Help with Blogging in English 264 Online
A blog (the word is derived from weblog) is an online journal. It is a difficult term to define, in part because it is a relatively new form of communication. Like a journal or diary a blog is personal, but unlike them it is also public. Experts debate whether a blog is a form of journalism or not. Not surprisingly, Wikipedia has an extensive article about the history and nature of blogs. One web page tries to answer the question "Just what is a blog, anyway?" and asserts it needs the following elements: "reverse chronological order" of entries, so that the newest are at the top; "unfiltered content," so that the writer's personal views and responses are foremost; "comments" from readers, who help create a dialogue out of a monologue; and "links to the world outside the blog," leading readers to items of interest and lightening the danger of smothering self absorption by the blogger.
In this course I would like you to set up a blog on our Blackboard course site. You will write entries in your blog in response to the reading assignments and the podcast lectures. There are various approaches you could take in your blog, such as questions and responses to the texts, analysis and interpretation of a text assigned, discussion exploring connections and differences between different authors and texts, reactions to web dites that discuss them, etc. There is no one correct format. What I am looking for is careful textual reading, active critical thinking, coherent and well supported discussion, and engagement with the material. I will give you written feedback on your entries, so you should be able to develop your analytical skills over time, and grade your blog entries. You will also read and comment on the blogs of your classmates, responding to their insights just as you would in an in-class discussion in a face to face course. These comments will receive a cumulative grade, and count toward your participation grade in the course.
You should write a minimum of 20 blog entries by June 21 and write 25 comments on the blogs of others by July 13.
Jonathan C. Glance
Professor of English
Mercer University
Last Updated 20 May 2013
