I presented my wiki to my College Literature class the other day. They sure seemed enthusiastic. I actually had one kid almost come out of his chair clapping when I announced I had created a class wiki (He’s very techy!!). They enthusiastically gave me their e-mail addresses so that I could “invite” them to join.
I have required that students must post five comments/questions throughout the duration of the novel. Most have posted already. The responses are varied. Clearly, there are students who thoughtfully articulate their responses- full sentences with focused examples. Then there are students who basically twitter their responses.
I’d be very interested in doing some kind of “study” to see if the twitter-type responses are coming from students who spend a great deal of time using technology. Or is there a difference between length based on gender: girls write more? Or is the difference based on certain students who would typically write more because they figure it will get them a better grade? Hmm… something to investigate down the road.
Another comment from my students was that they want to have anonymous usernames. They already know that classmates will have pre-conceived expectations of the kinds of comments someone will write based on his/her reputation. For example, they know that Person A is very thoughtful and analytic- so no matter what he says his peers will think it’s the “right” answer. Conversely, Person B is a silly jokester- so no matter what he says his peers will think it’s funny. I thought this was very insightful and mature from their end.
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I agree that student responses to names showed insight and maturity. So are you going to let them use anonymous usernames?
ReplyDeleteI also think a study of students' wiki behavior -- tied in with the variables you've named -- would be very interesting. Very. The advantage of wiki responses is that these will remain online for study later if you want to do it. I wonder if you should have students sign a simple permission slip so that you could do this research later using materials they've generated this year.
I agree with Judy. That would make a terrific study. You have some interesting research questions and a captive audience. Why not? It could even turn into a thesis! I would certainly be interested in the answers to your questions.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Judy and Effie. I have thought about a wiki page and how it would benefit students for use in the next semester. However, I don't know what I'd focus an analysis on but you have already noticed some distinct length variability among students, so it would be great! Good luck with the wiki! Can you also let me know what your wiki page is to view?
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