Creating Student Blogs - Fun??!!!!

It was just as much fun for me to see the English students playing with the set-up of their blogs as it was for them to individualize the appearance of each of their blogs.  A few students have already posted their first assigned entries.  I am excited to not only see the thought put into the entries, but also to see that students are experimenting with the various tools of the blog.  Several students have already left comments for their peers.  Some students are already tracking changes to their friends blogs by selecting to be a "Follower" of those students' blogs.

While some students are still a little tentative about writing in such a public realm, mostly nervous about what to write, the majority of the students are welcoming a fresh approach to journaling.  The best part of this project for me is that a "chore" has become a fun thing to do.  Students in the past loved to share their journal entries in class by reading them aloud.  We never seemed to have enough time to please everyone who wanted to be heard.  Students are not only excited that they will be able to share their blogs with their peers, but they are also appreciative that their journals are going to be read by more than just the teacher.

Start-up of Online Journaling with the English Class

Today I went through the process of accessing the student blogs with the accelerated English class . . . at least as far as I could in class.  Jenni Durbin and I ran into a couple of snags along the way today, but all is well now.

Jenni found out that because our school firewall hides the individual IP addresses of each computer connected to the server, only sending out one IP address to the outside world, Google let one student create a Gmail account and blocked us for the rest of the day.  Our firewall is designed to deter hackers from accessing individual pc's, but the feature hindered us a little today.  Google only allows one Gmail account to be created per IP address per day so we asked the students to take a couple of minutes tonight to create their Gmail accounts at home - problem solved.

The issue that I encountered was a little less of a problem but was not resolved until after school.  I found that blogger.com was blocked by our school's CIPA filter.  The students and I had access to our blogs since the domain of the blogs is at blogspot.com, but, unfortunately, the controls to sign in to the blog, make new posts, and access the settings menu are all housed at blogger.com.  I called our computer tech and explained that rationale for unblocking Blogger, and he "whitelisted" it.  After he did, I was able to access the settings menu as well as all other menu items.

A few students expressed some appreciation in the different approach to journaling.  Some appear nervous about using the blog, but all are making the effort.  I am looking forward to the first entries (assigned for homework today).  Next, we will spend a little time reviewing writing by other students and leaving comments about the writing.  I plan to model how to give constructive, meaningful comments next class.

Amazing Epiphany!!!

Wow! Next spring I need to set up the outgoing sophomore/incoming accelerated junior English students with blogs so they can complete their summer journals online. That will ensure that students are working on their blogs progressively throughout the summer and will also ensure better quality journaling since the blogs will be public.

Journals Online

I contemplated the functionality and access of both options: having students type journals on the google sites page or linking each student's page on the site to a blog that the student would type on. I feel more comfortable having the students work on a blog format since I will be able to limit editing access to each individual student and myself. I was concerned that with the google sites format, all of my students would have access to each other's pages and would be able to edit other students' journal entries. To me that is too much temptation for pranks.

The blog becomes an attractive alternative because it allows each student to have ownership and allows for public comments after each journal entry. I have convinced myself that this is the way to go. It only took me about 10 minutes to create 10 student blogs. I will add each student in as an author of his/her respective site after they acquire a google account (gmail).

Later this evening I will draft an online expectations that reemphasizes the school's computer use policy and identifies specific expectations for Mr. Langley's Classroom.

Journals on the web

I am trying something different this year - students in junior Accelerated English will compose their creative writing journals online. I set up a website tonight to experiment with the layout. I think it's close to what I want . . . functional anyway. Check http://sites.google.com/site/mrlangleysroom

There are two classes, and each student has his/her own page on the site. Each student page is set up in a two column simple layout. The student will type the journal entries in the left column and will format the date as the Header. The second column contains a calendar, clock, and a dictionary.com gadget. I am still debating on the right way to go. If I go with the current setup, all of my students will have access to edit anyone else's page - everyone will be on the "honor" system. I will be able to see a history of edits, but there is still a high level of trust.

The next option is to set up a blog for every student and create a link from the Google site I just built. If each student has his/her own blog, then no one else will be able to change that student's writing, but will be able to leave comments about the work. The more I think about it, the more I am talking myself into going that route.