The Missouri Reader Vol. 33, Issue 2 | Page 29

children, for god's sake! posted by Phasma | 2:28 PM | 1 omments Phasma shared her thinking about the literature with the class. She mentions previously read material, integrates a specific quote from the novel, and interprets the meaning for herself. Students were very used to summarizing what they read, so the transition into a student-directed discussion focused on interpreting and connecting was sometimes difficult. Although Barbara’s goal was that the blog would be a place to think and discuss thinking, some students still saw the blog’s purpose as an evaluative tool. Daniel wrote, “As my audience, I just pictured Ms. James at her computer grading them.’” (blog post April 28, 2006). Other students saw it as a place for expressive writing: throwing out the rules and letting kids express themselves (within the confines of decency) which led to more expressive writing in other contexts. Students shared music, stories, and pictures on the blog. This exploration of genres continued in their in-class writing. More PowerPoint presentations set to music, original movie scripts, and long pieces of fiction began to appear in their portfolios. Findings That Surfaced Students blogged more than we ever imagined, and the blog created a classroom community. Since Barbara was not as tech-savvy as her students, they helped her learn and helped each other learn. The blog offered students an audience for their writing, facilitating connections between classes, and allowing invisible students to have a voice. These successes would not have occurred with only in-class discussion and writing. We found that it is important to allow the social aspect of the blogs to show through. We did not attempt to reign in “off-task” discussion, unless, of course, it was inappropriate or dangerous in some way. Censoring the social aspect of the blog would ignore the genre of blogging. Barnes (1992) writes, “To become meaningful, a curriculum has to be enacted by pupils as well as teachers” (p.14). Blogging is a genre for a new generation. The blog, in this case, was enacted by students and the teacher. Darrin explains the “enactment” he experienced: Really, it’s like connecting. You know it’s not like everyone has a chance to get up there and give a five minute speech, we don’t have that kind of time, about their book and what’s going on and how much they like it and if they would suggest it, so it’s kind of like a way to have 24-7 class discussion without cutting into class time, but when it does cut into class time it’s good cause you always have good discussion about it and we can talk about what’s going on in the blog. It’s almost like a second classroom. (March 9, 2006) For Barbara’s classroom, the blog changed the format of the classroom. Print-based reader response activities had worked so well in the past, but posting responses to the blog opened doors for media literacy and critical literacy lessons. We explored our beliefs and practices, learning how to facilitate online classroom discussions. This 29