Blogging Thoughts…Again

From the “Throwing it Out There to See What Sticks Deptartment” here are some
very raw thoughts about the various types of Weblog posts for teachers and students
and where they fit on my very indistinct blogging scale:

• Posting assignments. (Not blogging)
• Journaling, i.e. “This is what I did today.” (Not blogging)
• Posting links (Not blogging)
• Links with descriptive annotation, i.e. “This site is about…” (Not really
  blogging either, but getting close depending on the depth of the description.)
• Links with analysis that gets into the meaning of the content being linked.
  (A simple form of blogging.)
• Reflective, meta-cognitive writing on practice without links. (Complex writing,
  but simple blogging, I think. Commenting would probably fall in here somewhere.)
• Links with analysis and synthesis that articulates a deeper understanding
  or relationship to the content being linked and written with potential audience
  response in mind. (Real blogging)
• Extended analysis and synthesis over a longer period of time that builds
  on previous posts, links and comments. (Complex blogging)

—Will R.
—Blogging Thoughts…Again (Weblogg-ed)

A very useful off-the-cuff taxonomy.

I’d disagree that “This is what I did today” is necessarily not blogging. How many of us have reached for a kitchen knife when we know we’ve got a little plastic box with screwdrivers of different sizes in a box somewhere in the basement? In a pinch, I’ll use a rock if the rock is handy and the hammer isn’t. Thus, a blog can still contain some traditional journaling (and some postings of assignments and traditional “lists of links”) and some and still be valuable as a blog. The problem is if the educator doesn’t do (or hardly does) any of the advanced things that blogs really are good at doing.

Update, 08 May: Will follows up with a good explanation of his position.