Community Plumbing
It’s been frantic, the last couple of days, getting the kid site going.
Yesterday, Day 1, students all had material ready to go, saved in portable keyboards and on a file server, so everyone could jump in together, and we wouldn’t have to be concerned with “creative flow” and technical procedures simultaneously. After they logged in and downloaded their work to a text file, copied and pasted from there to the web interface - it sounds too simple when I say it like that - it took over an hour to get it done. (Did you know that the copy/paste procedure needs to be explicitly taught?) I now have about 25 rough pieces in the moderation queue to clean up.
The moderation panel works well for managing all the posting. (Note the position of the scroll bar - there’s a lot more on the page 
Another feature of the software is the queue that allows content to be moderated by the community. They can vote online for the pieces that go on the front page. I plan to put that in place this year.
It’s too soon in the year for them to do any complicated revising. I model the standard, and teach them to write with the material they submit. Today I used the overhead to show them how I do the moderation. It took about 5 minutes for me to proof the example I pulled off the admin panel. I posed the question, “If I have 20 pieces to look at and it takes 5 minutes each, how long…”
As the weeks pass, they assume more responsibility for proofing and revising, which is what makes this such a powerful tool.
After a few weeks, the conferencing begins. We identify individual goals and discuss what students should work on.
Today one of the students who is new to our school came in with a piece of notebook paper carefully folded and wrapped with a piece of yarn. He presented it to the principal, who brought it to me before school. It was a letter to the class that began, “Dear Denali Panthers…”
The young man who wrote it asked me later if he could read it to the class. When he finished, everyone applauded loudly. There are some days you wouldn’t want to trade.
gordon wrote,
I’v been a lurker for awhile (Mark Ahlness pointed me your way.), but I must comment to your most recent postings. It’s refreshing to hear a voice of someone trying to do all this in the classroom and facing the everpresent obstacles teachers face. I just crashed & burned in the lab today with technical issues after spending a mini-lesson about the copy\paste procedure — and I have 5th graders!
I hope to have my kids commenting to yours soon!
Link | September 27th, 2006 at 3:42 pm
Doug wrote,
Gordon, it’s good to hear from you. It’s good to hear from anyone who understands about crashing and burning in the lab. I always wear a helmet when I go in there - and full pads - because I plan on a rough time. Until your comment, I thought I was the only one who explicitly taught copy and paste.
As for the other part, the part about the obstacles, I don’t do very well “fitting everything in,” and I’ve decided that no matter what I do, I’ll make a mess of the curriculum. But I don’t care, because it isn’t mine. I do the best I can, in spite of all the pressure not to.
I look forward to hearing from you again. Once my students get a little more fluent, I’ll point some in your direction.
Link | September 27th, 2006 at 7:11 pm
Brian Crosby wrote,
Doug - sounds like messy learning to me. You even let the students see when things don’t go well, and that things don’t go well 100% of the time even for a professional such as yourself - mistakes are OK if they lead to knowledge and understanding - kids need to SEE that, not just hear it. Keep up the good work!
Link | September 27th, 2006 at 7:37 pm
Mark Ahlness wrote,
about copy/paste…
I just had a 4th grade teacher tell me today all about how one of my third graders from last year was showing her how to copy/paste like it was no big deal at all. She was astounded at the casual way he presented this complicated thing to her - like he didn’t even have to think about it! I suggested he was simply a “digital native”, and that was why it was so easy. But she did point out that the rest of her class (who came from other teachers) did not have a clue about this, that they were just like her.
What do you say at a point like that? To myself I said I was proud of my kids from last year - that I know they will be leaders. I also congratulated myself for doing the right thing. I just shrugged my shoulders and suggested she let those kids, the ones I had last year, lead the way. Which is great for now, I guess.
But where is the challenge for my kids from last year? Where is the push into uncharted territory? When will they be forced to use those special skills to do more than help others? Will they be given a chance to grow, a challenge?
straying a bit off topic here… thanks guys for the conversation…
Link | September 27th, 2006 at 8:38 pm
Doug wrote,
Brian, Messy indeed. Nothing goes smoothly anymore. My guiding principle comes from my principal, who tells me that the connections I make with kids is the most important thing I do. We’re forging a new path - and I am surely glad for the support - wherever it comes from.
Mark, the flip-side of the challenge we face starting over each year teaching these basic things (I hadn’t thought about this until your comment) does mean that the kids are left without an opportunity to apply what they learn - at school - until they run into another teacher who gives them something constructive to do. All the more reason to work on building bridges.
Link | September 27th, 2006 at 9:10 pm
Brian Crosby wrote,
Doug and Mark - One way to see that the work you start gets carried on is “Roll” with your class for a year or two. I’ve done it several times and I love it - I’ve also taught 4-5-6 classes, with about equal numbers of each grade and those kids stay with you until they leave sixth grade. Just a thought.
Link | September 28th, 2006 at 4:32 am