Privacy settings for student blogging

When working with students on a digital platform, it is necessary to be very aware of privacy and compliance with school acceptable use policies, media releases, and COPPA. 

As a tech coach, I am constantly on the look out for ways to redefine teaching by integrating technology. I poke my nose into the layers of privacy policies, security, and COPPA on a daily basis. To my dismay, I realize that there are often too many cracks in website security for me to even be able to recommend an awesome site to teachers. Digital security is a huge issue, take a look at the blog post on Silicone Angle explaining how Yahoo on is finally focusing on security.

So, I am happy to be able to give a step-by-step breakdown of how to maximize the customizable features of Blogger's privacy settings so that both students and parents feel secure when their students are blogging for an authentic audience. Side now, curious about how to set up Blogger as a teacher, or for you students, or even how to use it? Check out our professional development website page about Blogging in the classroom and stay tuned for more posts about how to capitalize on a blogging platform and get students writing.

Tutorial below on how to set up a very private blog for your students.

1. Settings (all privacy information lives here)

2. Settings, Basic, Privacy, Edit. Here are the basic level Privacy Settings

2a)Change both settings to No

3. Settings, Basic, Permissions

3a) Choose your reader level preference:

***Public: anyone can read if they have the link

***Private: only those who are authors can read (not recommended)

***Private: only those who you add as readers can read (recommended). For example, if each student has a blog, each child can add his or her classmates, teacher, and his or her parents to his or her reader list. This way, parents can only view their own child’s blog.

4. Settings, Click Posts and Comments. See here for more information on moderating comments.

5. Post specific settings:

When you create a post you have other privacy options as well. Click New Post to start writing a post and then options on the right hand side, sidebar.

Teaching students how to use HTML to embed a video into their blog post. It is important that students realize websites are made possible by more than just their typing and pressing buttons. Hoping to have my husband introduce some basic coding skills as well in the near future. Enjoy the screencast and check out other blogger screencasts here. 

My students each have their own blog. Sometimes issues come up at home or in class that I don’t have time to explain. By making a screencast or a “How to…” video on a topic such as inserting an image, copying a Google doc over to the blog etc. I limit the in class time spent on a task students can do at home. Some of the videos are softer in volume than I’d like, but that all comes with practice. Check out my YouTube playlist on Blogger how tos here. 

Blogging in the classroom

As an aspiring edtech jedi, I began my training in the Dagobah System or rather in the html code and teachings of Blogger. Guided by my Yoda master at school, he spoke to me with great wisdom, “Do or do not there is no try.” So do I did. Back in September, I laid out a lesson with my edtech master Tim Bray who is full of great strength and great wisdom. Together we would conquer the Blog. 

My process for teaching 16 fifth graders how to use Blogger was very simple and I was heaviliy relying on the fact that they were already very used to using google docs and other google products. 

Here is a link to my lesson plan for setting up a blog on lessonopoly.org. Below is a general outline of what I did in my lesson (1 hr): 

• Discuss the purpose of a blog


• Internet protocol


• Avatars


• Blogger


• New Blog


• Title (Erin’s Blog)


• Address (mac ID ie. ebell20)


• Go back to google form page on website and enter information


• Profile (only top part, privacy, and photo)


• Show home page


• Show how to do a post


• Do a test post


• View blog


• Go to a friend’s blog and make a comment

Currently students write about two to three blog posts a week on a variety of topics. Generally I use their blogs for weekly reading letters each week and then the other posts vary. Sometimes students will watch a TED talk and then respond to it or they will share something they learned that week in class. 

Students enjoy blogging because it gives them a way to read other studnets’ work, share with a wider audience, have a reflective space, and work on their writing skills.