3.+11th+Grade

Learning Cooperatively on a Wiki
Literature Circles are an effective way to engage students in a more independent study of a novel. Students work in small groups, preparing before class on their own and sharing ideas during class time within their small group. The traditional literature circle has been a part of English classes for decades, and there is much [|research] on the effectiveness of this student-centered cooperative learning strategy. It was a natural progression to base the activity on a wiki, which is a flexible platform and easy to use. While the idea of using literature circles was not new to the study of the contemporary novel //Black Ice// in my American literature course, I began using the wiki to record and manage student progress in 2007. The 2008-09 school year was my third using a wiki with this unit. Here is a blog [|post] I wrote about integrating technology in the traditional classroom and trying to convince others to do the same.
 * Step 1: Rethinking the Unit**

Here is my curriculum map delineating the content, skills, assessments, and resources used throughout the unit.
 * Step 2: __The Literature Circle Unit__**

Here are other resources used with the unit:
 * the assignment sheet
 * student self assessment of group work [[file:Black Ice final assessment survey.doc]]
 * final grading rubric [[file:Black Ice Group Grade.doc]]
 * the final test [[file:The Final Examination of Black Ice 01.doc]]


 * Step 3: Student Examples**
 * the wiki created by the junior class.
 * an example of a group page.
 * an example of an individual student page.

There were several unique advantages to using a wiki as a homebase for the individual and group work. In the past, when homework was completed on individual paper handouts and stored in a group folder, inevitably pages would get lost before the final grading occurred. Some individual students would not complete their nightly homework reading and/or written work, thus putting their group discussion at a disadvantage. I immediately saw an increase in the timely completion of homework when this work became transparent and accessible to all members of the group on the wiki. The [|history] tab was also useful in seeing when work was completed and in tracking who contributed most frequently and most meaningfully to the group's written work. Having all of the group's work and in-class notes online allowed me as the facilitator to "enter" the group more frequently, leaving comments or further questions for discussion on the [|discussion boards] contained on each page.
 * Step 4: Reflection**