Blogging!

Beschreibung

This thesis has analysed the use of blogging within a classroom based ‘2+2’ Early Childhood Studies course.
This thesis has analysed the use of blogging within a classroom based ‘2+2’ Early Childhood Studies course. As such the research involved 'non-traditional' learners in that they were mainly women returning to education, initially based in a further education (FE) context. This was an intervention, which aimed to provide practical support for learners as well as an opportunity to explore the value of networking through the production of blogs. A feature of the intervention was that while students were encouraged to use unrestricted blogs they were free to write what they liked and when they liked. The study took place over three years and involved three cohorts of learners (Cohort A n=18; Cohort B n=21; Cohort C n=13; Total n =52). It can be described as a case study on blogging in that the study was concerned to understand a phenomenon in a specific and bounded context. The consistency of findings across the three cohorts meant that the study was considered as a single case albeit differences between cohorts were signalled as and when they came up. The study used a mixed methods approach and reported data on participation rates, content analysis of blogs and the perception of learners through interviews (n=17) and questionnaire responses (total n=32). The key findings were that there were differentiated levels of participation. Within the population ‘Non Contributors’ (n=23); ‘Uncertain Contributors’ (n=5) and ‘Contributors’ (n=16) were identified. The pattern of differentiated blogging activity could be observed across cohorts, albeit with small variations. However, it is important to add that while nearly half of the students in Cohorts B and C did not contribute entries to their blogs, all students became followers of other blogs. Furthermore, all who created a blog succeeded in attracting followers, in some cases quite large numbers of followers.

Autor*in

Lin Armstrong
Lin Armstrong has worked at North Warwickshire and Hinckley College, Coventry University College, Warwick University, and Coventry University as an educator. Lin is a tutor with an interest in using on-line tools to create communities of practice amongst students on the same course.

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