Keeping a digital diary about the course training

Computer desktop or mobile device
Internet connection

In this activity, we will create a weblog using the features of WordPress. The central idea is to provide trainers (and trainees, afterword) with the competence to create, share and comment online content, encouraging them to keep a digital diary about the training sessions and, by this way, to develop a feeling of (virtual) community around the group.

In a training context, the implementation of activities characterized by dialogue and reciprocity (collaborative learning) can be promoted and fostered by the creation of weblogs. In fact, the creation and management of a weblog allows to maintain continuous communication among learners, fostering the feeling of virtual community among the group of trainees.

Recognizing the importance of interaction with others and the importance of feedback about their findings, opinions and achievements, this strategy could be used as a way to share the learning activities and the work done with other people interested in the subject.

• To create and organize an online content sharing space.
• To create multimedia texts with hyperlinks.
• To produce a digital diary.

WordPress is free and is available online (http://wordpress.com).

WordPress is an online tool that lets us create and manage a weblog. In general, and like a website, this tool allows to create and share information online, simply and quickly. With this technology is possible to represent ideas / content under various ways (text, image, sound, video) and make connections to the outside with hyperlinks

Do initiate the activity by questioning adult learners about the informative and interactive aspects of the Internet, speculating how the production and dissemination of content on the network takes place.

Take the opportunity to present weblog examples, discussing with them the subjects chosen by the authors, their general appearance or visual template and the forms of interaction allowed to the readers.

At this point you can ask them to think and propose a suggestive title for the weblog and ask them to check if there are already other blogs with the same name.

To start creating the online sharing space, you must register on the application and start to create a blog address in the following format: <blogname.wordpress.com>.

Once registered, you can define the look and the blog structure. For that you can choose a theme by going to the “Appearance” or “Presentation” menu, in the “Themes” option.

The next step will be to invite each of the trainers to this common blog. They also must register on the application and start to write their contributions.

Finally, after the visual and the structure are defined, it is really a matter of writing and publishing the first post and to propose to all the trainees to do the same. Each of them can start by introducing him or herself individually, for example.

1. To become familiar with the world of WordPress weblogs
2. To reflect on the topic that you would like to develop
3. To sign up for the application and start to create a blog
4. To set the overall look by choosing a template
5. To define which pages are static and which the main navigation is
6. To create static pages and to check the structure meanwhile created
7. To write the first “post”

Before starting the activity, make sure that each adult learner have an email account to be able to subscribe to the application.

It can trigger new ideas and awake even more interest in the exploitation of the resources that this service offers, asking some initial questions, such as: how should be written in this type of online sharing spaces?  what kind of resources can be used in a weblog?  do we let our readers comment on what we write? and so on.

There are several video tutorials on the Internet on how to create a weblog using WordPress. If you find it interesting and necessary, start this activity by presenting some of these resources.

Do encourage trainers to use the “hyperlink” feature to expand content displayed by linking to images, other weblogs, and websites with materials that enrich subjects covered.

There are freely available other tools that can be used for the same aim:
Blogger: http://blogger.com; Weebly: http://weebly.com; Wix: http://wix.com

Do explain how to customize the WordPress profile, if necessary, and guide the trainers to check out the Privacy and Security Policy for the service.

Weblog posts can be open to comments from visitors if that option is marked during the weblog customization.

Remember that images and other published content must be free of copyright and properly referenced.