Is There Treasure Amongst the Trash? Finding Value in Blogs

Becoming a (beginner) blog reader has left me with conflicting thoughts. As I sifted through the list of the top 100 Education blogs (which actually has 987 blogs listed) from teach.com I came across dozens of defunct blogs, blogs with broken links and blogs that hadn’t been updated in years. The seemingly abandoned blogs raised a lot of questions for me. Why had these dedicated bloggers deserted the space they had spent (in some cases) years developing? Did they feel their blog had lost its value? Had they lost the gumption to continue sharing their thoughts? Had readership gone down, and did that even matter? However, between the dead blogs I’d stumble upon blogs that were alive and well, and through them I was able to see the value in these spaces again.

The first blog that really caught my eye was Tap into Teen Minds. This blog’s most recent post, from September of this year offered back to school encouragement for teachers facing new challenges. This post also included great resources for setting students up for success and downloadable files to make it easy for overworked teachers. The work and resources shared in this blog post encouraged me to keep looking through its content. Teachers sharing with teachers, such an exciting concept. Throughout the blog I found free activities for sharing, more in depth activities and pintables available for menial fees, activities with modifications for each grade and pictures and videos to keep students and teachers on track. The best part is that this Canadian blog did a good job of tying all of its resources to the Canadian curriculum for grades k-12! This blog was a literal treasure trove for teachers needing new and innovative ideas! So much sharing of resources and information reminded me that to be a great teacher you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. In this way blogging has become a new form of teacher collaboration and I think this is wonderful.

The second blog that made an impression with me was Educational Technology and Mobile Learning. Again, this blog was full of digital resources for teachers and students. This technology focused blog shared information on apps, games and game-based learning technology. The best part is that these resources were pre-screened and filtered by a teachers before they made the list, so a quick view from me (or any teacher) to ensure their quality is all that is needed before sharing with students. The time saving benefit of seeking resources from a trusted blogger is not lost on me, this is definitely an attractive feature that I had not considered blogging to offer.

I came across Dropout Nation while searching education blogs and it stopped me in my tracks. This powerful blog speaks about American school reform and the policy and practices contributing to low education in the USA. The commanding articles and resources provide a platform for children, parents and teachers seeking better education. The writing exposes flaws in the education system and commands attention for difficult topics like school shootings, racial discrimination and how gun control issues are affecting American students. This blog provides necessary commentary and perspective for interested readers. It is important, indispensable and mighty!!!

The variety of education blogs impressed me. I found blogs dedicated to specific topics, cross curricular blogs, blogs for sharing resources and blogs used simply as a sounding board for thoughts and perspectives. I think it is safe to say that there is probably a blog post dedicated to most areas of teaching. These spaces certainly have valuable perspectives and information to share and if you have patience while sifting through the broken links and abandoned sites you’ll definitely be rewarded for your persistence.

#blogs #EDTS325 #teachercollaboration #sharing #learningresources