Blogging as a Tool to Create 21st Century Classrooms

            According to Education Week (2010), “The term ‘21st-century skills’ is generally used to refer to certain core competencies such as collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem-solving that advocates believe schools need to teach to help students thrive in today's world.”  While the exact skills and resources can be debated, all educator’s agree that 21st century classrooms provide students with the resources and knowledge that they need in order to be successful adults in our current society.
           Technology is probably the most important component of 21st century learning.  Jeff Dunn reminds us that 91 percent of classrooms have computers, and 80 percent of college professors use social media.  With technology and social media being so prevalent in our society, these are important skills for our students to have.
           Blogging is a great tool for 21st century classrooms because it allows students to practice using technology and social networking skills, while thinking critically about new ideas and content, writing their thoughts, and responding to one another.  Blogs let students create a digital record of their work so they can see their improvement over time and continue to learn and grow.  If we define the key skills of 21st century learning as Education Week has (collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem-solving) then blogs are a great medium to allow students to practice all four of these skills at once through thoughtful blog topics, posts, and discussions.   

Student input on blogging:

Resources about Blogging and 21st Century Classrooms

                              Education Week-   How Do You Define 21st Century Learning?

                              Edudemic-           20 Must See Facts About The 21st Century
                 

                             Integrating 21st Century Skills-   Class Blogging Project