People’s Choice Criteria

After 336 hours, the poll for the Best Blog Award People’s Choice Criteria is now closed.

Here is the final tally of votes (Facebook likes + Blogger votes):

The Science Gurus: 271 + 57 = 328

Blogitty Blog-Blog: 489 + 142 = 631

RECaJiInna: 84 + 14 = 98

The Adventures of the Earth Trotters: 276 + 98 = 374

Science Adventurers!: 20 + 9 = 29

Science Explorers!: 387 + 11 = 398

A Walk Through Biodiversity: 70 + 7 = 77

A Date with Mother Nature: 121 + 34 = 155

Total Votes Cast:

Facebook: 1,718

Blogger: 372

TOTAL = 2,090

But remember, this poll is just 15% of the criteria for the Best Blog Award. The bulk will still come from peer evaluation (31.5%) and most importantly, teacher’s evaluation (53.5%).

Congratulations everyone for a job well done! And do not forget to thank everyone who helped you with all of those votes!

Post No. 9 – A Wonderful Journey.

January 27, 2011. I still vividly remember your shouts and cheers the day when I announced that you would be having a field trip to UPLB.

As promised at the beginning of the school year, this is something that I was looking forward to tell you ever since our preparations started as early as the first day of classes this 2011.

Now that it’s over, it was really overwhelming to read your insights and reflections about the said field trip and your experiences inside the classroom for the past five months that we’ve been together.

So now, let me hear your final reflections about this fourth quarter CEO and how you were able to go over it. Here are your guide questions for Post No. 9:

• What is your fourth quarter final CEO (The Blogging Project)? Give a brief introduction.
• How did you prepare for it?
• Did you encounter any problem/s as you prepare for the said project? If yes, how did you resolve those problems? If none, what made it easy for you to prepare for it?
• Given the chance to do this CEO all over again, would you still do it? Why or why not?
• How do you think this CEO can be further improved?
• Will you change anything regarding how this CEO was handled? If yes, what would that be? If none, why not?
• What is the most important lesson that you learn from this CEO?

Deadline of Posting: March 19, 2011 (Saturday)

Criteria:

• Content - 35 points
• Coherence - 10 points
• Creativity - 10 points
• Voice - 10 points
• Mechanics - 10 points
• Text Layout - 10 points
• Graphics & Multimedia - 10 points
• Intellectual Honesty - 10 points

Life is a road now and forever

A wonderful journey...

– Anastasia

Post No. 8 – A not-so-secret garden.

How did it feel to rush down the slippery trail of the Makiling Botanical Garden?

The Makiling Botanical Garden (MBG), or the Makiling Botanic Garden according to this site, is a large tract of tropical forest where endemic and exotic floras are found.

Despite the short time we spent in exploring this site, I’m sure that you were able to spot several species of plants that you may have never seen before.

• What did you expect to learn from the MBG?
• What did you learn from the MBG?
• Details about the organism/s you saw in this site.

And since this is the last site that we visited during our field trip, here are additional guide questions that you have to reflect on in this second to the last post:

• How did it feel right after you went home from the field trip?
• Were your expectations met?
• What was the greatest lesson you’ve learned from this experience?
• Complete this statement: I/We will never forget this learning experience because…

Deadline of Posting: March 11, 2011 (Friday)

Evaluation Assignments:

• Lauan Group 1 will comment on Almaciga Group 4
• Lauan Group 2 will comment on Almaciga Group 1
• Lauan Group 3 will comment on Almaciga Group 2
• Lauan Group 4 will comment on Almaciga Group 3
• Almaciga Group 1 will comment on Lauan Group 4
• Almaciga Group 2 will comment on Lauan Group 1
• Almaciga Group 3 will comment on Lauan Group 2
• Almaciga Group 4 will comment on Lauan Group 3

Deadline of Evaluating: March 15, 2011 (Tuesday)

Post No. 7 – Rice all you can!

“One grain of rice equals one bead of sweat.”

–That is how we, Filipinos, value rice as the most staple food in our dinner tables.

