Beyond Blogging
Using WordPress as a platform for
innovation in teaching & scholarship
What does blogging mean to you?
JMU’s WordPress Installation
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http://sites.jmu.edu/
5,400+ users
200+ sites
200+ themes
250+ plugins
Login tied to JMU central
eID user directory
• Site membership can be
automatically synchronized
with course roster
Plugins and Themes
• Plugins extend the functionality present in a
standard WordPress site
• Themes determine the look and feel (the
design) of a WordPress site. Themes are a way
to skin your site
• There are thousands of commercial and open
source (free) plugins and themes
.edu vs .com
http://sites.jmu.edu/
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Server located on campus
Managed by CIT staff
Course roster synchronization
100s of installed themes and
plugins
– Large ecosystem of
commercial and open source
themes and plugins
– Accounts tied to JMU’s Active
Directory
– CIT supports you and your
students
http://wordpress.com/
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Self-serve
Predictable
Reliable
Small set of carefully vetted
themes and plugins
– Great for blogging
– Limited ads may appear on
your blog unless you pay for
an upgrade
WordPress is not an L/CMS
• WordPress can be used as a “lightweight”
course management system
• WordPress lacks:
– Tools for managing, collecting, annotating and
grading assignments
– Online exams
– A gradebook
• WordPress often complements a Blackboard
(Canvas) course
“Technology without
content is empty.”
The Content
Organization
Microblogging
Digital
Storytelling
Podcasting
(audio &
video)
Group Work
Classroom
Portal
Geospatial
Digital
Scholarship
Learning
Community
WordPress
Digital
Humanities
Media Portal
Digital
History
Online
Magazine
Photoblogging
Blogging
Lightweight
Course
Management
Resource
Portal
Portfolio
Imagine…
How will you use WordPress
for teaching and learning?
It takes a village
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Server administrators
WordPress application administrators
Web designers
Instructional designers
Trainer
Customers (faculty and students)
The Process
• How you plan to use the
technology
• Type of content
• Features/function
Meet with CIT
Develop site
• Select a theme
• Add menus
• Enable functionality
• Enroll students
• Students log into site
• Practice posting
• Discuss writing in this
format
• Upload media files
Meet with
your class
Ongoing
support
• Troubleshoot
• Archive at end of
semester (optionally)