tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post1145845159077028054..comments2023-11-03T06:40:22.947-07:00Comments on Blogging for Educators: Week 1 - Personal Reflectionstestecarlahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02265287790133905481noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-36955053280455334852008-02-03T18:44:00.000-08:002008-02-03T18:44:00.000-08:00Dear Karen,Welcome to the exciting world of bloggi...Dear Karen,<BR/><BR/>Welcome to the exciting world of blogging! I'm sure you'll see that there's no need to be afraid. Every detail of our daily lives can become a wonderful blog post. You'll see it can even become a little addictive! I hope you find blogging as engaging in this group as we believe it is! <BR/><BR/>Count on us to give you support in your professional endeavors.testecarlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02265287790133905481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-4975264038714832332008-02-03T10:50:00.000-08:002008-02-03T10:50:00.000-08:00Hi everyone. This is Karen in NH.As usual, I am a ...Hi everyone. This is Karen in NH.<BR/><BR/>As usual, I am a little behind the 8-ball, posting my first week's post at the end of week 3. I am new to blogging, although I have a couple educational blogs that I follow on a regular basis. I have always been a little afraid of blogging - how do you find something to write about on a regular basis? I have just started a graduate class on Content Literacy and we will be using blogging as part of the class so this class and the graduate class are the first experience I have had with blogging for professional development. I would like to use a blog in class for discussion on the use of social networking in education and for my students to share learning experiences. Hopefully, this class will help push me in that direction.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-24803797406401116292008-01-25T13:55:00.000-08:002008-01-25T13:55:00.000-08:00dear carla, here's a link to a rather lengthy expl...dear carla, here's a link to a rather lengthy explanation of the Bologna process.<BR/>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bologna_process<BR/>it's become a buzzword in romania, these days.<BR/>and btw, you've really given me food for thought there. ;)<BR/><BR/>have a great weekend!sqpeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12826104276703330544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-77535991546777420882008-01-23T13:24:00.000-08:002008-01-23T13:24:00.000-08:00Hello again,Sorry about the broken links deep into...Hello again,<BR/><BR/>Sorry about the broken links deep into the blog I used for B4B last year.<BR/><BR/>Here are corrected, open links:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://pabspotpourri.blogspot.com/2007_01_01_archive.html" REL="nofollow">http://pabspotpourri.blogspot.com/2007_01_01_archive.html</A><BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://pabspotpourri.blogspot.com/search/label/b4b" REL="nofollow">http://pabspotpourri.blogspot.com/search/label/b4b</A><BR/><BR/>Cheers, PaulPaul Beaufaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17947324521465705068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-17949443784838421172008-01-22T13:53:00.000-08:002008-01-22T13:53:00.000-08:00Wow! Fabiana! Reflecting on your experience postin...Wow! Fabiana! <BR/><BR/>Reflecting on your experience posting all kinds of collected and prepared materials on blogs for young learners of English, you express the understanding, just one year on, that "the possibilities of blogging are much wider for teaching and learning" than simply content delivery. <BR/><BR/>You realize that blogging can raise "discussion and interaction to a level you could hardly find in real life," and offer the exchange occurring on this blog as an example. <BR/><BR/>Indeed it may be time for you to start a personal blog where you can try out your approaches to what is "cultural and fun" combined with more deliberate planning, selection, and organization of blog content. <BR/><BR/>Below is a link to the blog I that adapted to use in Blogging for Beginners last year (Archive: <A HREF="http://pabspotpourri.blogspot.com/2007_01_01_archive.html<br/>" REL="nofollow">January 2007</A>, ff.; Label: <A HREF="http://pabspotpourri.blogspot.com/search/label/b4b<br/>" REL="nofollow">b4b</A>). Though it does represent filtering or selection of blog content, expressly for sharing in B4B; it's probably a better example of experimentation than of planning.<BR/> <BR/>Cheers, Paul<BR/><A HREF="http://pabspotpourri.blogspot.com/" REL="nofollow">pab's potpourri</A><BR/>from chilly rainy KumamotoPaul Beaufaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17947324521465705068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-58681430677991385232008-01-22T07:16:00.000-08:002008-01-22T07:16:00.000-08:00Hello everybody,I began blogging last year when I ...Hello everybody,<BR/><BR/>I began blogging last year when I started two class blogs: one for pre-intermediate teenage students and another one for 8 year olds.