LIVE! Technology Tutorial Presentation on Bloggin - November 2012g

1. Jade Ballek – November 2012

2.  One mic on at a time prevents feedback
 “Raise Hand” feature in the Menu
 “Chat” feature
 Jade.ballek@sunwestsd.ca

3.  Provide a brief background to blogs
 Explore how blogs can be used in the
classroom
 Explore steps in getting started with creating
your own blog

4.  Originally “web log” – shortened to blog
 Information presented in reverse chronological order;
most recent information is seen first
 Most blogs are interactive; readers encouraged to
leave comments which is why it is viewed as a form of
social networking
 Educational blogs, or edublogs, serve as instructional
resources
 “On October 13, 2012, there were around 77 million
Tumblr[5] and 56.6 million WordPress[6] blogs in
existence worldwide.”
 Image from Wikipedia

5.  The following 5 uses have been extracted
from Educational Blogging by Stephen
Downes in the Educase Review.

6.  Instructors post class times and rules,
assignment notifications, suggested readings,
and exercises.
 The blog becomes an organizing tool (Online
“Filing Cabinet”)

7.  Instructors begin to link to Internet items that
relate to their course.
 Using the technology is not viewed as an “add
on”, but instead an important skill in the
learning process.

8.  “The conversation possible on the weblog is also
an amazing tool to develop our community of
learners. The students get to know each other
better by visiting and reading blogs from other
students. They discover, in a non-threatening
way, their similarities and differences.
 The student who usually talks very loud in the
classroom and the student who is very timid have
the same writing space to voice their opinion. It
puts students in a situation of equity.”

9.  A blog can serve as a Digital Portfolio where
students can share their learning with others,
including parents, peers, and a global
audience.
 A blog can also document the learning
process, offering students, parents, and
teachers a chance to observe change and
growth.
 Kathy Cassidy

10.  Blogs are an amazing way for learners to
reach out to others across the globe.
 Partnerships can be created among schools in
different parts of the Division, or different
parts of the world!

12.  Link

13.  Examples of how teachers use blogs in their
high school classroom (video)

14.  As an educator, the first step is to think
about the reasons you want to blog with your
students.
 What is the purpose of the blog?
◦ Do you want to document the learning process? Is
your purpose to share a final product?
◦ Are you hoping to provide students an opportunity
to receive feedback from others?
◦ Is the intent to provide a space for reflection?
Defining the purpose is key!

16.  1. Share the purpose of the blog – with
students, with parents, with Administrators
 2. Determine your audience – who is in and
who is out?
 3. Select a blog hosting site – Blogger,
Kidblog, ClassBlogmeister …
 4. Educate students about responsibilities –
AUP
 5. Explore other blogs

18. Image from
SGI site

19.  Web Quest
 Presentations
◦ Lead Teacher
◦ Learning Consultant
◦ Supervisor of Technology
 Co-constructing Rules
◦ It is a good idea to create a list of “rules” for
acceptable use when adding content to a blog.
◦ Setting the expectations in advance, and developing
consequences can help prevent issues from
developing.

20. Settings allow teachers to control who sees the
blog and who can edit content on the blog

22.  Supporting Technology
Wikispace