Blogs

Blogs are defined by [|Wikipedia] defines a blog as, "A **weblog** (usually shortened to **blog**, but occasionally spelled web log or weblog) is a web-based publication consisting primarily of periodic articles, most often in reverse chronological order."

Blogging is the posting of journal-like pages to a website. While these pages can contain photos or media, they are primarily focused on the easy ability to post written thoughts to a website. The postings are organized chronologically. Typically, a blog "post" can be "commented" on by others, allowing for a dialogue on a the topic of the post. Teachers and educators have used blogs to allow for what is commonly called "peer review," meaning that students can post writings or assignments to the web, and other students can respond or encourage through the comment feature.



In a broader and more educational system, blogs are about communicating. You observe your experience, reflect on it, and then write about it. Other people read your reflections, respond from their perspectives by commenting or writing their own blog article. You read their perspectives, often learn something through their eyes, and write some more.

=Your tasks:=
 * Research what a blog is?
 * Explore and locate blogs of interest to you and educational blogs?
 * How might you use a blog in education?
 * Where would you start with a blog start?
 * What issues might you need to consider when using blogs?

Blogs: http://www.classroom20.net/Blogging

Why is blogging powerful?

 * A way to improve writing
 * Empowers students
 * Provide a real audience for writing
 * Engages students in conversation and learning
 * Helps students find a voice
 * An easy way to create a web site quickly
 * Blogs are a personal writing space. Easy, sharable, automatically archived.
 * Blogs are easily linked and cross-linked to form learning communities.
 * Blogs can become digital portfolios of students' assignments and achievements.
 * Blogs are a novice's web authoring tool.
 * [|Read more here ...]
 * Taken from http://smsn.wikispaces.com/newmedia-howto#tocnewmedia-howto0

What are the possibilities for blogs in education?
Originally adapted from ([|http://anvil.gsu.edu/NECC2004/stories/storyReader$13)]


 * Group authorship (eg The Year 9 Science blog)
 * Post short current events articles to invite students thoughts, reactions, and possible solutions
 * Create a writing and 'thinking' community
 * Increase communication
 * Post photos and ask students to create captions
 * Foster book discussions in the form of an online book club
 * Post a daily/weekly synopsis of the curriculum taught
 * Homework assignments
 * Create a literature circle
 * A birdseye view of the class for parents
 * Honour and celebrate class achievements

=Blog Searching=

Google Blog Search :: http://blogsearch.google.com/ Technorati :: http://technorati.com/ Feedster :: http://www.feedster.com/ Bloglines :: http://www.bloglines.com/ Blogscope :: http://www.blogscope.net/

=Create your own Blog=

You are going to sign up an account to create your very own Blog at [|EduBlogs] - but first a quick video:

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Through the course of this session you have master the skill of signing up for accounts, it is your turn to work out how to sign up for an EduBlog account - remember the things you have learnt and use your Gmail account as your email address.


 * More Information**

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