Using Blogs in the Classroom

As technology is integrated into schools more and more, there are new features to a classroom that are added. One of these is the use of blogs. Using blogs can be beneficial not only to the students, but to teachers and parents as well. The first way teachers are using blogs in the classroom is for a means of keeping parents informed of classroom happenings. In the past, teachers typed a class newsletter each week that informed parents of what had happened in their child's class that week. This was very time consuming because not only did teachers have to type the newsletter on a word processor, but they had to print them out and staple them as well. This was not only time consuming, but wasteful of paper as well.

Another way teachers are using blogs is to give a summary of what class assignments and activites have been worked on in class. Students whom are absent from class can use this as an information tool to know which assignments they missed on that day. By posting which activities were done in class, and how to do them, can give parents assistance with helping their child complete their homework. As a future Special Education teacher, I believe this tool will be very beneficial to me since parents will likely want to be very involved in their child's homework assignments.

Lastly, teachers can use blogs to supplement their instruction. If a cool video or website is found, they can post it to their blog. By having a blog like this, students will be more likely to study and be involved with class lessons since they will be interested in the cool supplemental instruction materials that their teachers find.

After examining the different uses of blogs in the classroom, it is evident that they can be a beneficial technologial tool for a future teacher to use. From saving time on communication with parents to organzing interesting material in one place, a blog is something that I plan to try when I become a teacher.