Putting Your School News Online - Part 5: Q&A

In Parts 1-4 of this series I’ve discussed the use of blogED to put school news online. Here are some questions and possible answers about how and why.

Parents ask:

Will it be easy to use?

• Absolutely. If you have access to the internet you can read the school news. The school can still send you a weekly email reminder to check the blog for the latest news.

Do I need a password?

• No. The blog is free and open for public reading.

Can I add comments?

• Yes. We really want to hear what you think about what’s happening at our school. Since all comments must be approved before going live on the web, there might be a small delay before you see it on the blog.

Will it be easy to search?

• Yes. You can use the search feature at the top of the post. And, since it’s free and public, search engines like Google can help you find any of the items in the school news blog.

I don’t have the internet – how will I get school news?

• The school can still print a limited number of newsletters from the past week’s posts. Students and parents can pick these up from the front office.

Students ask:

Can I upload articles and pictures?

• Yes. But it will have to be uploaded by a teacher, and then approved by the Principal before the post if published on the blog.

Can I add comments?

• Absolutely. You can comment on any posts, for example excursions you or your friends were involved in. But there might be a slight delay before you see them online since they have to be approved first.

Teachers ask:

How will this affect me?

• You can now write news items straight into the blog. No need to save files to a file-server by a set deadline.

What’s the up-side?

• No more double-handling. News goes live as soon as it’s approved. No more deadlines or waiting till the next printed newsletter is published. Readers can see your article as soon as it’s approved by the Principal.

Can I include attachments and images?

• Yes, blogED allows attachments and pictures. These might be a drama production flyer, or an excursion permission note, or photos from an musical event.

Admin staff ask:

How will this change what I do?

• You might need to enter some blog posts for teachers, but there will be much less desk-top publishing.

Isn’t this just too complicated?

• It is different. But doing things in an electronic format and a printed format is double the workload. Using an electronic format to its full potential should alleviate some of double-handling. Once a week (or fortnight) you may have to compile a printout of the most recent posts for readers without computers.

NEXT: One-Click Reading with RSS, and a series summary.
If you have other questions please comment below and I’ll try to answer …