Blogging and Literacy

This chapter discusses blogging in all its many forms and purposes.  The beginning of the chapter explains the "depth" that blogging offers to the creator and the reader.  The depth referred to in this chapter includes things like podcasts and videos on top of the normal writing and the ability to comment on these posts.  These online journals serve the needs of various individuals and groups.  Blogging is a way for the writer to take an authentic topic and personalize it and blend or discuss with their now opinions and experiences.

Personally, I have not been much of a blogger unless required for academic courses.  I do think that it is a good way to communicate to the masses and creates an opportunity to comment and open up discussion with those of varying views.  The article does mention the fact that blogging for academic uses is a way of the future.  Therefore, I need to get on board and find a way to maybe use this in my class to promote writing and literacy.  Literacy as a social practice is created in the blogging space.  The articles describes the idea that a blog entry becomes an "event," but this event isn't temporary or ending because it is constantly adding posts and comments.  A blog becomes more than just the words on the page, it becomes a literacy piece of art.  The visual attributes of a blog need to draw readers in and keep readers coming back.  I have seen some blogs that I would love to read, but I have seen others that don't capture my attention because of the colors or layout.

There are several themes outlined in the article.  The first refers to the idea that the blog is a personal journal.  In an educational setting, the blog allows the blogger to write in a less formal manner than most academic journals.  Another theme is the fact that a blogger shares their personal space publicly.  I think that this allows the reader to understand the blogger which ultimately contributes to the reader's understanding of the post.  Bloggers have a potential to be exposed in a manner that might be good or bad.  It becomes a space where the blogger must monitor this social space and readers must understand that the writer doesn't always contribute to the negative events on their page.

Overall, the blog becomes another avenue to use to create, inform, practice reading and writing skills, and make social connections about a variety of topics.  This provides another resource teachers can use to provide information to their students, parents, and the community about the happenings in the classroom.  It is also a resource teachers can use to help students practice reading and writing skills and connect with their classmates through posts and comments.