blogs. According to the March 29th, 2005 AOL Business Wire Press Release, “ Eighty four percent of teens said they would not be willing to share their blog with just anyone on the open web. In response to these findings AOL's RED service offers a refreshing way to create a blog in a 'velvet rope' environment and gives teens and parents the option to choose between different levels of privacy, ranging from private, semi-private and public.”

Hmmm…this all sounds good. I wonder if teachers could use this lock and key method to contain blogs within their classroom parameters as well? Here’s the website of the article. It is noteworthy to check out. Specific findings from the AOL/DMS "Teens & Communications Survey" are also on the site. However, when you read the bottom of the page it says, “parents were instructed to allow their children to answer the survey questions while they supervised.” Alas, one wonders what the data would have been if the parents were supervising while their kids were taking the survey. I’m sure the kids would probably want to keep out their parents on their blogs too…but this is just speculation. I’m curious to know what y’all think? Overall, I think that AOL may have a hit with their new blog service. Once again thank you all for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

America Online's Red Service for Teens Introduces New Blog Product
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050329005147&newsLang=en

Update on Blog Field Study: Teen Guidelines

2005-04-03T14:45:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

Here’s an update on my research project of blog use in the classroom. The study is with a group my students. I picked all my eighth grade girls for the study. Thus, there are five students in the study. All the girls are in my special education Language Arts/ Reading class. All of the girls communicate on a blog I created specifically for them. They discuss various topics of interest to them. For example, they all voted on the topic of self-esteem for their first weeks discussion and now are on the topic of gangs.

Their reading levels range from 2nd grade-6th grade per the READ 180 Lexile Test, which is apart of the computerized reading program we use in class to suppliment the curriculum. Two girls have a computer at home and three do not. The girls with a computer at home type with both hands. Whereas, two of the girls without a computer type with one hand and the other predominately types with one hand also, but when prompted can type with both hands.

I originally told the girls that I was not going to correct their grammar at each post and they are free to post without me fixing their grammar. I also reminded them that others will be reading their work and to remember their audience. When I asked the girls about the guidelines they would like for our classroom blog I noticed a pattern. Therefore, I placed them into the following categories: confidentiality, authenticity, respect, and teamwork.

I am so proud of them for their effort. I don't think I could have come up with better guidelines and since the guidelines come from them they take more ownership over them. Alas, I’ll keep you updated on further knowledge I glean from the study. Thank you again for visiting Teachers, Blogs, and the Law. Please feel free to comment & have a great day! : )

Here's their responses:

“No tellin’ nobodies peeps” (i.e. confidentiality)

“Try to be honest, don’t be ‘bout dos games” (i.e. authenticity)

“Take dis serious” (i.e. authenticity)

“If u got something slick to say ‘bout somebody keep it to yo self” (i.e. respect)

“Everyone have to be repectful to everyone.” (i.e. respect)

“Make sure no one puts anyone down.” (i.e. respect)

“These is my guideline this is between the five girls and don't be mean to each other...peace out people.” (i.e. confidentiality & respect)

“They also have to work like a team. They also have to help eachother if they need help. You also have to help create things with eachother.” (i.e. teamwork)

“The last rule is to make sure you follow the rules.” (i.e. teamwork)

Gender & the Blog: What would Summers Say?

2005-03-27T23:13:00.000-08:00

Recently I found a really cool article noting the gender similarities and differences in blogs. The research was done by David Huffaker from Georgetown University. He studied more that 70 blogs and found that overall there were more similarities than differences in blogs. He also found that teens disclosed a lot of personal information including real names, personal home pages and locations. Girls tended to provide links to their homepages. Whereas, boys gave out their location more. Alas, I wonder how many parents and/or teachers actually knew about the teens blogs or talked with the students about on-line safety, which stresses the importance of using blogs in the classroom to educate and protect our children.

Huffaker also found that many teens like to personalize their blogs. Interestingly, he found that males used more emoticons, like smileys than females. (I would have figured that females would use more emoticons because a lot of the female students I have draw smileys on their papers and notes) Additionally, he found that many teens use their blogs as a form of self-therapy and finding connections.

