• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • 1
    CommentGo Back
Download
 
eLearning:Driving Instructional Designwith Emerging Technologies
LINKING DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE THE POTENTIAL OF ONLINE TRAINING
The Application of Blogs in Teaching and Learning
Presentation by James Matheson and Tony Whittingham
In this workshop you will:
a). Obtain information
on thepedagogical applicationof blogs(1) to enable you to identify areas for their potential use in your own teaching and learning areas.
b). Develop an awareness of the skills required for 
developing‘classroom’ blogs(2).
c) Identify through discussion,
thepotential andlimitations of blogs(3) in a classroom.1. How Are Blogs Used in Teaching and Learning.In Stephen Downes article “Educational Blogging”(4)he highlights the use of blogs by students as a‘personal publishing tool’, however some teachers areusing blogs to organize class seminars and to recordthe progress and contributions of students incollaborative projects(5). Used in this way, the blogsbecome “group/project blogs”—that is, individualblogs authored by a group of people.
1
 
Mireille Guay, a Canadian teacher notes:Theconversation possibleon the weblog is also anamazing tool to develop our community of learners.The students get to know each other better by visitingand reading blogs from other students. They discover,in a non-threatening way, their similarities anddifferences. The student who usually talks very loudin the classroom and the student who is very timidhave the same writing space to voice their opinion. Itputs students in a situation of equity.”2. Creating a Teacher’s Blog.The two major options for teachers creating blogs areeither a WWW hosting service (e.g.Blog.com,WordPress.org) or an application downloaded andinstalled on their own or campus server (e.g.MoveableType).
a)Hosting services(6).
A hosting service is a Web sitethat will give you access to everything you need inorder to create ablog. It will offer a form for you toinput your entries, some tools that allow you to createatemplatefor your blog, and access to some built-inaccessories. Your blog is hosted on the hostingservice (hence the name), and theURLwill typicallyreflect the hosting service’s URL. The best-known(and one of the earliest) hosting service is Blogger (http://www.blogger.com).
b) Installed Applications.
A remotely installedapplication is a piece of software(7) that you obtainfrom the provider and install on your own Web site.These systems are similar to Web-based applicationssuch asColdFusion(8)or Hypermail(9) . Because of  this, the number of users is much lower, but thosewho do use them tend (arguably) to be morededicated and more knowledgeable than those who
2
 
use hosting services. Installed applications are alsomore suitable for institutional use, since access canbe controlled.3. Getting started - How are blogs being used in workand education.a) Blogs in the Workplace.An example of a company blog(10) used to keepcustomers and staff informed of the development of new products and services.b) Blog - Website DifferencesAn example of the increasing use by companies(11)to use blogs to complement their staticbrochure/commerce websites with dynamic bloginformation. CLICK ON THE BLOG LINK IN THEWEBSITE’S MENU.c) How can blogs benefit teaching ?Go to this excellent example of the use of a blog tosupport teaching.(12)Note the following:3.1 THE TEACHER’S BLOG.1. The ‘Archive’ enables access to all posts in the blogand provides a view of the subject’s management.2. Blog authoring is restricted to the teacher. In thestudent blogs authoring is available to all‘contributors’ i.e. students with a Blogger blog.3. The teacher has added links to WWW resources inthe sidebar.4. The teacher has added links to student blogs for Discussion Groups and Projects.
3
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
02 / 15 / 2011This doucment made it onto the Rising List!
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...