<BR/><BR/>It was completely new for me and, as I was exploring its possibilities, my only goals were to enhance their contact with the English language and give them the chance of having fun while learning English. <BR/><BR/>I posted almost everything my peers and I prepared for those levels and boosted the blog with some extras like songs, videos, extra exercises, pictures etc. - without thourough planning I confess.<BR/><BR/>I understand now that the possibilities of blogging are much wider for teaching and learning. A blog takes discussion and interaction to a level you could hardly find in real life – consider the cultural exchange of ideas we’re having here for example.<BR/><BR/>What might I do with a blog in my classes? Well, I think I can still work on the cultural and fun part of it but with a different approach: planning the content of my blog in a way that is wiser and more self-conscious.<BR/><BR/>Cheers from rainy Uberlândia, Brazil<BR/><BR/>Fabiana Bridi<BR/><BR/>P.S.: It's high time to start my personal blog, isn't it?Fabiana Bridi Santoshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14151059900808877796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-18703667369950756602008-01-22T02:43:00.000-08:002008-01-22T02:43:00.000-08:00Am having trouble leaving messgaesAm having trouble leaving messgaesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-47281803550589211262008-01-21T05:29:00.000-08:002008-01-21T05:29:00.000-08:00Yvonne, you mentioned that you are interested in f...Yvonne, you mentioned that you are interested in finding a wider audience for your students' blogs and also learning more about the value of tagging. As we'll learn in Week Three, tagging posts really opens up the potential for bloggers to find each other. In fact, through tags, I met co-moderator of Blogging4Educators, Vance Stevens! He will have lots to share with us in Week Three, so stay tuned!<BR/><BR/>Beyza, I totally agree that there are endless possibilities with blogging! As we have many creative educators in this group, we are likely to share many ideas over the course of this workshop. Carla A has been involved in several memorable blogging projects, and I'm sure she'll share these, and others, with the group!<BR/><BR/>It has been such a pleasure to read everyone's personal experiences with blogging! We have an energetic group :)Mary Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11689030632466264856noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-54165827296361922952008-01-21T04:46:00.000-08:002008-01-21T04:46:00.000-08:00I've been blogging since 2007.I keep one personal ...I've been blogging since 2007.I keep one personal blog and I sometimes keep other blogs with some of my classes.I'm trying to integrate wikis into my lessons but I still find blogs useful.<BR/><BR/>In my opinion they can be used to:<BR/>1)Reflect upon the learners' own learning process.<BR/>2)Provide stimulus for the students to speak or interact.<BR/>3)Share useful links with learners.<BR/>4)Create an opportunity for them to get peer feedback.<BR/><BR/>As a language teacher I keep my blog to:<BR/>1)keep an online diary of my own teaching experiences.<BR/>2)receive constructive feedback to improve my ideas.<BR/>3)be more aware of my own ideas about TEFL.<BR/>4)to have a presence on the internet.<BR/><BR/>There are various activities that can be done with our students by using blogs. I think it depends on the teachers' creativity.<BR/><BR/>Happy Blogging<BR/>BeyzaBeyzaYhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15938266754196714268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-42549546110963481152008-01-21T02:23:00.000-08:002008-01-21T02:23:00.000-08:00I've never blogged, but I have some experience of ...I've never blogged, but I have some experience of wikis..Really not sure whether blogging could enhance my existing classes (I'm a freelancer teaching adult learners -professionals and "leisure-time" learners).However,as the e-worls seems to be the future of teaching, I'm hoping to become familiar and compfortable using blogs, wikis etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-70357155770929056672008-01-20T16:12:00.000-08:002008-01-20T16:12:00.000-08:00Hi ya!Well, what can I say...had heard of and seen...Hi ya!<BR/><BR/>Well, what can I say...had heard of and seen blogs but never gave any importance to it. but since I strted working with Pat Soares and saw how enthusiastic she is about blogs...I got curious and motivated to find out more about blogs and of course to find other ways to motivate my students.