About this Project

Although this project, at this current point in time, is part of my course project for "Current Topics in Assessment & Technology" offered through UVM with Prof. Jon Bellum, it is really a stage in my journey of fascination with the impact of emerging technology on society, but especially education. Many technological and social changes have occurred since my first experiments with blogs in education (almost 5 years ago). These changes have both increased my enthusiasm for the potential that blogging tools bring to education, and also increased my worry about some of the safety issues related to the increase in blogging in our culture (especially amongst teens). My recent presentation on blogs in education at VermontFest 2005
brought forward many questions about the role blogs could or should have in education.

Collegial discussions and online research revealed that I wasn't the only one reflecting on these questions. Thus I designed a project that would help me clarify my own thoughts and feelings on this topic, as well as assist others through the process. Thanks ahead of time to those who are willing to be part of my 'research'; not only will your participation help myself and others get a pulse on the current thinking around blogs in education, but hopefully you will get a chance to gain a clearer understanding of the issues related to blogging in education and assess your own feelings about what roles blogs should play in our educational community.

This project includes an Inquiry Project Design that any educational community or Professional Development Instructor can follow as a guide to replicate this process in their course or educational community.

In late December, I will post a link to the Action Research Paper that describes the Questions, Methods, and Outcomes of my implementation of inquiry in my educational community.

To those who participated, thanks very much!