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November 30, 2020
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Hi everyone!
My name is Alli Schilling and I am so excited to spend a few weeks with you talking about a subject we may have a love/hate relationship with…. The importance of writing and communication in every class!
Ever had a student question his grade by asking “This isn’t a writing class, so why are you grading me on my writing style and formatting?” I am guessing just about all of us have had some version of this conversation. It can be frustrating to not only defend your grading about something we KNOW is important, but it can also be exhausting to teach the importance of writing in a business, science, nursing, or engineering course.
In our four weeks together, we will discuss a few important issues around this topic:
Week One – Writing is important in every class
Week Two – How to be the example in your class
Week Three – Resources to help students and faculty
Week Four – Grading techniques
I look forward to exploring this topic together!
Thank you so much for joining us for the final week of the workshop! I hope you all had a great holiday!
If I can ever help with anything, please do not hesitate to reach out!
Alli Schilling
Thank you!
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147 Replies
So let me give you a little background on me…. I am an Online Full Time Faculty member in the Colangelo College of Business and I have been with GCU for almost ten years (!!). My background prior to teaching full time at GCU was in program and project management and I am in no way a professionally educated teacher. When I started teaching, I knew the importance of strong writing and communication skills, but I was not always sure how to teach writing in non-writing classes. I would often think “they should have learned this before they got to my class” and “I already have a full class of content to teach, how can I balance that with writing skills”. Not an easy feat – but it can be done!
So where do we start? Let’s start our conversation here!
How do you stress the importance of good communication and writing skills in your classes? What challenges do you have?
Hi! I have been teaching in higher-education for 12+ years in various modalities (cohort-ground, online, etc) and different course levels (entry-point, capstone and graduate). With each variation, I come across different challenges with regards to the students' writing. Most of the classes I teach fall under the Colangelo College of Business which we all know "business writing" is slightly different but still needs to remain professional. One of the components I focus on is having the students have someone else read their written work to them, out loud. I have found this to be beneficial at all levels and super helpful with ESL students. We always tell our students to proofread their work, but when we write something ourselves we tend to hear what we think we wrote, etc. Additionally, by having someone else read it, the students get to consider if it sounds like a casual conversation or a professionally written document. This seems like something so simple, but those students who take this advice always tell me it was helpful and I noticed an improvement in their writing.
~Jessica (Blair) Soland
Jessica Blair Hi Jessica! Thanks for joining! This is such great advice - we really do not realize what a big difference hearing our work can make versus just reading it.
I am also glad you brought up business writing... like you, I teach most often in CCOB and we typically focus on business writing in student assignments like proposals, summaries, and marketing plans. On the flipside of that, we also have more formal academic writing assignments, like research papers and essays. Of course, most colleges have specific writing requirements that fit with the content and curriculum. It can be tough to balance between a college specific style (business writing, STEM, nursing) and standard academic writing, but the goal should always be the same - solid, clear, and concise writing that shows purpose.
Everyone, do you find it challenging to balance between academic writing and any specific style that you focus on within your content area or college? Why or why not?
Alli Schilling
Yes want to catapult more points on business writing for students. My students seemed to need at times a further handle on applying APA seventh edition. I incorporated an APA format template helper to assist students on this issue. My results outcomes were extraordinary! Enjoyed reading over your posting of information.
Lee Demuth, Ph.D.
Angela’s comments above really resonated with me – I too have had instructors and professors that really pushed and encouraged me to be a better writer. They had high standards and held students accountable. On the flipside, I know I had instructors who let things go for whatever reason. I often think that if all my former instructors had those high expectations (and gave students the tools to succeed and learn), I would have been a much better writer.
So this leads to an important question… can you be encouraging and positive, while also reinforcing high standards for writing and content? We all have a goal to educate students…. After all, that is why we are here at GCU! But we also want to encourage a love of learning and positive communication. How do we find the balance?
Alli Schilling
Hi Ali,
My name is Laura Metcalfe and I've been with the College of Education at GCU for about 1 year. I am a public school teacher and administrator in Arizona, so good writing is important for effective and understandable communication with the community, stakeholders, and peers. It also sets a good example of what is good writing for teachers and students. I have an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from NAU.
