Blogging in SEM2902 _ Spring 2016

Here are the basic e-portfolio instructions.

Please write 250-300 words for each assignment listed below, and then post it on your blog by Sunday evening of the assignment week. By Saturday of the week you posted, you should have made relevant comments in a paragraph or so on at least three classmates’ posts.

Week 1/ Blog set up

Create your blog (or wordpress.com or blogger.com) and forward your blog address to your tutor’s e-mail (or post it on an instructor-created Google doc). You should also share your address with the members of a blog group that will be assigned during the first lesson. You might also post the links for your classmates’ blog addresses on your own blog.

Week 2 / Descriptive Reflection: Strengths and Challenges in Communicating (Blogpost #1)

For your first post, describe your strengths in communication and the challenges you have when communicating with others. 250-300 words. (Post by Sunday night January 17^th.)

After you have posted, read at least two of your blogging group members’ posts and at least one post by a member of your class group at large and leave comments. There is no limit, of course, on the number of posts you can read. However, what is most important is the quality of your response. You should reflect on each one of the posts in light of your own understanding of effective communication skills, and you should offer appropriate insights in the comments section of each post that you read.

Week 5/ Evaluating Verbal and Nonverbal Behavior (Blogpost #2)

For this post, you need to conduct an observation of a verbal or nonverbal interaction between two or more people, then describe it in as much detail as possible. Briefly evaluate the interaction in terms of how culture, gender or age seem to influence communication. (Post by Sunday night February 7th.)

As you read your classmates' posts on the same topic, take note of the description and evaluation, and then provide your own insights.

Week 8/ Resolving Interpersonal Conflict (Blogpost #3)

For this post, describe in detail an interpersonal conflict situation, real or hypothetical. Describe the context of the conflict, the people involved, the main problem, and the possible causes. Try to identify the feelings and/or motivations of the people involved. Finally, while considering the main problem and your search for a solution, solicit feedback from your readers in the form of ONE question. Again, clarity and conciseness are important, as is completeness in your story-telling. (Post by Sunday night February 28.)

As you read your classmates' posts on the same topic, analyze each in light of your understanding of interpersonal competence, conflict management and other principles of communication, and then provide feedback with appropriate insights and a possible solution. The key here is for you to provide commentary that is based on what you have learned about effective interpersonal communication.  

Week 13 or 14/ Critical Reflection on Project Learning (Blogpost #4)

For this post, you should choose one focus of the project and critically reflect on your learning in the project with specific points discussed. As one possibility, you might discuss, for example, your own oral presentation skills. In that case, you could explain how the various presentations you gave helped you enhanced your verbal and nonverbal skills. You could also discuss the challenges you faced initially in terms of delivery and how you improved. You should not just explain what you did and whether you liked it. You must also explain what you learned about yourself and others in the process. How has the experience changed your view of learning in general and interpersonal communication in specific? Finally, you could explain what you might take forward from this experience.  (Post by Sunday night, April 10th.)  

After you read your classmates’ posts, give them appropriate feedback on their reflection.  

Week 15/ Additional course-related documentation (extra posts)

For this post in the last week, you should upload documentation from the Project, the Presentation Pitch (PP) and the Project Oral Presentation (POP). This could include meeting minutes, the notes from your storyboard of the project video, your outline for the PP, and notes or a script for the POP, and the video itself.

Though no student feedback is required for these posts, comments are welcome.

Once you have created your blog, please post the address on this Google Doc if you are in Group E: 
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aZUbWpC2p_ML_d8p5i8EExTntdytlPFmglbibG-rbbA/edit?usp=sharing

...if you are in Group F:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1K37xWGxzrI7ACAA-09u-GwIRj-sUAml-8UTixdSPuuo/edit?usp=sharing

Effective Communication: The e-Portfolio for SIE2016/PEV2011

THE “WHAT”

In SIE2016/PEV2011 posting writing on your blog is as an integral part of the portfolio.

Essentially, your e-portfolio is an individual blog that you will create as a home-base for most of your module writing. The core of that writing will be responses to the course writing assignments -- reflections, multiple drafts of a summary/reader response and then various documents that form a technical report / inquiry-based proposal -- and subsequent interaction about those assignments with your instructor and classmates. In fact, one of the most critical components of the e-portfolio is the feedback you give to and receive from peers.

THE “WHY”

Blogging, as you may know, is a form of self-publishing, online. Once a writer has set up a weblog, or blog, he or she can post on a variety of topics and receive feedback from anyone with an Internet connection.  This can be useful when writing is shared within a particular community, whether a special interest group, class or any other blogging group. 

