As mentioned last week I received an invitation from a local school district to speak to administrators and teachers about blogging and literacy. I was able fit this in over a lunch break at work and it was a fascinating experience. Educators aren’t typically interested in feedback from conservative bloggers so I wasn’t sure what to expect.
The event was sort of a mini-panel featuring myself, moderator Dr. John O’Flahavan, and Rice University professor and composer Anthony Brandt. The group was interested not only in the mechanics of our work, and how we process information, but how we share it others and our motivations for doing so. I was really surprised by the similarities in our approaches.
It was encouraging to see their enthusiasm for blogging or at least the idea of blogging. Some of them had never actually seen a one. A few even seemed truly interested in the possibility of an internal classroom-based blogosphere where kids could learn to express themselves, analyze information, and critique the ideas of their peers. However, don’t hold your breath. I don’t really expect blogging to find it’s way into next year’s curriculum. My only real goal was to explain how I do what I do and why the associated skills should be taught to our children. Hopefully some of that will trickle down.
