An Empirical Study of the Factors Affecting Weblog Success in Higher Education

1. INTRODUCTION A decade ago, Prensky (2001) pointed out that college students have become "digital natives" who grew up immersed in the uses and etiquette of computers, digital cameras, cell phones, text messaging, video games, Internet surfing, and the like. As laptops and smart phones have become more affordable and powerful since then, students' acceptance to new information technologies has only accelerated. They are the early adopters of blogs, wikis, social bookmarking, podcasting, and are frequent users of social network and multimedia sharing web sites like MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube (Anderson, 2007; Zhang, 2009). With these Web 2.0 services and applications, students are used to finding vast amounts of information quickly. Students are shifting their role from passive listeners and consumers to active learners and contributors. The students' digital embrace and the blooming of Web 2.0 technology present immense opportunities to educators who are seeking innovative ways to teach. In this study, we are interested in finding out how educators use classroom blogs to engage and motivate these digital-native students, and what makes classroom blogs successful. 2. BLOGS IN EDUCATION 2.1 Overview The connection between social software and learning can be supported by the application of constructivism and social learning pedagogy in higher education. Constructivism and social learning theories (Bandura, 1976; Bruner, 1974; Piaget, 1950; Vygotsky, 1978) state that knowledge is constructed based on personal experiences and hypotheses of the environment which are continuously tested by the learners through social interaction; therefore learning is an active, constructive and social process. In the education environment, students construct their knowledge more effectively through their own experiences (personal) and interaction with others (social), such as hands-on experiments, field studies and group projects, as compared to traditional objectivist methods, such as lectures and use of a textbook. Educational blogs support both personal constructivist and social constructivist learning activities. For example, students create and manage their own blog posts, categories, and pages; at the same time, students share their blog posts, make comments, and collaborate. Recent studies (Richardson, 2010; Tetard, Patokorpi, & Packalen, 2009; Zhang & Olfman, 2010) showed that using social software such as blogs, wikis and podcasts in the classroom enhances student learning. In particular, classroom blogs benefit students' learning in many dimensions: blogging allows students to not only review and reinforce what they have learned in class, but also apply such knowledge in complex, real-world settings. Furthermore, blogging encourages students to discover new knowledge outside a textbook and lectures, as well as develop strong and independent reading and writing skills. As students blog and share, the classroom environment becomes more fun, relaxed, and interactive; students become active learners who are more motivated and more engaged in learning activities. Additionally, using a blog to get jobs, make connections and showcase skills is a new and underused strategy (Kim, 2012). For students who lack work experience, this approach may help them obtain their first internship by demonstrating his/her enthusiasm and dedication for a particular subject or industry. Many career connections are made through social contacts within classroom environments. Blogging allows students to share their career ideas, progress, and goals, and seek ideas and advice from each other. Through blogging, students may get to know each other better, and stay in touch via social networks such as LinkedIn or Facebook even after completing the class. 2.2 Use Cases of Classroom Blogs Educators may use blogs as a replacement for the standard class Web site, where they publish course materials and other online resources. …