When you set up an Edublogs blog with multiple users you have the ability to assign and control what other users can do in the blog depending on the tasks you want each user to be responsible for. You need to consider carefully what role you assign other users since Administrators are able to remove other users, including you, and editors can delete content.
The five roles a user can be assigned in decreasing level of responsibility are:
- Administrator – can do everything including complete power over posts, pages, plugins, comments, choice of themes, imports, settings, assign user roles and are even able to delete the blog.
- Editor – is able to publish posts/pages, manage posts/pages, upload files, moderate comments as well as manage other people’s posts/pages.
- Author – can upload files plus write and publish own posts.
- Contributor – can write own posts/pages but can’t publish them.
- Subscriber – can read comments and write comments.
The diagram below summaries the responsibilities of each role:
Please note when using Edublogs Blog & User Creator feature:
- Users are automatically added as Administrators.
- To create multiple student blogs you add yourself as co-administrator by changing selection to Yes in the Add Admin field.
To be able to access Edublogs Blog & User Creator Feature you need to be an Edublogs supporter.
Changing User Role
You change the role of users in your blog dashboard by going to Users > Authors & Users.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Setting up blogs for your students? You may find these posts useful:
- Creating Student Accounts Using One Gmail Account
- Tips On Blogging With Students
- Share Your Advice on Using Student Photos on Blogs
What role(s) do you assign the different users when setting up class and student blogs, and why?
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Hello,
I’ve been reading all the previous posts trying to understand what I should do. I’m new to the whole blogging thing! I need students to be able to make comments, add posts and upload pics/avatars in the class blog (comments, posts and pics have to be approved by me before publishing). It is very important that my students should not be able to create their own blogs either.
My school does not allow students to have email so I will have to use the user creator to add students. Am I correct that they should be set to “contributor” status to suit these specific requirements?
I also would like to become a supporter with the option to cancel at any time. Is this allowed?
Please clarify! Thanks!
MsB
Hi Ms B, I would probably make them authors because contributors can’t upload images where as authors can. But neither will be able to publish own posts.
In terms of creating their accounts I suggest youuse the gmail method. Regardless of whether you are an Edublogs supporter or a free user – if you only want to create usernames you will need to use the main sign up page. Before you go to this page make sure you log out of your account. You will need to create each student account one at a time.
Once the student usernames are created you add them to the blog by going to:
1. Free Edublogs users – go to User and scroll to bottom of page adding one at a time
2. Edublogs supporter – got to User > Add user and add in batches of 15
I suggest you do consider becoming a supporter because features like this threaded comment plugin while enhance your ability and that of your students to respond back to comments. You can sign up to be an Edublogs supporter for a month, 3 months or year. Once signed up just click on cancel subscription if you want to stop payment. Follow all instructions on the Supporter Tab.
Hi Sue
I am setting up students as contributors of their class blog using gmail account. They are not ready for their own blogs yet but are keen to have their own individual avatars so that they appear when they leave a comment. Is this possible and how?
Cheers
Vanessa
Hi Vanessa, sorry for slow response. If you add them to your blog as contributors they can click on their Profile tab > Avatar and upload their own avatar. Sue Wyatt has just written an excellent post on Avatars that you might like to check out – you can check it out here
Hello, Sue!
We have recently been stopping by your website occasionally and find lot’s of thoughtful, forthright commentary by both you and your friends. We have just now logged in to this comment page and look forward to many insightful entries to come! Best of luck in your projects and dreams! Your Friends at The TerraMadre Foundation
Thanks for the feedback. I’m glad you find the tips and advice useful.
Ginny here (the one who did the comments thing, which is ironic considering the pretty darn basic level of question I have):
I’ve had a class blog for several months. From ‘my’ home page (http://paisiespage.edublogs.org) kids use the blogroll to access each others’ blogs and write comments.
When I set it up, I used one log-in and one password for all 115 of us; it was just easier than trying to get emails for everybody (and the gmail+ thing is okay but the emails rarely show up in my gmail inbox so I could never confirm anything).
Last week one bright student discovered he could change and delete other kids’ blog work. Not surprising it happened, but frustrating. So my question: Is there a way for the kids to keep each of their blogs but to now make them responsible for getting a log-in and setting their own password? I am afraid I won’t be able to be administrator on all of them? (I had one of my savvy kids make a whole new blog, but when I wanted him to add me as a user and click administrator, he said he can’t do that without being a Supporter?)
Another (stupid) thing. I now understand the gmail+ thing, but I didn’t when I set it up and so most of my students contact emails are “paisie” and not “gpaisie” (my gmail account includes my first initial, and their blog contacts don’t). When I tried to go back, one by one, and insert a ‘g’ in front, I should get an email confirmation at my gmail account for each student. Only about 1 in 5 show up, so I wind up trying again, and again, and again…
So: I want the blog to look the same but be ‘unsabotage-able’ by all the users.
