Every once in a while, I check out my ‘ego-feed’ to see what links are coming in (Ok, ok, I do it several times a week) and came across the blog of Andrew Pass. He linked to the post I put up yesterday and responded with a series of ‘discussion starters’.

1. What does the word “impartiality” mean? Is there really such thing as impartiality?
2. What is/are the purposes of writing?
3. Do your students think that a business owner would rather take out an advertisement in a newspaper or on a website or have somebody write about their product in glowing terms? (For the purpose of this question, imagine that the advertisement is free of charge.

I started scrolling back and he’s done that several times over, responding to posts of Stephen Downes, the Kathy Sierra situation, and various current events.

I love the format. The fact that he isn’t just linking to other blog posts, or sharing his take on them. He’s providing suggestions for how you can take those blog posts and use them to spark discussions in the classrooms. Very cool stuff and a great way to bridge the online and offline worlds. He suggests that after discussing the issues, students respond on the original blog posts. Consider, discuss, respond in writing. Sounds like a great way to start a class period.

• Podcast versus lecture shootout
• Day 21: Give a comment a promotion
• Back to the Blog
• Blog Success, but I’ll share it with you later.
• It’s sort of like hitting the wall.

Tom Turner
3/28/2007

Prior to leaving the classroom to take on my Technology Specialist position at an elementary school, that was exactly what I was trying to get my district to allow me to do with blogging. Most blogs are still blocked with no end in site. ARRRGH!

Tom
http://tnturner.edublogs.org

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