What am I doing here? The content of your blog.

You can use this blog as a forum to discuss the course and post material relevant to your chosen subcultural activity. In regard to assessment you must provide at least three serious research-based entries. These can take the form of an analysis of a website that you have found, a discussion of a web ring, a survey of related blogs, some first person 'ethnographic' reportage (eg. your own observations from a live gig or related event; a complete transcript of an interview you conducted that you may or may not include excerpts from in your essays), your own review of a related documentary/DVD/CD, etc.

You can provide links to other sources or sites of interest, but remember that a link alone is not enough to be counted for assessment.


Here are the course blogs from years gone by: http://mstu2000.blogspot.com/

How to get your blog up and running.

Go to http://www.blogger.com/start, or click 'Get Your Own Blog' near the top right hand corner of this page.

Click on the CREATE YOUR BLOG NOW arrow

1. Fill in the boxes marked ‘Choose a user name’ (no spaces), ‘Enter a password’, ‘Retype password’, ‘Display name’, and ‘Email address’. (Note that your first choice for user name and password may be rejected if they are already being used. You may have to use a nickname, but please use your real full name as your ‘Display name’ so I can identify you). Check the ‘Acceptance of Terms’ box (assuming you read and agree with it), and click the CONTINUE arrow
2. Name your blog, preferably with something reflecting your choice of essay topic and its associated research, e.g. Emo Ain’t What It Used to Be. You should be able to use this title as your blog’s URL as well, e.g. http://emoaintwhatitusedtobe.blogspot.com. Type the verification letters into the box and click the CONTINUE arrow.
3. Click on your preferred template style, then click the CONTINUE arrow.
4. Wait a few seconds while your blog is created, click START POSTING and…start posting.
5. Post an introductory message telling the world about your blog and your topic. Click ‘Publish Post’
6. Click ‘View Blog’, and sit back and marvel at your mastery of cyberspace.
7. Lastly, come back to this blog, click ‘Comments’ directly below, and post your blog’s URL address.

What is a research weblog?

There are many kinds of weblogs (personal diaries, creative writing, tech blogs, news blogs, war blogs), but in the context of this course we are only dealing with research blogs. In the context we’re using them they could be defined as networked research journals.

A research weblog is quite a few things

• a Content Management System (CMS)• a collection of annotated resources• a discourse community• a reflective critical space• a public writing and thinking

What makes up a blog?

• regular writing • noting (through commentary and links) other online resources• noting (through commentary and links) other weblogs• writing ‘out’ of ideas, problems, solutions, and questions

What a blog isn’t

A blog is not the same as a diary or a journal.

It is

public
networked (interlinked)
dynamic (constantly updated)
internally and externally reflective i.e. not (only) argumentative or factual
informal but critical in style, i.e. midway between academic discourse (as in your essay) and interpersonal discourse (as in chatting with/emailing friends)

Of course, the best way to learn what an effective research blog is all about is to visit some and to develop your own.

Why use a blog?

Different people blog for quite different reasons. A research blog documents your research, your ideas and activities. It is informal, but by writing out your ideas you give them more purchase. It also helps you to connect and engage in reflective dialogue with people thinking and writing about similar topics and issues (i.e. your colleagues in the course, and quite possibly far beyond the course)

This post courtesy of Jean Burgess.
N.B. Some of the material used in this section has been adapted from Adrian Miles' introduction to research blogging, available here. Thanks, Adrian.

Details of assessment task

Rationale

The weblog assessment task is designed to develop and encourage:
Network and computer literacy
Critical evaluation of a wide range of sources
An appropriate writing style for communicating your ideas to a non-academic audience
A direct engagement with the music cultures that you are studying
Finally, the assessment of this task rewards the processes of learning and research, and not just their products.

Extent of Task

The weblog task will be assessed based on entries you make between Wednesday 26 April and Wednesday 31 May. During this time you should post a minimum of 3 substantial entries (i.e. entries including significant input from you, rather than just a link with a brief comment) per week.

Weighting: 15%

Content Guidelines

What you write in your weblog is largely up to you, as long as it is directly relevant to the themes and content of the course - particularly, the second half of the course. However, you will probably find the task most useful if you use it as an opportunity to collect and comment on material that relates to your topic for the second essay, reflect on the research and writing process for the essay, and/or engage in discussion with others about your ideas.

Criteria

Amount and quality of content (Frequency of entries, appropriate balance between original ideas and references to other sources, relevance of content, appropriate writing style)
Marks: 5

Demonstration of network literacy (linking to and commenting on the work of others, and responding to visitors' comments appropriately)
Marks: 5

Demonstration of critical thinking (depth of engagement; demonstration ability to evaluate sources and use them to think through issues relevant to the course)
Marks: 5

Post courtesy of Jean Burgess