Part of a project for “Embracing blogs” for information literacy. Based on a paper that I think I’ve seen before.
Quicktime
broadband version of the talk. Probably only visible to people on the CQU campus.
Paper presented at Networked Learning 2006.
Most of the work is coming from Sandra Cochrane who has now moved to USQ. Project started to use blogs to improve information searching skills for transition/early nursing students. Some of this is related to fear as computers. Teaching them to keep a reflective journal via a blog might break down that fear.
Jenny, was somewhat fearful of this move – students are paper learners. Will it work with these students?
Led to project to evaluate where the students are with respect to blogs. Selected 1st year, undergrad, mature age, distance education students.
Typical ISL session with lots of people giving advice on how to give the ISL session.
Jenny’s presentation preceded by a talk by Michael Hammond, Blogging within formal and informal learning contexts: Where are the opportunities and constraints?
Results
- 31% read other peoples weblogs
- 17% participate in weblog activities
- 7% have participated anonymously
- 6-7% have own weblog
None of the 10 CQU staff which the survey was tested on, knew what weblogs were.
Of the 11 students – personal use is a major thing for weblogs.
Coming out of the conference and her work
Weblogs are new but they haven’t been tested to any extent in academia. No-one is really embracing them.
Constraints/problems is getting the students to engage with a new technology and another way of behaving.
Sandra, at USQ, is going to work on this there.
Alternatives are perceived to be Blackboard, online courses, wikis. Wikis are easier to develop collaborative learning – many European universities using Wikis. A presentation at the conference using Wikis to teach writing clarity.
Blogs as a form of reflective journal, main use.
Questions from the floor
- Amount of information useful to academics that is hiding in peoplesoft
- Wendy from Bundaberg had a blog in a course and there was little or no interaction. More on the Blackboard site.
- Phillipa talks about the Blackboard feature for blogs and wikis. Claims the anonymity on the “real blogs” is because of the size – doesn’t know things about Technorati
- Peter Reaburn’s question fades out because of out of time
Implications for BAM evaluation
Include age as a demographic to see if it is an influence.
