In my online ENGL 112 class for Mesa State College this semester, I’m having my students use blogs as research journals. I’ve been wanting to try this for more than a year, and this is my first chance. Here’s their first assignment:
Use the following sites to learn about blogs:
- Video: Blogs in Plain English
- How Blogs Work
- What Is a Blog?
- Blogging Basics
- The History of Blogging
Create a blog using Blogger or WordPress. (You may use another hosting service if you are familiar with one. You may not use a blog on a social networking site like MySpace.) I would recommend Blogger for beginners. This blog will be your research journal. Make sure that the title of your blog includes your first name, so I can identify the author when I’m reading your posts.
Post twice in your blog/journal:
- Brainstorm a list of topics you’re interested in using for your research project this semester. If you need some ideas, see the Possible Topics list in this learning module.
- Write three paragraphs about the topic you’ve selected: (1) identify your topic and explain why you chose it, (2) discuss what you already know about your topic, and (3) discuss what you don’t know and want to learn about the topic. Each paragraph should be at least several sentences long. Grammar and spelling count!
Use the following tags (”Labels” on Blogger) for each of the two posts: “ENGL 112″ and “topic”.
When you select your topic, keep the following guidelines in mind:
- Select a topic you’re interested in learning more about. You’ll be reading and writing about this topic for most of the semester.
- Select a topic that you can cover adequately in 3600 words.
- Select a topic for which you can find the required types of sources.
4 responses so far ↓
Mike Bogle // January 27, 2008 at 10:29 pm
By any chance will you be documenting the results of this activity here? Or better still, an ongoing account of the discoveries and hurdles that emerge. I’d be really interested in hearing how things go.
Blogs are certainly coming into their own in the spheres of business, personal bio-blogging, and to a degree even journalism; however it seems higher education is not moving at the same pace.
I suspect what is needed first are the existence of more case studies documenting the successful use of blogs in support of learning and teaching. Not just highlighting the technical aspects, but how the technical framework was built around a solid pedagogical foundation – and importantly what the educational outcomes were.
Glad to hear your taking the plunge. Good luck!
Cheers,
Mike Bogle
University of New South Wales
Blogs in Education « Tech Ticker // January 27, 2008 at 11:18 pm
[...] One such course, ENGL 112, run by Elizabeth Clark, is scheduled to commence this semester at Mesa State College in Colorado. Elizabeth described the first assignment in her blog, 4RxT (”Using Blogs As Research Journals“). [...]
Elizabeth // January 28, 2008 at 7:26 am
My plan is to write about the activity here in my blog. As they get their blogs set up, I’m subscribing to their RSS feeds through Bloglines.
Mike Bogle // January 28, 2008 at 11:45 am
That’s great to hear. Thanks for letting me know, and good luck.
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