Supporting Writing with Technology

When I first started reading this chapter I did not understand how technology could be used to help students write. When I think about writing I often think about a pencil and a paper, writing down your most inner thoughts and drawing doodles around the edges. Using your creativity to create a narrative essay or using books and the internet to write research papers. I now understand many different tools that can assist students in writing and helping to make writing a more enjoyable task. The chapter describes many different components of writing. The five components are setting goals, planning, idea organization, composition of text and editing.

The first tool that the chapter describes are concept maps. I have been taught since a young age to make concept maps to plan my papers and organize my thoughts (two of the components right there) but I have always done them the traditional way with pencil and paper. The chapter introduces many different technological alternatives to the traditional way. This semester I have had the opportunity to use one of these technological concept maps for our science class. It is a great way to organize and plan because it was easy to move around the different subjects and make different connections. I plan on using this specific tool in my classroom by having my students plan their writing with the option of the technology tool rather than the traditional model. I really like how the chapter gives us different sites that we can find the different concept maps. That is a great resource that I can use in my future classroom.

Another tool that the chapter describes is Microsoft PowerPoint. I never thought about this tool as a writing technique. I agree with the chapter that it can be very distracting when making a presentation. I think that we get too caught up with the fun aspects and lack in the actual writing. I like how our class has also given us other options to present material like Prezi and Glogster. I think that this helps keep students involved and engaged because it is a good change from the traditional PowerPoint. They are also more interactive than PowerPoints, because students have access to them on the web and during presentations. I think that these different presentation tools also can be distracting because students can get caught up in pressing all the buttons and focus less on the content that it is presenting. I can use these different tools in my classroom to help my students develop their presentation skills. We all know that I have to work on my own presentation skills, so I look forward to helping my students develop speech skills and presentations using the different tools.

Another way to incorporate technology into writing is to publish writing on the web. The chapter discusses how this can help students to become more motivated and inspired if they get to publish their paper. They are getting a sense of authorship. I think that this is a great idea, especially that the chapter provides children friendly forums. Another thing that the chapter suggests is to read this book called The Pigman, and the students get to write the “last chapter” and publish it online. This is a great way to help students feel good about their writing. I can use this to keep my students excited about their writing. I do have the concern of safety with this tool. It think that most of the parents of my students will not agree to let their children publish their work online. I like that there is a child friendly website in the chapter but I am still cautious about having my students publish their work online.

I think that all of these tools will be helpful for my students to engage and look forward to writing. This chapter has opened my eyes to many different writing styles, like the presentations. It has also given me many resources to use in my classroom, like the concept mapping tools. I think using technology will help some of my students better develop their writing and create a sense of authorship.