I don't really think it's blogging if it's private but that is just my personal opinion.
Blogging is a great way for students to express their opinions. It socially levels the playing field to some respect. Many students will submit posts to a blog way before raising a hand in class. I think students need to be aware and able to take criticism which is something many of them struggle with. I don't have a particular idea for a student blog that hasn't already been done, I can only point to Penn Manor School District which has blogging on their Wordpress student newspaper site as a great idea which is working well so Kudos to their staff for opening the doors.
Most of my concerns are similar to any administrator in the "what if" category for liability and litigation. I feel though that I am one of the few who believes that the responsibility is on the students and their parents to display good citizenship and common sense. Most students who post online have no ideas that they are contributing to their "digital portfolio" so they need to be cognizant of that when posting.
I agree that private blogging is only blogging because they're using a blog tool. But, it's only blogging in the same sense that driving a race car up and down your driveway is the same as racing.
ReplyDeleteAnd I LOVE the idea of student blogging as a newspaper.