Hi Ginny, interesting scenario. Since there is an issue with their emails due to “gpaisie” and you aren’t receiving all the password resets. I would be quite time consuming if there is 115 of them to go through, fix up emails and do password resets so they can use their existing usernames.
The best solution I can think of would involve them each using their own email address. Can they use their own email address?
Hi there!! I have been reading all the wonderful tips and I am finally trying to be brave enough to ask my question. I have created a blog and added my students as subscribers, however I got a new student and am not able to add him on . My blog now says I need to be a supporter to add users on. I also am wondering if they are the subscriber how is it that they have a password and are able to change things on their page? I am sorry I am very confused about how the student blogs will work. I created them way back in Oct. and I am still hesitant to use them because I am not able to understand who has what role. I thought I created only me as the administrator and the students as the subscriber. Please help me get started.
AK
Hi AK – You should be able to add your student. Just go to the main Edublogs homepage and click on Sign up – then when you create just choose gimme username rather than blog. Then inside your blog dashboard, click on user and then scroll to bottom of page and where it says add user you need to add the email address you used to create their account.
If you created their blogs using the Blog & user creator than currently they will be set at administrator status on their own blogs.
I have added student blogs to my blog page but forgot to change the No to a Yes for me to be administrator. How can I change this now that they have been created?
Thank you,
Raffaele
Raffaele – The easiest solution would be to do it as a class activity and show them how to log into their accounts to add you as a user using the email address that you used to create your account.
Thanks Sue.
I just want to clarify things in this old head.
I’m going to use one blog with categories for various year levels and their resources.
I’m going to add my students as authors and they can post to my blog under the appropriate category.
Does that sound right? This is so cool!!
jw
Yes JW that sounds right but now thinking whether you can set up students as subcategories for each year level and then put them as different links in the sidebar. Might be worth you asking this question in Edublogs forum.
Hi there,
Thanks for all this wonderful support. I was hoping you could help me. I so very new at this side of the internet!
I basically want my students to be able to do an online journal reflecting on their progress throughout the year and also a listening diary in which they discuss their listening throughout the year.
I’m thinking that I should add them as authors. If I set up a blog and add the students as authors, will they have their own page and I can browse through their writing?
I’m very open for suggestions or pointing me in the direction of where to look.
Thanks!
The better option would be to consider using categories on posts. So each student assigns the post with the category which is their name. Read this post to understand the difference between categories and tags and refer to this post to see the differences in posts and pages – scroll part way down the page to see how you can organise different classes using categories – its the same principal for students.
Hello,
I signed up my students as authors and I know they can post, but can they create a page of their own?
You help is fantastic!
Gracias
@sucapp As an author I believe they can write their own pages. Please let me know if that isn’t the case? Always happy to help.
Sorry, I am sending this again because I forgot to check the notification box.
I have also set up blogs for each one of my students under Blog and User Creator, I am a subscriber, but I can not find the passwords for each of the blogs I set up. Could you tell me how to get passwords for them. Also, I change the email addresses from gmail to their own. Would they get a new notice from edublogs? How does it work?
Thank you
@sucapp Each student will have the password sent to the email address you used to create them. So if you used your gmail account they should be there. However there is a chance they have been put in your spam folder so suggest you check.
You can update their email address inside each blog by clicking on User and changing it in there. Probably easier to do as a class activity.
I have also set up blogs for each one of my students under Blog and User Creator, I am a subscriber, but I can not find the passwords for each of the blogs I set up. Could you tell me how to get passwords for them. Also, I change the email addresses from gmail to their own. Would they get a new notice from edublogs? How does it work?
Thank you
Finally!! Now I can get started.
i love this website. it is the absolute best.
Sue…I DID IT! Thank you so much for your wonderful blog to support us. Your tips have made a huge difference in the “user-friendliness” of the edublogs. You are truly a lifesaver for all of us at Georgetown Elementary School. Have a wonderful day. Theresa
All my students have been added as contributors. I notice that I am needed to approve every comment before it can be published, but the posts on the forum are going straight to the blog. I thought all the posts and comments had to go through me before appearing on the page. Is this correct? Please let me know if I am doing something wrong. If they are able to post without my screening, I have a problem. Thanks!!
I am overwhelmed! All I want is a blog with no individual student blogs. Mine are 1st graders, so I suspect I will mainly interact with parents. I just want to post to my blog and have others able to respond on the same blog. What is my next step. I have an account.
Thank you.