Sinangag, suman, biko, kutsinta, bibingka, puto, palitaw, sapin-sapin, champorado, pinipig, paella, rice noodles, unlimited rice, and bottomless rice – no matter how you call it, rice will incessantly be a part of the Filipino diet!

At the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), scientists sees to it that rice farmers in rice-growing countries would be able to grow more rice of good quality, in an environmentally sustainable way.

Being the largest non-profit independent agricultural research center in Asia, IRRI aims to find sustainable ways to improve the well being of rice farmers and consumers, while at the same time ensuring environmental sustainability through collaborative research, partnerships, and the strengthening of national agricultural research and extension systems.

• What did you expect to learn from IRRI?
• What did you learn from IRRI?
• Details about the organism/s you saw in IRRI.

Deadline of Posting: March 11, 2011 (Friday)

Evaluation Assignments:

• Lauan Group 1 will comment on Almaciga Group 3
• Lauan Group 2 will comment on Almaciga Group 4
• Lauan Group 3 will comment on Almaciga Group 1
• Lauan Group 4 will comment on Almaciga Group 2
• Almaciga Group 1 will comment on Lauan Group 3
• Almaciga Group 2 will comment on Lauan Group 4
• Almaciga Group 3 will comment on Lauan Group 1
• Almaciga Group 4 will comment on Lauan Group 2

Deadline of Evaluating: March 15, 2011 (Tuesday)

Post No. 6 – Lunch at the Museum.

I bet you’ve been singing in your heads, “rain, rain go away, come again another day” while we were parked outside the Botanical Garden.

What a fun way to have lunch, ayt?!

Add to it the Ecodama game no. 3 inside the jam-packed bus!

How romantic, isn't it?! Hahahahaha!

Well anyway, let’s celebrate life here at the Museum of Natural History while we walk thru its halls as it showcase the country’s teeming biodiversity!

• What did you expect to learn from the Museum of Natural History?
• What did you learn from the Museum of Natural History?

Do not forget to discuss in this post the organisms that you've met at the Museum. And again, refer to Post No. 4 for the details you have to include about the said organisms.

Deadline of Posting: March 11, 2011 (Friday)

Evaluation Assignments:

• Lauan Group 1 will comment on Almaciga Group 2
• Lauan Group 2 will comment on Almaciga Group 3
• Lauan Group 3 will comment on Almaciga Group 4
• Lauan Group 4 will comment on Almaciga Group 1
• Almaciga Group 1 will comment on Lauan Group 2
• Almaciga Group 2 will comment on Lauan Group 3
• Almaciga Group 3 will comment on Lauan Group 4
• Almaciga Group 4 will comment on Lauan Group 1

Deadline of Evaluating: March 15, 2011 (Tuesday)

Post No. 5 – Plant Power.

Ready for site number two?

This time we have to talk about our second pit stop – the Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB).

• What did you expect to learn from the IPB?
• What did you learn from the IPB?

Remember, you have to discuss in this post the organisms that you met at the IPB. Refer to Post No. 4 for the details you have to include about the organisms you’ve met here.

Deadline of Posting: March 11, 2011 (Friday)

Evaluation Assignments:

• Lauan Group 1 will comment on Almaciga Group 1
• Lauan Group 2 will comment on Almaciga Group 2
• Lauan Group 3 will comment on Almaciga Group 3
• Lauan Group 4 will comment on Almaciga Group 4
• Almaciga Group 1 will comment on Lauan Group 1
• Almaciga Group 2 will comment on Lauan Group 2
• Almaciga Group 3 will comment on Lauan Group 3
• Almaciga Group 4 will comment on Lauan Group 4

Deadline of Evaluating: March 15, 2011 (Tuesday)

Post No. 4 – Finally. The Field Trip.

Finally, now you have the chance to talk about the field trip! In the subsequent posts, you will be discussing about your field trip to UPLB and we will allocate one site for each post.

So, gear up and use these guide questions for your Post No. 4:

• Why did you have a field trip?
• Why did you join the field trip?
• What did you expect from it?
• How did it feel before the actual field trip?

Now, let’s talk about the first site – the Dairy Training and Research Institute (DTRI).

