Round up time
There’s a sense of winding down, of taking stock all over the blogosphere … must have something to do with the end of a year and the start of another. Now that another year of e-learning adventures is coming to a close, I’m doing the list thing. What would I do differently if I were to start over? What was I doing last December that I don’t do now? Read on if you’re curious.
To start … about the blog and blogging … I’d probably not do anything particularly different if I were to start over, because the learning has been in the doing. And that learning came about through what I came during the year (from Michele Martin’s Bamboo Project Blog) to call my personal learning environment … it then spread further to experimentation in the classroom. And this is the thing … when it comes to playing in Web 2.0 land and using its online digital technologies you’ve got to go there and do it to make sense of it. That’s the theme of Tony Karrer’s post on what he calls e-learning 2.0. My word to the curious this year, to those to whom I’ve spoken formally at conferences, informally over coffee or on the go in a corridor stand-up meetings, has been ‘Just do it.’ And I’ve always said, start with a blog.
This blog is subtitled ‘adventures in e-learning with a Mac’ and adventurous journeys by their very nature require a persistence and curiosity as the saga unfolds, as well as the courage to take a new turning when the opportunity arises. Since I took that first blog step along the e-learning road last December, I reckon it’s been a terrific first leg. I’ve enjoyed every step of the way actually.
Back at base camp now and flicking through the blog diary, I can see what I’ve learned laid out in posts, commented upon, hotlinked, blogrolled, del.icio.us-ed. This is the beauty of the blog for me; the learning is laid out like a rich table to be picked over and enjoyed … and shared with others, another plus. And I’ve been invited to other tables during the year. The refreshment from other travellers has been mighty important to my development as a blogger. They’ve supported and sustained me along the way, and passed on their own travellers’ tips to make my journey easier. The 31 Days to a Better Blog challenge was a seminal event in my development as a blogger, and I reckon those of us who took time out to take this side trip over sometimes rocky ground would agree.
I’m going to continue to the metaphor-laden round-up fever over the next few days and looking forward to reading more from my fellow travellers.
Image: Leo Reynolds
Dec 20, 2007 at 12:23 AM /
Hi Kate–I’ve been starting to think about my goals for the New Year, so this was a timely post. I learned so much from you and the other 31 Day bloggers–things that went way beyond how to blog. From you, of course, I learned a lot about persistence. I know that Ning is not your friend. 🙂
Thanks for being a continued inspiration and joy to read. Have a great holiday!