Sekolah Bogor Raya

The following post was submitted to the Jakarta Post for its November 9 supplement on education. Since it was not published by the Post, I take the liberty of including it here.

I’m going to stick my neck out and challenge you to google the names of prominent authors of articles in this education supplement. How many are bloggers as well as print writers? Not many, I bet. And of the bloggers, are there any edubloggers? (as the term suggests, an edublogger blogs mostly about education). What’s my point….first, bloggers are a special subset of writers. And second, the Indonesian edublogger is a rare bird.

So, why would anyone blog? Blogger Harold Jarche says,“the act of blogging forces me to move from implicit ideas to explicit descriptions of these ideas. The discipline of blogging hones my thoughts and helps me to learn, while exposing these thoughts to others makes it more social, and human. I still believe that the blog is the most powerful social media tool available.” And Tony Karrer states, “for learning professionals, maintaining a blog can be a powerful professional development tool. Regular blogging encourages reflective practice–you’re more likely to actively engage with what you’re reading and experiencing as fodder for blog posts, which increases your own understanding and improves your thinking on what you’re learning.” That’s why I blog.

Blogging is the epitome of Web 2.0, the read – write web. Many neophytes equate blogging with writing, whereas reading is just as important, and all neophytes should spend some time reading blogs before writing their own. Lurking, as this practice of waiting patiently in the background is known, is the first stage of blogging, the second is commenting on other blogs, and the third is writing one’s own blog. A few bloggers use different media, namely video (videoblogging) and voice (podcasting). Vblogging won’t catch on in Indonesia due to bandwidth problems, but podcasting might, because it is particularly useful if you’re stuck in Jakarta traffic for a couple hours per day. Richard Henry of Sekolah Global Jaya is the one notable example of an Indonesian edupodcaster that I know of.

There are two types of blogging in schools Blogging by staff and blogging by students. I’ve already tried to make the point that there isn’t much blogging by school staff; and the students seem to follow the example set by their teachers. Maybe it’s like everything else to do with kids, they need role models. If teachers don’t read for pleasure, aren’t lifelong learners, or don’t blog, how can they expect to encounter these activities or characteristics amongst their students?

Progressive schools in Indonesia now teach their students how to blog. One visible example has been Jane Ross now at Sinarmas World Academy. Jane’s class blog at www.gr5swa.blogspot.com is a model of young student blogging.

The blogger writes for an audience just as the print writer does. But the bloggers audience can respond immediately by commenting, whereas the response to written media, while possible, is not immediate and rarely leads to dialogue between writer and reader. While not every posting receives comments, the potential is there, which keeps the blogger on his toes. As an edublogger focusing on my own school, my audience should include my clients or parents.

Bloggers are very social animals, as indicated by the popularity of the first Pesta Blogger Indonesia was held last year in Jakarta. I missed the first one, but I hope to participate in the second Pesta Blogger coming later this month. Why? Because as I stated earlier, I believe blogging in education should be promoted and because as a school director I am conscious of my image as a role model.