4: Commenting on the Blogs of Others

This week we are going to connect with one another now that we have our blogs established.  One way that online connections are made is through comments. Commenting is a very important feature of many Web 2.0 applications, including blogs. For new bloggers, it can be thrilling to receive that first comment from some random, unknown reader. It suddenly changes the way we feel about our blogs and our writing. We become more invested, more careful of what and how we write, because now we know someone is reading. Think about what this means for students.

While you may be doing this 23 Things project independently, you are a member of this online community who have come together to learn about Web 2.0. What are your fellow learners doing? How do they feel about this project? What new things have they discovered? For this Thing, you will reach out to other members of your community and make connections.  Hopefully you will continue to connect with you colleagues as the project progresses. 

Some of us are blogging anonymously.  So, you might not know exactly whose blog post for which you are commenting and who is commenting on your posts.  This is certainly part of the fun of our 23 Things program. 

Discovery Exercise

To complete Thing #4, you are to:
  • Read these two online articles on commenting:
  • Take some time to explore a few of your fellow participants’ blogs (listed on the right). Leave a comment on 3-4 different blogs.
  • Post to your blog. What do you like / dislike about leaving comments? How did you feel when you received your first comment? Why do you think commenting is so important in online communities? What might this mean for students who share their writing online? Are you a member of any online learning communities?


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