Regarding stressing the importance of good writing and communication skills in class, I've posed this explanation in the following manner:
Good writing skills are a model for your students to follow. Your skills don't have to be perfect, but they have to be clear, concise, and understandable so your students can follow the directions you need for them to accomplish their learning goals. Additionally, good communication skills, writing and otherwise, are essential for any professional to be able to communicate with leadership, peers, the community, stakeholders, etc. Finally, there is an impression of you being made by the reader of your writing and messages before they even meet you in person. A good example and a good impression are helpful for you as a professional, and as a member of the education community. Also, in a graduate-level class, clear communication is essential for making sure your assignments and communication in discussion forums are understandable and applicable to the material and prompts outlined. I'm here to help you with questions and concerns in this area, please reach out to me, so we can communicate!
With the example explanation I've provided above I've not had very many issues with my students not understanding the reasoning behind the "what", "how", and "why" of good and clear communication and writing skills.
Laura Schaffer-Metcalfe Laura, thank you so much for joining us and for your wonderful points! I LOVE your thoughts about why strong communication skills are important and the point about writing giving an impression before we actually meet in person is incredibly accurate. I occasionally teach MGT/325 and students work on a resume, cover letter, and interview questions in that class. It is an awesome opportunity to really showcase just how important writing skills are in a first impression.
Outside of assignments like these, are there other good ways to stress the importance of communication in the "real world"?
Also, Laura - is it okay if we share the post you shared? I would love to build a little library of everyone's tools and suggestions that I can post at the end of the workshop! :)
Alli Schilling
Hi Alli,
Thank you for your reply! Yes, I would love to have you share any information in my post that will benefit faculty and any others who read it.
Regarding your question, are there any other good ways to stress the importance of communication in the "Real World?" I believe there are statements that will assist instructors and students with this need. For example:
Just some thoughts! Thanks!
Laura Schaffer Metcalfe, Ed.D.
Laura Schaffer-Metcalfe Laura, these are WONDERFUL - especially important in today's climate! I really do think that when students understand that their communication has a purpose and makes a difference, they are more likely to put in the effort. Thank you!
I am an online, masters program, adjunct faculty member(6 yrs), CSET and CNHP. I do believe I spend a lot of time trying to figure out content within the hidden message among all the errors. This is somewhat distracting and can turn me off as the reader. What I have found that works to get students motivated is I relate my on-line experience/studies and how I felt when professors graded my work. It can be somewhat demoralizing especially when you thought you had perfect work to find out your work was less than perfect . When I share my experience and how I felt, students seem to feel a connection, that they are not in this alone. For those who never seem to catch on, I make repetitive calls or personal forum messages as I do not want them to feel left behind. I turned my weakness into a strength, so I note motivational posts throughout the course. I say often, if I could conquer those challenges, I surely know they can...
Angela Parker
So many great points here, Angela! Thank you! I really agree with sharing our own experiences. I think this is a great way to not only reinforce positive writing skills, but it is a wonderful way to build rapport with our students. I often share that it took me longer than the standard four years to complete my undergrad program and that school was often challenging for me - but the reward of successfully completing a degree and leaning skills that apply throughout a career are well worth it.
Angela, do you have a specific way that you like to share your own experiences? I would love to hear more about this!
I had a couple of professors to really push graduate students to achieve and maintain excellence. I think about those professors very often and that keeps me pushing my students. I have received comments that I am stern, however, I also know what my end product was during my studies. All that unnecessary editing could have been avoided if I just took heed of the information that was presented to me, so I see it as a lesson learned, which is what I tell the students. Listen, use the information and above all ask questions. I cannot assist if I do not know the concern, however, they already know my expectations up front.
I have taught online at GCU since 2007. I began in the undergraduate programs and moved to College of Doctoral Studies around 2009. We have all encountered learners who lack writing skills. I have encountered some (in the doctoral program) that I wondered how they obtained an undergraduate degree! Nevertheless, like Angela, I also am quick to share my experience regarding learning to write to assure learners that writers are not born, they learn to write. I explain that the ability to communicate clearly, concisely, and formally requires breaking the habit of writing like we speak. We often speak informally and when we write as we speak, we write informally. Therefore, think formally when writing to break informality when writing.
Additionally, learners often become upset regarding formatting errors. Therefore, I stress the importance of proper APA formatting by noting that formatting is a secondary means of communication between writer and reader. Thus, incorrect formatting hinders content communication.
