Weblogs as an Emerging Genre in Higher Education

Journal of Computing in Higher Education Spring 2003, Vol. 14(2), 2 l-44.

Weblogs as an Emerging Genre in Higher Education Jo Ann Oravec College of Business and Economics University of. Wisconsin -Whiteqater

ABSTRACT

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EBLOGS (or “blogs”) emerged in the past decade as an Internet applications genre, providing a platform for the development of critical, individual voices within the context of Internet resources. Weblogs consist of links to particular Web materials with specific commentary, generally presented in chronological format, harkening back to older, more traditional forms of expression such as diaries and travelogues. Weblog consumption has become increasingly popular in higher education contexts as individuals seek ways to locate Web content of quality and relevance to particular topics or themes. Many individuals have emphasized the autobiographical functions of weblog production, situating the hyperlinks provided in the context of personal reflections and revelations and working to construct narrative selves through “performative” uses of hyperlinking. The character of weblogs as a genre is in part related to collaborative efforts (including the sustained interaction among bloggers in discussion of the genre and critique of each other’s productions). Faculty who incorporate weblog development in teaching initiatives should be aware of privacy and voyeurism considerations as students reveal personal information; however, weblog construction can be useful in conveying new dimensions of identity construction and plagiarism issues in social constructivist frameworks. (Keywords: knowledge acquisition, media ecology, identity construction, plagiarism, weblogs)

WEBLOGS AS AN EMERGING GENRE

INTRODUCTION EBLOGS (or “blogs”) are genres that support the creation

of an autobiographical Internet presence and development vv of a critical intellectual voice. Weblogs are streams of journal-like material in various Web-based formats that provide hyperlinks to other Web inaterials with their developers’ (“bloggers”) personal reflections and critiques. A good deal of weblog development runs counter to the hypertext production trends that emphasize “fluidity and contingency of endless identities, passions, and myths” (Gur-Ze’ev, 1999; Plant, 1996) and to the related explorations of several voices by an individual. Rather, blogging generally involves the development of a singular, sustained voice, one that is often explicitly linked in its emergence to specific real-world activities and developments. This article describes how weblogs have established an identity as a Web-based communication mode in a growing matrix of forms of hypertext-related genres (Landow, 1997), with an emphasis on their use in college and other post-secondary contexts. Public awareness of weblogs is increasing, as reflected in examples of how individuals used weblogs as expressive vehicles after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the U.S., alerting others to specific Internet resources as well as conveying their concern and grief in reaction to particular online accounts (Jesdanun, 2001). This article provides an analysis of several dimensions of weblogs that make them of special value in university and college contexts as well as in many other educational settings. For example, weblog

production and consumption can help students place the various emerging hypertext variations with older media in the broader context of “media ecology.” The weblog is taking distinctive places in the ecology of the Internet with personal home pages (Dillon & Gushrowski, 2000), webcams (Knight, 2000), and other genres of online personal and autobiographical expression. However, it also has strong synergies with more traditional genres such as the travelogue, diary, and autobiography, lending some constraints to its development (as well

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as affordances) as producers and consumers impose various stylistic expectations. Weblog development has had strong reflexive aspects: discourse on weblogs as a genre accompanies many blogging efforts, and the amount and quality of this discourse may be related to the rapid evolution of the genre. Experimentation with and discourse on weblogs can also stimulate student interest in larger notions of the social construction of information as well as presentation of self (and perhaps also make plagiarism less attractive), as students explicitly link to each other’s works in a format that fosters currency, individuality, and critical commentary. Weblog construction involves chronological, interpersonal, and reflective components that can increase the recognition of the situatedness of hyperlinks. This article also relates how weblogs are serving important roles in the approaches toward knowledge acquisition of many individuals and groups in education as well as in other professional contexts (such as journalism). The nearly incomprehensible expansion of resources on the Internet has made it difficult for individuals (given “bounded rationality” constraints) to keep updated on various topics. However, by following an assortment of weblogs on a regular basis and Perhaps maintaining a weblog themselves, individuals more easily frame their efforts as part of a collaborative initiative in this regard (joining efforts that include those discussed in Dillenbourg, 1999). For example, distance education resources are surveyed in “Serious Instructional Technology” by David Carter-Tod (“Online,” 2001), a well-known and frequently updated weblog. Below is a brief excerpt: Yahoo! Education Opens Virtual Classrooms (s/s/ 01; 6:00:14 AM - Higher Education Policy and Trends posted by David Carter-Tod). Quote: “With the new school year is poised to begin, Yahoo! . . . Tuesday launched a new free resource portal for college, high school and middle school teachers and students”