<BR/><BR/>Lotsalekkerluv<BR/>Velmavelmacostahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00793096499302861462noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-52221787438647113342008-01-19T14:01:00.000-08:002008-01-19T14:01:00.000-08:00I started using blogs about 3 years ago as part of...I started using blogs about 3 years ago as part of an EVO workshop. My first two were for personal and professional reflection. I wasn't very consistent with adding to them, however. <BR/><BR/>Last year, I began doing blogging with my classes. The biggest trouble I had was finding blogs that could get through our school filter. The only one I have found to do so is Edublogs by Wordpress. I have a class blog for each class and each of my students has their own blog. I require students to write in their blogs as part of their grade a couple of times a week. They enjoy it. They often will put final drafts of papers there and then they serve as a portfolio of the work they do over the course of a year. The one aspect I have not figured out is how to get them to comment on each others blogs and also to get a wider audience for them. That is something I would like to work on.<BR/><BR/>I hope to get more ideas for using blogs, get more efficient and consistent with them, and get a better understanding of the value of tagging this year.<BR/>YvonneAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-79024079548063615112008-01-19T06:01:00.000-08:002008-01-19T06:01:00.000-08:00Hi people! I started using blogs last year. I crea...Hi people! I started using blogs last year. I created Inglesenelsecundario.blogspot.com<BR/>and <BR/>Tallerdedocencia-edita.blogspot.com<BR/>My first idea was to use my secondary school blog to publish productions from different classes. Then I realised that my teenage students were reluctant to share and comment on other students´productions they don´t know. This year I will use the blog with only one class and will ask them to choose the topic.Editahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02785806134780203076noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-83627145579770888102008-01-18T19:03:00.000-08:002008-01-18T19:03:00.000-08:00Dennis said... "Pab (Right?)"Yes, Dennis, pab (...Dennis said...<BR/><BR/> "Pab (Right?)"<BR/><BR/>Yes, Dennis, pab (without capitalization) works for me, as do other handles that I may have listed in an intro. message lost to the Yahoo! mailing list, or in the background upon logout a few days ago: pabeaufait (maybe PABeaufait in AIM), Paul, or PaulB.<BR/><BR/> "I am still trying to work out for myself what the essential differences are. It seems to me that they have become more and more similar."<BR/><BR/>They certainly are. More and more wikis offer messaging and commenting functions. You can even find blikis, which are deliberate blends of blog and wiki functionality. <BR/><BR/> "I still find it a disavantage the blogs display the last message first. And that is why I like Wordpress, because you can get around that. But Blogger is MUCH easier to use" (January 18, 2008 12:58 AM).<BR/><BR/>Dennis, as you've suggested, a characteristic of blog organization is reverse chronological order of posts, which Wordpress blogs augment through provisions for cross-links to wiki-like pages.<BR/><BR/>Cheers, PaulPaul Beaufaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17947324521465705068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-64354469297562621142008-01-18T08:53:00.000-08:002008-01-18T08:53:00.000-08:00Christian I do not have experience blogging either...Christian I do not have experience blogging either, but I think that apart from keeping students informed of the work that has been done in class, we should open some espace for them to express their feelings, to get to know each other and the teacher,which will be of benefit for their language development as well.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-33091197986855862322008-01-18T00:58:00.000-08:002008-01-18T00:58:00.000-08:00Pab (Right?) You mention wikis, and I am still tr...Pab (Right?) You mention wikis, and I am still trying to work out for myself what the essential differences are. It seems to me that they have become more and more similar. I still find it a disavantage the blogs display the last message first. And that is why I like Wordpress, because you can get around that. But Blogger is MUCH easier to use.Dennishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13404851424299855026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-52929790692795366192008-01-18T00:27:00.000-08:002008-01-18T00:27:00.000-08:00..Took me a little while to find "Jump to comment .....Took me a little while to find "Jump to comment form".. I've produced a few blogs, using Blogger mostly, but Wordpress as well. I think blogs have moved far away from the etymological