Finally, regarding both writing and formatting, I have created an APA & Writing Challenge that I post in most courses. First, the challenge includes a Word document containing common writing and APA errors that I see. Second, I have a PowerPoint that contains the corrections to the errors highlighted in red to help learners identify the errors. Third, the PowerPoint contains the correction. I usually post this in the Module 1 DQ with a note informing learners that I encounter writing and formatting errors in most assignments. I encourage them to take the challenge by going through the word document, find and correct the errors, and then review the PowerPoint to check their work. I also encourage them to post a reply regarding how well they did. I will attach the Challenge to this post should anyone want to use it in their course. I have worked to make sure their are no errors; however, if you spot any, please let me know. Sometimes fresh eyes see things old eyes miss!
Attachments
Gary Piercy
Wow, thank you so much for sharing your resources! I may just steal them myself!
This really resonated with me: "We often speak informally and when we write as we speak, we write informally. Therefore, think formally when writing to break informality when writing."
I am guilty of writing as I speak; I appreciate your tip!
I also think that sometimes I am so focused on building relationships, having a supportive (if not friendly) tone, and trying to integrate today's communication with emojis and the like, that I might not do the best job at modeling formality.
I want to continue to emanate my personality and presence in the online classroom, but also model formal discussion and supporting my ideas with research, too. Do you have any insight as to when and how to be formal vs informal?
Tiffany Newell
Tiffany, thank you for responding and feel free to use the resource!
Regarding writing tone, I recognize that I must model the behavior I desire to see. Therefore, I maintain a formal writing tone and format in all my communications with learners. If learners see formality on my part, they are more likely to follow my lead. The opposite is also true. Model informality and informality will follow.
I understand the desire to allow your humanity to resonate with learners; however, this could be accomplished by sharing personal experiences and responding with care to their concerns.
I hope this helps you!
Gary
Tiffany Newell - I have had to request a few students to refrain from inserting discussions as if are texting or using a lot of acronyms. Who would have ever thought I would have to note this within the course...
Gary Piercy Thank you Gary and Tiffany! This is an important aspect that we probably do not discuss enough - especially in an online environment. We know that students write informally in text messages and emails and they do tend to carry that over into our classes. While I do want to have fun and for students to enjoy their participation related conversations in the DQ threads, there has to be a level of professionalism as well. It is a balance, right?
Here is a post that I have used FOREVER in my classes (if I remember correctly, a former mentor actually shared it with me when I first started teaching!) - I post it at the beginning of every course. How do you set the tone for professional writing and tone in your courses?
Hi Class!!
one thing that i wnayt you to get in to hte habit o0f doing i dot run spellm and grammar check prio to podying.
Huh? What did she just say??? I bet that's what all of you are asking yourself. Actually, what I said was, "One thing that I want you to get in the habit of doing is running spell and grammar check prior to posting". As you can see, it can be very difficult to read posts that are not proofread prior to posting. Proofreading your messages also shows that you consider yourself a professional and are communicating with other professionals. Use the spell check option that is provided for you or type your post in Word first and use the spellchecker there. Or write very slowly and re-read it before you post. Reading out loud is a great way to catch errors as well!
You ALWAYS want to run spell and grammar check AND carefully proofread all posts and assignments. Also, avoid texting abbreviations and keep your writing courteous and professional.
I do the same and I request for students to note my responses for format, APA, spelling and grammar. Hopefully with the new LMS release(next year) the application will be more user friendly for all.
Gary Piercy
Gary, I love this exercise! I think that this really sets the tone that you do expect to see APA standards being followed, but it also provides resources and opens the door for communication and support. This (to me) is one of the most important aspects to building great writing skills in our students - support!
I find that once students feel defeated in their writing skills, it can be tough to change that mentality. Have you ever had a student reach out to you in the first week and just put it out there that writing is not a strongpoint and to "not expect perfection"? Sadly, I have and I always try to reinforce what you mentioned above... great writers are made, not born!
Thank you for sharing, Gary!
Alli Schilling
Alli, I have never had a learner admit that writing was not a strongpoint. On the other hand, I find that learners are surprised when I comment on issues that (in their words) "no one has ever pointed that out to me before."
When I have learners in their second year of a doctoral program tell me that no one has ever pointed out writing or formatting errors, I think we need to examine ourselves. I know some instructors feel they are not writing instructors so their concern should be limited to content. However, if communicating content is necessary to understand content, then writing and formatting are necessary components and must be considered. Therefore, I think the greater issue is holding instructors accountable with regard to writing and formatting.
Great point Gary. GCU is a respectable institution/university, not a diploma mill.
Gary Piercy Gary, you nailed it - that is really one of the main ideas of our discussion. We ALL have to be in this together and focus on the importance of strong writing skills. The bottom line is that if a student cannot communicate purpose and clarity in assignments, they do not have a solid understanding of course concepts.
