Use of Web‐logs (Blogs) to Promote Student Ownership

Abstract

Blended or hybrid learning is a teaching approach in which some course elements—e.g., content delivery or discussions—occur online while other course elements occur face‐to‐face. Current best practices suggest that the digital environment can be used to guide instruction and to enhance student‐student exchange of ideas. We explore the benefits of online student interactions within an introductory science course as a means of enhancing face‐to‐face interaction and personalization of the learning experience. Weblogs (blogs) have the potential to increase contemplation, community, and collaboration within the classroom through an intimate online framework. In particular, we are interested in building student project ownership that is grounded in student interaction and builds natural learning development through “doing.” However, the effectiveness of blogs to promote ownership has not been fully examined.We investigated the potential of blogs to promote project ownership. Ownership was tested after the addition of two elements to the blog design: instructor curation of the blog and awarding a grade percentage based on student participation. We explored how these modifications alter student educational experience and project ownership. This was measured using de‐identified student data to quantitatively examined the amount of online student‐student interactions. Additionally, we qualitatively analyzed blog content, the quality of students’ final writing samples, and student perception of project ownership via a survey at the end of the semester. Our overall study goal is to develop student fluency in scientific discourse and science project ownership by constructing an online, student‐driven learning blog community. These findings will elucidate the potential for blogs to build student project ownership, driving learner engagement, and academic success.Support or Funding InformationBlended Online Learning Design Fellowship, Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning, Center for Teaching