Down the rabbit hole ...

The Matrix (Image via RottenTomatoes.com)The first blog assignment is to write a response to the following items...

1. A Brief History of Education article by Peter Gray
2. The RSA Animate of Sir Ken Robinson's Changing Education Paradigms
   
3. Will Richardson's TED Talk

The first is an online article and the next two are YouTube videos.  Please review them in the order above and take time to reflect on them.  What I'd like you to do is to create a blog post in which you relate the ideas that jumped out at you.  What do you agree with or what do you not?  Did they change your viewpoint of education?  How do these ideas relate to your own education or how do they affect your ideas of what it means to be an educator?

These are just some prompts I'm giving you.  Preferably you will mention each work in your writing but most importantly I'd like to see that you thought about these ideas.

Writing a Blog post

1. If you haven't already, be sure to read the first post of the ED271 Blog.  It provides the assessment criteria for your writing (academic style, 2+ in-text links, 1+ reference link at the end, title, & image).
2. You should have accepted the invite to the ED271 Blog by now.  Log in to Blogger (http://www.blogger.com) and you should see ED271 Blog listed in the Dashboard. 
3. Click on the blue New Post button and start writing.
4. Click on the orange Publish Post button at the bottom when finished.
5. During the week come back and read the ED271 Blog postings by your classmates.  Add comments to two posts; no more than three comments on each.

That should cover it.  Help each other or contact me if you need assistance.

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Welcome to the ED271 Blog

Image via Wikipedia

This blog will serve as the location for several of your ED271 assignments.  You will receive an invite to post on the blog via a gmail notification.  The blog will not be viewable by the public; it will be a closed blog only to this class and guests invited by me.  You will be graded on your contributions, so here are some points to keep in mind...

1. We need to know who the author of a post is.  If you are using an obscure username (i.e. pika71), then you will need to include your full name somewhere in your post.
2. You work should be in a formal academic style.  This means that your writing should have a title, an opening paragraph, at least two paragraphs in the body, and a closing paragraph.  Use proper grammar and avoid slang.  Use paragraphs in your writing and not bullet lists.
3. Include at least two in-text links in your writing.  These should compliment your writing by providing the reader with a connection to supporting documents or explanation.
4. Include at least one reference link at the end of the post.  Give us a gem to follow up on for more reading.
5. All of your links should be working hypertext links.
6. Include a photo or image with your post.  Use a small or medium size and make sure it isn't distracting to your writing.
7. Don't forget to publish your post when you are done!

Additionally, I am asking that you provide your classmates with feedback to their posts.  For each Blog topic, read through the posts and add comments to at least two.  Let's set a maximum of three comments to each post so that everyone can receive feedback.

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