meaning "web log". Someone has played around with Blogger and managed to publish a novel on it and I've used blogs more as presentational devices, with links to sound, video and other sites. A strong feature of blogs is their built-in facility for readers' comments - though far too few people do comment.Dennishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13404851424299855026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-64413392681368378012008-01-17T20:39:00.000-08:002008-01-17T20:39:00.000-08:00Blogged I have, especially in the past year or so ...Blogged I have, especially in the past year or so - too much for comfort or health. Only reluctantly have I allowed my blogging time to shift from experimental, personal/reflective, and professional developmental blogging, to blogging with students in a writing course that started last April, just after the Blogging for Beginners workshop tailed off. I have gained a great deal of both personal and professional satisfaction from blogging, and am particularly fond of the ownership Carla mentioned in response to Holly (January 16, 2008 6:58 PM, above) that individual blogging affords writers. What I like to do with a blog for my classes is everything that I used to try to do with handouts, email, or chat, and that I cannot (or will not till much later) also do (or do better) on a wiki.Paul Beaufaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17947324521465705068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-59120823055250765892008-01-17T17:42:00.000-08:002008-01-17T17:42:00.000-08:00Angeles,That's exactly what I've been doing with s...Angeles,<BR/><BR/>That's exactly what I've been doing with some of my classes this semester. Except I've allowed them to hand their work in on paper if they prefer/insist.<BR/><BR/>[tried to post this a few minutes ago but it hasn't appeared so trying again - maybe I didn't do the word verification??]<BR/><BR/>MichaelMichael Shadehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03769991041294693716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-21215563137865172432008-01-17T15:21:00.000-08:002008-01-17T15:21:00.000-08:00Hi, this is Christian. I'm a EFL teacher and I wor...Hi, this is Christian. I'm a EFL teacher and I work in two completely different schools, one is a catholic school from PreK to 4th grade secondary school, the other is a school for adults.<BR/><BR/>My main objective with this workshop is to create my own blog to keep in touch with my adult students. As we all know adults don't have a regular attendance to classes and it is very difficult for them to keep the pace of the course activities, they have to work on shifts, look for their babies or in some cases some students don't have money to get to school every day. When they come to class again we have a gap of two, three or more weeks, so it is difficult for them and for me to start all the thing again almost from the beginning-<BR/><BR/>The idea of keeping a blog is to give the possibility to be informed about the subject, the contents, get the handouts, even the tests to exercise, send their assignments and of course their doubts to be clarified. In this way they will come back with no problems.<BR/><BR/>It's a good idea, so I hope to learn a lot from all of you because I don't have experience in blogging.<BR/><BR/>Thanks and see you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-85636200531832817142008-01-17T09:28:00.000-08:002008-01-17T09:28:00.000-08:00Dear Natasa,How do we keep students motivated to b...Dear Natasa,<BR/><BR/>How do we keep students motivated to blog? That's the question we're always asking ourselves! No straight answer. In fact, I'd say that it will all depend on the educator understanding the students'needs and interests. What drives them? What are they passionate about?<BR/>There are no formulas. There are some guidelines and some tricks, but the main thing is to find ways that trigger that passion in the students to be there with you, to reply to you, to talk to you. We'll be exploring some ideas in the next weeks. Blogging is about trial and error, it's about find your own tone. What works for me and my students might not work in your setting, but the great aspect of it is that it's flexible with limitless possibilities! Don't worry. I'm sure you'll find your own blogging style.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Angeles, you mentioned an interesting aspect of blogging. It can certainly be a place for developing an e-portfolio of your production, leading to self-reflection and knowledge construction. I've been keeping my records of my Webcasting adventure, and it's really interesting to get back and see what I've been through, how much I've accomplish and where I want to go from there.