One of the best things about blogging in the classroom is that it is a cross-curricular activity that can be used to teach any subject and develop just about any skills, from reading and writing to math, geography and everything in between. If you are still unsure about how blogging can benefit your students, here are seven reasons that might be able to persuade you as a teacher to get on board with blogging in the classroom this year.
Blogging motivates students to read and write
The best way to get students to read and write is to offer them things that they are interested in reading and writing about – things that relate to them and their peers. Blogging gives students not only an outlet for communicating their ideas and honing their writing skills at the same time, but it also provides them with a lot of content to read by connecting with students locally and from all around the world who might be interested in blogging about similar topics of interest.
Blogging gives students a larger audience
As a teacher, it is your duty to grade and critique the work of a student, but getting a second, third or fiftieth opinion never hurts either. When students present their blogs to the world, they are getting a much large audience that is not confined to the classroom. Also, when being aware that so many people will potentially see what they will be blogging about, the student will surely be inclined to put a lot of effort into his or her blog.
Blogging gives students confidence
Blogs allow individuals to showcase what they are best at or have the most knowledge about, and when others recognize this expertise and commend it, the blogger gains confidence. A student receiving positive comments about their blog posts on history, football or the pictures they have taken will gain confidence and continue to want to get better at what they are doing.
Blogging enables students to create a virtual portfolio
When you finish college and start sending out resumes in search of a job, the first thing that potential employers will do is Google you. Because of this, it is never too early to start compiling a positive virtual portfolio or resume online. Having creative or interesting blog posts in this portfolio from your early years of development can only help to improve the general picture of yourself that is out on the Internet for everyone to see. Students with blogging experience will stand out above the crowd of children who spent most of their time online tweeting or liking funny pictures on Facebook.
Blogging allows teachers to discover a student’s true talents
Giving a student creative control over a platform of expression such as a blog can allow them to open up and discover what they are good at. For example, if a student takes a great interest in what the blog looks like and is really interested in perfecting the color schemes or layouts, this student might have a career in web design or development ahead of them. A blog is very often a mirror of one’s expertise and interests, which can help a student find out what it is exactly that interests them most and what areas they excel in specifically.
Blogging teaches students about deadlines
Tell your students to try to publish a new blog post every week. This will make them learn about deadlines and time management. Working like this allows students to manage the entire creative process – from brainstorming to proofreading – and make sure that everything is completed in time. Also, comments from blog readers who look forward to reading new posts every week will provide further encouragement for sticking to the deadlines and staying active.
Blogging is for everyone
People tend to think that blogging is only for people who write. That is far from the truth. Blogging is a multi-dimensional platform with practically no limits. If you are good at photography, you can make a blog about that. If you are a basketball enthusiast and want to make a tutorial blog post on how to perform a cross-over move while driving to the basket, you can make a video of yourself shooting hoops. Blogging is something that absolutely every student can participate in successfully, not only those that are good at expressing themselves in written form.
Author Info: David Lazar is a blogger at CometDocs.com. With a background in journalism and tutoring, he enjoys writing about and following a variety of topics, including education, technology, and new media.