Reflection on blogging

What I’ve learned so far:

When I first learned that we needed to write a blog, I was confused. I had never been involved in blogging before, either writing or reading other people’s blogs, so this first attempt was difficult for me. But as I learned more about blogging, I found it to be an interesting way to document my learning. While blogging, our knowledge was consolidated and expanded by recalling what we had learnt and by looking up other relevant material. We have also gained a deeper understanding of information on urban design and its related industries as a result.

In my studies on the introduction to urban design, I have discovered a lot of content that is relevant to my undergraduate studies in architecture. Combining my personal life experiences with my new knowledge of urban design, I have completed my blog on ‘What is Urban Design’ by comparing the different urban styles of China and the West, presenting my understanding of urban design and the different perceptions of urban design in different regions and countries.

This semester has been full of learning and hard work, and blogging has certainly added a fun and fresh dimension to this hard work. Blogging in our spare time enriches our knowledge both inside and outside the classroom and allows us to discover the true appeal of urban design. I will try to incorporate blogging in my future urban design studies and even in my work, so that I can have a summary of each period of study and work, and also keep my love for urban design fresh.

Blog team

In order for the blog to be uploaded and promoted smoothly, we organise fortnightly blog team meetings. The attendance at each meeting is very high and this helps a lot with the running of the blog. Initially, the main focus of the meeting was on the new blog logo design and the layout of the blog. This is followed by a discussion of the actual content of the blog and how to fix it.

After the first blogging session, the blog writing group met to reflect on the previous blogs and to suggest changes. Through the meetings and summaries, we came to understand that blogging is not like the academic papers or other literary forms we usually write, but more like a form of journal writing. We are a storyteller who tells a story to our readers, portraying our vision of urban design and other related knowledge and information.

Challenges and visions

Although I have developed some understanding of blogging over the course of the semester, I still feel nervous and unsure every time I put pen to paper. Although blogging is not an academic form of writing, there are still demands on writing, style and grammar. As a non-native English speaker, I always make mistakes and it takes me a lot of time to check my writing each time. It is also important to ensure that the content of the blog is relevant to the topic and that you are reflecting on the information and that you are presenting your own understanding and reflections rather than copying someone else’s ideas.

In future blogs I will consolidate my language base and ensure I understand and reflect on what I have learnt, expand my understanding of different perspectives and then combine this with my own life experiences to create a blog with my own unique reflections on urban design to share with readers.