Rethinking

teaching space
I've been a critic of the limited nature of the sort of pseudo-blogs you can run in VLEs. They're not the real thing. Well this term we've been experimenting using them on a course on reflective practice as an attempt to build up a community that reaches beyond the limited face-to-face interaction of the Masters classroom. I've been rethinking my views. These black-box blogs provide some security, allow for plenty of interaction and actually seem to work better than discussion forums. Perhaps this is because they provide a sense of personal space, and an invitation to visit. That's quite a bit more than what's suggested in the classroom set up in the picture, with its pulpit/lectern and its collection of boards to display and oppress with words. The blogs help us build a small temporary community - it's working - and so I'm rethinking my position. OK so you can't get feeds, find who's updating or customise your blogspace but they serve a function.