Annotated Bibliography #1 -- Not available in MLA Style

Research Question

How do I incorporate blogs into my college composition classroom? Furthermore, when I have incorporated blogs into my classroom instruction, how do blogs affect each student’s writing (i.e. writing process, final product)?

Search

I used the ERIC search engine using the Library’s site. At first, I began to search for terms such as “Teaching Technology in the Composition Classroom,” “Technology in the Composition Classroom,” “Technology in the Classroom,” “Using Technology in the Classroom,” and finally, “Technology and Writing.” My search results were limited. It was not what I was looking for. Using these terms, I also looked through JSTOR and EBSCOhost; however, there was no luck. I found that if I typed these terms into the dialog box, it would only search for these terms in articles. Therefore, I widened my search. I conducted an advanced search through ERIC that was peer-reviewed. In the first dialog box, I typed, “Technology,” in the next, “Writing,” and in the last box, I typed “Blogs.” Thirty-seven articles were found. This is where I have located all of my articles; however, I still intend to locate more articles and use different search terms.

Annotated Bibliography

** I refer to students here as writers.

Boling, Erica. Jill Castek, Lisa Zawilinski, Karen Barton, and Theresa Nierlich.

“Collaborative Literacy: Blogs and Internet Projects.” The Reading Teacher 61:6:10 (2008): 504-506. ERIC. Print. 21 Sept. 2009.

I intend to use this article in order to introduce blogging and what it encourages to our writers. Blogging encourages writers to use an authentic voice and an engagement of collaborative writing. By definition, blogs are “websites that allow individuals to create personal webpages of text, pictures, graphics, videos, and other multimedia” (Boling, Castek, Zawilinksi, Barton, and Nierlich, 504). Students can post comments on peers’ walls and engage in an online conversation. Blogging provides opportunities to connect with real audiences, encourages students to read and write for meaningful purposes. Writing for such a diverse audience of peers also encourages students to revise and edit their work.

Ohler, Jason. “New-Media Literacies.” Academe 01902946. 1 May 2009: Vol. 95, Issue 3.

ERIC. Web. 21 Sept. 2009.

Being literate is now connected with being able to read and write using different technology of today. Although it is inexpensive and easy-to-use, being literate requires of writers to be aware of text, sounds, graphics, and moving images. Incorporating blogs allows for self-expression. What we need to do is to blend traditional media with new forms of media such as blogging. Ohler asserts that historically, everyone should read and write took centuries to evolve; however, with the advent of the web, it has taken less time to go from “read-only to write-possible” (Ohler). Blogging is at everyone’s grasp with the growing popularity of Facebook, MySpace, and blogspot, offered by Google. The objective of literacy is to interact and communicate with the real world, which is exactly what blogging allows.

Ramaswami, Rami. “The Prose of Blogging (and a Few Cons, Too).” T.H.E. Journal

0192592X. 1 Nov. 2008: Vol. 35, Issue 11. ERIC. Web. 23 Sept. 2009.

There are conflicting arguments about incorporating blogs into our classroom instruction. Those who argue against this assert that it increases mistakes made in grammar and punctuation and encourages tech-speak, which is the language of instant messaging or text messaging. Ramaswami introduces a case study where the objective was to examine the integration of technology and its effects on student achievement. The blog served as a journal where students posted research findings, brainstormed ideas, and responded to their peers’ findings. They found that blogs helped writers organize their thoughts, develop ideas, make sense of the research, and benefit from their peers feedback.

Smith, Cheryl. “Technologies for Transcending a Focus on Error: Blogs and Democratic

Aspirations in First-Year Composition.” Journal of Basic Writing (2008): Vol. 27, No. 1, 35-60. ERIC. Print. 20 Sept. 2009.

Reading and writing practices are changing with the advent of the web. Writers write more today than they have in the past, “but in less conventionally academic ways” (Smith 35). There is now a new relationship between composition and expression. Exposure to technology influences our writing styles. Blogs are used as an instrumental piece in the process of recognizing error. Smith asserts that first-year composition courses are established around drafting and revision. A classroom community is established with the advent of blogs. Blogs encourage student expression, facilitate brainstorming methods and peer review.

Witte, Shelbie. “That’s Online Writing, Not Boring School Writing: Writing With Blogs

and the Talkback Project.” Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy Oct. 2007: 51:2. 92-96. ERIC. Print. 20 Sept. 2009.

The purpose of the community of blogging should foster and encourage creative and reflective thinking. It serves as a cross-curricular tool. Writers should think and write about what they learn across all subjects and all grade levels. Blogging is a reflective activity. It can become a real life experience because writers are writing for a diverse audience whereas writers who engage in traditional writing write for one audience—normally their peers or the teacher. Writers take ownership of writing when they know others will read it. It is seen as a contemporary, real life opportunity for writing development.