There’s only a couple of days left to submit your Edublogs Award Nominations for 2008 — you only have until midnight November 30th.
And if you’re like me nominating is excruciating because so many amazing people have helped and supported me this year yet only one nomination is allowed for each category.
For me the most important of the Edublogs Awards is the opportunity to introduce helpful resources to my readers. Which is also the reason why this post is long.
Your nomination post doesn’t need to be this long – here is how you could write the post and then submit here!
So here’s my nominations and reasons:
1. Best individual blog – Steve Dembo’s Teach42
Becoming a better blogger, which lead to my role as The Edublogger, is directly related to my participation last year in The 31 Days To Build a Better Blog Project.
Steve Dembo’s adaption of this Project into 30 Days to Being a Better Blogger have been inspiring, and no other posts this year, besides Michele Martin’s 31 Day Comment Challenge posts, have engaged me and challenged as much as these posts.
2. Best group blog – Nathan Toft and Jane smith‘s PortablePD.ca
Nathan and Jane both use technology in their classroom and their PortablePD.ca blog is designed to share resources and tips for educators new to using technology.
3. Best new blog – Miss Wyatt’s Technology in the classroom
Sue Wyatt’s been absolutely inspirational this year since she started blogging in January. She’s an incredibly supportive blogger to both other student and adult bloggers. The Student blogging Competition she has run for over 200 student/class blogs during the past 10 weeks has touched the lives and inspired so many students from so many countries.
I, like all the student bloggers and teachers involved, would like to say thanks Sue (and please don’t tell me it’s over!).
4. Best resource sharing blog – Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day
Larry’s dedication to sharing websites and information is astonishing. People often ask if I don’t sleep (I do) but I’m sure Larry doesn’t. If I want to know which online tool is “The Best of….” his site is the first place I visit.
5. Most influential blog post – Al Upton’s Order for Closure
As Graham Wegner’s says “What other post gathered 271 posts and created such a ripple in the edublogosphere this year.”
6. Best teacher blog – Anne Mirtschin’s On an e-journey with Generation Y
If you even spoken to Anne you soon realise she is softly spoken (as opposed to me) but her posts are packed powerful advice on blogging with students drawn from her classroom experiences.
7. Best librarian / library blog – Judy O’Connell’s Hey Jude
What other librarian lets you help with a make over (in Second Life)? Mind you Judy now looks way better than me in Second Life. I’m sure I speak for all Aussie Educators when I say thanks Jude for all your mentoring and support.
8. Best educational tech support blog – Silvia Tolisano’s Langwitches
Both Silvia Tolisano and Claire Thompson both write posts similar to my “how to” type posts. For example Silvia has done an excellent series on Digital Story telling. If you like my style of posts you will enjoy both Silvia Tolisano and Claire Thompson blogs.
9. Best elearning / corporate education blog – Tony Karrer’s eLearning Technologies
Often feel that elearning in my education sector (vocational, education and training) is between K12 and corporate elearning; where it contains components of each but is different.
Tony’s blog provides me an insight into corporate elearning world while his posts provoke me to respond more than to most bloggers.
10. Best educational use of audio – Joe Dale’s Integrating ICT into the MFL Classroom
Don’t believe I’ve met anyone more passionate about podcasting than Joe Dale. If you’re interested in podcasting and how it can be used with students definitely check out Joe’s blog.
Alternatively if you looking for podcasts from the vocational, education and training sector visit Talking VTE podcasts.
11. Best educational use of video / visual – Kathryn Greenhill‘s Murdoch University Island in Second Life
Kathryn’s created an excellent video explaining how Murdoch University uses it’s Second Life Island with their students. She’s been an important mentor for me, and I’ve learnt so much about blogging from her. She’s also one of my favorite conference presenters.
12. Best educational wiki – Flat Classroom Project 2008
The Flat Classroom project coordinated by Vicki Davis and Julie Lindsay has been running since 2006 and continues demonstrate the power of classrooms connecting with each other to collaborate in global projects. I like, many edubloggers around the World, am grateful for all the mentoring support Vicki Davis has given me.
13. Best educational use of a social networking service – Dean Groom’s Teen Second Classroom
While Classroom 2.0 and Oz/NZ Educators are important communities for educators to network with each other, communities like Dean Groom’s Teen Second Classroom demonstrate how these networks can be used with students in an educational context.
14. Best educational use of a virtual world – Jo Kay’s Jokaydia
Without Jo Kay and Jokaydia I would still be looking like a Second Life newbie. Lucky we have people like Jo Kay to look after us!
15. Best class blog – Paul Bogush’s Collaboration Nation-A Middle School Blog
Whatever Paul’s doing with his students I think we should bottle it as it is definitely worth money. Never seen so many students inspired to willingly want to write posts and comment, before and after school, and on weekends.
16. Lifetime achievement – Michele Martin’s The Bamboo Project
Michele has helped, mentored, supported so many people in such vastly different ways. And her reach has included edubloggers, non-profit, elearning, workplace literacies and corporate learning.
Sue Waters 
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