4.5 The Research Diary
The Research Diary is distinguished from the Journal by its reliance upon the blog's chronological navigation. In most other respects, they're quite similar. Again, if you decide to use blog journals, I would recommend reserving a computer lab and devoting an entire class period to discussing and creating the blogs.
Research projects are an essential component of most academic disciplines. The humanities, sciences, math, business, engineering, law—all require students to conduct individual research. By blogging the research process, students will produce a document of their experience—good experiences and bad—which will be of benefit to others in the class and to the student as well. Plus, you will be able to look over their shoulders, so to speak, keeping an eye on their progress without having to schedule private conferences. The comments feature will also allow you to offer suggestions and guidance.
Parts of the process that might be blogged:
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An initial entry that discusses general research interests.
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A statement and refinement of the research question.
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A preliminary research strategy. What types of primary and secondary sources will be necessary?
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Notes on sources, including proper documentation and quotations.
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Observations, either hard and practical (as in a scientific experiment) or general (what themes and ideas are emerging from your research?).
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Free writing. Discovering the focus of the research through informal synthesis and analysis.
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Formal writing. If the research project must result in an essay, the blog is a great place to post early drafts and to solicit feedback from classmates. (Because the blog is public, the students might also be able to get feedback from experts in the field who are external to the university.)
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Presentation. Rather than produce an essay or in-class talk, the student might use his or her blog to present research findings.
One great advantage of an online research journal is that it survives the course. In other words, students leave your class with a document of their work. With advanced students, in particular, this can serve as part of a portfolio to offer potential employers and graduate admission committees.
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1. history of blogs
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