Assignment 1--Blogging

This is the third semester I have been asked to chronicle the assignments that have been done in a blogfolio, and it is always such a rewarding assignment.  It is always nice to see all of the coursework compiled in one location, and be able to look at everything we have done throughout the semester.  As a result of blogging in my coursework; I have also begun to incorporate it into the courses I teach.  In the word processing class that I teach, I believe it is a wonderful way to teach techniques of formatting without students relying so heavily on the software application that is being used.

Blogs are used in a variety of ways and are growing in popularity.  Blogs are posts that can be reflective or informative in nature and are chronicled by date appearing in reverse chronological order.  Generally they are maintained by one person and are updated frequently.  Older posts are generally not visible and are archived. They are growing in use in education since they allow students to reflect on classroom experiences and motivate students to be reflective to one another.  Since students know their work is going to be made public they are more likely to use better writing skills.

A blog can be created and maintained by an individual with limited technological skills.  No advanced web programming or HTML skills are needed to blog.  There are also a large number of blog sites available to subscribers free of charge such as blogger, Word Press, and many others.  Bloggers have also been known to even be compensated by businesses to advertise on their blogs if they are popular to marketing groups.

Another way blogs are being used in education are as digital portfolios.  Students can showcase samples of their work and reflect on the experiences of the assignment.  Peers can also make comments and often discussions will be prolonged outside of the classroom. 

My blogfolio can be seen by clicking on the following link:

http://it648ap.blogspot.com/