News:

Comment: Yahoo! knows its usability. I created a course in about 15 seconds. It looks like it might be based on the Groups! code.

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WEBLOGS AS AN EMERGlNG GENRE

Although the condensed selection just provided cannot convey the value of an ongoing weblog, it does demonstrate the usefulness of having streams or channels of regularly updated Internet materials that are related to particular areas of interest or personal tastes. Many automated and semi-automated means have been developed to supply such channels, such as the “portals” described in upcoming sections (which incorporate search engines and other Web tools). However, weblogs provide a personalized and more time-intensive approach, closely linked to the reputation and skill of a specific individual or group. The resources of bloggers for gleaning and presenting materials are constrained in comparison with those of a mechanized search engine; however, readers can benefit from bloggers’ personalized efforts at selection and commentary. Bloggers often reflect on intimate aspects of their own reactions to hypertext material in at least the guise of immediacy, thus grounding the presentation of the hypertext in personal reflections; this grounding can make the weblogs useful to readers, who can bootstrap their increasing amount of information about the bloggers themselves (with related stereotypes) to gain some insight on the quality of the hyperlinked material. Various literary vehicles are situated in social, psychological, and political contexts, and are best viewed within them (Barton, Hamilton, & Ivanic, 2000; Cope & Kalantzis, 2000). In keeping with this “situated literacy” perspective, weblogs convey more than just streams of specific Internet references to their readers. They also provide a selective portrait of the Internet-related practices of individuals as constructed by the individuals themselves-what resources they access and how they evaluate and apply them. By tracking the development of weblogs over time and viewing weblog archives, readers can obtain exemplars of various efforts to narrate and make sense of Internet materials. For weblog developers, blogging encourages the growth of unique critical voices, -modes of expression that unfold in the context of Internet-related activity. As described in this article, the hyperlinks in weblogs can serve per-formative functions, coupling individuals’ personal narratives with certain Internet resources in strategic ways for critical and autobiographical purposes. The choice

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of what to include in weblogs everyday is akin to other choices individuals make in choosing items with which to construct their personal and professional identities and present them to the worldbut, it is also different in that weblog readers can access the hypertext materials in question and thus acquire an expanded sense of the bloggers’ points of reference.

INTRODUCING MEDIA ECOLOGY PERSPECTIVES IN THE CONTEXT OF WEBLOGS

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EDIA ECOLOGY PERSPECTIVES can assist educators in introducing social constructivist notions in the context of the relationships among assorted media and various aspects of media development, with the relatively new weblog structure as a useful subject for analysis. These perspectives place genres (with their associated technologies) in relation to each other and attempt to analyze their mutual influences as well as overall societal context (Poster, 1974; Strate, 1999). Looking at media genres in isolation and without context can miss important aspects of their evolution (or devolution), and thus a “genre-responsive approach” can be useful in mapping various genre constraints and affordances (Oravec, 199613). As exhibited below, some of the concepts and analogies that are involved in ecological studies in environmental areas are also applicable in media contexts, such as “niche” and “stabilization.” Media genres with social and psychological factors interact to create spheres of social interaction; environmental and political factors are closely linked to media developments in media ecology approaches, especially in the realm of Internet studies (Carey, 1998). Weblogs have been evolving so quickly as a genre that students can often recognize major developments during the course of a single semester. Weblogs’ places in the overall media picture are fairly recent. Weblog construction began in earnest in the late 199Os, although the basic weblog structure can be traced to 1993 and the NCSA’s (National Center for Supercomputing Applications) “What’s New” col25