Alas, I wonder what Summers would say about gender and blogs...hmmmm? Well, take care all. Here's the links to the study and the BBC article. Please feel free to comment and thank you for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

Study on Gender, Identity, and Language Use in Teenage Blogs
http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html

BBC Article: Teenagers reach out via weblogs
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3774389.stm

Yikes! Afraid to blog

2005-03-27T22:29:00.000-08:00

According to the Perseus Developmental Corporation, 52% of all blogs are created and maintained by 13 to 19-year-olds. This is especially interesting to me because I am a middle school teacher. Thus, I wonder why more research isn't being done in the areas of blogs and the classroom. For that matter, there is very little groundwork on the topic of what the law says regarding teachers and blogs.

It is my contention that fear of blogging in the classroom actually stems from fear of rebuttle from parents. Amoung many of my teachers friends I've noticed there is an underlying fear of over zealous parents steppinig in and threatning with legal suit. (See the Time article link below on many parents overstepping teacher's boundries. The first day it came out it was sold out like hotcakes and copies were placed in all the teacher's mailboxes.)

On that note, it often seems that teachers are expeted to run politically correct classrooms and not offend anybody. But how is real world learning to take place when your so boxed in there's no room for debate and exploration through new teaching methods and mediums? I say if we are ever to help bridge the digital divide we must incorporate more technology though out our curriculum and to do that we must first eliminate the fear that so many teachers have. Thus, it may take a few teachers to pioneer out into unknown pedgogy to help pave the way. Our teenage students are obviously venturing there...out there in blogosphere...and they're treading with or without us.

Time Article: What Teachers Hate About Parents
http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101050221/

Kids and Internet Safety

2005-03-26T21:27:00.000-08:00

Recently I gave a refreasher course teaching internet safety. It was all sparked because I was reminded of the importance of it when one of my 7th grade students posted pictures of a slumber party she had on her blog. She included student names and the name of our school. She was so proud of her blog and couldn't wait to show it to me. Thus, when I saw it I was thinking, "Yikes!" and had to have a little talk with her. I told her how proud I was of her creativity and praised her on her efforts. Then I shared with her about internet saftey. At first, it was a little difficult getting the concepts across to her because she's only been in America for a few months (she's one of my ESOL students) but then thankfully she got it. Therefore, I've learned when introducing a new technology medium to my students that they wil naturally personalize it. Thus, we as teachers must be ardent in reinforcing internet safety for our young explorers.

P.S. Another tip for students and teachers is to use a pen name when blogging. That way it keeps everything confidential. : )

The following information is from the from The Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education (CIESE) at the Stevens Institute of Technology Website. I think this information is very helpful to teachers. Alas, I learned something new about Acceptable Use Policies (AUP). I didn't even know about AUPs. At our school we have the kid's parents sign a permission slip to let the kids use the internet at school. However, they are not contracts with guidelines and consequences. I think this is a great idea and wonder why more schools (mine included) don't use AUPs. Again, please feel free to comment and thank you for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

Acceptable Use Policies (AUP) - These are basically "contracts" that outline how students can use the technology, what they cannot do with it and the consequences for violating the policy. These should include school web pages and the content that is allowed on them. AUPs should be signed by an authorized representative of the school, students and parents so that all concerned parties are aware of the policy.

No Student Names - We recommend that when referring to students on a web page that either their names not be used or only their first names be posted. Some schools have found the use of "nicknames" to be an effective way of dealing with this issue.

Student Pictures - Although we do encourage the posting of student work that may include student pictures, we strongly encourage teachers to get written permission to post student pictures and work before placing it onto the web. We have found that most schools already have such permission slips for use when student pictures are placed in newspapers. These can often be re-worded to cover the issue of posting to the web.

School or Classroom Web Pages - It is important that teachers and students recognize that a web site that refers to their school or district represents them in cyberspace just as a school newsletter or yearbook represents the school in their community. Because of this they need to respect the interests of the schools system and post only appropriate materials to the web site. What is "appropriate" regarding content should be clearly defined in the schools AUP .

