Articles

By Reynold Redekopp and Elizabeth Bourbonniere

This article briefly discusses the voice that quieter students can find through the use of discussion board technology in the classroom. Students were ranked into four categories based on their level of participation in class discussion. Examples of students who typically show less participation were able to post thought-provoking responses and show disagreement with others, where they might have previously felt uncomfortable bringing up differing ideas in person.

This participation better demonstrates the understanding that the students have. Instead of relying on overcoming their fear of public speaking, or their ability to convey their thoughts aloud. Instead, online discussion boards/ blog forums gave students the chance to demonstrate what they actually learned and enabled teachers to fully assess their student's understanding of the text, without other limiting factors weighing so heavily on participation leading to a more interactive and accurate activity.

So What?

I believe that this article goes to show that it is in the best interest for educators to meet their students in the middle. Teachers want to be able to assess the knowledge of their students in the most accessible way for them, and in order to do that, that might mean learning a few new things about the internet and different platforms to work with what the students already know. Sometimes, the students who are the least vocal in class are the most vocal on social media and have no issue speaking up through the screen. Giving them the time, space, and privacy to be involved in class provides a more accurate representation of what they really know, and can allow for a higher level of assessment. Instead of worrying about simple fact recall or recognition, you can ask your students to respond to complex ideas and interact with others, involving much higher levels in Bloom's Taxonomy, such as creating, evaluating, and analyzing.

Writing for Real Purpose

By Chinwe H. Ikpeze

This article, much like the one above, quickly summarizes the new found voice the quiet students often find in online platforming. In this case, however, the internet is also used to familiarize the students with their text and provide background knowledge on the author, providing them a level of comfort and familiarity.

So What?

This short article further supports my beliefs which I stated earlier. Online platforming, and the internet, create a safe place for students to work at their own pace. The internet is something that this generation grew up with and started off already comfortable with. For them, that platform is their home. Switching teaching methods to be adapted for a generation which heavily relies on technology eases apprehension that already exists around classroom discussion and vocalizing thoughts in a classroom setting.