Chris FullerMrfulleredgehill@yahoo.co.uk

www.chrisfuller.typepad.com – where all of today’s presentations will be available to

download

www.edgehillcollege.typepad.com

www.edgehilleuro08.typepad.com

Session 1

Practical ways to use Blogs

First, important things to know...

1) I AM NOT AN ICT EXPERT!!!

I am a Spanish teacher, who was taught how to use PowerPoint 3 years ago.

I do not know how the Internet works, I just push buttons, especially the back button when things go wrong.

First, important things to know...

2) The ideas that I pass on in this session are not...

a)Completely comprehensive

b)They will not destroy your life

3) No notes needed- will be on www.chrisfuller.typepad.com

Who am I?-Spanish teacher in Bideford, North Devon

-Spanish committee of A.L.L.

-Recently contributed to BBC Jam for 14-16 year olds in Spanish

- Speak at various events about the use of technology for Specialist Schools and Academies Trust

“If school is to be a truly rewarding experience for today’s students, it must be relevant to

them.”

Connected magazine, Learning and teaching Scotland

Is this the future? “Young people’s familiarity with ICT offers a great

opportunity to language teachers. It seems to us that a determined commitment to use this world, which is so familiar to young people, is a key to increasing the engagement of young people of all ages with languages. New technologies can facilitate real contacts with schools and young people in other countries. They can also provide stimulus for creative and interactive work.”

(Lord Dearing - Languages Review March 2007)

Blogging

Objectives for this session;• to understand what a blog is• to understand the motivational benefits of a

blog• to understand the AfL benefits of a blog• to learn about possible skill area uses of a blog• to learn about different blog providers• to explain the practical session

Blogging

What is a blog?!?!?!

• Blog= web log – Traditionally used as an online diary

– A typical blog combines a variety of media forms

– Key element is huge increase in interactivity- INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY.

Blogging

• In educational terms, usually divide into 2 types of blog

Class blogs

www.edgehillcollege.typepad.com

http://thegordonschools.typepad.co.uk/ratemymates/

Reflective teacher blogs

http://edu.blogs.com/edublogs/ (Ewan McIntosh)

www.joedale.typepad.com (Joe Dale)

Blogging

• What can we actually use a blog for?!?!

– Showing pupils’ work

– Sharing files

– Showing pupils’ videos etc

– Increasing Assessment for Learning

– Increasing pupil independence and self-evaluation

Blogging

Why use blogs?• Motivation- make the world your classroom wall

– Learning no longer confined to exercise books

– Who is the audience for work which goes into an exercise book?

– Truly global perspective

• Can be demonstrated by visitors maps on blogs

Blogging

The last 100 visitors to the Spanish blog

Why use blogs?

• Writing

– Increased motivation- will be viewed by more than just the teacher

– Very obvious to all when their peers’ work is missing from the blog

Blogging

Why use blogs?

• Reading

– Principal skill gain- pupils constantly reading each other’s work

– Allows free choice of which sections to read

– Aids pupil independence

Blogging

Why use blogs?• Speaking

– Oral vocab lists to aid pronunciation

– Pupil and teacher generated podcasts

– Speaking tests / exercises

=learning opportunity rather than just an assessment opportunity

– Provides a platform for pupil-made videos

Blogging

Why use blogs?

• Listening

– To podcasts

– To videos (pupil created, music, adverts, football commentaries etc)

– To peers’ work

Blogging

Why use blogs?• Assessment for Learning

– Comment function allows peer assessment using “Two Stars and a Wish formula”

= 2 positive elements

+ 1 element to work at next time

– Self-assessment as pupils comment on their own work and thus self target set.

Blogging

Blogging

That’s the theory- how have I actually

used the school blog?

Blogging

Listening

BloggingOn the blog this is a listening exercise, but...

•Pupils had to write scripts

•Pupils read and peer-assessed each other’s scripts

•Pupils read the script out

Blogging

Music video

- great cultural input

- an interesting homework to find body parts/ weather types

- Year 8 pupils were mostly humming the song round school for next few days

Blogging

Speaking

Blogging

•www.gizmoz.com

•www.voki.com

- Pupils write scripts

-Peer assess

-Practise

-Record

-High level of enjoyment

Blogging

Reading

Blogging

•Year 8 wrote Guess Who style self-descriptions

•For next homework, pupils read the descriptions and left a comment saying who they were

Let’s have a look at the blog...

Blogging

Who provides the blog facility?

• TypePad - www.typepad.com

– Easiest for inserting fun stuff (provider that I use)

• Blogger - www.blogger.com

• Edublogs - www.edublogs.org

• Wordpress - www.wordpress.org

• Many, many more…

Blogging

To learn about further tools to complement blogs

• www.slideshare.net

• www.slide.com

• www.flickr.com

• www.zamzar.com/url

• www.blip.tv

Blogging

Blogging

Desires for this year

• Higher Level pupils to leave comments in TL

•Potential for pupils to use gabcast.com to leave voicemail messages for on the blog

• Put online video conferences for viewing after the event, either using Skype / Pretty May or Flashmeeting

How to find out new ideas?

- keep reading other blogs!

Blogging

Blogging

Google Reader

- Uses RSS feeds to update you when your favourite blogs have changed

Plenary- Frequently Asked Questions

• Won’t it all take ages?

• Will anyone actually look at the blog?

• What effect will it have on my department?

• What about Child Protection?

Blogging