CIESE Internet Safety for Teachers and Students
http://www.k12science.org/internetsafety.html

Kid Safety on the Internet
http://www.ou.edu/oupd/kidsafe/start.htm

Web Wise Kids
http://www.webwisekids.com/

A Parents Guide to Internet Safety
http://www.familyguidebook.com/

Blogs: People wanna know!

2005-03-19T18:10:00.000-08:00

Hey guys,

Did y’all know that Merriam-Webster said "blog" was the word that people have asked to be defined or explained most often over the last 12 months? The word will now appear in the 2005 version of Merriam-Webster's printed dictionary. Check out the BBC article on the word “blog” which will be gracing your dictionary pages soon. I wonder if it’ll be a new spelling word in elementary schools?

Alas, I’m slowly but surely collecting information regarding teachers, blogs and the law through a literature search and soon will have more to post for you about that. So, far I found that there is a lot more blogging going on in UK classrooms than American classroooms. Thus, I'm wondering if the law or many teachers' fears of getting sued has something to do with it. Hmmm...For now though, I've included a couple of websites that I thought were interesting. Have a great day. Please feel free to comment and thank you for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

BBC News Article on “Blog” & the Dictionary
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4059291.stm

Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
http://www.carnegiefoundation.org/KML/KEEP/index.htm

Blah, Blah, Blog
http://isg09.casalemedia.com/V2/39831/40985/

Educational Bloggers Network
http://isg09.casalemedia.com/V2/39831/40985/

Edu-Tech News
http://weblogs.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=weblogs&zu=http://www.jemetc.com/edtech/

Rights in an On-line World

2005-03-15T20:05:00.000-08:00

Hi guys,

In my quest for answers regarding Teachers, Blogs & the Law I came across some interesting websites with articles about rights in an on-line world. Thus, what are blogger rights...especailly for teachers? What are student rights with regard to blogging? Can students express themselves and talk about schools much like many bloggers talk about their companies...or would the kids get kicked out of school much like many adults bloggers are getting fired from their employers? What if little Jenny slams a teacher for a failing grade...is that slander? How's this all gonna work and what exactly are the rights of individuals in an on-line world? Below are some websites regarding on-line rights and the lack there of. Please feel free to comment. Thanks again for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

Here’s an exerpt from the article writen by Simson L. Garfinkel:

“Despite the self-appointed legal scholars that hold court on Usenet, there have been precious few actual court cases upon which to base precedent and create a grounded legal theory. But SysLaw is the best resource available today for anyone who surfs the Net and wants to avoid being involved in the groundbreaking legal cases that are sure to surface.”

Wired Magazine Article on SysLaw
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/2.06/streetcred.html?pg=17

Book Info:
SysLaw, Second Edition, by Lance Rose, Esq. and Jonathan Wallace, Esq.

NetLaw: Your Rights in an On-line World
http://md.hudora.de/blog/guids/69/29/200301010053249543904.html

Worldwide Water Cooler: Can you be fired for talking about your boss on line? (Article)
http://www.legalaffairs.org/issues/March-April-2004/scene_duhigg_marapr04.html

Blogger Fear (BBC News Article)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4319715.stm

Where are the laws?

2005-03-14T13:09:00.000-08:00

Hey guys,

I've been doing a lot of research about teachers, blogs and the law via the web and it seems like there really isn't that much out there. Therefore, I've decided to contact a few law schools directly to inquire with some of the professors regarding the law for teachers and blogs. I'll keep you posted with my findings.

Also, in my search I came across some interesting websites and wanted to share them with ya'll. They are below. Take care and thanks for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

MiddleWeb
http://www.middleweb.com/mw/aaDiaries.html

Edblogg The Read/Write Web in the Classroom
http://www.weblogg-ed.com/

Bud the Teacher Blog:Guidelines for teachers
Teachers with blogs who want to keep their jobs
http://budtheteacher.typepad.com/bud_the_teacher/teacher_blogging/index.html

Hipteacher Blog
http://hipteacher.typepad.com/schoolblog/

Edublog
http://anvil.gsu.edu/EduBlogInsights/

A New Adventure Blog
http://www.visitmyclass.com/blogs/wenzloff/

Lehmann’s Log
http://www.beaconschool.org/~clehmann/MT/archives/003007.php

EdBlogger Praxis
http://educational.blogs.com/edbloggerpraxis/2004/01/eproforg_an_onl.html

