Year 12 Collaborative learning

COLLABORATIVE LEARNING PROJECT

VCE Unit 3 Creating and Presenting

As part of our PLT focus ‘that all people can learn’ I decided to trial some collaborative activities in Year 12 English. This was a challenge as I had to ensure that the time frame for covering course content and outcomes was not compromised and students felt that the activities were valid learning activities. As we were reading The Secret River, this became the context. Using an idea suggested by Kamala, students were organised to work in groups of up to 5 people for 5 lessons to prepare a lesson on one section of the text. They were given quite specific instructions as to length of presentation and the organisation of the task. However, the organisation and role allocation within the group was their own responsibility. The students were then asked to evaluate the activity both as a learning task and as a cooperative group activity. I was very interested to observe the initial reaction to and discussion about the proposed task. Some students (the natural leaders/personalities) leapt at the chance to be involved, some were non-committal and others were obviously reluctant. Some had difficulty with the idea of planning and organising a lesson, wanting more teacher direction; worried that they would miss ‘something important’. However, we persisted, as part of the rationale for the activity was for students to make their own learning decisions and share their knowledge, skills and resources.
Teacher Observations:
I was pleasantly surprised at the level of engagement demonstrated by most students. Once groups were formed it was clear that most were taking the task seriously and were actively involved in the process. Students soon realised that success in this task required the cooperation and input of all group members and pressure was applied to the few who were not ‘pulling their weight’ (with varying degrees of success). Generally, students used their time well and were able to complete the task in the specified time period. The activity culminated in group presentations.
A problem that emerged was the absence of students. This could and did create issues for a couple of groups as they had to re-allocate tasks and ‘cover’ for the absentee. The other main issue was the few students who did not want to participate or felt inhibited by the group process.
Overall, I thought this was a valuable learning activity. Once used to the idea and persuaded that it wouldn’t be ‘a waste of time’, most students organised themselves efficiently and engaged with the task productively. I aim to introduce more activities based on collaborative learning in years 10, 11 and 12.

For student evaluation and feedback CLICK HERE.

Image credit: FableVision artwork -Peter Reynolds.

Local Talent

Although not strictly related to this PLT we do have some collaborative learning/web2.0 experts lurking in our midst. As I was cruising the net I came across the School Library Association of Victoria (SLAV) blog Bright Ideas they have a post featuring a BHS wiki put together by Deb and Sam for a year 9 unit on graphic novels.

Check out the SLAV post- Feature wiki- Ballarat High School. To check out the wiki itself click here or go to the links section of this blog.

Evaluating the Blog

Our PLT focus on collaborative learning led me to blogging. Was it worth it? When I first started I had no preconceived ideas of how the blog I set up for my two Year 12 classes on the film Look Both Ways would develop. It soon, however, became clear that although most students felt positive towards the blog, eighteen signed up as contributors in the first few days, that they were not confident enough to post. The most common reason given was that they didn't want to put themselves out there because their entries wouldn't be as good as mine. When I asked what it would take to get them to contribute they said they would if I made it a class activity and I checked their contributions before we posted them. Therefore, the blog became entirely teacher-directed with some contributions from students either in the form of posts on themes or examples of their writing on the film. It followed and supplemented the work we did in class.

So each week I would publish several posts. At the end of the 5 week unit I surveyed both classes. 41 of the 47 students completed the survey. 23 students said they had visited the blog. Four students, my top students academically, said they had visited the blog daily. 5 visited it only once. The remaining 14 visited several times a week. Those who didn't look at the blog gave one of two reasons - they forgot or didn't have computer access at home or in their English classroom (RM55). Of the 18 who said they didn't look at the blog, 5 were able to tell me what they liked best about the blog. Hello!

After this survey I decided to put a site meter on the blog to monitor their usage in the lead-up to the exam. The site meter made it clear that the blog was being used by others outside of the school. 647 visits and 1751 page views over five week period. There were over 300 hits in the week before the exam. I now wish I had had the site meter there from the beginning.

The things BHS students liked best about the blog were: getting different ideas, views, insights and perspectives on the film; it was helpful when they were away or had misplaced their notes; good to see everyone's ideas together; loved seeing examples of student writing; broke the film down into sections they could easily study; helped with homework; it looked pretty; made them feel like a special community; links to different study guides were easy to access; the range of information; the pictures; the ability to be able to post a question and get it answered.

The only thing they didn't like about the blog was that several felt that not enough people got involved. The most common response to the question "How can I improve the blog for next year?" was to encourage more students to use it and post comments. Some said I should make it compulsory and ensure my classes are timetabled in a room with computers to ensure everyone had access and could post. Some suggested I should set up blogs for all Year 12 texts. I have set up 2 more blogs and am thinking about how to increase participation next year. It was collaborative but not collaborative enough in my opinion.

I found blogging addictive. I enjoyed it and found it to be great professional development. By posting on what I was doing in class it made me continually reflect on my classroom practice. I enjoyed the positive comments from my students and later on from students outside the school.

