Playing Amongst Google Docs For Educatee Writing

I don’t acquire into the classroom equally much equally I’d similar to nowadays, hence whenever I acquire a gamble to create some didactics or instructor training, I similar to endeavor out novel ideas. Last year, I used a calendar week of instructor grooming workshops inwards Oxford (as role of the ELT Summer Seminar) to endeavor out using screencast software to give feedback on writing; see my post virtually it here. This year, I used 2 lovely groups of teachers on the same class equally guinea pigs for using Google Docs for educatee writing.

I’ve used Google Docs myself equally role of writing projects together with I’ve heard diverse people beak virtually how it tin travel used amongst students, specially for collaborative writing. There’s a really expert weblog post virtually using Google Docs amongst EAP students past times David Reid, for example.

Context together with task: As the workshops I was leading were on the theme of didactics writing skills, giving the participants a writing chore to consummate themselves, together with for me to give feedback on, was an ideal agency to demonstrate some of the practical issues I wanted to discuss. Having learnt from my experience in conclusion yr of trying to give screencast feedback to 27 private trainees inside the infinite of a couplet of days (!!), this yr I chose a grouping writing task. On the start day, nosotros did an activity which involved a grouping intelligence together with equally a follow-up I asked each grouping (of 4 to five people) to write a really brief summary (max lx words) of the most interesting indicate to come upwardly out of the discussion. The summary was to travel written using Google Docs.

Set-up: I did a quick demo inwards bird only to demo what Google Docs looks similar together with how it works. I had iv groups altogether, across 2 classes, hence I prepare iv documents together with gave each i a heading summation a elementary rubric. This meant that when the participants reached the document, they knew they were inwards the correct place. 

I hence collected their emails together with laid virtually sharing the document for each grouping amongst its members. As a newbie to setting upwardly Google Docs, I wasn’t certain how elementary this physical care for was going to be, but truly it turned out fine. For those amongst Gmail accounts, it was super simple; I only added their e-mail addresses to the document using the ‘share’ push together with hi presto, everything connected upwardly beautifully. For those without Gmail accounts, the physical care for wasn’t quite equally smooth, but yet wasn’t problematic. In these cases, I sent them a link to the document which they could click on to access it. Apparently, they didn’t acquire an icon amongst their get upwardly together with profile picture, but they yet had no occupation editing together with commenting along amongst everyone else.

Giving feedback: One of the benefits of Google Docs, beyond students beingness able to operate collaboratively, is that equally the instructor yous tin acquire inwards together with offering feedback at whatever point. For this task, I checked inwards to run across how things were going earlier the deadline I’d laid for completing the task. The start affair I noticed was that all the groups had got carried away together with written agency besides much, hence I was able to exit a comment only reminding them of the intelligence restrict together with nudging them dorsum on track. This seemed similar a truly squeamish agency of working together amongst students to assist them orbit the best result, rather than only waiting for them to acquire it incorrect hence failing them.

Once the deadline had passed, I went inwards over again together with gave to a greater extent than detailed feedback. On this occasion, I didn’t inquire the participants to deed on my feedback, but amongst a “real” grouping of students, it could accept been the start of a serial of interactive revisions. Again, it’s an chance for the instructor to deed to a greater extent than similar an editor that an examiner, helping students towards the best possible terminal slice of work. (See more of my thoughts on this human relationship here.)

Shifting comments

Drawbacks: My initial concerns virtually whether everybody would acquire on okay amongst the technology scientific discipline together with travel able to access the documents turned out to travel unfounded. One characteristic that nosotros flora a niggling chip frustrating though was the fact that the comments, which appear inwards the margin, don’t seem to link upwardly quite hence clearly together with apparently amongst the sections of text they refer to, similar they would in, say, a Word document. The comments seem to natural springtime about, sometimes switching fellowship when yous click on them together with only by together with large beingness a niggling chip confusing.

Participant reaction: The reaction to the technology scientific discipline was by together with large pretty positive together with I retrieve it opened upwardly lots of potential ideas for teaching. What was to a greater extent than interesting, perhaps, was the teachers’ reactions to doing a grouping writing task. To travel asked to operate together amongst a grouping of people you’ve exclusively only met is no slowly task! All the groups reported feeling a chip unsure virtually how to organize themselves, how to acquire started together with what the etiquette was for commenting on or editing others’ writing. I retrieve it was a useful practise for the teachers inwards putting themselves inwards their students’ shoes.  Some of the points that came upwardly inwards the post-task discussion:

- Would it travel easier for students who know each other amend (so subsequently inwards a course)?
- In price of grouping dynamics, is it amend to permit students take away their groups or for the instructor to ‘engineer’ the groups?
- Would the interaction/dynamics vary depending on the cultural background of the students?
- Would it travel amend to give students to a greater extent than guidelines for carrying out the task; allocating roles together with procedures maybe?
- Or alternatively, would setting besides many ‘rules’ stifle students’ ain critical thinking together with creativity? Is working out how to operate together role of the learning process?

Overall, the whole affair was a truly interesting practise together with I retrieve Google Docs volition at i time definitely travel added to my didactics toolbox.

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