Creating online content and participating in an online discussion forum (a blog) are easy ways for people on the Internet to share ideas, engage with communities of people with common interests, and do so from the comfort of their own home—it’s the cliché interconnected global world in action!

Computer literacy and fluency in online forums (fora) are important skills to have, and participating in these online discussions is an easy way to ensure that you’re thinking about music more often than just during our once-weekly class meetings. Therefore, online participation is a significant portion of this class. At the same time, it’s also a task in which you can easily earn full points. Think of this portion of the course as an opportunity to engage in a lively conversation, learn from each other, extend or expand our in-class work, and practice your writing skills in an informal setting (with your peers and graded for participation).

Reference handouts, provided in class:

Creating a WordPress account

Following the first class meeting, you’ll receive invitations from WordPress.  Accept and create a WordPress account (if you don’t have one already). Remember your email/username and password for logging in.

Email me your username so that I know who you are online—do not hit “reply” to the invitation email (it’s a do-not-reply email and I won’t receive it)!

In the past, some students have found it helpful to download the WordPress app to their smartphones or tablets so they can participate in the blog without sitting at a computer.

How to comment on online discussions

Instructor-led online discussions are located at www.drjonesmusic.me (scroll down past the navigation header, and the first blog post you see will be the one assigned for the week).

Make sure you’re signed into WordPress using the username and password you created, and make sure you’ve emailed me your username—I cannot give you credit if you have not told me who you are online!

Read the blog post and any comments that have been made on it so far. You can leave a comment by typing in the comment box at the bottom of the page marked “Leave a Reply.” You can “reply” to other students’ comments by clicking “reply” next to their comment or using @ + username to specifically respond to another student, just as you would on other social media platforms.

Instructor-led online discussions (all students)

Dates and topics:

Music and the brain, Sep 3-9
Music education and the education of music, Sep 10-23 [two weeks long!]
Musicking, Sep 24-30
Instruments and voice types, Oct 1-7
Sound migration, Oct 8-14
Music and gender, Oct 15-21
Music and disability, Oct 29-Nov 4
Music and economics, Nov 5-11
Music and violence, Nov 12-18

Student blogging (QCC only)

Each student will publish at least two pieces of writing online (a paragraph from the Analysis 1 Essay and a complete Student Blog Post), and each student has the option of adding blog posts each week for extra credit in response to a set of readings. We’ll go over the process of creating your own blog posts in class on October 16, but instructions are available here:

Section websites:

Peer critique, October 23-29

  • Post a paragraph from your Analysis Essay 1 final draft to your section website by October 21
  • Provide constructive feedback on your classmates’ writing during the comment period

Student Blog Post, November 26-December 9

  • Post your entire SBP to your section website by November 24
  • Participate in the conversations led by your classmates on their SBP during the comment period

Extra credit, weekly (optional)

  • Instructions are available here.