Tuesday 16th June (End of Week Seven)

Not quite sure where the time has gone! After a tricky start, the project has gained some momentum and we have enjoyed some successes, or as Vince calls them - "aha moments". Now I feel I am experiencing somewhat of a plateau and even a drop off. Eek.

Today I have finally taken one of Teacher Release Days and have accepted that I am only human and that there is only so much I can achieve whilst at school being a Head of Faculty and in the evening when being a Mum takes a happy priority position. A lack of time and head space has definitely limited the outcomes of this project, the fact that this is just one of many things to focus on has made it hard to make it really fly.

So what has been achieved over the past few weeks?

Vince came to visit, whilst at AGGS he took the time to chat with a range of students from both by 11 English and 11 English Advanced classes. His findings seemed to suggest that the process of blog writing and using the wiki was having some positive effects, ranging from the opportunity for students to read one anothers work, to the students making the most of the ease of editing and updating electronic text which means they act upon feedback in a way which they rarely would with handwritten work.

On the whole I have been pleased with how the project is progressing, whilst I feel that with more time I could have made this more meaningful, there is no denying that some good has come from it in terms of the students learning and their increasing sense of autonomy. I do however acknowledge that the greatest benefit comes from the fact that it is "another" option for my students. By this I mean that, it is not that blogs are the golden egg, the golden egg is actually that my students can choose the medium that suits them. That they are not limited to one means or another, handwriting or blog writing.

Vince visits again soon, and whilst I have the slightly uneasy sense, again, that I could have done more, I guess I am happy with what has been achieved.

Now I just have to ponder how this makes for an engaging presentation at Ulearn...oh the horror, the horror!