Blogging for fun and learning AEJMC 2007 Washington, D.C. Doug Fisher, University of S.C.

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 2 So you’re thinking of having your students blog... Just one question... Why?

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 3 Reasons to consider a blog Writing practice with the feel of getting published (with these possible additions) –Feedback from readers –Meet deadlines Editing practice (with possible additions) –Effective linking –Community moderation

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 4 Reasons to consider a blog Allow students to work out extended thoughts beyond the time/space available in class. –Individual with feedback or no feedback? –Or collaborative? Robust debate –Another way to also teach moderation of online communities Share information and updates –Alternative to

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 5 Blog v. Wiki Item 1 Item 2 Item 3, etc. Blog Topic 1 Version 4 Version 3 Version 2 Version 1 Topic 2 Version 4 Version 3 Version 2 Version 1 Wiki

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 6 Wiki Blog

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 7 A wiki = a pond. Can be deep, can be large, but you still see the boundaries. A blog = a river. You see things flowing by, but never really see the beginning or end

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 8 So what is a blog? Mechanical definition –Publishing system –Each entry own URL –Reverse chronological order –Time/date stamp –Archive –Generally auto format (headline, entry, comments) –RSS feed generated Ethos - FTLP –Frequent –Transparent –Links –More Personal

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 9 Technical reasons to blog Ease of use Low or no cost Little lead time -- get it running NOW! Greater sense of permanence than course management software. –Use a free/low cost hosted service or seek place on college servers? –Who owns content once student graduates?

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 10 Lots of free or low-cost services

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 11 Types of blogs Diaries/microjournals: Generally more personal. Link: Collections of links, minimal comment. Comment: Often focused on one event, such as a conference (or class) Filter: Links elsewhere plus longer observations (common journalistic form) Story/“notebook”: Longer essays (includes photo or word essays); the blog can be substituting for a more traditional media form.

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 12 A filter blog (with a touch of diary)

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 13 We used this “moblog” as a story blog

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 14

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 15

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 16 Other things to consider If for writing and editing practice, you might want a public blog. –Individual or collaborative? –What kind of feedback? –Do you open comments? But: –Sensitive student can be hurt by feedback Moderate? –You have some responsibility –Activate RSS or alerts

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 17 Other things to consider Comment blogs –Private might be best if the comments are on class work, such as others’ presentations –Consider any blogging tools in your course management system Link blogs –Work well as collaborative projects –Good public resource You need to be a bit of a cheerleader. Comment as often as possible. Use links in your comments. Show by example.

Doug Fisher, Univ. of S.C. 18 Other things to consider You need to be a bit of a cheerleader. Comment as often as possible. Use links in your comments. Show by example. Provide clear focus and expectations –Summarize the idea behind the blogs in five words or fewer. –Be clear in how often you expect postings or comments. –Be clear in all the aspects you will use in a grading rubric. (Frequency? Effective linking (define)? Topical and relevant commentary (how defined)?