Ontario Blogs “Put Up”

Published by in blogs on May 7th, 2006

Ontario Blogs is:

an online publishing project, coordinated by the Education Network of Ontario, where writers and readers can interact in a controlled environment. Students write articles and submit them online to the teacher for publication in the project blog. Teachers comment on the students’ writing and if necessary send it back for revision. Students edit/revise their writing and re-submit it to the teacher, until both the teacher and student agree the writing is ready for publication. Only teachers have the authority to publish.

Ontario Blogs is using the free, open-source software program WordPress for their project. Note how teachers have CONTROL over the publication of content in this effort. No one can comment on posts who is not involved and provided with a login. Personally, I prefer moderated public commenting on published student work on blogs, but I think this effort is still undoubtedly commendable. A large number of students, teachers, and schools are involved, and just look at all the GREAT WRITING taking place! I like these similes by Fuchigami:

Love is like odd shapes because its eccentric.
Lights are like electric monkeys they both glow.
Google is like a mongoose with electric legs because theyre both quick and speedy.
Red rooms are like wierd tomato squares there both red, square, and box-shaped.

Great looking project! Go Canadian edubloggers! :-)

To use the parlance of Cheryl Oakes and her students blogging with the digital social networking tool think.com, consider this an official “put up.” (As opposed to a “put down!”) I also like how the banner at the top of blog pages changes with different pageviews. Very cool. Many faces from Canadian educational system, blogging for a global audience!

On this day..

3 Comments »
  • http://www.enoreo.on.ca Paula Boon

    Hi Wes,

    Thanks so much for your encouragement!

    I’ve been subscribed to your blog for several months and have shared some inspiration and information from you with the teachers involved in Ontario Blogs, never suspecting you’d someday mention _us_. What a thrill.

    I can see why you’d prefer giving the ‘general public’ the chance to comment, but for the time being this seems like a good way to introduce students to the possibilities of blogging while maintaining the full support of (sometimes nervous) parents and members of the administration.

    Thanks again for the “put up” — and for your continued efforts on behalf of the edublogging community.

    Paula Boon,
    Ontario Blogs coordinator (along with Diane Hammond)

  • Pingback: Ontario Blogs - Winter/Spring 06 » Blog Archive » The Power of Blogging - Get Read!

  • http://www.wesfryer.com Wesley Fryer

    Paula and Diane:

    I think everyone involved in pre-service and in-service teacher education should spend some time each week both learning in the edublogosphere and edifying those who are blogging– especially students, but teachers too. I actually found Ontario Blogs from a comment you made I think– but I am not sure, the connections possible via web 2.0 technologies are very dynamic and not easy to recollect in full unless I write them down at the time. I agree it is a much more comfortable idea to have a closed commenting community as you get going with blogs: I am glad your publishing is open though! I think getting students motivated to write can be half the battle in many cases. You might also consider checking out think.com and the free, closed school digital networking community you can setup with them. I am hoping to do a skypecast soon about this, I have played with the tool a bit and it looks GREAT for getting kids safely using these web 2.0 tools and learning alongside their teachers.

    Best wishes for continued success helping students become better writers and communicators! :-)

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