Journal #10 - Let the Kids do the Work - I, IV, V

Lawlor, J. (2010). Let the kids do the work. L&L—Learning & Leading with Technology, 37(6), Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Publications/LL/LLIssues/Volume3720092010/MarchAprilNo6/Let_the_Kids_Do_the_Work.htm

A man used web 2.0 to create his own wiki. The first homework assignment he assigned was simple: Log on to the wiki, read a poem, and answer an essay question. As an afterthought, He asked his students to respond to at least one other student's essay. He has about 25 students in each class, so it was reasonable to expect 50 replies. The next morning he was shocked to discover 472 replies from a single class! Many of these replies lacked attention to grammar, but buried beneath the Internet slang were interesting thoughts and ideas. Later the students literally directed him where to go on the wiki. Sometimes he even sat down as a student took control of the laptop and led the class to the best essays and most interesting discussion threads. By meeting the kids where they live—online—he got them to invest in ways he never could have with a traditional homework assignment. In turn, they were more willing to participate in the classroom discussions that followed.

The students were told to write an essay on the wiki by their teacher. One girl wrote only two sentences and her peers responded via thread discussions. That night she attempted her essay again and got more feedback on what she wrote. She then when back for the third time to write her essay again which was a vast improvement from what she had written her first time. The teacher did not have to say a word to the girl. Instead the class wrote comments and she responded and made improvements herself.
The teacher assigned a free response project on the wiki but forgot to post the poems what they were supposed to free respond to. When the teacher logged onto the wiki the next morning he was surprised to see that one of his students took charge and posted them. The wiki empowered one student to help a hundred others get their homework done. How often does that happen? The real surprise working with the wiki was that the reluctant participants flourished online. This caused one student who never participates in class to do her work and responded to 25 others.

 He offered the job of remodeling his wiki to a few students, and they eagerly took on the task. They quickly executed a makeover. He was so impressed with the transformation that he insisted that they teach him the techniques they used. In this situation, the normal dynamics of the classroom were reversed: The students taught, and the teacher learned. What's important, however, was that everyone took greater ownership of the final product. Because the wiki is a collaborative tool, the students do more and the teacher does less

 How effective would this tool be in a classroom?

This project is definitely for grades 4 and up. A wiki would be pretty hard to teach younger grades. If I was teaching a class of upper elementary or higher then I would definitely use it. I feel that students work really well when their peers give them constructive feedback. As long as my students were giving constructive remarks rather than destructive remarks then I would be inclined to use this program.


Would I let my students teach?

I feel that students know a lot about the Internet because they love to explore and learn. As the teacher did here, he let them teach him how to design a more interactive and fun wiki rather than the boring one he use to have. This taught him and helped his students to learn to work together. Also if students aren’t afraid to teach then I feel it is a huge learning experience for the students to teach the rest of the class and I would highly encourage this behavior.