due dates: many due dates throughout the semester. See below for the dates for each part of the project. These dates are also on the daily schedule.
Total points: 150
General Guidelines
The following blog assignment guidelines will insure that the blog posts overall have the desired level of thought and complexity and will insure equity in the evaluation process. Remember that the blogs are an experimental writing space for the purposes of our course; therefore, it is appropriate (and sometimes necessary) to shift the focus of your writing throughout the semester to meet changing audiences and contexts.
- The blog project includes 10 weekly posts, an about page, and a reflective analysis paper for a total of 120 points.
- The remaining 30 points will be assessed on the blog’s overall rhetorical effectiveness which includes a clearly defined statement of purpose (audience, purpose, and context) and a visual design and a blogroll/links section that fits the statement of purpose.
- Blog posts may vary in length, but by the end of the semester the lengths should break down as follows: 1/2 of posts 500-1000 words; 1/2 250 – 500 words. You will post to your blog every Thursday by the start of class (See below for a list of exact post due dates).
- Each post is worth 10 points. One point is subtracted for each day a post is late. One point is subtracted if a post is not tagged and categorized.
- At least half of your posts should contain links to and discussion of outside sources–the sources can be text, audio, video, still images, etc. Original photographs or other media you create for a blog post can substitute for an outside source.
- Your blog should be thematically unified; that is, it should have a clearly identifiable topic. Examples of topics are biology, personal finance, contemporary poetry, national politics, cooking, etc. Your blog must take your general theme or topic and narrow it down to fit a specific purpose and audience. For example, a blog on personal finance could target college students as its audience and narrow the purpose to offering advice on how to develop a household budget and stay out of credit card debt.
- Your blog should be informative or analytical or a combination of the two. That is, the purpose should be to provide readers with useful information on a topic and/or to provide a critique or analysis of specific issues related to that topic. This does not mean that your blog cannot be creative, entertaining, or funny. Often times social or cultural critique takes the form of humor (think the Simpsons or The Daily Show), and it can also be creative (think of all the works of literature that provide cultural critique).
Blog Project components and due dates
About page (10 points)
Tuesday, 2/8 at the end of class
The About page is the first thing you will write on your blog and serves to introduce your readers to you and the topic and purpose of your blog. You need to clearly explain who your target audience is for the blog and why the information and/or analysis you will provide in this space is worth the reader’s precious time. Remember: there is a lot of information available on the web, so you need to give potential readers a reason to spend some of their online time with you on a regular basis. Part of convincing readers to stick with your blog is establishing your ethos or authority as an author. For example, if you are the author of the above described personal finance blog, what gives you the knowledge necessary to advise others in this area? Are you a finance major? Have you personally learned how to live without credit cards? Are you in charge of maintaining the household budget for you and your roommates? Remember that the web is full of sketchy information—give your readers a reason to trust you.
Weekly Posts (10 points each)
All Thursday dates refer to the due date for that week’s blog post. Blog posts can be posted at any point during that week. For example, the Thursday, 2/24 post can be completed any time after the previous week’s post (from Thursday, 2/17 @ 2:01 pm to Thursday, 2/24 @ 2:00). All weekly blog posts are due on Thursdays at the start of class.
- Post 1: Thursday, 2/17
- Post 2: Thursday, 2/24
- Post 3: Thursday, 3/3
- Post 4: Thursday, 3/10
- Post 5: Thursday, 3/24
- Post 6: Thursday, 3/31
- Post 7: Thursday, 4/7
- Post 8: Thursday, 4/14
- Post 9: Thursday, 4/21
- Post 10: Thursday, 4/28
blog reflective analysis (10 points)
Thursday, 5/5 at the beginning of class
Reflections are submitted in hard copy form. (500-750 words)
In this analytical paper reflect on your experience keeping a blog this semester. Consider the following questions:
- Revisite your design plan. What was your planned audience, purpose, and context. How did these evolve during the course of the semester if at all?
- Do you think your choice of topic and approach turned out to be appropriate to a blog format?
- What aspects of your blog are you satisfied with and what would you do differently if you were to start over? Why? Make sure to address your visual design, links, tags and categories as well as your written posts.
- Are there any posts you are particularly proud of? Why?
- How important were other’s comments (or lack thereof) to the overall success of your blog?
- Can you think of other situations in which you would keep a blog in the future? If yes, why and what situations? If no, why not?
- What suggestions would you offer to instructors considering using blogs in their classes?