I introduced blogging to my students today

Today was my first attempt to introduce blogging to my students. Although there had been so much controversies about the misuse of blogs and the conflicting issues which bloggers write about, I have decided to cast these worries aside and get my students to start their own blogs. Afterall, my students need to start taking baby steps to write and where is a better place in this supersonic era than doing it online?

My students were rather receptive to the idea of starting their own blogs. In fact, I suspect that this is nothing new to them because they do keep personal blogs. This suspicion was further affirmed when I see some students editing the html templates and creating their own blogskins though I did not teach them on that component. I am impressed with their IT-savviness and inspired by that sparkle in their eyes as they type fervertly on the keyboard. Now I am just looking forward to see their posts on this blog. I am hopeful that it will be just as splendid as their blogskins.

One of the main reasons why I got my students to start a blog is, like I mentioned, to get them started in writing. I am confident that if I were to throw a stone in my class, chances of it hitting a student who abhorrs writing is 90%. The remaining 10% who might like writing could likely be one who keeps a blog but peppers the entries with Singlish or msn lingo.

Singlish and msn lingos found on students' compositions are pet peeves of ALL EL teachers. We get really infuriated when we see it on a formal piece of writing and we are inclined to give a low grade for that piece of writing because it is an indication that probably this student is confused between Standard English and Singlish. Hence, I urge students to be mindful on their languages and make a conscious effort to write proper English on this blog which they are sharing with me. Practice makes prefect though it might be tough at the beginning.

Our brain is plastic: it can and does remodel itself, sometimes within a remarkably short period of time.

Studies had shown that when we approach learning casually, we're unlikely to become experts, and our brain is unlikely to rewire itself. When we approach learning seriously, however, something else happens: we attend to a task, we practice it over and over again, and we become emotionally involved. Under these conditions, brain plasticity happens. Therefore, I believe that if my students make a conscious effort to write in proper English and practise leaving out the undesirable terms in all their writings, this will be their first step to achieve success in this language.

The second thing which I implore my students not to do is to have the mentality that 'It is because my teacher asks me to write, that's why I am writing now.' Things get tedious after a while if you keep thinking that you're doing it for someone. However, you can keep this blog as a personal one - one which you update frequently on your own because you want to and not because you are expected to, you will happier and more likely to write.

Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.

I wish you luck in your baby steps to writing and it is a promise that I will be behind you all the way.