Members of the #altc community are encouraged to get involved by contributing to the community blog. The #altc Blog publishes short, topical entries to help keep us all up to date with developments in learning technology, and provides an opportunity for discussion.

Contributing to the blog gives you the opportunity to disseminate your work, share something you are excited about, explore a common problem, or express an opinion.

What sort of posts can I contribute?

Entries can be text-based (usually 500-1,000 words) or use other media, so please consider a video post or supplementing your written post with video, images or audio.

Your contribution should fall into one of the following suggested categories:

• a review (of software, a book or other publication, a conference or event, or a course)
• a project report (for example a summary of a research or development project with links to further information)
• a case study (for instance an account of your department or institution’s experiences implementing a particular technology)
• a summary of a discussion (discussions on the JISCmail list are a good source for summary articles)
• a preview or follow-up piece linking to an article in Research in Learning Technology or another of ALT’s publications
• an interview (of the ‘week in the life’ style, or with influential and inspiring learning technology people)
• a report of ALT SIG and RIG events or activities.
• an objective

Posts with a commercial focus
We do not accept blog submissions with a primary focus on demonstrating services or products offered by a commercial provider and which do not explicitly address Learning Technology in a learning context.

Posts advertising job vacancies and events please submit to the ALT News Digest.

What should my post look like?

Keep it simple! Use illustrations and different media as appropriate. Please bear in mind:

Our audience

• Talk directly to the ALT community – be conversational, keep it brief, and pick a title that will draw in readers.
• Explain technical terminology, acronyms and avoid jargon and local colloquialisms.
• If appropriate, engage the community in discussion and comment. Raise questions to encourage readers to contribute using comments.
• Consider ethical issues associated with sharing information online.

What works online

• Write concisely, using simple language
• Start with a summary, then expand on this
• Use short sections and subheadings
• Use bullet lists and illustrations (jpeg or gif less than 4Mb)
• Respect copyright (use Creative Commons where possible)
• Use bold or italics for emphasis
• Avoid speech marks
• Link to other materials using the name of the resources (e.g. ‘see the project final report’). A couple of references in Harvard style can be included if appropriate.

Please provide some tags/keywords to help readers search the archives. These should include:

• your name
• your institution
• the name of any books/conferences/projects/SIGs referred to
• key words and phrases.

How do I submit my post?

Please send your contribution to blog@alt.ac.uk

One of the Editors will then contact you to discuss any changes and a suitable publication date. We aim to publish in a timely way, with most items that don’t need significant editing being posted within 3 weeks.

Unless otherwise indicated, posts and video interviews with editors are © their author(s) and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Who can I contact for more advice on writing for #altc Blog?

Please email blog@alt.ac.uk to ask any questions that have not been answered here.