In SIE2016/PEV2011, blogging will serve as a way for you to:

1)      reflect on course content in writing in a semi-formal manner;

2)      develop and share your ideas with an audience that is not limited to your

          instructor;

3)      learn about the ideas of your classmates and your tutor;

4)      comment on the ideas of others; and

5)      refine your writing skills. 

Your various interactions in cyberspace have the general objective of allowing you to connect with classmates and your instructor outside of class; encouraging you to ask questions, give opinions and share information; and helping you better understand the role of social media in shaping effective communication within the academic community.

THE “HOW”

Setting up a blog: To create your own blog website, go to http://www.blogger.com/, www.wordpress.com or any other blog site. At these sites, follow the instructions to create your own site. To make your site easily recognizable to classmates, your address could have SIE2016/PEV2011, and your given name, family name or nickname on it. Once you have created a blog for our course, within that you can eventually begin to post assignments.  The title of your course-related blog might be something like “Effective Communication” or “SIE2016/PEV2011. Eventually, share your blog address with me and your classmates. We will post the link to your blog on our own blogs.

Blogging groups: In your class/tutorial group, you will be assigned a blogging group of 4-5 members at the start of the trimester. For every written post that you make, you should read and respond to the posts of at least two members of this blogging group. The purpose of this is for you and your blogging group members to share written ideas with each other. In this way, you might also develop greater familiarity with each other and assist each other in creating the most appropriate and effective posts possible. A second purpose is for this smaller class group to have an opportunity to demonstrate the skills needed to become a cohesive social unit.

The four-stage blogging process:

Stage One -- Having setting up your blog, read the blog assignment for the first post (see schedule on the course website), and write a response of 150 to 200 words, preferably as a word document. Later you can copy and paste this doc into the new post section of your blog.

Stage Two -- Publish your post on your blog by the assigned date.

Stage Three -- Access the blogs of at least two other members of your blogging group, and read their posts for the same topic/assignment. After reading each post, leave a comment.  In your commentary, you might answer questions such as these: What do you think about the post?  Does it respond to the assignment? Is the content clear and well expressed? Is the content impressive or not?  If it is, what makes it so? Is it concise, coherent, cohesive? Is the answer complete? Are you in agreement or disagreement with any opinions stated? Is the writer courteous (and are you)? How clear and accurate is the language use?

Once you have reacted to the posts of at least two members of your blogging group, you can visit and comment on the blogs of other classmates. These 'comments' should be made by the first tutorial after the weekend when the posts were first uploaded to your classmates' blogs.

Stage Four -- Return to your post to see what commentary has been left by your peers. Follow that up, if you like, with comments back to your readers.

Feedback: There is formal assessment of your e-portfolio. Part of this will involve your posting various drafts and rewrites of the main writing assignments: the summary/reader response and the technical report/proposal. On these you will receive feedback with a focus on the content & organization, and language use of your writing. You also receive feedback on the reflective writing that you do. This will include descriptive, analytical and critical reflections. Most of the feedback you receive in this regard will come from your peers. 

At the same time, the punctuality of your posting and the manner, frequency and accuracy of your comments on your classmates' posts is also important for the final evaluation of your e-portfolio. For further information, please see the rubric for the portfolio.

THE ‘WHEN’

Blogging assignments should be completed as follows:

Assignment 1:  Due by Friday, midnight, Week 1

Write a reflective post on the topic “My English Language Learning Journey” or “The Importance of English for Me,” or an instructor-approved variation of one of these topics.  This should be 150 to 200 words.

Assignment 2:  Due second tutorial, Week 3

Write the first draft of your assessed reader response essay to one of the reading articles included in the module resource reading list. This draft should be 400 to 500 words.

Assignment 3: Due by the start of the second tutorial, Week 7

Post the draft of each section of the inquiry-based proposal that you have written. This must include a personal statement, and might then also include the transmittal letter, the intro, various sections of the body, and/or the conclusion.

 Assignment 4: Due by Friday, midnight, Week 9

Write an analytical reflection on your recent oral presentation experience. In it detail one aspect of the presentation: preparation, your delivery, the use of audio-visuals, teamwork or overall impact. This should be 150-200 words.

Assignment 5:  Due by the start of the second tutorial, Week 12

Write a critically reflective post on the topic “The Role of Peer and Tutor Feedback." Explain your view of that feedback, how it impacted your developing writing skills, and  whether/how you might transfer content, organization and language skills learned in the course to writing assignments within any other module at SIT. This should be 300 to 400 words.

Your 'comments' on classmates’ posts should be made by the first tutorial after the weekend when the posts were first uploaded to your classmates' blogs.

