{"id":5220,"date":"2024-05-13T13:50:16","date_gmt":"2024-05-13T11:50:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/?p=5220"},"modified":"2026-04-07T09:37:47","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T07:37:47","slug":"academic-blogging-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/academic-blogging-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Academic Blogging"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Updated sightly  on 7 April 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20210416_152149760_iOS-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5235\" srcset=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20210416_152149760_iOS-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20210416_152149760_iOS-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20210416_152149760_iOS-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20210416_152149760_iOS-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20210416_152149760_iOS.png 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Academic blogging has been an essential part of my ed techie  \/ Instructional designer life <a href=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/finding-my-voice\/\">since 2005<\/a>. I\u2019d like to suggest that academic blogging is a useful \u201cbottoms up\u201d strategy for creating digital footprints, for remaining accountable for your thoughts. In the neo liberal-university, where <a href=\"https:\/\/helenbeetham.substack.com\/p\/turings-unreliable-test\">&#8221; learning is only understood in economistic terms.&#8221;<\/a> A scholar is often positioned as a \u201cBrand\u201d, that managers are looking to monetize. Education technology is the route by which this value is extracted and academic publishing is the mechanism by which this &#8220;brand&#8221; remains visible in the institution.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think that&#8217;s a mistake.  If you really want to encourage critical thinking, then this thought should not only be done within the academy. But be done openly. Higher education institutions should encourage their early career researchers, to own<a href=\"https:\/\/library.educause.edu\/resources\/2019\/10\/7-things-you-should-know-about-a-domain-of-ones-own\"> a domain of their own<\/a>, develop their own identity and find their voice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Start collecting and articulating your own ideas. Be bold and share them. Either in  vernacular language to sustain and grow thought.  (see Mthuli&#8217;s blog <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mthulibuthelezi.com\/\">https:\/\/www.mthulibuthelezi.com\/<\/a> )  Or in a dominant language,  (like English) to develop <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/B9780080970868731084\">social capital<\/a>.  Perhaps you might want a multi user blog, like <a href=\"https:\/\/foliofriday.africa\/\">FolioFriday<\/a>.  I want to know&#8230;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Who are you, dear blog reader? I am trying to \u201cpicture\u201d you. Although this digital medium allows for greater interactivity than print. Can I <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/\" target=\"_blank\">visit your own blog<\/a>? <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/about\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\">Read your bio<\/a> on your institutional webpage, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@weblearning\" target=\"_blank\">watch your YouTube videos<\/a>. Follow you on <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/weblearning\" target=\"_blank\">LinkedIn<\/a>, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/weblearning\" target=\"_blank\">Twitter \/ X<\/a>, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/social.ds106.us\/@weblearning\" target=\"_blank\">Mastodon<\/a>, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@weblearning\" target=\"_blank\">TikTok<\/a> or <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/weblearning\/\" target=\"_blank\">Instagram<\/a>. Or are you only on <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1895-2918\" target=\"_blank\">ORCID<\/a>, with a nod to <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/profile\/Derek-Moore-10\" target=\"_blank\">ResearchGate<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Should you permit the intrusion, I might respond to your research with my comments, ingesting what I read, synthesising what you\u2019ve said in my blog and adding my subjective experience. There is so much that I don\u2019t know about you and until I set about collaborating on something specific with you, dear blog reader, that allows our minds to meet, it\u2019s going to be my untested set of assumptions about you that guides my writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t know who you are, dear blog reader. And despite what I&#8217;ve written. Neither do you know me. Are we only going to know each other when we are in the same room that we open our respective experiences, thoughts and reflections to each other?  But perhaps we can we begin to know each other beforehand and understand our differences and shared interests after reading each other\u2019s blogs? Each located on our own domains? Where we can build an accountable identity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes, there are both <a href=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/academic-blogging\/\">benefits and challenges of blogging<\/a>. When\u2019s the best time to plant a tree? Yesterday. When\u2019s the next best time to plant a tree? Today. When&#8217;s the best time to begin enjoying the benefits of blogging? Want to learn more. <a href=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/subscribe\/\">Sign up to my newsletter<\/a>?<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-subscriptions__supports-newline wp-block-jetpack-subscriptions\">\n\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/?post_type=post&#038;p=5220\" style=\"font-size: 16px;padding: 15px 23px 15px 23px;margin: 0; margin-left: 10px;border-radius: 0px;border-width: 1px; background-color: #113AF5; color: #FFFFFF; text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; margin-left: 0\">Subscribe<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">References<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Beetham, H. (2024) <a href=\"https:\/\/helenbeetham.substack.com\/p\/turings-unreliable-test\">Turing&#8217;s unreliable test <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Scoles, J. (2025) <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timeshighereducation.com\/campus\/unexpected-benefits-academic-blogging\" target=\"_blank\"> The unexpected benefits of academic blogging<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Scoles, J., Christie, H. Morris, N.  Howie, K. (2024) <a href=\"https:\/\/institute-academic-development.ed.ac.uk\/learning-teaching\/funding\/funding\/previous-projects\/year\/october-2019\/blogging-teaching-learning-practice\">Conversations, community and collegiality: Exploring the effect of blogging on teaching and learning practice<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Updated sightly on 7 April 2026 Academic blogging has been an essential part of my ed techie \/ Instructional designer life since 2005. I\u2019d like to suggest that academic blogging is a useful \u201cbottoms up\u201d strategy for creating digital footprints, for remaining accountable for your thoughts. In the neo liberal-university, where &#8221; learning is only &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/academic-blogging-2\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Academic Blogging&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-file","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5220"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5220\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6396,"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5220\/revisions\/6396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weblearning.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}