• What kinds of technology do you use in your writing classroom?
• What concerns do you have about integrating technology in your classroom?
• What are some technologies that you have heard about and would like to try in your writing classroom?
I found a CyberEnglish course online that I love. http://www.sheboyganfalls.k12.wi.us/cyberenglish9/
The teacher teaches her literature/writing course incorporating internet tools. The students maintain their own web sites with pages set up like: Online Journal (or blog), Favorite Links, Projects page, etc. As the "assessment" for a book reading—instead of an essay or book report, they create a web quest. The web quest includes links to author information, to the literary work’s information in cyberspace. Students begin each class by reflecting in their journals about the previous nights reading or on some topic. Assignments are maintained on the teacher’s website.
My concern is the reliability of the equipment. In many schools, the technology is current and maintained par excellence. In other schools, not so. Funding isn’t there. Personnel isn’t there with expertise. So my ability as teacher to implement internet tools is determined by these factors. I am still afraid of losing everything suddenly. There’s something infinitely, still, SAFER about pen and paper that I can hold.
I really want to test and try setting up a Cyber English course, with the students maintaining their own websites, complete with pages for different purposes. It’s something I am definitely going to try.
