Frequently Asked Questions
1. What kind of time commitment is required for participating in Wildcat Writers?
While a partnership does require some initial legwork on the part of the teachers, it shouldn’t create an excessive burden on either partner. In the fall, you will be matched with a teacher and you have the entire fall semester to plan together about how to partner your classes in the spring. There will be an opportunity to meet with your partner teacher at a professional development workshop on the UA campus sometime in October. Your planning can continue through personal meetings, phone conversations, or periodic email communication. Some teachers have also found it very helpful to visit each other's classes, to get a sense of the students and their partner's teaching style. In the spring, email communication between teachers should suffice to keep the partnership moving forward. Once classes begin, both teachers will spend time checking to be sure that online communication among students is going smoothly. Each teacher may also spend time making arrangements for campus visits.
2. How do the students contact each other?
The majority of the interactions among students can occur online, through email or other programs. See the section in this guide on technology for connecting students for more information on options for linking students. If high school students do not have regular access to computers, correspondence may be posted online or emailed by the high school instructor, or the high school teacher can arrange class time in a computer lab. Teachers will need to track student participation, through methods like asking students to CC emails, so students can receive credit for completing the work and teachers can make sure that individual partnerships are not fizzling out. Instructors can also arrange for students to exchange hard copies of work, which usually requires teachers to mail the work to one another or drive to pick it up.
3. Are students graded on Wildcat Writers work?
This depends on the teacher, although accountability through grades is very highly recommended to encourage students to invest in the partnership. Many teachers factor Wildcat Writers work into their students’ grades by counting online communications and small collaborative assignments as informal writing or journal credit. Some teachers create a separate point system for all Wildcat Writers assignments (designating perhaps ten percent for college classes and five percent for high school classes to partnership assignments). Also, some teachers incorporate Wildcat Writers into major projects, such as collaborative assignments or a composition with the partner class as audience, so WW can be a part of the project grade. The section on integrating WW into the curriculum offers more suggestions on this.
While a partnership does require some initial legwork on the part of the teachers, it shouldn’t create an excessive burden on either partner. In the fall, you will be matched with a teacher and you have the entire fall semester to plan together about how to partner your classes in the spring. There will be an opportunity to meet with your partner teacher at a professional development workshop on the UA campus sometime in October. Your planning can continue through personal meetings, phone conversations, or periodic email communication. Some teachers have also found it very helpful to visit each other's classes, to get a sense of the students and their partner's teaching style. In the spring, email communication between teachers should suffice to keep the partnership moving forward. Once classes begin, both teachers will spend time checking to be sure that online communication among students is going smoothly. Each teacher may also spend time making arrangements for campus visits.
2. How do the students contact each other?
The majority of the interactions among students can occur online, through email or other programs. See the section in this guide on technology for connecting students for more information on options for linking students. If high school students do not have regular access to computers, correspondence may be posted online or emailed by the high school instructor, or the high school teacher can arrange class time in a computer lab. Teachers will need to track student participation, through methods like asking students to CC emails, so students can receive credit for completing the work and teachers can make sure that individual partnerships are not fizzling out. Instructors can also arrange for students to exchange hard copies of work, which usually requires teachers to mail the work to one another or drive to pick it up.
3. Are students graded on Wildcat Writers work?
This depends on the teacher, although accountability through grades is very highly recommended to encourage students to invest in the partnership. Many teachers factor Wildcat Writers work into their students’ grades by counting online communications and small collaborative assignments as informal writing or journal credit. Some teachers create a separate point system for all Wildcat Writers assignments (designating perhaps ten percent for college classes and five percent for high school classes to partnership assignments). Also, some teachers incorporate Wildcat Writers into major projects, such as collaborative assignments or a composition with the partner class as audience, so WW can be a part of the project grade. The section on integrating WW into the curriculum offers more suggestions on this.