http://www.thethinkingstick.com/blogging-bits-june
It is obvious that Utecht has been at this for some time. With up to almost 5,000 followers, his own publications on educational technology, and mentions in major journals, Utecht runs a state of the art blog from Thailand. He is an educator teaching abroadHis site features many thought provoking blogs with links to articles and other helpful blogs. In addition, he has links to wikis and podcasts he's created. I feel humbled by the amount of knowledge Utecht and several other authors of educator blogs possess. However, the anxiety about beginning my journey into blogging is eased when I see that even the experts continue to try and wrap their brains around the concept.
In a June blog titled "Blogging Bit", Utecht makes reference to one of his own postings a few years ago on the one year anniversary of his blog site. He comments on how overwhelmed he was in the creation process of his blog but how that feeling truned to excitement of reaching the year mark with readers and followers. I appreciate Utechts guidance and advice for new bloggers to get up to speed with all that there is to consider in the blogging world.2. Learning is Messy - Brian Crosby
http://learningismessy.com/blog/
I was attracted to this blog because of its title. As I've browsed several educator blogs (including the one above) being new to blogging, I am overwhelmed by the amount of content, images, and information. As Utecht describes in his one year anniversary blog, he experienced this same feeling. Still, I think it is unrealistic to expect that my blog as I get started will come anywhere near the level of the educators I've looked at.
Crosby's blog alleviated some of my anxiety in that it isn't as overwhelming a Utecht's. His site seems more organized; it has postings on one side and links on the other. There are a lot of links but I can see all of them at once and there aren't hundreds of images, calendars, and other widgets distracting me from the content. Maybe this is a false sense of organization in the sense that Crosby's blog contains many of the same features as Utecht's, but it is set up in a more orderly fashion. It's nice to see the otions I have as I set upon my own endeavor.
Regardless, I think I need to accept the fact that "learning is messy" and that I will begin to think like the students I teach (in order to teach them better) and be able to multitask in a way I never imagined.
I really appreciate the thoughtful post. It is overwhelming, unless we tackle it in little pieces. Quiet times to focus on a piece of this information are going to be critical. Now, I know, what is "quiet time"!! :-)
ReplyDeleteOnce a week, once a day, once in a blue moon! Shoot for something reasonable and just keep plugging along!
And biggest ahha for me - follow a couple closely! Develop that Personal Learning Network - starting page 164 in Warlick's book. We'll talk more!