Blogs for ESL writing
Prepared byKhaled LayaliDoctoral student TESOL Ed D
programAlliant International University
Blogs for ESL Reading/ WritingAnnual CATESOL, Annaheim, Nov. 13,
2015
DefinitionBlogs are types of online journals that can be easily
updated and instantly published on the world wide web allowing for
comments and threaded discussions by all interested internet users
(Wu, 2005).
IntroductionBlogs are part of web2.0 technology that gives its
users the chance to interact, collaborate and engage in
constructive social dialogue (OReilly, 2005).
The interactive features of blogs, their ease of use and their
comment/threaded discussion interface make them best suited for ESL
writing (Campbell, 2003).
Number of blogs createdFortune magazine ranked the blog as the
number #1 tech trend in 2005 and reported that 23,000 new blogs are
being created every day; one every three second (Kirkpatrick,
2005).
This massive use and production of blogs was due to the fact
that plenty of free blog-creating software became available since
1999 (Blood, 2000). Examples of such free software are: Blogger,
Weebly and Diaryland.
Purpose of this presentation
Show how to create a blog using Blogger, post entries on blogs,
comment on others posts and keep on threaded discussions.Present
the advantages and limitations of using blogs in ESL writing as
reported by primary studies.Present tips on maximizing the benefits
of blogs in ESL writing.Present the theoretical foundation of blogs
for ESL writing.Check out three example ESL blogs.
Create a Gmail account1- Go to
https://accounts.google.com/signup 2- Sign up for a new Gmail
account .3- Choose a username and password for your new account.4-
Sign in your own new Gmail account.
Create a new blog
1-Log on http://www.blogger.com/ via the new G-mail account. 2-
Hit new blog. 3- Choose a title to your blog.4- Choose an address
to your blog.(for example, ESLwriting.blogspot.com)5- Hit create
blog.
Post entries on your blog
1- Hit new post. 2- Choose a post title for your post.3- write
your own post in your own words, using your own ideas.4- Hit save
& publish to save & publish your own posts.5- Log onto each
others blog and write one comment on one post.6- Reply to one
comment to create a threaded discussion.
Advantages of using blogs
Blogs improve students writing ability by providing them with
authentic learning experiences where they get feedback from their
peers, their teachers and even the public (Kitchakarn, 2012).
Blogs make the students motivated (Vurdien, 2012).
Blogs give students a chance to communicate beyond the classroom
(Wang et al, 2011).Advantages cont.Blogs foster collaboration and
interaction among students; in addition to this, blogs promote
mutual feelings among students in the same group (Wu & Wu,
2011).
Blogs promote reflective writing and help student bloggers to
develop their own voice (i.e., views, opinions, stance on various
issues, etc.) (Abd Majid & Adnan, 2011). Advantages cont.Blogs
provide students with opportunities to write under less pressure
and spend their time wisely on the Internet (Nepomuceno, 2011).
Most students had a very positive attitude towards using blogs
in their ESL writing class (Kichakarn, 2012; Vurdien, 2012; Wang et
al, 2011; Wu & Wu, 2011; Nepomuceno, 2011).
Limitations of using blogs
Blogs caused difficulty and time-consumption and anxiety about
unsympathetic remarks on mistakes and errors (Lin et al, 2013).
Some bloggers post derogatory comments. Bloggers are also
distracted by online gaming and other applications (Nepomuceno,
2011).
Limitations cont.37% of participants didnt feel that their
English writing was improved after 4 weeks of blogging. One of the
students said: If I have already had difficulty in English writing,
I would have the same difficulty even though I write through
computers (Wu & Wu, 2011).
11% of participants found that posting every two weeks on blogs
was boring (Wang et al, 2011).Tips for maximizing the benefits of
blogs First, Netiquette (i.e., Internet Etiquette) should be shared
and established to overcome the problem of sometimes using
derogative and inappropriate language ( Nepomuceno, 2011). Second,
the ESL teacher should orient students to the use of blogs; how to
post an entry, a comment, etc. to overcome the problem of
difficulty of use reported by Wu & Wu (2011).Tips cont.Third,
ESL teachers should involve their students in choosing writing
topics to avoid the problem of boredom reported by Wang et al
(2011).
