Blogging a TEDS research paper
I discovered this Cultural Hermeneutics paper posted in sections on Luther's Stein, a blog by T. Robert Baylor who is studying for his M.Div. at Trinity.
The paper is on Second Life, which in itself is interesting given previous discussions of that metaverse on this blog, however what struck me was the act of posting your in progress research paper online for comments and feedback.
On the one hand this kind of activity may continue to erode the notion of writing as a solitary activity. Although the comments I read on the paper\blog posts were more encouraging than substantial critiques this practice (in general) may raise questions about final product as a reflection of the students intellectual work.
But on the other hand I think sharing students work with the general public has the positive possibilities of moving the student to a deeper engagement with the topic by opening up dialog between the student and others who are wrestling with the same issues. Particularly in a seminary setting, the possibility of receiving comments and constructive criticism from those actually ministering in the church and thus crossing the divide between pew and academy is intriguing. I'll be interested to see if this catches on.
The paper is on Second Life, which in itself is interesting given previous discussions of that metaverse on this blog, however what struck me was the act of posting your in progress research paper online for comments and feedback.
On the one hand this kind of activity may continue to erode the notion of writing as a solitary activity. Although the comments I read on the paper\blog posts were more encouraging than substantial critiques this practice (in general) may raise questions about final product as a reflection of the students intellectual work.
But on the other hand I think sharing students work with the general public has the positive possibilities of moving the student to a deeper engagement with the topic by opening up dialog between the student and others who are wrestling with the same issues. Particularly in a seminary setting, the possibility of receiving comments and constructive criticism from those actually ministering in the church and thus crossing the divide between pew and academy is intriguing. I'll be interested to see if this catches on.
Labels: blogging, second life, students
posted by Matt @ 4:19 PM
1 Comments:
At 11:41 AM,
Rebecca said…
It's interesting to see this is happening at Trinity! I read an article about how it was happening other places.
As far as this changing the nature of writing as a solitary activity, is this much different than students discussing their papers with friends? I know I did that quite a bit with my last major paper, which did help shape my ideas and the final paper. (I suppose to be academically honest, I should have cited those conversations!)
Of course, blogs are different in that they are more public and can reach a wider audience. But it seems like it is good for academic work to have more potential for discourse.
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