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High School English Teacher Catlin Tucker:
Collaborize Classroom™ has allowed me to take my curriculum beyond the boundaries of my physical classroom. It provides each student with an equal voice and encourages in-depth discussions. Discussions limited to the confines of my classroom have always been lackluster. I have been continually frustrated by the lack of participation and depth of responses. From the moment I integrated Collaborize Classroom into my classroom curriculum, discussions have taken on a whole new significance. Students who rarely participated in class are some of the first to post their responses to our discussion questions online. Responses contain a depth and quality that I am not able to get from a real time classroom conversation.
Collaborize Classroom challenges me as an instructor to design dynamic, thought provoking questions that will drive a rewarding conversation. I integrate the student's postings into my classroom discussions as well. I use their online responses to summarize ideas in relation to a topic, provide closure at the end of a lesson/unit, or transition to another aspect of the text we are discussing. It also allows me to make connections between my English class and the other courses my students are taking. Real world connections are also easier to make. In the past I have done "free writes"/ "quick writes" in class which require students to reflect on the way a theme or idea in the text connects to the their lives. Now, I can post discussion questions or forum topics to allow students share these reflections and respond to what their peers have said. This allows for a personal dialogue and discourse that is rewarding for students who are able to see commonalities with their peers. I have seen more camaraderie between students since implementing Collaborize Classroom; they often reference discussions that have taken place online while in the classroom.
Collaborize Classroom also provides students an opportunity to engage with their peers in a medium that is becoming more and more readily used in life outside of the classroom. Online dialogue is a part of their day-to-day lives and, as a result, they are extremely comfortable with this medium. Several students, and even a couple of parents, have expressed their gratitude to me for choosing to incorporate technology effectively in my classroom.
It is a wonderful tool that is making my experience as an instructor even more rewarding!
Catlin Tucker
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