Blogging and computerized journaling are effective tools for writing skill development; however, research has not revealed which specific populations of students are aided by blogging or journaling, nor has research revealed the specific writing skills that are most likely to be improved by these practices. The purpose of the study was to discover if there was a significant difference between students that blog and students that journal on the development of specific writing skills, and whether this effect was more noticeable in specific student populations including those defined by gender, race, socioeconomic status, and special education status. Siemens's connectivism theory provided the theoretical base. In this quantitative, quasi-experimental study, data were gathered using a pretest-posttest design using a convenience sample of 70 high school freshmen in a small school in a southern US state. A rubric was used to score a writing sample from each student before and after treatment, and significance was measured using Kruskal-Wallis, Friedman, and the Wilcoxon tests. Results indicated no significant difference between the overall writing scores of the students that blogged and the students that journaled. However, examination of individual item scores revealed that there were statistically significant improvements in content and voice, two critically important writing factors. The study can foster positive social change by helping teachers understand the potential benefits of blogging and journaling to increase the content and voice writing skills of their students. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]