Culture and Technology

Effective blogs are those that challenge readers or introduce them to new concepts and ideas. In addition, effective blogs explain these concepts clearly and provide meaningful examples for readers who are less familiar with the ideas. For example, a blog on technology may contain links to vlogs but should be prefaced by a clear explanation of the uses of vlogs for teachers and students. The post may further provide links to sites where readers can start their own vlogs and simple instructions about how to maintain them. Such easy-to-follow instructions are valuable for both novice and expert internet users. For instance, even proficient internet users will quickly lose interest in a poorly organized blog or other web source. Readability and coherence are as important for web resources as they are for print materials and flashiness is no substitute for substance and a well-organized format.

I think students like Theo (from the article) benefit most from examples of well-written and well-planned e-resources (research or other pieces) that serve as quality examples. Students or even teachers may easily become overwhelmed or misguided by the various uses and almost endless possibilities for interaction available online. Further, many of them are already accustomed to the different colloquial ways of writing on the net which could make knowing when to shift codes ever more complicated. These are just some of the points to consider during the term.