I'm most excited about the possibilities presented in this chapter, especially the idea of hosting an online forum for students to have asynchronous discussions (AD). As the authors stated, the benefits of AD can be that students can access it any time, they're less influenced by face-to-face physical intimidation such as eye rolling, grunts, etc. and therefore more comfortable, and the students get to choose the topics they wish to discuss. I would also add that AD allows students who seldom are heard in class to be heard by more people. One person cannot dominate an AD discussion (or at least is less likely to do so). I noticed, however, that a teacher using AD noted her students are still more likely to agree than disagree, which also happens in class. It takes a great deal of risk-taking to present an alternative viewpoint, and there is always the chance that someone will misunderstand.
I also appreciated the four phases framework for student participation in online discussions. It helped me understand how to move students from one phase to another. I question the use of video games and how I would be able to appropriately use them in the classroom. I'm not sold on this. It smacks of very inauthentic writing...
Further, reading this chapter helped me realize that if we are truly to prepare students for a digital world in which they could very well be IMing, composing email, hosting facebook pages, etc. for their JOBS, then we should probably be using these technologies in our classrooms. In addition, I really responded to the fact that these technologies promote collaboration and make their comments public so they are writing for an authentic audience. That is so very motivating to students to help make their writing shine.
I found it interesting that 76% of administrators expect social networking to improve writing. I wonder if it actually does.
In all, I am left wanting to explore moodle and tappedin more to see if I can utilize these tools in my teaching.
This Blog is Going to Go Poof
-
POOF!
Even an archive blog has some maintenance--but the real reason is the
unpredictability of Google. Blogger is not a good platform. If it's free,
you'...
5 years ago
Posts
I think, and this is just me, that as teachers we always have to be aware of community building and creating caring, compassionate classrooms where students feel safe and loved and respected. This, then, translates to the on-line community (hopefully!).
ReplyDeleteI really do think that AD levels the playing field, allowing the usually reticent student to participate. i use a similar idea in my classroom w/ the writer's notebook. I have students quick write before we share, allowing time for all to think, formulate, and get down into words.