Fourth, its recommended to start blogging with the high-level
English proficiency students rather than low or intermediate-level
students to overcome the problem of difficulty and time-consumption
(Lin et al, 2013). Tips cont.Fifth, Establish rapport with and
among students to solve the problem of unsympathetic comments on
students errors made by their own peers reported by Lin et al
(2013)
Sixth, Put both weak and skilled students in small groups. This
will allow the skilled students to scaffold and help the weak ones
improve their writing.Tips cont.Finally, ESL teachers should share
and explain the rubric for evaluating their students writing so
students know what is expected of them; how many posts they should
make, how many comments, how many words per post or comment, etc.
to make their blogging experience both interesting and
rewarding.
ConclusionBlogs provide authentic learning experiences
(Kitchakarn, 2012).Blogs make the students motivated (Vurdien,
2012).Blogs give students a chance to communicate beyond the
classroom (Wang et al, 2011).Blogs foster collaboration and
interaction among students (Wu & Wu, 2011).
Conclusion cont.Blogs provide students with opportunities to
write under less pressure and spend their time wisely on the
Internet (Nepomuceno, 2011).Blogs promote reflective writing and
help student bloggers to develop their own voice (i.e., views,
opinions, stance on various issues, etc.) (Abd Majid & Adnan,
2011).Finally, most students had a very positive attitude towards
using blogs in their ESL writing class (Kichakarn, 2012; Vurdiem,
2012; Wang et al, 2011; Wu & Wu, 2011; Nepomuceno, 2011).
Current theory in TESOL/Theoretical foundations for
BlogsCommunicative theory of learning.Socio-cultural theory and
interaction.Krashens Affective filter hypothesis.
Three example ESL BlogsMichael Carlsons blog and
website:(US)http://www.eslyes.com/contact email:
[email protected]
Steven Mondys blog:
(Australia)http://mondosworld.blogspot.com/Contact email:
[email protected]
Michelle Morissettes blog:
(Canada)http://learningenglishwithmichelle.blogspot.com/Contact
email: [email protected]
Presenter contact & affiliation Khaled LayaliDoctoral
student, TESOL Ed D programAlliant International
[email protected]
ReferencesBlood, R. (2000). Weblogs: A history and perspective.
Rebecca's Pocket, 7(9), 2000.Campbell, A. P. (2003). Weblogs for
use with ESL classes. The Internet TESL Journal, 9(2). Retrieved 1
Nov., 2014, from
http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Campbell-Weblogs.html/Kitchakarn, O.
(2012).Using Blogs to Improve Students' Summary Writing Abilities.
Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, v13 n4
p209-219.Kirkpatrick , D. (2005).Why there is no escaping the blog.
Fortune, Vol.151, No.1.
References cont.Lin, M. H., Groom, N., & Lin, C.-Y. (2013).
Blog-Assisted Learning in the ESL Writing Classroom: A
Phenomenological Analysis. Educational Technology & Society, 16
(3), 130139.Majid, F. A., & Adnan, N. W. M. (2011). Personal
Blogs and Reflective Writing: A Case Study. International Journal
of Learning, 18(1).
Nepomuceno, M. M. (2011). Writing online: Using blogs as an
alternative writing activity in tertiary ESL classes. TESOL
journal, 5, 92-105.
Vurdien, R. (2011).Enhancing Writing Skills through Blogs in an
EFL Class. European Association for Computer-Assisted Language
Learning (EUROCALL).Paper presented at (EUROCALL) Annual Conference
(Nottingham, United Kingdom, Aug 31- Sep 3, 2011)References
cont.Wang, C. H., Wu, W. S., Chiu, C. Y., & Wu, T. Y. (2011). A
University e-Campus Blog for Paragraph Writing in English Grammar
Courses. International Journal of Technology, Knowledge &
Society, 7(3).
Wu, H.J.; Wu, P.L. (2011). Learners' Perceptions on the Use of
Blogs for EFL Learning. Online Submission, US-China Education
Review A 3 p323-330.Wu, W. S. (2005, March). Using blogs in an EFL
writing class. In meeting of the 2005 Conference and Workshop on
TEFL and Applied Linguistics, Department of Applied English, Ming
Chuan University. Retrieved August (Vol. 16, p. 2006).References
cont.Blogging softwareBlogger, blogging software. Retrieved from:
http://www.blogger.com/Diaryland, blogging software. Retrieved
from: http://members.diaryland.com/edit/Weebly, blogging software.
Retrieved from: http://www.weebly.com/WebsitesOReilly, T. (2005).
"What Is Web 2.0". O'Reilly Network. Retrieved from:
http://www.oreilly.com/pub/a/web2/archive/what-is-web-20.html
