Advantages/Disadvantages k-12 Blogging

When we first began blogging, I had never heard the word "blog". In fact, I have never heard of a power point presentation or a trifold brochure either. I suppose the number of years I have been out of school has put me at somewhat of a disadvantage. I can see how blogging could be useful in k-12 classrooms. Even though blogging requires typing, it still provides practice in basic writing skills. Having peers view one another's work, rather than simply handing in handwritten assignments for a grade, may make students more concious of spelling and punctuation errors. Also, the high-achieving students may add links to their blogs which could help motivate some of the low-achieving students by providing extra material for them to read on a particular subject. However, because blogs are a type of personal diary, students may feel impowered to "speak their minds". Students may make negative comments about a particular subject or subject content that may influence the attitudes of otherwise motivated students.