Cross posted at ThumannResources.com
I actually blogged about this last summer after Building Learning Communities 2008 (BLC08). But it's something that has resurfaced with me. I find myself reading a lot of new blogs (or at least new to me) lately and checking out many blogrolls. So the questions that come to mind are:
- Does the blogger really read all of these blogs?
- When is the last time they updated their blogroll?
- Why has this blogger included these particular blogs in his/her list?
Let me explain.
Does the blogger really read all of these blogs?
Some blogrolls are pretty extensive. I wonder if bloggers don't want to hurt anyone's feeling by not including them. Possibly they are trying to fill up real estate on their page. Perhaps even they really subscribe to all those blogs in their reader. There are several bloggers out there that have different blogrolls. Scott McLeod has a list just for "Blogs That Deserve A Bigger Audience". Liz Davis has a list just for "Technology Blogroll". Some even have lists for their student blogs like Wesley Fryer.
When is the last time they updated their blogroll?
I am very curious when I look at someone's blogroll who links to a particular blogger frequently and yet doesn't list them. It makes me wonder if their "roll" is neglected. It is a separate section of a blog, so I understand that when one goes to post, you wouldn't exactly think to update it. It's time consuming to make sure that the title of the blog and the URL are entered correctly and that you have in the list those blogs you want. But your subscribers and visitors are counting on you.
Why has this blogger included these particular blogs in his/her list?
This takes me back to Educon 2.1 this past January. Liz Davis and I ran a session on Equity Issues in the Blogosphere. Some mistook our equity to mean gender equity, but if you look at the session recording, it was far from it. Bud Hunt made a great suggestion the evening before the session to change the title to "Equity in Your Blogosphere" - which made all the difference. Who do you read? Are you reading from all different points of view? Classroom teachers, administrators, people of color and different nationalities, both genders, math teachers, language teachers, high school teachers? I could go on with the list. Do you have a diverse blogroll? Are you getting more than just one point of view?
So, I have revisited my blogroll. I prefer to keep mine kind of on the short side. But these are blogs that I subscribe to. There are others that I read through Tweets and other recommendations. I'm sure I'll revisit it again soon. Hopefully it won't take me another year.
