# NINTH DAY How To Use Blog in The Classroom?

By: Ammar Shauqi bin Jamaluddin G1918501

This entry is based on the entry by Christopher Pappasentitltled, How To Use The Blog in Classroom.
Link: https://elearningindustry.com/how-to-use-blogs-in-the-classroom

According to Papas, blog is short for web log. It’s a bit like an online diary or journal, except blogs aren’t necessarily private, instead they’re created for an audience. And just like a diary or journal, a blog is relaxed, making it an easy and comfortable way for students to get writing. But nowadays, we already have the smaller or we can call as mini version of blog which is micro-blog. Micro-blog allows users to exchange small elements of content such as short sentences, individual images, or video links", which may be the major reason for their popularity. These small messages are sometimes called micro-posts. The famous micro-blogs are Twitter and Facebook. Most of the students nowadays, they use micro-blogs more than the blogs. However, the functions of blogs and micro-blogs can still be the same and can be applied in classroom in the same way. 

The teachers can use blogs in class for many purposes. The teachers can use blogs to publish assignments, resources, and keep students and even parents up to date on class events, due dates, and content being covered. This can lead not just students' engagement into the learning, but also for parents to be updated about their children's learning. Teachers can also use blogs to help students’ master content and improve their writing skills. This is because writing in blogs can be a stress-free writing session because the students can regard it as leisure writing compared to writing in physical book which they will interpret as an assessment.  

I mentioned about using blogs in enhancing students' writing skill in my previous post, the link: https://iiumictclass.blogspot.com/2020/07/ict-and-four-skills-in-english.html

Other than that, the students can use blogs to publish their writing and educate others on a particular topic. This can increase the students' confidence in writing as they will get feedback and reactions for their writing. Lastly, students

can also create blogs for the chess club or the yearbook club, the football team or the upcoming prom. This can increase the students' writing session and not just focus on academic only. This is good for them to be exposed to leisure writing which can increase their interest.
5 TIPS TO USE BLOG IN CLASSROOM

There are 11 tips to use blog in classroom by Pappha, however I will write five which I think are very important.

1) Guidelines and Expectations
Before starting an outline of your blogging guidelines and expectations check with your school for a written guideline. Guidelines and From here you can develop clear goals, guidelines, and expectations for you and your students. For ecample, the teacher must check with the school whether they are allowed to put the children's picture in the blog. The parents' consent are also important in doing this. By doing this, you can write a blog that follows the rules and there will be no issue in it.

2) The How To of Commenting
The comment section of a blog post is where students can share thoughts and opinions and have a discussion about the published content. Initially, it is a good idea to teach students the dos and don’ts of commenting. Bad comments from peers will affect the students' motivation to write more. So the teachers must give a really clear guideline on how to comment in a good manner to the students.
3) Plagiarism
Explain to students that plagiarism will not be tolerated. Student contributions must be their own work. They cannot copy from other sources directly and put the writing as theirs. They must write BASED on sources and not copy the sources. The credit must also be given to the writer of the sources that they refer to. The teachers must also highlight to the students to use copyright free image in their blog. This can nurture the students to have integrity in writing.

4) Be Realistic
Building a blog takes time so set your sights small. Some of the students may not have interest in writing the entry in blog. The teacher must know how to tackle the students' interest in writing the blog. The teachers can start by choosing a topic based on students' interest. Ask them to write on their blog about the topic and the teachers can check their work there. After a while, give another interesting topic that can also spark the students' interest to write. By starting with a classroom blog, students build the skills they need to create their own blogs effortlessly.

 5) Read other Blogs
Take the time to read other classroom and student blogs. There are many good blogs out there to be used as an example in class. Both teachers and students can read the blogs and take example on how to produce a good blog and how to write in a good way. But the teachers must be cautious with the content of the blogs that they give students to refer. Not every blog has a suitable content for kids although it is a good blog. Always read the blog first before give  them as examples to the students.

In conclusion. blogs can be a really good tool in learning especially writing. But then the benefits are not just for students' writing skill. But it also enhances the students' ability to create something and think critically when they want to write a certain topic. The teachers must use blog in a good way and always improve the way they use it in class in order to provide the best teaching for the students. - Shauqi