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Blackboard: Blogs

What is a blog?

A blog is a personal online journal that is frequently updated and intended to share with others. Most blogs also have a commenting feature, so that people can respond to one another's thoughts. Blogs encourage students to clearly express their ideas. In Blackboard, instructors create and manage blogs, and only enrolled users can view and create entries and comments in them. Similar to journals, you can use blogs for a graded assignment or gather opinions and information without assigning a grade.

Types of Blogs

Blogs consist of two elements:

  • Blog entries: Text, images, links, multimedia, social media, and attachments added by course members.
  • Comments: Remarks or responses to blog entries made by other course members, including the instructor.

You can allow students to participate in blogs in three ways:

  1. Course blogs: You can create a course blog and choose the topic. All course members can add blog entries and comment on blog entries.
  2. Individual blogs: Students can add entries only to their own blogs. All other course members can view and add comments to it.
  3. Group blogs: If you enable the blogs tool for a group of users,group members can add blog entries and make comments on blog entries, building upon one another.

Create a Blog

  1. Log in to Blackboard.
  2.  Enter the course in which you wish to create the blog.
  3. Make sure to turn Edit Mode ON at the top right-hand corner of the page.
  4. Click the Plus sign at the top of your course menu and select Tool Link.
  5. On the drop down list select Blog and name your blogs area. Be sure to make the link available to students when you are ready.
  6. In your new Blogs area, click the Create Blog button.
  7. Type a name and optional instructions. Make the blog available to students.
  8. Select the Display After and Display Until check boxes to enable the date and time selections.
  9. In the Blog Participation section, decide if the blog is for individuals or the course. You may also allow anonymous posting.
  10. In the Blog Settings section, select Monthly or Weekly Index Entries. Optionally, select check boxes to allow users to edit and delete entries, or delete comments.
  11. In the Grade Settings section, select No grading or the Grade option and type the number of Points possible.

Blackboard blogs tool link menu options
Note:

    Points possible will apply to one or more entries made by a user to the blog topic. After you enable grading, a column is created automatically in the Grade Center. The blog is permanently gradable, and you can't change the setting to No grading.

12. Select Submit.

 

Create a Blog Entry

1. Within the Blogs section of your course, click the title of the blog you wish to add entries.

2. Once inside the blog, click the Create Blog Entry button.

Create a Blog Entry Button on top left

3. In the Create Blog Entry area, enter the title of the blog, the entry message,and add any blog entry files such as documents and images.

4. Once you have completed the blog entry. Click Post Entry button to add the entry into the blog. You may also click Save Entry as Draft to save your entry without publishing it to the blog.

For additional support, visit http://uhd.edu/bbhelpform