How to use this blog

Why we need you to use this blog

An important part of this project is getting some feedback from the organisations LSIS are supporting as to how useful they find the toolkit and the ideas it contains.

So those who are participating in trying out some of the tools are asked to share with us and the others their experiences - from choosing a tool through to doing something with it. In some cases this may just be a few lines every other day, whilst others may have more to say, especially where either they feel they have found something particularly useful or run into problems.

There may even be cases where you start with one and find it doesn't really help and try one or two others. This is the place to tell us all about what happens. In your own words, while it's fresh in your mind.

How often should you post something, and how long for?

Don't leave it all until the end and then post a massive long report. We'd much prefer to see a few paragraphs every day or two - just updating us as you go. So there may be one or two while you get started and then a gap and then several the next week when you start using the tools more fully.

If you do run into problems then ask your adviser for help and, if you think it's relevant, mention that here too.

Your trials with the tool(s) will probably spread over three weeks or so. The first phase would be seeing what's available and working out who could try what and what activity to use it for. The second phase might be using it for the first few time, maybe also trying something else as well. There may be others now publishing their experiences or commenting on yours and that influences the direction you now take.The last would be either finishing part or all of a particular activity and maybe improving your confidence using some tool(s) or discussing ideas for the future involving one or more of them.

You will need to ensure that you have completed these entries by 25 March so the LSIS team can confirm that the grant requirements have been met. This blog will remain open thereafter if you want to continue updating it and others will be able to offer ongoing advice or assistance too.

How do I post on the blog?

You'll need to have a Google account. If you already have one, or use GMail, then use that. The log-in and password will be the same.

To set up a Google account if you haven't got one, go to the normal search page at http://google.co.uk and in the top right corner there is a Login link. Click there and follow the instructions to create an account. It is quite straightforward and worth having anyway, especially if you find yourself using  other Google services or products - and it is free, secure and you won't be bombarded with advertisements or spam.

You will need to tell your adviser your Google account e-mail address as soon as you can because we will then set up access for you. Until then you can read the blog but not add to it.

Once you have logged in you will see a New Post link in the top right corner of the blog page at http://education3s.blogspot.co.uk.

Click on that and you will get a page with a Heading area and a Content area. Put your organisation name in the Heading and something like Day 1, 2, 3 etc.

In the Content area just type what you want to say. You can also add images, videos and more

What do I put in my posts?

Here are some ideas:

• Which tool(s) you decided to try. 
• How easy they were to get started with or problems experienced in the early stages. 
• What you thought you'd try and do with them. 
• Which people at your organisation were involved and whether they were already doing something similar or perhaps this led you to do something different or change a way of doing something. 
• Problems experienced, and whether you needed help. 
• Anything useful learned from this exercise. 
• Links to useful resources you've found along the way - including other tools perhaps
• Examples, illustrations or links for what you managed to achieve during the three or four weeks of trials.

Some sample first posts can be seen in the Blog archive on the right.