And this is how I got it:
One of the least practical steps in dealing with writing, especially at higher levels of the language was the editing bit: Lots of draft sheets that had to be checked , rewritten and “re-checked”-such a tedious never ending process that would make collaborative writing almost impossible to manage properly within a class context.
Needless to say, the internet has made our lives far easier in this respect: Just by doing all the above on any ordinary e-mail platform, both teachers and students are saving time and gaining organization. Moreover, with the advent of Web2.0 stuff, applications like “GoogleDocs” have served the purpose of real writing practice. Just by sharing docs online it is possible to send and receive drafts that will become good productions after serious and really practical editing processes through which actual learning takes place.
These are the links to some of the pieces of writing my students shared with me when working on this project:
-Parents and children
_Technology and how we use it
Fortunately new platforms are coming up. ExploraTree is one of the lot- a kind of “mind mapping” device that allows online sharing, like GoogleDocs. However exploratree is not only more visually appealing but offers further alternatives: It is based on graphs (there are several possibilities) that respond to different topic needs. Here is a screenshot of one of the “thinking guides” –as they are called- that was produced to focus on the subject of technology.
One of the greatest features it holds is its flexibility : When shared with somebody you allow , that person can write comments and even change the whole layout of the graph,let alone content -or the “official” guest can even suggest ideas / links , insert pics, etc, as if he were the real author of the guide. Just as a sample, look at this screen shot of the piece of work that another student did on the focus of “Parents and Children”
In this case, the project was so motivating that the students themselves promoted discussions about the topics they had been researching-therefore speaking was practised. Reading authentic material from the net also was a key step on this kind of activity, and so was listening. Some of the material was either on podcasts or online videos whose scripts students also worked on and shared with me- through googledocs- for correction. The oral practice was recorded and that outcome was edited by the students, who used Windows Movie Maker (after being shown a tutorial) as an “editing” tool. They just inserted their oral discussions into Movie Maker audio tracks and, to illustrate, they looked for images on the web. These links show just some of the visual aids they got online:
Topic: Technology and how we use it Topic: Parents'roles and children
Summary of the steps I followed (2 –week- work):
1. What issues would you like to develop for a project work to integrate your language skills? E-mail me a list of at least 5 issues. (this is what I asked them first)
2. After the emails, two issues came up and I set up the beginning of one thinking guide –I introduced ExploraTree to them- One of them edited the guide and another one made another thinking guide himself.
3. Research: Students have to read articles about the chosen issues from the web – they also listened to pod/video casts and worked out their scripts.
4. The guides came and go all over the cyberspace via ExploraTree, aiming at general agreement + teacher approval
5. Oral discussions based on guides took place. Meanwhile the writing was set for homework and the editing process started immediately.
6. When the written outcome was over, the “extra practice” (speaking which was recorded while being done) was proposed to be edited in a special way. Movie Maker appeared on stage then.
And that was it. A rewarding attempt trying ExploraTree for the first time.
“I’d never done something like this. I like it” -one of my students said. The other smiled, showing obvious agreement.
Guess how I felt then.
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