Promoting Metacognitive Learning Using Blogs in an L2 Learning Community

Abstract

The literature on weblogging or the contraction blog underscores its pedagogic potential for use in higher education as well as in other contexts. Studies of the affordance indicate that ‘‘blogging has the potential to be a transformational technology for teaching and learning’’ (Williams & Jacobs, 2004) and researchers claim that it is a useful practice for the development of metacognitive skills, active learner-centered pedagogy, authentic learning, associative thinking and interactive learning communities (O’Donnell, 2006). Proponents of educational blogging argue that it contributes ‘‘to a reconceptualisation of students as critical, collaborative, and creative participants in the social construction of knowledge’’ (Burgess, 2006, p. 105). This paper reports on the use of a blogging resource in a large-cohort first year EAP class in the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria (FUTA); the metacognitive benefit of this affordance and its deployment in building a learning community are discussed. Data for the study was obtained through content analysis (of blog entries) and paper-based questionnaires administered at the end of the course. The results highlight the advantages of the use of blogs for higher-order learning and building of online language learning communities.

Keywords: weblogs; higher-order learning; learning community; ICT affordance; blended learning