{"id":1853,"date":"2012-04-30T14:17:35","date_gmt":"2012-04-30T21:17:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/?p=1853"},"modified":"2012-05-06T05:30:55","modified_gmt":"2012-05-06T12:30:55","slug":"nudging-writers-in-google-docs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/2012\/04\/nudging-writers-in-google-docs\/","title":{"rendered":"“Nudging” Writers with Google Docs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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There are times when I have to pinch myself to make sure it’s really happening. Two instances brought the power of writing using\u00a0Google Docs<\/strong>\u00a0“front and center”. \u00a0Watching it unfold was thrilling to say the least.<\/p>\n

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One instance was with a teacher in our workshop series – we’ve been working on using\u00a0commenting<\/em>\u00a0as a way to lift writing to a new level (powerful, insightful nudging). The teacher had modeled this multiple times in her class noticing it was a great way to get at the specifics of the writing. When we looked at one of her student’s work, what popped out was truly a\u00a0\"\"<\/a>revelation. \u00a0Students were commenting on their own, \u00a0highlighting specific text\u00a0and\u00a0using language like\u00a0“this doesn’t make sense…can you be more specific..”. \u00a0<\/em> This generated a right-away response of “what do you mean? Help-clarify ideas”<\/em>. \u00a0While this went back and forth, eventually a refinement of the writing appeared. What was interesting about this was that it all happened at 7:30am before school started. Engagement? It was one of those\u00a0“shiny eyes”<\/em>\u00a0moments.<\/p>\n

The second instance was in class near the end of the writing session. \u00a0Again we were working on\u00a0commenting<\/em>. The teacher invited students to scribble their thoughts about using Google Docs<\/a> as a writing environment on their way out the door. \u00a0A lineup of students quickly jumped out of their seats to the rolling\u00a0\"\"<\/a>whiteboard. Animated conversation ensued as they waited their turn. \u00a0What leaped out at me were comments of “this isn’t real work when writing is with this…I don’t have to remember where my paper is – always online so writing is better and super fast…I write more…I’m more creative…saves paper…many people can help me…my writing is better…I am so using this in secondary next year.” \u00a0Have these students recognized empowerment? You bet.<\/p>\n

A complex series of things are happening that is making this process unfold with such power and clarity. \u00a0First the writer is acknowledged in the process – they are \u00a0at the heart of the writing process through their\u00a0‘writing territories<\/a>‘<\/em>. \u00a0They have stories that are important to tell. \u00a0Second, the online environment is inviting and flexible allowing for multiple entry points for EVERY member. \u00a0Success is not an accident in this collaborative environment – it is nurtured and focused. \u00a0For more information on our Writers Workshop Series,\u00a0\u00a0click here<\/a>. For our Google Docs,\u00a0click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There are many stories of teachers using Google Docs to support writing\/communication and collaboration. If you have one, please consider sharing it here so we can all learn and grow.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  There are times when I have to pinch myself to make sure it’s really happening. Two instances brought the power of writing using\u00a0Google Docs\u00a0“front and center”. \u00a0Watching it unfold was thrilling to say the least.   One instance was with a teacher in our workshop series – we’ve been working on using\u00a0commenting\u00a0as a way…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4642,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6,111,17],"tags":[25,30,34,35,36,37,38,47,50,55,69,77,78],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1853"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4642"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1853"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1853\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1859,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1853\/revisions\/1859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.sd41.bc.ca\/learningtech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}