Personally, I feel that blogging is a piece of technology without a definite good or bad side. It has many good characteristics, and some downsides as well. On the plus side, it allows people who would not normally have the opportunity to present their ideas and point of view to the world. It gives media specialists from around the country and the world the chance to share ideas and ways to make their schools better. It also gives these same media specialists a supportive and understanding community to turn to when things are not going so smoothly. What these educators have to share is current and based on first-hand experience. Because things are published so quickly, the ideas and information are current and timely. Current events can be discussed while the issue is still relevant and remembered. The commenting element of blogging also adds to the sense of community blogging brings. Ideas can be critiqued and changed in time to make a real and useful difference.
Blogging does also have some difficulties to go along with the good things. The anonymity and sometimes impersonal nature of the internet can be deceptive. People reading and responding to what someone has written may feel that what they write will have no impact on a real person. The anonymity allows them to do or say things they would never allow themselves to express in a face-to-face situation. These things can sometimes be hurtful, or even threatening. As long as all involved remember that everything was written by a real person with genuine emotions, and follow even the most basic of social codes, the world of blogs can be a useful and enlightening place.
An extra element that educators need to keep in mind when using blogs in schools is the extra measures of privacy they must establish to protect the students in their school. Keeping names, locations and other personal details from making their way to the internet needs to be on the mind of all educators and administrators when using resources based on the internet.
