Collaborative webpages with WordPress

WordPress is a flexible and powerful Blog platform that enable learners to collaborate creating a webpage. This webpage could be made up of static content (pages) and chronologically-ordered and up-to-date information (posts/entries). Blog platforms have been also long acknowledged to be a good medium for e-Portfolios.

How can I (or my students) collaboratively create a website with WordPress?

The basics:

  1. Follow the instructions to set the Blog using the WordPress plugin in Stud.IP. Click on the Blog that you want to work on.
  2. You can create new posts using the option Posts/Add new. You can give format to the text, add images, videos, PDF,… via the button Add Media. It is advisable to add tags (keywords for the content of the text) and create categories to classify the information (like folders). Both options are on the right sidebar. You can decide to save it as a draft if you want to work on it more later or publish it if it is ready.
  3. The same process as in 2. works for pages, via the option Pages/Add new. In this case you will not have the option to use tags and categories, but you can decide the structure for the page order (pages> subpages) in Page Attributes on the right sidebar.
  4. In Appearance>Menus, you can organise the content as you prefer, e.g. creating new upper menus, organising submenus or specifying the order of the pages in the menu.
  5. In Appearance>Widgets, you can add small blocks in the sides of the website (e.g. links, an image, a calendar).

Some of their characteristics:

  • It allows to create posts and pages
  • Text (with format) and any multimedia file can be uploaded (either as a file or as HTML embed code)
  • Customization options for the appearance, menus, widgets
  • Different permissions according to roles
  • It can be public/private
  • Many plugins available, which can extend the possibilities of WordPress

Possible didactic uses:

  • Creating a virtual collaborative space to develop a research project (students)
  • Reflecting on learning through time (students)
  • Analysing of documents, images,… (students and teachers)
  • Providing feedback and peer-review (students and teachers)
  • Presenting the result of a collaborative/individual work on a specific topic of research (students)

Example:

Source: https://kulturanalysen2016.wordpress.com

WordPress official website (public server): https://www.wordpress.com/


If you try it in your class, let us know your experience with the tool below as a reply (either in English or German) and rate the didactic value of the tool accordingly.

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