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://explorations.bloxi.jp/webcasters-adventures/" REL="nofollow">Webcasters-to-be Adventures</A><BR/><BR/>Thanks for your insights.testecarlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02265287790133905481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-46715221006606468102008-01-17T09:19:00.000-08:002008-01-17T09:19:00.000-08:00Dear Holly,Interesting question you brought up abo...Dear Holly,<BR/><BR/>Interesting question you brought up about MOODLE, a learning management system, and blogs. Well, I've just taught an online course for EFL students using MOODLE. It's great to have a place in which content is meaningfully organized to learners. They can find their way around, we can keep track of what they are doing, where they've been accessing, their activities in general. This is an advantage. However, in general, MOODLE is walled. When we're talking about formal course, it's password-protected and after some time institutions may even delete the content from past courses or deny access to them. It has happened to me in an online course I was taking. Meaning that when the course was over, the content I produced was not mine anymore. No sense of authorship, at all, which is exactly one of the engaging aspect of blogging. Oh yes, you have blogs and wikis in MOODLE. But, then, even if you produced, edited them, once the course is over, they are over. So, blogging is about having your own open space for reflections, dialogue, establishment of connections. What I did with my online course was to get the best of both worlds, the walled and the open. I used MOODLES and blogs. The result? The sense of belonging on the part of participants. They used the interactive features in MOODLE to its fullest, but still kept their free-access zone in which they can retrieve what they wrote a while ago, our conversations, and they will be able to follow the classes to come as it was a class blog and I intend to use it with other students. I must tell you that it was a recurrent preoccupation they had: when the course is over, will I be able to retrieve the content I produced?<BR/><BR/>Because of this, I also created a community for them when it was over transferring some of their most meaningful content to it. It's their production, their ownership, not mine, not the institution's.<BR/><BR/>Take a look at it and feel free to ask! I'd love to go even deeper in this discussion. I'm really passionate about this topic of Personal Learning Environments (PLEs), and certainly LMS like MOODLE and blogs fit this category, but in different ways. I'd say that they complement each other.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://listeningplus.ning.com" REL="nofollow">Listening Plus Ning Community</A>.<BR/><BR/>My 2 cents!testecarlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02265287790133905481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-91353341355148411062008-01-16T18:58:00.000-08:002008-01-16T18:58:00.000-08:00I have used blogs as a substitute of personal writ...I have used blogs as a substitute of personal written compositions. Instead of seting a topic I put the writing tasks on a blog, through different entries and they must write their assignments through the comments. That way we can see everybodys' writing and check grammar points or vocabulary in class.<BR/>It is also helpful to keep a copy of every students writing along the year and check their progress.<BR/> <BR/>AngelesAngeles Hernándezhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14018328662086806223noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-36079594638855182592008-01-16T18:13:00.000-08:002008-01-16T18:13:00.000-08:00Hello everyone.Like some other people here, I have...Hello everyone.<BR/>Like some other people here, I have never blogged. So I have got more questions than answers. My main question is: How do you keep the students motivated? <BR/>I have looked at some people’s class blogs and I am really impressed. A lot of hard work has gone into them. I can’t wait to learn more about how I could do something like that with my students.<BR/>NatasaNatasahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12048765349737400507noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981480421960607667.post-65449224801058632232008-01-16T12:59:00.000-08:002008-01-16T12:59:00.000-08:00Hi Larien and Lucia,Thanks for sharing your experi...Hi Larien and Lucia,<BR/>Thanks for sharing your experiences with blogs. During week two, we'll examine different blog hosts, and decide where we would like to start our blogs. Please don't worry if you haven't blogged much before--we're all here to help and support each other through this learning journey. I'll be looking forward to your reflections about it in February, like you mentioned, Lucia!<BR/>MaryMary Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11689030632466264856noreply@blogger.com