• What did you expect to learn from the DTRI?
• What did you learn from the DTRI?

image source

In this post, you have to discuss already the organisms that you met in this site. Here are the details that you should include about the organism:

1. Name of organism

• Common name
• Scientific name
• Taxonomic classification

2. Characteristics

• What’s interesting about this organism?
• Why did you choose it?

3. Ecological relationship

• Ecological role (e.g. producer, consumer, decomposer, herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, scavenger, etc.)
• Ecological relationship/s with other organism/s
• Describe the ecological relationship/s

4. Picture/sketch of the organism

Deadline of Posting: March 3, 2011 (Thursday)

Evaluation Assignments:

• Lauan Group 1 will comment on Lauan Group 4
• Lauan Group 2 will comment on Lauan Group 1
• Lauan Group 3 will comment on Lauan Group 2
• Lauan Group 4 will comment on Lauan Group 3
• Almaciga Group 1 will comment on Almaciga Group 4
• Almaciga Group 2 will comment on Almaciga Group 1
• Almaciga Group 3 will comment on Almaciga Group 2
• Almaciga Group 4 will comment on Almaciga Group 3

Deadline of Evaluating: March 6, 2011 (Sunday)

Post No. 3 – From animals to plants…

As compared to your third quarter CEO, your fourth quarter CEO focused straightforwardly to the diversity of the plant kingdom. Some of you worked individually, some by group.

Post No. 3 entails you to reflect back again how you were able to come up with your fourth quarter CEO, thou this time, comparing it to your third quarter outputs. Again, this is a personal reflection that should be able to answer the following questions:

• What is your fourth quarter CEO? Give a brief introduction. Indicate also if you worked individually or with a partner/group.
• Was it easier for you to prepare for this CEO? Why or why not?
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of working alone/in a group?
• Did you still encounter any problem/s as you prepare for the said project? If yes, how did you resolve those problems? If none, what made it easy for you to prepare for it?
• What is the most important lesson that you learn from that CEO?

Deadline of Posting: February 25, 2011 (Friday)

Evaluation Assignments:

• Lauan Group 1 will comment on Lauan Group 3
• Lauan Group 2 will comment on Lauan Group 4
• Lauan Group 3 will comment on Lauan Group 1
• Lauan Group 4 will comment on Lauan Group 2
• Almaciga Group 1 will comment on Almaciga Group 3
• Almaciga Group 2 will comment on Almaciga Group 4
• Almaciga Group 3 will comment on Almaciga Group 1
• Almaciga Group 4 will comment on Almaciga Group 2

Deadline of Evaluating: February 28, 2011 (Monday)

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The Projects

Credits to Digital Revolutions for the background of the logo

and Clker.com for the recycle blue crystal earth globe clip art.

Here are the URLs of the entries to the blogging project:

Lauan 1 (Mike, Rafael, Jeremy, Star)
- The Science Gurus

http://thesciencegurus.blogspot.com/

Lauan 2 (Frances, Shauna, Triza, Jeno, Cariel)

- Blogitty Blog-Blog

http://blogittyblog-blog.blogspot.com/

Lauan 3 (Raine, Enzo, Camille, Jigger, Inna)

- RECaJiInna

http://recajiinna.blogspot.com/

Lauan 4 (Bertha, Je-an, Sam, Tan)

- The Adventures of the Earth Trotters

http://earthtrotters.blogspot.com/

Almaciga 1 (Miguel, Khael, Adi, Clarisse, Alex)

- Science Adventurers!

http://migadikhalexclar.blogspot.com/

Almaciga 2 (Zion, Anabel, Donny, Misha)

- Science Explorers!

http://thescienceexplorers.blogspot.com/

Almaciga 3 (Reisa, Margot, Khaim, Gobs)

- A Walk Through Biodiversity

http://theminigurus.blogspot.com/

Almaciga 4 (Toni, Gabbie, Caitlin, Marille, James)

- A Date with Mother Nature

http://sdjs-4.blogspot.com/

When you post your comment, rate the post using the following criteria as discussed in this earlier post:

• Content - (10 points)
• Coherence - (5 points)
• Creativity - (5 points)
• Voice - (5 points)
• Mechanics - (5 points)

• Text Layout - (5 points)
• Graphics & Multimedia - (5 points)
• Intellectual Honesty - (5 points)

TOTAL: (45 points)

Aside from the grade you are giving, you are expected also to give a consistently positive, respectful, and brief comment while providing a meaningful addition to their discussion.

