The Influence of Classroom Blogging on Elementary Student Writing

Abstract

Blogs in classrooms represent a new approach to teaching writing that is developing and changing daily. Although some scholarly literature explores the use of blogs in educational settings, the blogs are primarily being used at the secondary and college levels. The purpose of this qualitative case study research was to explore how blogging influenced student writing development at the elementary level. Fifth-graders' pre- and post-blogging project writing samples, as well as other student blog posts, were the primary data. A qualitative data analysis process was applied to explore the following areas of interest in student writing: attitude, content, voice, connections and relationships, thinking, and craft. The findings indicate that student bloggers became mindful of and connected to the audience, exercised agency in a community of bloggers, and learned to take ownership of the writing process and the writer's craft. Refraining from putting a heavy focus on corrected writing conventions during this formative time of writing development enabled students to concentrate on writing, which they filled with opinions, humor, expression, and playfulness as they learned to rethink their concepts of writing and its meaning in their lives.