The use of blogging as a collaborative tool has numerous benefits that enable the student to work cohesively with another individual or with a group in discussing a topic and allows for appropriate peer review. In order to ensure a standard protocol by which students write with a purpose, read critically, and conduct peer and self anlysis with conviction specific guidelines of blogging must be followed. Ann Davis, an information trainer specialist recommends several criteria for blogging which when followed creates an ideal blogging environment. She first recommends that students sign a code of conduct which covers "netiquette" which when compromised risks loss of computer and internet access. When teaching blogging, Davis suggests taking critical practice time to ensure students have a good grasp of the concept. This can be facilitated through demonstration and practice. Specific "Dont's" applied to blogging are to avoid the perception that blogging is another social networking phenomenon, but a venue for scholarly discourse; beware of freebies offered on free blog sites that could intefere with student learning and be disruptive to the overall climate of collaboration, consider open source software for greater autonomy; avoid sequential style as the bloggers submission may be compromised through time rather than substance; and be a part of the community of bloggers in which you have emersed your students. This is all sound advise which I will utilize when initiating blogging assignments for my students.
Sturgeon, J. (2008). Five Don'ts of Classroom Blogging. T H E Journal, 35(2), 26-30. Retrieved from Education Research Complete database.
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