What does a typical blog consist of?
Read MoreTerry Two Minute Tips, by Terry Freedman. Not all of these tips are two minutes long, but numeracy was never my strong point.
Blogger, by Terry Freedman
Blogging taster course
A forthcoming course should help you decide whether or not blogging is for you.
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Reflections
Reflections from a teacher training course 1
My reflections on a first session I taught on a teacher training course are still apposite today.
Read MoreFree illustrations for your blog or website
11 websites where you can find free illustrations.
Read MoreWant to blog? Develop a thick skin
My key messages to would-be bloggers.
Read MoreThe trouble with technology
To the adage "Never work with children or animals", I would add, "or technology" -- which is somewhat worrying given that I have been involved in educational technology for over 20 years.
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Blogger, by Terry Freedman
New blogging course
If you’ve thought about starting your own blog, but are not sure what to write about or what keeping a blog entails, then a course I’m teaching in December 2019 might be of interest.
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Keep on blogging! Photo from www.pixabay.com CC0
7 Things that every serious blogger should do
If you're serious about blogging, or at least intend to be, you have to do these 7 things.
Read More25 useful resources for teachers
This article contains details of 20 websites for creating free cartoons and comics, plus Scratch, educational blogging, creating games, old sounds, and the international space station.
Read More7 reasons not to swear in blogs
It seems to be depressingly more and more likely to find that a blog article which looks promising is peppered with swear words – or one particular swear word that is repeated ad nauseum. I think that writers of such blog posts are making a grave error. Here are my reasons.The trials and tribulations of blogging as a SWOT analysis
There are people like myself, Steve Wheeler and others who think that blogging is a good thing to do for a number of reasons. I won’t rehearse theme here because you can read them in the articles referenced at the end of this one. However, blogging is not necessarily easy. Even if writing itself is not a problem, there are several other factors that need to be taken into account.
Read MoreWriting a book as a blog
It is almost a year since I suggested 7 Reasons educators should blog. I’ve recently discovered another one.Computing and ICT misinformation
I am continually astonished by people’s misconceptions or misinformation about education in general, and ICT in particular. To be more accurate, I am often shocked, but no longer surprised, at how poorly education tends to be reported on in the press – at least in my experience when it concerns stuff I know about.
Now, I understand this when it comes to a subject like science. I used to say to Elaine, over breakfast, things like:
What is Both good and original in the world of educational technology?
When a young man with dreams of becoming a writer sent a manuscript to Samuel Johnson for his opinion, Dr Johnson is reputed to have replied:
“My congratulations to you, Sir. Your manuscript is both good and original; but the part that is good is not original, and the part that is original is not good.”
I thought it might be interesting to look at 10 ideas that have gained popularity in the world of educational technology and ICT in recent years, to see if they meet the “good and original" test”. Here are my considered, though possibly opinionated, views.
5 ways to establish credibility on your blog
I don’t know what it’s like living in other countries, but here in England we are fortunate indeed. If I want to have a discussion on any subject at all, I can simply walk into the pub nearest to where I happen to be at the time, where I am virtually certain to discover a self-styled “expert” declaiming about the economy, or what’s wrong with kids today, or how to solve the financial crisis, or whether or not kids should be taught how to programme, or how the entire education system should be put right.
7 Reasons educators should blog
Like many others, I find blogging a useful activity. So useful, in fact, that I think everyone involved in education should do it! Here, in no particular order, are my reasons.
Reasons to have a blogging team
It took me an hour and 29 minutes to write a blog post this morning. Actually, it took me over two hours, because I thought about it last night. Fortunately, the amount of time I spent, which was about 1.5 hours longer than I’d intended, didn’t have too much of an impact on my work schedule, because I did the thinking last night whilst watching TV, and this morning I was the computer by 6am in order to get lots done before I started work.
But why am I telling you all this?
Because when I think of what I need to do to keep my blog updated every day, I realise what needs to be in place for a school blog to thrive. The answer is: a team.
Why schools should have a hyperlocal blog
Many years ago there was a television series in Britain called “The Cres”. Short for “The Crescent”, the series followed the day-to-day lives of the fictional residents of a street somewhere in England. Most episodes were engaging and humorous, and made compelling viewing. An article I read this morning reminded me of this, and made me think that a “hyperlocal” blog could work really well for a school.
Are links in blogs always a good thing?
I know it’s de rigeur to always include links in blog posts: it’s polite, gets you Brownie points with other people, provides a rich and rewarding reading experience, and generally helps make the blogging world go round.
But is always right?
An example of how technology changes things
I have found the Never Seconds debacle quite interesting. Story in a nutshell, in case you missed it: nine-year-old Martha Payne writes a daily blog in which she uploads a picture of her school lunch and reviews it. Argylle and Bute Council has some sort of nervous breakdown and issues an edict telling Martha that she isn’t allowed to take photos of her lunch, because catering staff are now in fear of their jobs. As a consequence, Martha’s blog gets over 5 million page views in just a few days, the number of comments on her posts soars from around 30 to over 2,300 in two days, and Argyll and Bute rescind the ban.