A necessary condition for an assessment of excellent in the Portfolio portion of our course grade is that you read and react in writing to at least a total of three classmates’ posts per blog assignment, and that you do so in a timely manner. 

                                                  

Valuable Links for SIE2016/PEV2011 Effective Communication

Here is the link for the SIE2016/PEV2011 Symbaloo page:

http://edu.symbaloo.com/mix/sie2016-pev2011

Here is the link to the Google Docs folder:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B__L-vx3a2PqfkRCZmlxNUM1VHVTc2REQUI2eFNuOW51Q0pZWHVKMzFuWlVKSUpjZ0dpUEE

Take note: To edit required documents in the Brad's Groups folder, you need to add this folder to your own drive.

Valuable Links for students enrolled in Early Childhood Education: Writing in the Disciplines program

Google docs link:

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B__L-vx3a2PqfnRSbkxaM2cyNURhV0htSi1uWkJKMWF0NTVaakg2RTNLcFJjY2hqNFpIV0E&usp=sharing


Symbaloo page link:

https://edu.symbaloo.com/mix/earlychildhoodeducation7

LINK FOR PROBLEM-SOLUTION ESSAY REVIEW CRITERIA

HERE IT IS:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/13CmBwOKuO2N1_n4RqGT8_KMx0vdZXoIlY5MQiDwsVZU/edit?usp=sharing

Link to problem-solution essay components document

A03

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YoVGmJi-Qe2xApOu2yjTg-DOJoEuvSofgQhBly-M_Ag/edit?usp=sharing


A04

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nsczZRt9hWIVDrJg_e2PC8xiS-KddUpBCoEkyTCy3Pg/edit?usp=sharing


E07

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-zbZh0YqXG1EQ_ejZfwHcoD9M33-AdR045DvFwDig-A/edit?usp=sharing

LINK FOR THESIS STATEMENT WORK

Here's the link to the Google Doc page where you can post your thesis statement.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZF-4D1e0ErIfbZEalreVh9yNlRBTefL6ioIUyDD2utU/edit?usp=sharing

Link for reader response evaluation criteria

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1abyT83KKxOXkpunv574GAdvvF7qBzZLZf8pEzcgEmxQ/edit?usp=sharing

Link for summary feedback template

Use this link to access, then copy, and paste on your own word doc, the summary feedback template:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GzAnDshhVK4KusFJhkS4WOhEb29eeLp3yazEn8sN7DE/edit?usp=sharing

Using Social Media in ES1102

Interactive Learning for Blackstone's EAP groups

ASSIGNMENT SPECIFICATIONS

THE “WHAT”

In ES1102 we use social media as an integral part of the course. This is done in various ways.

The first way is through the use of blogging as the basis for an e-portfolio. Building an e-portfolio is a value-added component of ES1102. The primary part of the e-portfolio is an individual blog that you will create as a home-base for most of your ES1102 writing. The core of that writing will be responses to the course writing assignments and subsequent interaction about those assignments with your instructor and classmates. In fact, one of the most critical components of the portfolio is the feedback you give to and receive from peers.

An additional aspect of the use of social media is your interaction via the course Facebook page. We have an ES1102 course Facebook page (please “like” ES1102 Issues &Interactions) that we often use as a platform for sharing writing in class. You should visit this site regularly, using it to ask questions and give opinions and as a platform for sharing relevant video and text links with classmates. 

We will refer to both the blogs and the Facebook page in class. In addition, we have a course Symbaloo page: http://edu.symbaloo.com/mix/es1102ontheweb .

The Symbaloo page is simply a graphic 'bookmark' of the main websites for ES1102. Join Symbaloo to enjoy this additional resource.

THE “WHY”

Blogging, as you may know, is a form of self-publishing, online. Once a writer has set up a weblog, or blog, he or she can post on a variety of topics and receive feedback from anyone with an Internet connection.  This can be useful when writing is shared within a particular community, whether a special interest group, class or any other blogging group. In ES1102, blogging will serve as a way for you to

• reflect on course content in writing in a formal and semi-formal manner;
• develop and share your ideas with an audience that is not limited to your instructor;
• learn about the ideas of your classmates and your tutor;
• comment on the ideas of others; and
• refine your writing skills. 

Your various interactions in cyberspace have the general objective of

• allowing you to connect with classmates and your instructor outside of class;
• encouraging you to ask questions, give opinions and share information;
• and helping you better understand the role of social media in shaping effective communication within the academic community. 

