Archaeologist William Caraher of the University of North Dakota has written an interesting piece about the elements of blogging (“How to write for the Pyla-Kousopetria Archaeological Project Blog: A Primer in Archaeological Blogging“, April 20, 2009).
The various PKAP blogs are among the most unique aspects of our project. Our blogs inform our friends and families, bring the experiences of archaeology back to our colleges and universities, and become the face of our project on the internet. Our blogs also encourage us to think carefully about the processes and experiences of archaeological fieldwork as it takes place. At the end of each season the directors the project archive all the blog posts, and they become part of the permanent record of the project. Over the past few years, individual posts have become popular destinations on the web and continue to attract traffic even now. In fact, people remember well-written, exciting, and clever posts and bring them up to project members at social and professional events!
There are some other helpful points to bear in mind if you want your students to use blogs in a constructive way.