Harlen Makemson
Associate Professor
Communications
Elon University

Introduction
 
Relevance to students is important for all courses, but it can be particularly difficult to find in so-called “conceptual” courses, where students may not immediately see value in studying seemingly arcane topics as the press’s role in the Spanish-American War.
 
I am a big believer in John Kasson’s notion that “history doesn’t repeat itself, but it is an avid recycler,” meaning that while specific instances aren’t duplicated, there are relevant themes that re-emerge in more current times. I am interested in seeing whether using a relatively new tool – the blog – can help students make connections between past and present, and extend in-class discussions.


Blogging: Communication education
 
In a journalism and communication education context, Singer (2008) found that students see blogs as one assignment among many in a course, and when blogging was not part of a grade, posts were few.
 
Singer’s quantitative analysis suggested that students did little more with the blogs than was required, but a qualitative textual analysis indicated that blogging was successful in extending class discussion beyond the usual meeting times. Other instructors have written about their experiences using blogs in courses ranging from public relations (Weisgerber, 2009) to English as a second language (de Almeida Soares, 2008).

Blogging: Higher education


Blogging is one tool instructors have used within the blended learning context. Oravec (2003) described blogs as a “middle space” between face-to-face meetings and highly structured online assignments or tutorials, where students could post assignments, share resources, reflect on course themes, and critically examine web-based resources.



Research on effectiveness of blogs in educational settings has produced mixed results: Some scholars have found blogs produced little interactivity among students (Divitini et al., 2005), while others have reported significant student engagement on blogs (Kim et al., 2008).



Minocha (2008) identified four factors for student use and attitude toward course blogs: perceptions of and need for an audience, perceptions of and need for community, expectation of comments from others, and expectation of standards such as spelling and grammar. Kim et al. (2008) found that students were more interested in individual than shared blogs, and that student comments to blog posts increased student motivation toward the blog in general.


Blended learning
 
This project builds upon the emerging pedagogical concept of “blended learning,” which combines traditional class meetings with online elements. As Osguthorpe (2003) notes, instructors using blended learning try “to maximize the benefits of both face-to-face and online methods— using the web for what it does best, and using class time for what it does best."


At one U.S. public university, instructors in an experimental blended learning program reduce physical in-class time by 25 to 50 percent, restructuring some learning activities into online exercises such as case studies, tutorials, simulations and collaborative projects (Garnham and Kaleta, 2002).


Aycock (2002) found that blended learning increased student engagement, and students in a blended literature course had higher passing rates than students in a traditional face-to-face course.


Schweizer, et al. (2003) found that blended learners had more coherent discussions than those who worked in a purely electronic setting. Blended learning can be effective in giving students “personal agency” over their learning, allowing them to make choices about how they will study a particular subject (Osguthorpe, et al. 2003).

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