What does blogging look like in the public school?

The following is a overview of a blog that I shared with my tenth grade students.

Creating a Blog: Your Voice, Your Choices
What is a blog?

The word “blog” is short for "Web log." A blog is a specialized site that allows an individual or group of individuals to share a running log of events and personal insights with online audiences. (www.pvt.com/oth/glossary.htm) It offers readers the opportunity to reply to opinions and link to their own blogs. (www.iab.ie/FAQs/DefinitionofTerms/) Some blogs have definite authors who disclose their names and some with anonymous authors who use a nickname.(www.searchenginegenie.com/search-engine-glossary-b.htm)

Why are we learning about a blog?

As part of our “Society, Issues, and Identity” unit, you, as one of Ms. Fortuna’s students, will post occasionally to a classroom blog. Because it is important for you to be safe and protected when using the Internet for classroom purposes, you will post on the classroom blog using a pseudonym.

What is a pseudonym?
A pseudonym is a "false name" or alias used by a writer desiring not to use his or her real name. Sometimes called a nom de plume or "pen name. (home.cfl.rr.com/eghsap/apterms.html) A pseudonym serves many purposes. An assumed name protects the anonymity of an author.(www.reddeerbookexchange.com/terminology.htm) Fictitious names are often used when the person performs a particular social role. (wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn) In this situation, you will be using a blog to publish your classroom learning experiences.

What is it called when I send something I have written to the blog?
When you submit your writing to the moderator, it is called posting.

Who is the moderator for our blog?
Ms. Fortuna is the moderator for the blog. This means that she reviews and sometimes abbreviates posts from the students. Some posts that are submitted to the blog may not be accepted, and yet other posts may be accepted without any editing. It is likely that most submissions will get posted with some editing.

How often will I be required to blog?
About once a week or so, Ms. Fortuna will schedule a computer lab for the class.

What is the address for the blog?
http://societyissuesidentity.blogspot.com/

Blogging assessment criteria
Integration/ Synthesis of Concepts and Principles:
The blogging responses demonstrate an integration of concepts and principals from classroom surrounding society, issues, and identity.

Critical Thinking:
Postings frequently demonstrate use of upper level thinking (analysis, synthesis, evaluation) and illustrate a thoughtful approach to the content.

Applications and Personal Examples:
The blogging responses share personal connections to the topics of society, issues, and identity in a way that extends class concepts insightfully.

Writing standards:
The writing from blogging posts is clear, concise, and easy to understand. Ideas. The responses are communicated clearly and coherently.

Timeliness:
The responses are submitted on or before the due date.

Infusing student choice through multi-modal projects
Multimodal projects are synonymous with blogging. Multimodal projects allow students to become co-teachers as they develop a deeper understanding of textuality through analysis, application, and composition. Please see a list of multimodal project options at the following url, which is located on my school website. http://www.franklin.ma.us/auto/schools/fhs/depts/english/Fortuna/ideas.htm

Several of these ideas were adapted from Thompson's 2008 presentation at AERA. See Thompson, Mary. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, Oct2008, Vol. 52 Issue 2, p144-153, 10p, 4 charts.

PBS advice to teachers
PBS has created a pdf that outlines ideas for multimodal implementation. It also directs the viewer to additional resources for networking with other teachers and researchers.http://www.pbs.org/teachers/_files/pdf/PBS_Teachers_TipSheet.pdf

Sample student artifacts
I created a student-centered blog called "Society, Issues, Identity" which is located at www.societyissuesidentity.blogspot.com

This blog is a place where I can post essential ideas about learning events as they occur. The posts contain embedded links to other websites and, most importantly, a comment field where students can become co-teachers as participants in the academic discourse. Please feel free to browse the blog.

Several students in 2009 used the opportunity to post on a blog to link print, visual, and video texts they composed.
http://thechroniclesofbetsey.blogspot.com
http://nelly-maysblog.blogspot.com/
http://thekadencelounge.blogspot.com/
http://maudesmanagerie.blogspot.com/
http://mollysblog3.blogspot.com/
http://www.lee789.blogspot.com/

This url below points to a series of initial student comments as they began to investigate and make meaning around an issue of interest to them.
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1086386598142610206&postID=6043557622038704769

This url below are students responses to a blog I posted about youth as "digital natives."
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1086386598142610206&postID=6350886142398262785

These urs are two senior posts as responses to reading Conrad's Heart of Darkness.
http://www.geocities.com/marleyandthepirates/
http://marlowbodybiography.blogspot.com/

Other student responses can be located in the comments field on the "Heart of Darkness" post.

To create a blog
Go to http://www.blogger.com/ and follow the step-by-step directions.

Photostories: Narration for new media

What are photostories?

Photostory is a free Microsoft download that allows composers to create slideshows that are embedded with digital photographics, internet graphics, text captions, music, video, and sound. Microsoft Photo Story is a free application that allows users to create a show and tell presentation from their digital photos. [1] The software uses the Ken Burns Effect on digital photos and allows adding narration, effects, transitions and background music to create a Windows Media Video movie file with pan and zoom effects http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photo_Story

Similar to Powerpoint in its appearance due to slides in sequence, Photostory is easily compatible with the web. Photostories can be uploaded to websites like YouTube. http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/PhotoStory/default.mspx

Teacher sample photostories
The first photostory I created was a narration that modeled ways students could translate the themes in Ibsen's Ghosts to contemporary society.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjMQV26ZMdg

The second photostory I created was a lesson about the "Grammar of film" which helped students to gain interpretive tools for application to viewing Inherit the Wind.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmicZQeYFpM


Student sample photostories

Several students combined keen observation of metaphors into their film trailers for Inherit the Wind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1NNw4pL9rs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpNh1Cuf6ws

Ella's voiceover narration gave her Heart of Darkness photostory an authentic documentary feel.

www.youtube.com/emmalatham

One student used a platform that combined music [sound and lyrics] into analysis.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfqXK0WIa6U

One student used another platform called Photobucket to post her project on the web.
http://s712.photobucket.com/albums/ww123/heartofdarkness/Heart%20of%20Darkness/

Wikis for group collaboration

What are wikis?

A wiki is a page or collection of Web pages designed to enable anyone who accesses it to contribute or modify content, using a simplified markup. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikis. Wikis allow students to collaborate in groups so as to create gestault. Wikis are websites that allow multiple users to create, modify and organize web page content in a collaborative manner.http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&start=4&oi=define&q=http://www.govst.edu/elearning/default.aspx%3Fid%3D12984&usg=AFQjCNGSrFSu0R87wDRhSQJCXDRjFgCI-A

How to create a wiki

Where else would we go to learn how to create a wiki than "wikipedia?" :) The description is comprehensive and includes history, navigation, security, user communities, and research communities.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki

Flexible grouping and wikis

Wikis allow students to come together and share their wealth of knowledge. Students in groups collaborate best when they divide and share tasks and accept equal responsiblity for the final project. Ideas about ways that flexible groups can be most successful are located on my teacher blog on the "Flexible grouping at the high school level" post at http://www.teachertoteacherblog.blogspot.com/.

Sample student artifacts

Several students decided to collaborate in groups and create wikis as their multimodal options. The following are their student artifacts.

http://chocolatewar.wikispaces.com/DAVE

http://ancientgreekpregnancy.wikispaces.com/

http://teengossip.wikispaces.com/

http://chocolatewar.wikispaces.com/BRUCE

http://ancientgreekdrugrelations.wikispaces.com/