Technology for Connecting Students
There are several options for connecting students, and some of these options can be combined for more multi-faceted interaction.
1. Email. Many partnerships run largely through email, with partners mailing back and forth. High school students can create free email accounts through Gmail if they do not already have one. It is very important that teachers track emails sent, because in the past some partnerships have faded out when one party failed to return a message. Teachers can have students carbon copy (CC) on all emails, though this will clog up the instructor's inbox. One option is for instructors to create a separate email address to track messages, or to create a filter so Wildcat Writers mail is automatically placed in a special folder.
2. Blogs. If teachers do not want to pair students individually, they may consider having a class blog where students interact. Or, students can create their own blogs and comment on the blogs of their partners. Blogger is a wonderful and user-friendly tool for setting up blogs.
Wordpress is another blog site that has been used by by Wildcat Writers teachers in the past. For example, Ashley Holmes guided her students in creating blogs, and then her students' partners (each of her students had two or three partners) created a username and commented on the blogs. Ashley's handouts on how to create a username and how to comment might be useful for teachers considering Wordpress. We don't have a handout on how to create a blog, as she talked her students through this process live, but this is easy to figure out if you visit the Wordpress site.
3. Edmodo. Edmodo is a facebook-like tool designed especially for education. You can create groups between high school and college students, allowing them to post to each other and providing an easy way for you to track students' contributions.
4. Google Drive. Also called google docs, this tool allows students to share documents, collaboratively compose, and comment on each others' work without worrying about file types. There's also a live chat function, and you could even combine google docs with google hangouts to allow for video chatting.
5. VoiceThread. This is a program that allows people to upload images, and then comment on those images while writing directly on the image. Others can add their own comments, too. There are five ways to comment: recording thoughts on a computer microphone, calling a special phone number which uploads comments to the thread (though only a limited amount of these can be done for free), recording yourself on a webcam, typing text, or uploading an audio file. Others can watch/listen to your comments and add their own. This might be a useful tool for teaching visual rhetoric, or allowing students to express their thoughts out loud. You can watch an experiment with Voicethread that shows the program in action and explains how to use it. This program now has a cost, but our grant funds may be able to support a license if you feel this would help your collaboration.
6. Glogster. This program allows students to create interactive collages with text, audio, video, and images. This program is especially useful if you're planning a unit on visual arguments or zines. Glogster also integrates with VoiceThread.
7. Geograffiti. Perfect for projects that focus on place, Geograffiti allows people to attach a short voice recording to a particular place on a google map. Users can listen to these "voicemarks" and respond to them. No computer microphone needed-- everything is done through a cell phone. This system works especially well if you are encouraging students to write about place.
8. Desire to Learn (d2L). D2L is the UA's official learning management system, including discussion boards, content postings, group dropboxes, and calendars. It may be possible to register the high school students on d2L.
Return to Guide Table of Content
1. Email. Many partnerships run largely through email, with partners mailing back and forth. High school students can create free email accounts through Gmail if they do not already have one. It is very important that teachers track emails sent, because in the past some partnerships have faded out when one party failed to return a message. Teachers can have students carbon copy (CC) on all emails, though this will clog up the instructor's inbox. One option is for instructors to create a separate email address to track messages, or to create a filter so Wildcat Writers mail is automatically placed in a special folder.
2. Blogs. If teachers do not want to pair students individually, they may consider having a class blog where students interact. Or, students can create their own blogs and comment on the blogs of their partners. Blogger is a wonderful and user-friendly tool for setting up blogs.
Wordpress is another blog site that has been used by by Wildcat Writers teachers in the past. For example, Ashley Holmes guided her students in creating blogs, and then her students' partners (each of her students had two or three partners) created a username and commented on the blogs. Ashley's handouts on how to create a username and how to comment might be useful for teachers considering Wordpress. We don't have a handout on how to create a blog, as she talked her students through this process live, but this is easy to figure out if you visit the Wordpress site.
3. Edmodo. Edmodo is a facebook-like tool designed especially for education. You can create groups between high school and college students, allowing them to post to each other and providing an easy way for you to track students' contributions.
4. Google Drive. Also called google docs, this tool allows students to share documents, collaboratively compose, and comment on each others' work without worrying about file types. There's also a live chat function, and you could even combine google docs with google hangouts to allow for video chatting.
5. VoiceThread. This is a program that allows people to upload images, and then comment on those images while writing directly on the image. Others can add their own comments, too. There are five ways to comment: recording thoughts on a computer microphone, calling a special phone number which uploads comments to the thread (though only a limited amount of these can be done for free), recording yourself on a webcam, typing text, or uploading an audio file. Others can watch/listen to your comments and add their own. This might be a useful tool for teaching visual rhetoric, or allowing students to express their thoughts out loud. You can watch an experiment with Voicethread that shows the program in action and explains how to use it. This program now has a cost, but our grant funds may be able to support a license if you feel this would help your collaboration.
6. Glogster. This program allows students to create interactive collages with text, audio, video, and images. This program is especially useful if you're planning a unit on visual arguments or zines. Glogster also integrates with VoiceThread.
7. Geograffiti. Perfect for projects that focus on place, Geograffiti allows people to attach a short voice recording to a particular place on a google map. Users can listen to these "voicemarks" and respond to them. No computer microphone needed-- everything is done through a cell phone. This system works especially well if you are encouraging students to write about place.
8. Desire to Learn (d2L). D2L is the UA's official learning management system, including discussion boards, content postings, group dropboxes, and calendars. It may be possible to register the high school students on d2L.
Return to Guide Table of Content