Harvard Website Regarding Weblogs in Education

2005-03-13T02:45:00.000-08:00

Hey guys,

I just found an awesome website about Weblogs in Education from the fine folks at Harvard. Go Crimson! Please check it out. It's very informative for all us teachers. I especially thought that David Carraher's comments on the "firewall around schools" and the effects it is having on research and teacher education programs was really interesting and poignant. Thus, it reinforces notions of the need for teachers to take on the dual roles of scholars as well educators to bridge the theory to practice divide, which will help to improve our pedagogy as a whole.

Well, take care ya'll and please feel free to comment. Thank you again for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/carraher/stories/storyReader$6

Rationale

2005-03-13T02:34:00.000-08:00

Hey guys,

I’ve been thinking about the whole idea of letting the kids come up with the guidelines. I know many teachers are skeptical on sharing power in the classroom. Thus, I thought I’d further explain my ideologies for this decision (i.e. my rationale). I feel that it is important that kids to share in cultivating the classroom climate. Therefore, I would like to extend this shared power (i.e. between student and teacher) within cyber culture as well. I feel this is especially important at the middle school level creating a sense of autonomy with students, which is in line with Erikson’s Developmental Stages.

At the beginning of each school year, I’ve found that kids typically know what appropriate school behavior is. This is evident when we decide our class rules. I feel by the kids taking part in the negotiating process the class rules together it allows their voices to be heard on what kind of learning community they wish to partake and would like this collaboration to take place within the context of their on-line writing environment as well. Besides, it will be interesting to see what kind of guidelines kids choose relating to written expression via their blog. If you have any thoughts on this topic please feel free to comment. Below are some more related websites. Again, thanks again for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

Using Blogs in the Classroom
http://husd4-tr.blogspot.com/

Hu, X. (2004). Computer Technology Enhanced Reading and Writing: A Review of Research of L1 Instruction and Its Implication on L2. Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference 2004(1), 5030-5035. [Online]. Available: http://dl.aace.org/15282

Reflections on Blog Guidelines

2005-03-12T23:18:00.000-08:00

Hey guys,

Just some reflections on my pursuit of finding out more on Teachers, Blogs & the Law. It seems that almost all my fellow teachers concur that there needs to be guidelines for using blogs in the classroom.

Thus, I ask myself, 'What is the teacher's role in determining those guidelines?' Well, it is my contention that it all comes down to the purpose of the blog. Hence, since the purpose of my first blog in the classroom will be an analysis of the written expression via an on-line journal with middle schoolers (used for a graduate language class) I don't really want to censor my students' writing because I feel that would alter the authenticity of the written expression, thereby, making the research less noteworthy.

Hence, what I've decided to do for this study is to let the kids determine their own guidelines for writing in a blogosphere. I feel this would empower them and allows them to take ownership of their own writing through the medium of the blog, which is more in line with the nature of a blog (i.e. freedom of speech).

Also, before I get the blog up and running I will have each student have permission slips signed to give the parents a heads up and to cover myself of any possible legal ramifications. I'll keep working on the parameters of my research design and keep you posted on The Teacher, the Blog & the Law.

In addition, here's an article related to corporations, the blog and the law. Have a good day and thank you for visiting Teachers, Blogs & the Law. : )

http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2005203100301&source=email

Teachers, Blogs & The Law

2005-03-11T12:23:00.000-08:00

Education is a social process. Education is growth. Education is, not a preparation for life; education is life itself.

-John Dewey

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears...Welcome!

Ever consider using a blog in your classroom? These are some of the questions that many teachers (myself included) ask themselves. How would you go about teaching in a blogosphere? What does the research say? What are the laws? Should we as teachers censor our students on-line journals? What are the guidelines with blogs in the classroom and/or should there be any?...

Hence, there are many questions regarding the pedagogy of blogging and I'm hoping we can all figure them out together. This blog is created as apart of a graduate educational technology at the University of Florida. Please feel free to comment on teachers, blogs, & the law. Thanks so much! : )