Ch. 2

In the second chapter, Richardson really drives home the point of having an instant audience for writing when we write online.  The feedback can be plentiful and unbiased since we often get responders who have never met us.  Having the opportunity to communicate with people of different ages and cultures might provide a unique perspective to writing pieces.  One of the hardest thing about teaching writing is finding the time to peer edit and help the students revise their initial work.  After reading this chapter, I am thinking about getting all of my students into the computer lab and having them post their written work to the Web so that the other students can give quick feedback.  If each student responded to three different writers, there exists the potential for really substantial feedback.  It seems like an easier process then having to wait to pass papers around and handwriting notes.  Students will probably be more open and honest with their feedback online than they would be in a face-to-face peer review session. I'm confident that getting in the habit of regularly reviewing the work of peers will improve student writing.

A class blog would be much more beneficial than my current teacherweb page.  While an online spot for posting homework and upcoming events is important, I could accomplish this on a classroom blog that would also allow me to post online readings, writing prompts, photos, exemplars of student work.  Most importantly, this would be a place for students to chime in and give their two cents on the classroom happenings. This blog could be open so that others could see what we're up to and provide us with feedback on our investigations across the curriculum.  It will be a goal of mine to create a class blog this year.  Eventually, with enough practice and guidance, hopefully students will be able to successfully create their very own blogs as well.

Finally, the distinction that the author makes between journaling and blogging is an interesting one.  While journaling can be therapeutic, it is really a solitary experience.  Blogging, on the otherhand, thrives on the interaction that the blogger gets.  In this way, it is more conversational.  Social networking sites can be both a place for journaling and blogging on some level.  After reading this chapter by Richardson, I've begun to classify my Facebook "friends".  Some people just need a place to announce their everyday activities, and other people are using this site as a place to reach out and connect with others and to discuss various issues.  Mainly, I think it centers around what we want to see in return from responders.  I definitely respect people who post discussion topics looking to see both sides of a pseudo-debate.  This type of interaction is far more entertaining and educational than people who just want to inform you of their work schedule and what they bought at the grocery store.