Louise Maine

Well, I started out gung ho with the blog – I think I made 3 entries the first day. What has happened since? Perhaps life and a little attitude has happened – it is summer by the way. Let me explain. As I have been sitting and thinking about who cares if anyone reads what I have to say and who cares if I read what anyone has to say, my school email has filled up with edtech emails and blog entries I have subscribed to. Now that I am finally reading them it has occurred to me that I have not really faced my own attitudes about blogging.

Writing about what I am thinking is somewhat self-centered, don't you think? I am obviously the only one in my brain and if I write it all down, am I stuck on myself? Not really. That is just what I think others are thinking and I should not have that opinion toward anyone else either. If it is not meaningful to me, I don't need to read it. But someday it may be and the great thing about electronic communication is that it will be there for some time (another reason to be very careful).

Mostly I think that no one cares what I think (oops – there I go talking like one of the teenagers). Vicki Davis says it best in her blog:

It is about improving communication and facilitating effective, meaningful, educated, civilized conversation. And when it gets students excited about communicating and learning, then it just becomes a number one friend of a good teacher.

Even if your blogging is not tied to education, it is all about communication. The focus is not only on sharing but also connecting. I learn a lot by reading about the thoughts and experiences of others. It is important to make meaningful communication and use it constructively and just as thoughtfully. Even blogs or posts that polarize people are useful (this is a scrapbooking message board with passionate members): 2 peas

My hope is to use the blogs as a tool for not only my learning and communcation but also for that of my students. By thinking differently about blogs in general, I might just learn something after all.