Reminder | First Portfolio Post due WEDNESDAY @ 7pm
Just a reminder, your first portfolio is due TOMORROW, Wednesday at 7pm. If you are having problems with any aspect of setting up a blog, with posting, or with any aspect of this assignment, please contact me so that I can respond ASAP to your questions.
Political Cartoon Analysis Assignment
For the actual blog posts you will be required to create for this assignment, please adhere to the following guidelines, which you will also receive in paper form in class:
The purpose of this assignment is for you to explore the wide range of contemporary political cartoons that are produced in reaction to the changing daily political landscape. You are asked to find one political cartoon every week that is in some way connected to a discussion or topic mentioned in class.
So you should follow these steps, every week, in posting to your blog for this assignment. Posts must be created by Wednesday at 7pm, and will be graded by Friday. Blogs will be checked and graded each week.
1) Find a political cartoon on the internet, published within the past week. Useful places to find cartoons could be http://cagle.com/, http://www.economist.com/, http://www.nytimes.com/, http://www.washingtonpost.com/, http://www.politico.com/, or where ever else you would like to find them.
2) Post that cartoon on your blog. This can be as simple as copying and pasting the cartoon, or you may embed the image if you would prefer. To do this, find the cartoon on the internet. Right click (or on a mac, Control-click) on the cartoon you would like to use, and copy the URL.
Then, when writing your blog post, click on the insert image link above the text box (it looks like a little picture), select "From a URL", and past the URL from the cartoon's website into the appropriate box.
3) Answer the following questions about the cartoon:
- Identify the cartoon caption and/or title. Why are those words being used to describe the cartoon?
- What objects, symbols, or people are represented in the cartoon? What do you think the artist means?
- Describe the action taking place in the cartoon.
- Explain the message of the cartoon. What ideological perspective is represented by the cartoonist?
- How does this cartoon relate to a current political event? How does it relate to our in class discussions?
- How does satire and irony influence the topics covered in the cartoon?
4) Make sure to include where the cartoon came from, and when it was published. For instance, the above cartoon was published in The Denver Post on 2/17/2011, and I found it on http://cagle.com/news/MubarakQuits/main.asp/.
Welcome to Blogger!!! How to create a blogger account
So while I am guiding you through this process during class, here are the steps of how to create a blogger account. If you already have a blog (through Blogger, Wordpress, or another service), that is fine. I will need to be given access to it, but you do not need to create a brand new account unless you would like to keep them separated.
1) Go to www.blogger.com. If you already have a google account, sign in. If not, click Get Started and create a google account. This will also be an email address for you, that you will use constantly in college, so make sure it is both appropriate and something you will be happy to use for several years.
2) You will be asked to create a display name. This will be your pseudonym while using Blogger.
3) Now that you have either created a Google account or signed in, you will be directed to your Dashboard. It should look something like this:
Congratulations!!! You are now the proud owner of your very own blog! If you go back to your Dashboard you should see your blog is now listed, like this (with only one blog, not two):
To post, it is as simple as clicking "New Post", and you can begin blogging!
One final note. If you are reading this post as part of my Social Science class, right now go to http://sweeneysclass.blogspot.com/ and please click the "Follow" link. You will be asked if you want to subscribe publicly or privately. Please choose "Follow publicly".
This will allow me to access your blogs, and grade them. If you would like a grade on this very large assignment, please make sure to follow me, and change your privacy settings to the following.
1) Go to your Dashboard, and select "settings" underneath your new blog.
1) Go to www.blogger.com. If you already have a google account, sign in. If not, click Get Started and create a google account. This will also be an email address for you, that you will use constantly in college, so make sure it is both appropriate and something you will be happy to use for several years.
2) You will be asked to create a display name. This will be your pseudonym while using Blogger.
3) Now that you have either created a Google account or signed in, you will be directed to your Dashboard. It should look something like this:
4) To create a new blog (which you will need to do for this project, unless you already have a blog), click the "Create your own Blog now" link. You get to choose your blog title, and the URL. Be creative!!! This is up to you, and should be in some way reflective of your personality. While you can change your title at any time, the URL will be permanent, so choose wisely!
5) Choose a starter template; this can be changed and customized later, so just choose something quickly now.
To post, it is as simple as clicking "New Post", and you can begin blogging!
One final note. If you are reading this post as part of my Social Science class, right now go to http://sweeneysclass.blogspot.com/ and please click the "Follow" link. You will be asked if you want to subscribe publicly or privately. Please choose "Follow publicly".
This will allow me to access your blogs, and grade them. If you would like a grade on this very large assignment, please make sure to follow me, and change your privacy settings to the following.
1) Go to your Dashboard, and select "settings" underneath your new blog.
2) Now, under the "Settings" tab you just selected, click "Permissions".
3) It is up to you how public you would like to make your blog. If you are ok with anyone being able to search and find this blog, then leave the settings as they are. If, however, you would prefer this blog to be a bit more private, please select the "Only people I choose" option under the "Who can view this blog" subheading.
4) Please type in SweeneyTeach @ gmail .com, and stlevy @ philasd .org, or mhorwits @ philasd.org (without the spaces of course). This will let Mr. Levy and I read your posts, and grade them. Without this step, if you privatize your blog, we will not be able to grade your blog, and therefor you will not receive a passing grade.
Now you're ready to post! Let me know if you have any questions or problems, and I will periodically be updating this blog with other helpful tips and links.
