Tracking Collaboration
in our August article (L&L, “Science + Technology = Creativity (and Fun!),” page 30), we described ways
to encourage students to be creative
and innovative. In this article we
continue to examine how to integrate
the NETS•S into science teaching by
looking at communication
and collaboration.
The tools for communicating
with others have changed over time.
A decade ago, students had pen pals
to whom they would write several
times a year. At school, if a group of
students had to work outside of class,
they would arrange rides and meet at
someone’s house.
Today, technology offers many ways
for students to collaborate. Some of
the tools we use with our students
include Google Docs, wikis, student
e-mail, and chatting.
We use a project-based approach
to learning that requires students to
work in small or large groups. If we
expect students to communicate about
their work and collaborate with one
another, then we need to assess how
they do that. When students use overt
methods such as adding to the discussion tab in wikis, copying the teacher
in e-mails, using a discussion board,
or communicating within a wiki, the
teacher is able to assess something that
was once intangible—collaboration.
istockphoto.com/Danleap
Online productivity suites, such as
Google Docs, provide students with
a word processor, a spreadsheet, and
presentation software. Students can
begin their work at school and continue at home or anywhere they can
get online. Students can work collaboratively on the same document at the
same time. The files remain essentially
private (shared only among the students) until they are finished. At that
By Jared Mader and Ben Smith
When students use overt methods such as adding to the discussion tab in wikis,
copying the teacher in e-mails, using a discussion board, or communicating
within a wiki, the teacher is able to assess something that was once intangible—
collaboration.
point, one student will either e-mail
the teacher a PDF version or share the
document to the teacher’s account.
Subscribing to many of these online
tools requires a valid e-mail account.
Our school provides student e-mail,
giving them another way to communicate with other students. E-mail
can be an effective way for students to
send messages and keep track of their
work, but one problem is the wait
time for a response. A student might
send a message right after school, but
the student’s partners might not be
free until later. By the time a classmate responds, there may not be time
for students to adequately discuss or
make changes to their work.
Texting is a faster option, and a
large number of students have cell
phones. However, students cannot
give enough detail in their texts to be
effective.
Chatting becomes a better way for
students to communicate in real time.
We use homework chats at scheduled
times using a tool that is integrated
into our classroom management system. Only students in our class can
join the chat. Chatting programs often
create an archive of messages, which is
e-mailed to the teacher. The problem
with this type of communication is
that it is synchronous, requiring everyone to be online at the same time.
Wikis give students a different way
to work on assignments, and they may
be the most effective communication
tool. Although wiki pages can be private, we typically keep them open for
all to see. Students work on their wiki
site to track and report assignments in
much the same way they would use a
word processor. It is much easier for
the teacher to track what each student
is contributing. The wiki will record
each update to a page and include an
optional site administrator change
notification option. It keeps a record
of every page saved, and the teacher
can easily review it. Students can work
from anywhere there is a computer
