Course Blog
Read these instructions carefully
A Blog (web log) is simply a space on the web where commentary can be POSTED and COMMENTED on. We will use the Course Blog to respond to my POSTS, which are really questions that I have raised in connection with the reading assignments or other materials. Your responses will be COMMENTS.
I recommend that you create your comment within another editor on your computer and then copy and paste your text into the comment box. This will protect you from accidental internet failures and also allow you to keep a local record of your work.
Below are some instructions to help you work with the Blog, which is entitled "Conservation in the 21st Century." Instructions about the assignments will be provided in the "Assignment" link on the class homepage. This page is to help you get started with the mechanics of reading the Blog and making posting comments. PLEASE READ these instructions carefully. Our collective posts and comments will be extensive so I have set the Blog space up to help organize it and make it less cumbersome for you to read posts and comments, but it does add some complexity. There are three parts to these instructions:
1) Navigating the Blog Space
The Blog tool we have chosen is called Movable Type. This software tool allows you to select and organize posts and comments. This flexibility requires some navigation and organization, because by the time we get to the end of the course, there may be more than 1000 individual posts and comments. The figure below shows what the "main" Blog screen looks like and indicates just a few of the important features:
The left side of the page shows the posts, with the most recent at the top (with the date). If all the posts (my entries and your comments) are displayed, this eventually would be a long, linear web page that stretched downward for hundreds of pages. In this case, the comments in response to each post only show up when you click on "Comments," which is displayed at the bottom right hand side of the entry. Each Blog also fits into categories, which are indicated on the right side of the page. Note the five categories listed: "Introductions," "AssignmentsA," "AssignmentsB," "SynthesisA," and "SynthesisB." The "A"s and "B"s are there two create two separate groups of commenters so you don't have to read 16 or so comments each time. More on this later. If you click on either of the categories, only those entries in that category will show on the screen.
In the "Introductions" category, I'm hoping that we can practice using the Blog a bit and in the meantime introduce ourselves to each other. In the "AssignmentsA" category, I will talk about the readings or other material (podcasts, video, etc.) that I would like you to interact with. I will also indicate what I want you to do (answer questions, postulate, organize, etc.). The "Assignment" link on the homepage will list any readings, etc. and also briefly describe what I would like you to do. It provides the overview (and reminder to you), while the Blog space provides the detail and context.
I have divided the class into two groups, so "AssignmentA" should be commented on by Group A, and "AssignmentB" should be commented on by Group B. If you need to remind yourself which group you are in, go to "a href="http://www.uvm.edu/envnr/nr385c21/gettingstarted.php">Getting Started." The assignments are identical, but I want you to comment in two separate places to limit the amount of commentary that you need to read, summarize, and synthesize. Summarization and synthesis are really important skills, and I want you to spend more time thinking about doing this than reading all of each others posts. You are welcome to peek at the comments from the other groups (and we will do this later), but to start I would like you to just respond to your smaller group, so Group A should comment on posts in the category "AssignmentsA" and Group B to posts in the category "AssignmentsB." The easiest way to keep make this easy is to click on the appropriate category on the right sidebar of the Blog.
Finally, my entries are posted in chronological order with the most recent on the top, so you can just scroll from the top to find the most recent entry/assignment. Note: your comments are posted with the most recent at the bottom, so you can add to the bottom after seeing what other folks have said.
2) Becoming a Blogger
To faciliate your comments to the Blog/discussion, one I have your Email address I will set you up as "official" bloggers with a TypeKey identity. What this means is you have a blogger identity in a directory maintained by a Internet service called TypePad. This allows me as the Blog supervisor to "trust" your comments if you log into the TypeKey database. Conveniently, this log in is available above the comment box in the class Blog. As a "trusted" commenter, your posts will automatically be added to the Blog/discussion after you submit it. The reason we need this is to set up the Blog to only be available to students in the class. Otherwise, any person with something to say (or Spam) could join our discussion.
It appears customary to use your Email to register in the TypePad directory, so I will do that for each of you. If you are at UVM the Email address that I have used is your NetID (e.g. my Email would be dwang@uvm.edu NOT deane.wang@uvm.edu). You can also edit your TypePad profile if you want to... or just leave it blank. I will Email your password to you individually. The specific instructions for making a comment are given below. You start by clicking on the "Comment" box at the bottom right side of my entry (see the picture above). This opens up a comment area. You'll notice that at the top of this comment area it asks "If you have a TypeKey identity, you can sign in to use it here."
If you click on the "sign in" you will have the opportunity to type in your Email or Member Name. In your case type in your Email and then your password. After doing that, you should return automatically to the Blog comment area.... and you are ready to enter your comment. You do NOT need to fill in your name, URL, or any other identifying information because you have used your TypeKey ID to enter a comment. Be sure to "Post" your comment before leaving the Blog or we all won't get to see what you have to say. NOTE: The first time you enter a comment, it will not be immediately posted. I have to see the post and identify you as a "trusted" commenter. Then it will be published. Subsequent comments from you will be automatically published if TypeKey is working properly. It seems that if you "preview" your post that often I will still have to approve it before it posts.
3) Making Comments
As indicated above, making comments is pretty easy. You just start typing in the comment box after signing in. REMEMBER to "post," and I do strongly recommend writing your comments somewhere else and then cutting and pasting the comment into the comment box.
Comments should be well-thought out and organized, so I don't suggest typing off of the "top of your head." Even a 3 or 4 topic outline before starting will help your comments be more organized and thoughtful. If you are familiar with "freewrites," these comments should not be so unstructured.
In evaluating your responses (those comments usually due on Tuesday or Thursday), we will be looking for: 1) do you address the questions or directions, 2) is your answer logical and organized, 3) do you use any evidence from other work to support any statements you make, 4) if applicable, do you make connections to other readings and assignments, and 5) are your contributions submitted on time? We often call these evaluation criteria "grading rubrics." These are helpful in focusing your writing.
In evaluating your summaries and syntheses (those comments usually due on Wednesday or Friday, we will be looking for 1) the completeness of your summary, 2) how well it is organized, 3) the thoughtfulness and depth of your thinking, and 4) are they submitted on time. In the final analysis, it is not so important how much you know (as we all have many gaps in our knowledge), but what you can do with both what you know and DON'T know, that can lead to understanding... and even wisdom.