The National Day of Writing event that I attended in 2009 inspired me to use a more creative approach when designing class assignments for first year writing and fundamentals of speech class students. In fact, I want to incorporate digital technology writing/composing as classroom tools to challenge students’ perspectives in writing.
Example 1: Etherpad
Use the Etherpad program, which allows students to type on their computers and have it show up in real-time on the screen in front of class. The one downside to this program is that it only eight people can type live at one time, so in order to alleviate this dilemma have students work in groups. My suggestion is to have students produce a poem using keywords from the class. For an added twist have a student from each group draw out pieces of paper stating the parameters on how the poems will be structured. For instance, one idea is to have each stanza have a rhyming pattern of AB, AB, CD, CD, etc. After all the criteria are established, inform them there is a time limit to complete the poems. This promotes team work and challenges students think quickly. The poems can be silly, but the keywords have to be used in context. The intent of this activity is to show students that writing can be fun while teaching concepts important to the course curriculum.
Example 2: Google Translation
Have students work on a piece of writing, a short story, essay, or poem at home. The students are to either email the document to professor or bring on a memory stick. The professor loads one of the documents into Google Translation program. The students can decide which language they would like the document translated to. After document is translated click the audio tab and listen to the document in a different language. This event can be done in reverse as well. The concept behind this activity is to show students the different programs available, and for students to view the actual script of various languages used in the world.
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