I was very happily surprised recently to be picked by Scott McLeod at Dangerously Irrelevant as a “Fantastic commenter.” It’s nice to be recognized, but it also leads me to think about the values of commenting on a blog in general.
Why comment on someone’s blog?
It lets someone know you are “out there” reading. (For example, the author Cynthia Kaplan just commented when she saw I was reading her book–neat to know that she found my blog!) It also opens a dialogue with other educators. It allows you to “meet” a blogger virtually by communicating with them. It connects you across different states or countries. It allows you to share new ideas. It allows you to be a “maven” or “connector” as Malcolm Gladwell terms it.
So I’m going to tag several of my “mavens” or “connectors”– Scott Schwister , Janice Friesen, and Joel Adkins as fantastic and insightful commenters!
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You are so right. For the most part, many readers are “blurkers” and , although it is good to know people are reading, it is important to have some leaving comments so that a dialogue can take place. Congrats on your selection.
I also was humbled by Scott’s recognition…you are completely right about the power of comments.
Commenting makes the blog world go round. I often recommend it as the “way in” to the professional reading/growth that can happen with blogs and RSS feeds that people get. If a teacher is interested in blogging, I recommend they start commenting more than posting initially, to get them out there making those connections you speak of. You are right on!