Using a Blog for short assignments

When many instructors think about the types of assignments to give in their classes, it is very easy to fall back on the traditional paper. Yes, there are discussion boards that you can assign to promote interactivity among your students, however, there is still the persistent feeling that a paper is the best way to have students formally relate their knowledge and application of that knowledge. A blog, however, is a great alternative as it a)keeps all of the student's work in a single place, b)is a dynamic platform that can handle a variety of assets in addition to text, and c)can be shared and commented upon by other students in the class.

A blog may not be for every instructor, or every class, but it can provide a platform that is far more dynamic and engaging than the traditional paper.

Amature Readers Fill Literary Niche

On the February 1st PodCast of NPR's "Most Emailed Stories" an article called "Amateur Audio Books Catch Fire on the Web" (Read or listen to the Xeni Tech article at NPR) "Day to Day" contributor Xeni Jardin delivered a very good segment on the effect that podcasters and amature readers are having in the area of making classic and public domain literature available as adiobooks and podcasts. Additionally, she includes in her discussion a menton of Escape Pod and the increasing popularity of literary podcasting.