Blog Designing & Maintenance: from A to Z

Dear EFL Blogging School Participants, 

Now you all are at the final stage of our project when each of you successfully passed the instructive Modules and enthusiastically started integrating the own designed EFL blogs into the English classes. 

For this reason, at this point, we would like to offer you a set of final recommendations on how to efficiently design and actively maintain your blogs as a teaching-learning-assessment tool. 

In addition to to this, each of you will get a feedback from your mentor and an EFL blog expert in the Comment space,  on how to improve your blog, particularly.

Enjoy reading the posts and maintaining your blogs alive! 

A Good Teacher’s Blog

Recommendations and Descriptions:

   A good blog – is a network, a journal or an evidence of events. It should look as a journal with notes. And these notes are permanently updated, information is added, images  and multimedia are here as well; you regularly add some  new  commentaries, pictures  and opinions.

Blogging  (web log, a journal of events) as well – is a 21st-century approach to teaching a foreign language. 

           

       Blog’s general purposes:

·       Communicative (to share, to talk)

·       For self-presentation (as a diary)

·       Entertainment (mothers, housekeepers)

·       For getting together and keep social network (to support each other, to keep friendship, be  better colleagues)

·       For memoirs (like paper diary/self-communication)

·       For self-development and reflection  (one can create his/her own image and structure personal thoughts.

2    Blogs dedicated to education are:

·       Blogs of certain institutions (schools), where participants discuss the Process of Studying and Educational Problems.

·       It stands between:

-Objective & Subjective Opinions,

-Rational & Sensitive Attitudes,

-Scientific & Devine Involvement,

-Mathematics & Literature Approach.

·       The interaction on the blog can be a tool we use to facilitate the teaching of students' skills

3    Pedagogical Purposes  of Teacher’s Blog are:

   - to make the process of acquiring the subject easier, more comprehensive for children/students

           -to get together Teachers and Students/ Teachers and Parents;

·       -to share positive experiences of other teachers;

·       - to ease the process of communication;

·      - to get new information;

·      -to give additional materials to students;

·      - Blog incorporates several subjects and makes English an interdisciplinary lesson.

Blog’s  benefits for students:

•  they can read, write, watch, listen, post, reply and communicate with teachers and peers;
• get and prepare for the assignments/tasks;
• get the results on-line from Teachers;
• use dictionary on-line;
•  to listen to native speakers.

There are the links to examples of good and living Teacher’s Blogs:

• http://aculovrodica.wordpress.com/
• http://gruscadumitru.weebly.com/
• http://classroomblogzabriceni.weebly.com/
• http://povestindmatematica.ro/
• http://emmamatreniuc.weebly.com/

Standard 2 of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) standards for the 21st-Century Learner states that “Learners use skills, resources, and tools to draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, and create new knowledge.” 

As members of a democratic society, it is essential that our students know how to think critically and make informed decisions. It is also important to teach them how to participate ethically and productively (AASL standard 3).

Teacher’s Blog should:

      1. Be very clear from the very first sight when  one accesses or opens  it  (be it your student, 

            colleague or  any other  visitor);
2.      The pages and rubrics you form should look comprehensively and structured;
3.      The words that you use to entitle one or another page should reflect exactly what it comprises;
4.       Each Blog should have a design that will be pleasant for the reader’s eye and correspond the 

             teaching aims;
5.       The words, phrases, and images  you use should be eye-catchy and inspiring;
6.       Blog Etiquette Tips:
-Be polite and respectful always and with everybody;
-Remind participants several days to a week prior (people forget stuff);
-Have a back-up plan in case they forget or for some reason;
-React to the blog you visit when you are in a role of a guest;
-Write something you would publish on your own blog;
-Help promote your guest post and respond to comments; and 
 -Be respectful to those who disagree with you.
7.       Your Teacher’s  blog should have all the facilities for your students  ( a dictionary on your page, 

             a calendar, an additional tutorial if needed, data of the task, a simple and detailed explanation for 

            students with special needs);
8.       The Assignments that you create should be clearly structured so that your students could

              understand the Task, especially those who missed the class;
9.       Each Instruction should be explained simply and consequently;

      10.   Provide the examples and enough facility information for the topics you consider to be the most 

           difficult ones;
11.   Use the  information (audio, video, any on-line techniques) that is relevant for your students’

             language level and development;
12.   Mind the aims of the Teacher’s Blog when you create a Task or organize an activity: to develop 

              certain skills and abilities;
13.   Involve all the students from your classes through the tasks you create, so that they could share

             the experience with each other and peer educate themselves;
14.   Be open to reflect and respond to all their questions;
15.   Be aware of the anxiety your students might have referring to using new on-line methods, show

             them you are there to explain and assist, if necessary;
16.   Appreciate all the work that they do, each assignment, task and even a little try—that will inspire

             them for further participation;
17.   Keep in mind that evaluation of students work should be present as well, as it reflects their 

             involvement and shows learning results (both short-time and long-time ones);
18.   Include into your Blog’s  pages  all the extra-curriculum  activities you do with your students or 

             at school and some other things your students are interested in. That will encourage them to do 

            both what they like and the assignments as well;
19.   To show that your Teacher’s Blog is an active one, be sure to use most of the on-line techniques

             and tools you learned and acquired during the study course;
20.   Each blog post or assignment should also provoke communication and a desire for knowledge 

             from your students. Try to present  fresh  news, events, activities that will prove your connection

             between modern life, your students and you.