Enjoy reading!

Post No. 2 – All About Animals

Your third quarter CEO introduced you to how diverse the animal kingdom is. We discussed about the adaptations of animals, may it be a change in structure, function, or behavior that had accumulated over successive generations, that contributed much to the current biological diversity.

Post No. 2 entails you to reflect back how you were able to came up with your third quarter CEO. This is a personal reflection that should be able to answer the following questions:

• What is your third quarter CEO? Give a brief introduction.
• How did you prepare for it?
• Did you encounter any problem/s as you prepare for the said project? If yes, how did you resolve those problems? If none, what made it easy for you to prepare for it?
• What is the most important lesson that you learn from that CEO?

Deadline of Posting: February 19, 2011 (Saturday)

Evaluation Assignments:

• Lauan Group 1 will comment on Lauan Group 2
• Lauan Group 2 will comment on Lauan Group 3
• Lauan Group 3 will comment on Lauan Group 4
• Lauan Group 4 will comment on Lauan Group 1
• Almaciga Group 1 will comment on Almaciga Group 2
• Almaciga Group 2 will comment on Almaciga Group 3
• Almaciga Group 3 will comment on Almaciga Group 4
• Almaciga Group 4 will comment on Almaciga Group 1

Deadline of Evaluating: February 22, 2011 (Tuesday)

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Post No. 1 – About Us

Your task is to make a post answering the following questions:

• Who are you?
• Why did you make this blog?

Be creative − with the name of your blogs and how you will present yourselves.

Deadline of Posting: February 12, 2011 (Saturday)

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Criteria for Evaluation

Every now and then you will be notified online and in class about the posts that you have to make. You will be evaluated on how you adhere to the requirements of each post, how you creatively presented your thoughts in your post, and how your peers will evaluate your post.

Here is the breakdown of the criteria (lifted from Karen Franker’s A Rubric for Evaluating Student Blogs) for evaluating each post in your blog:

• Content - Post provides a comprehensive insight, understanding, and reflective thought about the topic. (10 points)
• Coherence - Post presents a focused and cohesive viewpoint that is substantiated by effective supporting examples. (5 points)
• Creativity - Posts are creatively and fluently written to stimulate dialogue and commentary. (5 points)
• Voice - Posts are written in a style that is appealing and appropriate for the intended audience and a consistent voice is evident throughout. (5 points)
• Mechanics - Writes with no errors in grammar, capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and standards in writing scientific names. (5 points)
• Text Layout - Effectively uses the blog’s text formatting capabilities to enhance the content’s visual appeal and increase readability. (5 points)
• Graphics & Multimedia - Selects and inserts high quality graphics and multimedia when appropriate to enhance and extend the content. (5 points)
• Intellectual Honesty - Acknowledges all image and multimedia sources with captions or annotations. Consistently and accurately cites all sources of information to support the credibility and authority of the opinions presented. (5 points)

Total: 45 points

You are required to evaluate another group’s blog using the above-mentioned criteria. The scheduling of the group assignments will be posted here and in the batch’s yahoogroups. You have to post your evaluation as a comment and your comment will also be evaluated using the criteria below:

• Comments - Writes comments and evaluation on other students’ blog postings that are consistently positive respectful, and succinct while providing a meaningful addition to the discussion. (10 points)

An independent criteria will be considered for:

• Submission - Meets all goals and deadlines for posting comments on other students’ blogs.

So therefore, for every post:

• 45 points – Blog Post (from Peer)
• 45 points – Blog Post (from Teacher)
• 10 points – Comments (from Teacher)

Total: 100 points

You are free to design your own blogs. Choose the most appropriate template and layout and add graphics, images, links, banners, badges, videos, audio, widgets, etc. as long as you are adhering to the principles of the 21st-century fluencies.

And finally, have fun in what you will be doing!

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