THE “HOW” of Blogging and Facebook

1.     Setting up a blog

• To create your own blog website, go to http://www.blogger.com/, www.wordpress.com or any other blog site. At these sites, follow the instructions to create your own site. To make your site recognizable to classmates, your address could have ES1102, and your given name, family name or nickname on it.
• Once you have created a blog for our course, within that, you can eventually begin to post responses to assignments.  The title of your course-related blog might be something like “EAP” or “ES1102.”
• Eventually, share your blog address with me and your classmates at this link:
  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YUHvB4_OOoxWYQIJHtG8kzJoSGOAxo13XHWUgSVVHuA/edit?usp=sharing
• We will post the link to your blog on our own blog.

2.     Blogging groups/blogging buddies

In your ES1102 class/tutorial group, you will be assigned a blogging group of 4-6 members at the start of the semester. For every written post that you make, you should read and respond to the posts of at least two members of this blogging group. The purpose of this is for you and your blogging group members to share written ideas with each other. In this way, you might also develop greater familiarity with each other and assist each other in creating the most appropriate and effective posts possible. A second purpose is for this smaller class group to have an opportunity to demonstrate the skills needed to become a cohesive social unit.

3.     The four-stage blogging process

• Stage One: Having setting up your blog, read the blog assignment for the first post (see schedule on the course website), and write a response of 250 to 300 words, preferably as a word document. Later you can copy and paste this doc into the new post section of your blog.
• Stage Two:  Publish your post on your blog by the assigned date.
• Stage Three: Access the blogs of at least two other members of your blogging group, and read their posts for the same topic/assignment. After reading each post, leave a comment.  In your commentary, you might answer questions such as these: What do you think about the post?  Does it respond to the assignment? Is the content clear and well expressed? Is the content impressive or not?  If it is, what makes it so? Is it concise, coherent, cohesive? Is the answer complete? Are you in agreement or disagreement with any opinions stated? Is the writer courteous (and are you)? How clear and accurate is the language use?
  
  Once you have reacted to the posts of at least two members of your blogging group, you can visit and comment on the blogs of other classmates.

A necessary condition for an assessment of excellent in the Portfolio portion of our course grade is that you read and react in writing to at least a total of three classmates’ posts per blog assignment.

Pay close attention to your language use. Remember, a blog is a form of publishing, and when and if you present your ideas in public, it is advisable to present them in a clear, grammatically accurate fashion. You should also use a tone that, while not as formal as that of a formal letter or official written report, should still adhere to standards for courtesy, correctness, conciseness, clarity, coherence/cohesion, concreteness and completeness, the so-called 7Cs of good writing.
 

• Stage Four: Return to your post to see what commentary has been left. Follow that up, if you like, with comments back to your readers.

FEEDBACK

There is formal assessment of your e-portfolio. I will give you feedback with a focus on your blog posts' content & organization, your language use, the timeliness of your posting and the manner, frequency and accuracy of your comments on classmates' posts. (Please see the rubric for the portfolio).

While your interactions with Facebook in the course are also viewed by me and others, there is no evaluation. Your own focus should be on how you make an effort to ask questions, search for relevant video and text sources to share, and then view/read and comment on the links provided by others, are able to value add to the course discussions by their effort. Strictly speaking, this may not add up to points for a mark, but it will certainly advance your learning, and it will warm your tutor's heart!

BLOGGING ASSIGNMENTS

I. Assignment 1:  Due by Friday night, midnight, January 23rd, Week 2

Write a reflective post on the topic “My English Language Learning Journey” or “Living in A Globalized World: The Importance of English for Me,” or an instructor-approved variation of one of these topics. This should be 250 to 300 words.

II. Assignment 2:  Due first tutorial, February 9th or 10th, Week 5

Write the first draft of your assessed reader response essay to one of the reading articles related to social media. This draft should be 500 to 600 words.

III. Assignment 3:  Due by Sunday, midnight, February 22nd, Recess Week

Write a reflective post on "An Influential Event," one that has shaped your life and the person you have become. This should be 150 to 250 words.

 IV. Assignment 4:  Due by the start of Tutorial #1/Week 7
Write and post the first draft of your problem-solution essay. This should be 800-900 words.

V. Assignment 5:  Due by the end of Tutorial #1/Week 11

Write a critically reflective post on the topic “The Role of Peer and Tutor Feedback." Explain your view of that feedback, how it impacted your developing writing skills, and  whether/how you might have transferred content, organization and language skills learned in the course to writing assignments within any other module. This should be 300 to 400 words.

Finally: In addition, please upload a paper that you have written and submitted for another course. It would be great if you could briefly explain whether/how you might have benefited from feedback given in our writing while working on this paper.