Blog

Posting to a blog is an easy way of curating the information and publish your own ideas. Teachers can use their blog to share information about what is happening in the classroom and solicit feedback from parents and other stakeholders. Students can use a blog as a platform for expression, documentation, development of their writing skills, and engaging assessment tool. Publishing a class blog can provide students with a broader audience for their work, and that can be very motivating!

Purpose

Curating is the process of sorting through the vast amounts of content on the web and presenting it in a meaningful and organized way around a specific theme. By creating this assignment you will be able to:

• Document your ongoing learning and reflection as a pre-service teacher
• Curate information from various resources to create collections of artifacts that demonstrate meaningful connections to your field of study and your future career
• Grow your professional digital footprint

This assignment aligns with:

• ISTE Standards for Educators:  1a, 2c
• ISTE Standards for Students: 1b , 2 a c, 3 a c, 6 b d
• InTASC Standards for Pre-Service Teachers: 9

Assignment

Your task is to create your own professional blog using Google Blogger. Your blog posts should be related to educational use of the technology, 21st century teaching innovations, ISTE, and other topics discussed during our lectures or labs. Each post should demonstrate that you seek out opportunities to grow professionally with regard to the topic. Explore related resources or dig further into the topic to post your findings and reactions.

NOTE: Your PLN documentation will also be posted in your blog but it will not count as one of your 4 required blog postings.

Required elements:

Blog Posts:

• Publish at least four posts to the same blog on topics listed above
  • The four posts for this assignment should be published on different days (it is a semester-long assignment that documents your learning and thinking).
• Each post must:
  • be at least 75 words long (that’s about 7 sentences).
  • include descriptive labels/tags to organize and help a reader categorize content of your posts  
  • include at least one hyperlink to a related website that will help the reader expand understanding of the content.
  • incorporate an image.
    • The sources of all images used must be cited at the end of the post.
    • Images must be used within the terms of a copyright or creative commons license
  • at least one post must include an embedded video (embedded in the post, not just a hyperlink).
  • Not Required: You are encouraged to create a Vlog (blog in video form). Instead of writing a new post try to record yourself talking, then add that video to your blog post
    
    

Blog layout:

Blog should include the following:

• The Labels gadget
• The Blog List gadgets with
  • 3 different blogs from your professional field
  • 3 different blogs created by EdTech and Design students
• Link to your social media used for your professional development (ex. Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, professional Facebook page or group). It is your choice to select the most appropriate way to display them

NOTE: Our assignment is just a beginning. You can certainly go beyond the following minimum requirements. Actually, we hope you do! Use your blog to document your reflections and/or ideas related to your other courses and aspects of your professional development.

Submitting:

Submit the blog URL in the eLearning assignment submission box. Copy and paste the main blog page (not your dashboard) address to avoid errors.

Helpful Resources

• Blogger Help
• Copyright Law: 12 Dos and Don'ts for Bloggers

• Horizon Report Look at the K-12 trends worldwide
• edutopia.org (George Lucas Educational Foundation)
• Learning in Hand educator's resource for mobile and digital learning by Tony Vincent's
• iEARN - International Education and Resource Network
• FutureLab - resources from National Foundation for Educational Research (UK)

Point Structure (50 points)

Special Notes:

• 10% of points possible will be deducted If you submit the wrong URL or your blog is not public and your instructor cannot view it as a result.
• Submission: Follow the instructions provided in the submission box precisely to avoid losing points on your assignment.