Usually, a blogging environment is associated with unregulated and unsupported web publishing on topics ranging from relevant and informative, to the useless and rude. However, 21 Classes does not just allow any student who wants a blog to create one (Although any individual who would like to start a blog can easily do so using one of the many free blogging applications available on the Internet, like WordPress or BlogSpot). Teachers decide whether or not they want to use 21 Classes to provide their students with blogs by creating their own Classroom Portals. On the front-end, Classroom Portals are simply websites that serve as a centralized location where all of the student blogs for a particular class or (even) school can be found. Here is an example of a Classroom Portal that I found on the 21 Classes website : http://media.21classes.com/. Notice how all of the students' individual blogs can be accessed from this Classroom Portal page (under the "Student Blog" section in the bottom right). The front-end of the Classroom Portal offers a way for teachers to showcase all of the individual student blogs as on collective entity while continuing to allow their students the autonomy to create and maintain independent blogs.
Basically, when a teacher decides to use 21 Classes to create the Classroom Portal and provide their students with individual blogs, they also become the "site admin". As a site admin, you'll have the ability to review and approve every posting that a student makes (or attempts to make) on their individual student blogs. As the site admin, you can either the edit the improper student posts yourself, or inform the student of the revisions that he or she should make before publishing the post. In addition, of course, site admins will be able to control how and (basically) where their students register for their student blogs. Teachers wi ll have the option of providing their students with the ability to create their blogging accounts themselves by signing up on the Classroom Portal site (basically, when students visit the Classroom Portal site, they will see a simple link prompting students to sign up as members). In addition, teachers can create accounts for their students manually and later give those students their own user name and password.
As for the students, they will have the ability to use a blogging interface that offers many of the same creative features that the most popular blog applications provide (WordPress or BlogSpot). Students will have the ability to add images to their posts and have the ability to quickly re-size them to their preference. Students can also embed videos in the ir posts from YouTube and other external video hosting sites. More importantly, 21 Classes offers students new blogging features to facilitate further education-based collaboration with their fellow students. For example, 21 Classes provides the ability to create "teamblogs" to which only certain designated registered users can post and the ability to have private work groups with password protected-information.
The user interface for the back-end of 21 Classes is extremely friendly and easy-to-use. I was so impressed the back-end provided colorful explanations about what the user will experience using 21 Classes; the back-end was not sim ply just a list of inks to various functions and applications (as most administration systems are). Also, you have many different options to customize your Classroom Portals, which are all expressed in understandable layman's terms. Here is a screen-shot of the back-end software:
I really like the solution that 21 Classes provides in regards to student blogs. At my job, I'm consistently asked by teachers and administrators what I know about blogs and other web 2.0 applications. It's definitely a hot topic (even though, in my opinion, people greatly underestimate the work it takes to maintain a decent blog). Obviously, the disadvantages to allowing and/or providing student blogs is that it encourages open communication and exchanges via blog posts and comments. The bloggers' posts are not necessarily the problem because they are obviously traceable (the post belongs to the blogger and no one else). However, ill-intentioned readers can create a fake user name to write nasty, rude comments in response to a blogger's posts. Such is unfortunately a very common experience on the web. With 21 Classes, teachers - as "site admins" - will have the ability to review comments before they are published on the student blogs. 21 Classes is really a great solution for those teachers and administrators that want to incorporate Web 2.0 applications in their learning curriculum.
Apparently, student blogs have only 1MB of space allotted to them. Wow! One megabyte in computer-storage-terms is very small. Basically, a single high resolution digital photo can easily be 1 or 2 MBs. So, if students want to have a blog with more than one post containing a couple of pictures each, there will definitely be problem. Until 21 Classes increases the server space provided to each student, students will have to be very careful to mantain a site with only the most relevant information and delete the excess. This seems very unintuitive and practically contrary to the fundamental nature of a "blog", which is supposed to a chronological collection of information. This 1 MB of storage is discouraging, but I guess only time will tell how students react to the limitations. Of course, there is an option to up the webspace per student to 25 MB for $9 a month.
Also, 21 Classes does not offer very many themes for the Classroom Portals and student blogs. In fact, there are only three (3) different styles to choose from. If you are familiar with CSS, you can create your own styles and themes.
I really like the solution that 21 Classes provides in regards to student blogs. At my job, I'm consistently asked by teachers and administrators what I know about blogs and other web 2.0 applications. It's definitely a hot topic (even though, in my opinion, people greatly underestimate the work it takes to maintain a decent blog). Obviously, the disadvantages to allowing and/or providing student blogs is that it encourages open communication and exchanges via blog posts and comments. The bloggers' posts are not necessarily the problem because they are obviously traceable (the post belongs to the blogger and no one else). However, ill-intentioned readers can create a fake user name to write nasty, rude comments in response to a blogger's posts. Such is unfortunately a very common experience on the web. With 21 Classes, teachers - as "site admins" - will have the ability to review comments before they are published on the student blogs. 21 Classes is really a great solution for those teachers and administrators that want to incorporate Web 2.0 applications in their learning curriculum.
Apparently, student blogs have only 1MB of space allotted to them. Wow! One megabyte in computer-storage-terms is very small. Basically, a single high resolution digital photo can easily be 1 or 2 MBs. So, if students want to have a blog with more than one post containing a couple of pictures each, there will definitely be problem. Until 21 Classes increases the server space provided to each student, students will have to be very careful to mantain a site with only the most relevant information and delete the excess. This seems very unintuitive and practically contrary to the fundamental nature of a "blog", which is supposed to a chronological collection of information. This 1 MB of storage is discouraging, but I guess only time will tell how students react to the limitations. Of course, there is an option to up the webspace per student to 25 MB for $9 a month.
Also, 21 Classes does not offer very many themes for the Classroom Portals and student blogs. In fact, there are only three (3) different styles to choose from. If you are familiar with CSS, you can create your own styles and themes.
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