Comments on: Using a blog as a course website

By: counterstr

counterstr — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:06:08 +0000

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By: Kristen

Kristen — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 03:56:12 +0000

Hi. First time reader here. I’ve really enjoyed your blog. To weigh in on the current discussion, I use Blackboard now, since that is what my university provides, but I too am thinking about using a blog instead. I’ve got a few problems with Blackboard as far as having students who don’t ever check it for announcements. I do like, however, that it has a digital dropbox where they can drop papers. Then again, turnitin.com has that feature as well, with the added bonus of catching plagiarism. So, I guess that there are pluses and minuses to both, but for some reason I just really like the idea of using a blog.

By: guerson

guerson — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 20:03:26 +0000

Good points! I hadn’t thought of how well integrated these new systems are with everything from student info & registration to all sorts of other things like being able to email the whole class.

I guess I’ll have to stick with whatever the school provides

By: HD

HD — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 19:09:42 +0000

As of september 2007 Blackboard will be the system that is centrally used and supported at UofT. It is linked to other UofT systems via a portal. WebCT courses will be moved to Blackboard. I would say, stick to that, it’s easy to use, has all features that you mention you want, and students know how to use it.

By: Dana

Dana — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 17:48:47 +0000

Depending on where you are teaching, using something like WebCT might be easier. Students will be more familiar with the format as many of their classes will likely be using it as well. You can do all of the above listed things on WebCT and I’ve had great success with using it myself. What I use WebCT for:
-posting syllabus
-posting all assignment sheets
-posting outlines before each class
-posting power point slides before each class
-calender of assignments
-emailing students for important events, various issues that pop up
-discussion board for weekly questions
-chat section to discuss various issues

The first time I used WebCT, I really didn’t like it but they have made some significant changes to make it more user friendly. At UTEP, the students’ entire on-line profile is linked together: email, WebCT sites for courses, adminstrative stuff. All they have to do it log on to my.utep.edu and then access all of these very easily. For my large 125 person World History course, it has been essential.

By: guerson

guerson — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 16:44:22 +0000

Ana Lucia,
What I had in mind was a little less ambitious than a fully interactive blog where new information would be added continuously. I was thinking more on the line of WebCT or other course websites that are used as an “online blackboard” for the course. Most of the courses I’ve taken that had a website included:
- syllabus
- lecture notes
- one included a video recording of the lecture
- readings for ppl to download
- some included a discussion board where ppl could leave comments
- information on assignments
- some links to other sites of interest & relevance for the course

I think all of the above can be easily and neatly accomplished through a blog interface that could potentially be simpler to use and update. I know a lot of my friends and some students complain about some of the webcourse interfaces given to them by the university where they teach.

Students wouldn’t have to participate. The “comments” tool is there for those who want to ask questions or discuss anything raised in class but the main point of the site would be as an information board for the course.

By: Ana Lucia

Ana Lucia — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 15:42:59 +0000

Alexandra I think it depends on how you manage your time…depending if you are part time professor, lecturer, instructor, full professor…. because it takes time, a lot of time, you don’t use to read, research and prepare the classes…I’ve been using a weblog three years ago in a course on art of Latin America. It was great, but it is a lot of work to write texts, update the weblog, choose images. The main goal of a weblog is interactivity…and I found difficult to convince them to participate, leave comments, etc. I have a colleague who used the Weblog of the Canada research chair to what we are affiliated to create a sub-weblog for his course (http://www.anamnesis.fl.ulaval.ca/wordpress/?cat=4), apparently the experience seems to be successful, but he told me that it was not… students didn’t want to contribute to the weblog, don’t know how to use a weblog, etc. I want to start using WebCT, to me it seems to be more adaptable to develop a course…