Our school’s new LMS has a blog feature, so I figured it was time for me to write a blog post about blogging. An act of “metablogging”, as it were, to introduce the technology to some newly formed online learning communities.
Let’s start with the basics.
The word “blog” is short for “web-log” — which is itself a technojargon smash-up of “World Wide Web” and “Log File”. I think most of my readers are familiar enough with the Internet to know what it means to be on the “web”, but perhaps the “log” needs a bit of explaining. A “log file” is a incrementally written record of “events” over “time”. Programmers often use logs to track down bugs in our code. Perhaps that’s why blogging evokes such strong feelings for me.
As a blogger, I publish an incremental record of my ideas at specific points in time publicly on the Internet in order to track down the errors in my understanding of the world through collaboration with my Personal Learning Network.
It’s kind of like an open journal and I would be lying to you if I didn’t describe that process as “scary as fuck”.
And yes, I’m capable of “code-switching” as needed, but I’m also a person who believes that sometimes an expletive is necessary in order to communicate an idea. The very notion that “you can’t say that” is precisely why blogging is so scary in the first place! I’ve written numerous posts where I got to the end and just never clicked “Publish” because the thought of it going out was absolutely petrifying.
Blogging is the art of failing in public.
That vulnerability is why it’s so important to establish a Personal Learning Network (or PLN) — a group of people that share a common interest in collectively furthering their knowledge about a topic. Blogging only works when you have an audience that’s receptive to where you are in your own development and will support you on your quest to get to the next stage. You need a PLN that’s empathetic to what you’re going through, but will also call you out on your “bullshit” (I’m pretty sure that’s the technical term) when you inevitably spew it. You need people you trust to hold you accountable for your personal growth.
It’s strange to think that my personal blog has been around for over a decade now — back to when I was a “new online student”. I can see certain themes emerge through my writing (i.e. self-reference!). I like to write when I’m angry; it’s hardest when I’m sad. There are some key changes in my thinking due to major events in my personal life and other changes that occurred as my PLN evolved over time. Looking back, I feel an immense sense of gratitude to all the people I learned together with online. Day after day, they inspire me to fight to become a better version of myself.
My hope is that this blog post might inspire you to start a blog of your own and begin the search for your own PLN. I know from personal experience that joining the “blogosphere” can help make online learning a lot less lonely and a lot more productive. Writing a blog takes work, but it can also be an extremely rewarding creative outlet if you keep at it. I encourage you to give it a try!