The purpose that a blog would serve in my classroom could go a few different directions.
As a teacher, I still see my blogging would mostly be one direction, pushing information out to those interested stakeholders (parents, grandparents). I feel there would be very little back and forth.
If I took a more formal, educative direction, I could see blogging as a way to inform other educators of what I'm doing in the classroom, especially with technology. Doing so, could spur more dialogue with other music educators in which to build relationships, gathering resources from one another, and staying current with what others might be doing in the classroom (Haesler, 2014).
Blogging for my students could be advantageous for both my choir and History of Rock classes. For choirs, students could collaborate research on composers to be used for program notes for each song. We could also use blogging as part of a concert reflection about what went well and what could be improved with the overall process of putting together a concert. My History of Rock class could use blogging as a starting point to discuss what they know about some of the decades we would be discussing and as also as we go learn more about each decade.
At my school, I teach students in grades 9-12. I have three choirs- Varsity- 9th grade only, STORM- 10-12 NON-Auditioned Choir, Concert Choir- 10-12 Auditioned Choir. I also instruct two sections of History of Rock and one section of Piano Class. Both of those classes have students 9-12, most with very little music experience.
Students blogging in my classroom would meet the ISTE student standards Empowered Learner 1c and Knowledge Constructor 3a (2016a). Empowered Learner 1c states students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways (2016a). This standard would be met by students blogging their thoughts on a topic from class and responding to other's posts. Knowledge Constructor 3a states students plan and employ effective research strategies to locate information and other resources for their intellectual or creative pursuits (2016a). This standard would be met by students researching composers whose music is being performed and presenting their findings as part of the program notes for the performance.
Using blogging in the classroom would also meet ISTE educator standards Learner 1a and Leader 2c (2016b). Learner 1a states set professional learning goals to explore and apply pedagogical approaches made possible by technology and reflect on their effectiveness (2016b). Blogging is one of those pedagogical approaches that is new to me. I look forward to using it in my classroom and being able to improve its effectiveness with my students. Leader 2c states model for colleagues the identification, exploration, evaluation, curation and adoption of new digital resources and tools for learning (2016b). I can see blogging as a professional and sharing my journey of exploring and implementing new technology tools for others to learn from.
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2016b). ISTE standards for educators. Retrieved from https://iste.org/standards/for-educators
