Today I sat down and tackled the task of finding and responding to various edubloggers. This was not as easy a task as it sounds. There is so much out there on the internet that it is actually rather overwhelming. Finding the blogs that are both useful and inspirational took quite a bit of time. I searched through numerous databases and skimmed dozens of blogs before I found a few that really captivated my interest. Many of the blogs I found were disorganized and cluttered to the point that I had a difficult time navigating and comprehending the information on the site. Others hadn't been updated since 2013 or 2012 and I was hoping for something more recent. Still others discussed concepts in more vague, abstract terms or focused on education as a whole. (This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I was looking for something specific to my content area).
However, after searching for a while I found two excellent blogs! I never thought I would be the type of person to follow blogs, but after reading through a few of the posts on these sites I can say that I will definitely be going back for more! The first blog focuses on Spanish and the second one focuses on history. Both offered excellent resources and ideas that I have not yet been exposed to in my classes or my placement. This is the major benefit I see to participating in the edublogger world - access to new information and ideas. The spanish blog suggested a way to incorporate current events with social media. I was immediately captivated by this idea and the more I thought about it the more I realized it would be a good way to utilize authentic texts and encourage students to use the language in writing outside of formal papers (namely on Facebook and twitter). I love that as I read I not only received new ideas, but also was able to generate connections to what I am learning here in the MAC program. The history blog suggested an excellent resource called the Google Cultural Institute. (All you history teachers out there should check this out. Now. Don't worry, I'll wait) It is the coolest thing I've seen in a long time and it got me so excited to teach again. This is another benefit to finding and reading excellent blogs - you may be inspired.
Both of the edubloggers had numerous excellent posts and I am excited to see what else they write in the future. I was even excited to leave my own comments (Although neither of my posts have been accepted and posted publicly yet. Fingers crossed that they will be soon). Though it took me a while to find blogs that I enjoyed reading and found useful, the effort was well worth it. I probably will not spend a lot of time searching for more edubloggers to follow, but it is nice to know that there are practical, yet inspirational ideas being shared all the time. I look forward to reading what else these bloggers post and beginning my tentative foray into the world of edubloggers.
Hey there Samantha!
ReplyDeleteI definitely can relate to your feeling of being overwhelmed by the sheer amount of blogging content that exists out there for us to browse! A whole world of possibility! It's terrifying. I was also able to find some blogs that I really enjoyed. What Spanish blog was it that you liked?? I am very curious. One that I really liked was one that was posted on in the 504 resources written by Zachary Jones. He has some awesome information and great activities and it is very well organized. Maybe the Spanish blog you liked is the same one, maybe not! The Google Cultural Institute that you recommended for history folks sounds like something that would interest me in order to teach culture in my Spanish classroom as well. I will have to check it out! I'm glad to see that you received inspiration from the blogs that you viewed. It is really cool to see some of the work that exists out there and to know that there are teachers out there who care so much and who dedicate so much time to planning engaging and interesting lessons for their students! Thanks for your thoughts Samantha!
Hi Samantha!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad your long and arduous search was worth it! And it's great that you were able to find edublogs on both your teaching major and minor (or major, not sure). I know from having read Caitlin's blog that she faced the same problem of many blogs she encountered being far too cluttered and difficult to navigate, which definitely is something we should keep in mind when we are creating our blogs or teaching websites. I'm sure this won't be a problem for you, but it's definitely something I don't remember us talking about in class.
I also agree with what you said about the edubloggers providing great ideas and resources (of course, when you find the right ones!). I found the same thing when I was exploring edublogs for mathematics, which was really exciting. So, I'm glad you had the same experience! I also appreciate that you shared the resources and ideas that you found, and that you suggested so strongly for history people to visit the Google Cultural Institute! Makes me want to check it out even though I'm not history! Thank you for your thoughts and a great blog post!
Best of luck with the rest of the semester!
Jeni