Was it worth it? The comments of the two students who I expect to get over 40 study scores were in themselves enough for me to think it was worth the time and effort. One said he viewed it after every class and that it was simply a "grand resource". The other said she viewed it "daily", that it was "fantastic" and that she liked "everything" about it. So with these two as my inspiration, now I am looking to expand into wikis, though I'm worried they are not pretty enough, or perhaps a website. We'll see. Thank you, Em, for starting me on this journey.

Collaborative Learning in the Year 11 English Classroom

Last year the year 11 English course was changed. To cater for this change we adopted the Australian Identity as our context. As a group of teachers we decided that all students produce 3 short pieces of writing minimum and that we organize groups to produce a magazine. Their 3 pieces would form the basis of their magazine.

At the beginning of the year I noticed that the students were not mixing at all. They would come in session after session and sit in exactly the same seat without having anything to do with anyone else.

I decided to divide the class into 5 groups of 5 students. They had to sit and work together at all times for the duration of term 1 which was Creating and Presenting. I asked each member of the class to give me two other names of people they would feel comfortable to work with. I insisted that all groups include both genders.

I took these away and came up with groupings. As it turned out they were not exactly mixed ability grouping because the students wanted to work with people of similar abilities. I explained to them that if there was anyone who was not happy with my decision they could come to see me and we would discuss it. I made sure that all students had at least another person they knew. When that wasn't the case I went and saw them personally prior to the class to get their approval.

Their task was to produce a magazine in 9 weeks of term 1. Each lesson they would sit together in groups. I had to do some direct teaching in that I needed to explain what the different forms of writing were and what their options and due dates were. These were non-negotiable because as a group of year 11 teachers we had come to that decision.

I would give them time to discuss their magazine. For example, what will you theme be? What audience are you aiming for? and so on. Directly after they had 15-20 minutes of discussion I followed up with their journals. I got them to write down their ideas individually and what they had agreed to do as a group. I specifically used the session to teach the skills first and then to work in groups the next.

They had to assign each member of the group specific tasks, especially since their magazine required mote than their 3 articles. For example, some did star signs, advertisements and so on.

Since dates were assigned for work to be finished I employed the groups to not only check over each other's work, but to also brainstorm ideas for each other.

I made it my business each session to spend a little time with each of the groups. It was interesting to see how they pressured each other to do the required task and also how some became a little competitive and somewhat secretive of their work. They did not want other groups to pinch their ideas.

When the groups assigned roles two people were assigned to be the leaders or editors. All the other students had to email their stories to them. The leaders were responsible for putting the finishing touches to the magazine. They would come to class with printouts of their work and discuss their vision or ideas with them.

This worked quite well in that the students were mixing and getting to know each other more. However, when a member was away frequently, they felt that he/she had let the team down. The fact that I was assessing each student individually made it a lot easier. Had I marked the magazine as a group some would have been unhappy for the obvious reasons.

AS part of the process, I asked the students to reflect on their work, how they used their time, positives of working this way, what suggestions they would make to improve it for next time and even grade themselves. They were very honest. Individuals who did not do much admitted their failing and at the same time praised the students who did a lot of the work and deserved better results.

What did I learn?
1.That it was worthwhile and that I would do it again. I did it with my current year 11
English group earlier this year.
2. That it is better to assess people as individuals. They co-operate more, especially the good kids.
3. That they actually do get to know each other a lot more.
4. That they become more willing to share their ideas with each other.
5. Some students were more vocal in smaller groups than in the whole class discussion.

I also learnt that
1. You have to be in 5 places at once.
2. If you place responsibility on their shoulders, most will rise to the occasion
3. It is a good idea to have non-negotiated dates and expectations.

Overall, I learnt from it and now feel quite comfortable to adopt it with each of my classes at least for one topic each term/year, preferably at the beginning of the year.

Vince Demasi
September 2008

Photo credit: very little dave 2007

Thanks, Em!

I never thought I'd be contributing to a blog (having never even read one until now!) Well done, Em, for making the process so easy. I can see a whole new area opening up. Now I just need to make some time....

Early days

I see Em has put up the link to my Year 12 blog. Reactions so far have been good. Some students have signed up to be contributors. Others are just viewing it. Some were a bit funny about creating a g-mail account to be able to register as a contributor. I have extended an invitation to students from other classes to join in. I have also had positive comments about the links to other resources on the film.

For me I think it is really helping me to reflect on what I do each lesson as the posts are in response to what we have actually done in class. This means I have a record of what I am doing, students who miss a lesson can go on the blog to see what they missed and if they think of questions after the lesson they have an opportunity to post them. So far only one student has posted a comment. It will be interesting to see if I can build upon this.

query

Well done on this Em, and thanks for a stimulating PLT meeting. I had thought about a blog for my kids on Macbeth but would be afraid to read their posts!
Is it worth posting our PLT minutes on here ofr just keep them on the teachershare?
cheers