Writing 2.0: Blogs & Wikis

In support of using Web 2.0 tools for writing in education, Dave Weinberger stated in his JOHO blog that educators have a very different set of challenges in today’s classroom …

“If knowledge emerges from conversations, then just about all our educational focus ought to be on learning how to be good conversationalists: how to listen, how to kindle a conversation, how to evaluate claims, how to speak in a voice worth hearing…and, most of all, how to share a world in which knowledge is plural, for that’s what conversation and knowledge is about.”

Write a response to his statement and establish a clear position in support or against his view that educators have a different set of challenges when using wikis and blogs in the classroom to support conversation and knowledge sharing. What challenges do you think he is referring to? Should we use them? Are students not engaged in conversation enough in the classroom? Do we need to rethink how we are delivering instruction? Support your position with prior knowledge and relevant evidence by referencing other participants’ posts, blogs, or articles.

Task 1:

• Click on the title “Knowledge Emerges From Conversations”
• Comment on the blog post

Task 2:

• After you are done posting your response click on your participant name in the right menu under ‘Participants’ to view your blog
• In the middle of your blog site page there is a ‘login’ link (it is gray and hard to see)
• Click the link and you should be in your ‘dashboard’ (login again if needed)
• Explore the site while you are waiting (Check out the videos)