Angela Parker ABSOLUTELY true, Angela! Holding students accountable reinforces this! :)
I currently have a student who is doing the bare minimum with substantive participation and assignments, enough to keep a B in the graduate program. I contacted the student when the grade fell to a C. The student mentioned she was told by her AA to just sit back and observe the course as she already has a M.D. I notified the student that would not go on in my course and that she must earn her grade and that I would not expect anything less.
I am getting complaints about AAs not going through the appropriate orientation of templates, GCU policies, requirements, SSC, etc.
I love facilitating my subjects, which is why GCU hired me as an SME. I have figured out, if I provide expectations during week 1, most concerns are minimal by week 3. I consistently reference students back to week 1 announcements. It is fair to say many do not read anyway, however, my documents prove they were informed.
Sorry, I was all over the place with this response, just thinking about current scenarios.
Angela Parker I always post my expectations for DQs in Module 1 DQ 1 prior to the course beginning. I also require learners to respond. Here is my expectation post.
Following are my expectations for the discussion forums.
Please respond to this post noting you have read and understand the requirements.
Dr Piercy
Gary Piercy This is awesome, Gary! I do something similar that I will share with you next week when we discuss being a role model in your classes. Setting the tone in the DQ threads truly does help us set the tone for proper writing on assignments.
Angela Parker Angela, I am right there with you on this one. Setting the tone from the start is KEY! I will share more about this next week, but I do a similar process that you (and Gary) mentioned. I post read and acknowledgement posts and videos to help set the tone and expectation from the get-go.
I think it helps students know what the expectations are right from the beginning and it also helps them to plan their schedule for the course. Stay tunes for next week for more on this topic! I would love for you to share more about what you post and share on this next week as well!
thanks
Dr. Parker
Hi everyone!
What writing issues do you see most often in your courses? I typically teach MGT/420 (online), so my students are usually later in their program and have been exposed to APA and college level writing skills. However, I tend to see formatting issues, lack of a thesis statement, poor organization, and lack of purpose.
Please share what concerns you have and what classes/level you typically teach. Are there issues you tend to see quite often?
Alli Schilling, I teach doctoral level courses and following are the issues that come to mind.
Noun pronoun agreement
Noun verb agreement
Writing in first and second person
Writing in passive voice
Using contractions
Split infinitives
Anthropomorphisms
Cliches, jargon, slang, and colloquialisms
Thesis statement and essay organization. Regarding this, I have attached a simple overview regarding writing a simple essay. Feel free to use it.
Gary
Attachments
Gary Piercy This is wonderful, Gary! I am going to hang onto this and repost it later in our discussion when we discuss resources and grading - is that okay with you? You are awesome for sharing your resources!
Alli Schilling feel free to use anything you like!
Gary
Gary Piercy Thank you, Gary!
All of the above and more. I have started placing the onus on the student directing them to Student Success Center. I can provide all I can, however, if the student never use/apply the information, my purpose is in vain. Usually, when students start using SSC, the questions start to come in, then I know they started researching the information.
Angela Parker There are a ton of great resources within the SSC. I find that many students just are unaware of them! In Week Three, we will chat more about resources to help students. I am excited to hear what everyone likes and shares with students!
Same for me. I attended a FTD training a few weeks ago. I posed the question of a remedial type course for learners at the beginning of graduate program/studies. I was required to take such for my degrees. The course was pass/fail. Students could not matriculate until they received the desire score for that course. GCU FTD staff mentioned several requests have come in for that/revisions to programs and FTD may look into that for future program revisions. So it is a start.
Angela Parker Definitely! I love that GCU is pretty open to suggestions and feedback, especially from faculty. I think it is always important to share suggestions and feedback - always do those end of course surveys as well! :)
Angela Parker I agree! In my doctoral program I had to take a writing course (non credit) before I could begin the program. The course was only to identify learners who were unable to write, not teach learners how to write. This type of course could help us to identify learners that would need help and then GCU could make recommendations or provide courses to enable learners to achieve some writing skills to enable success. Further, GCU could give more weight to writing and APA on grading rubrics.
For the assignments in which the writing/APA weight is lower, I still annotate my concerns and the expectations by the next assignment due date. That way I can possibly avoid seeing repetitive errors.
Angela Parker like you, I always comment on writing and APA issues on all papers.
Angela Parker Hi Angela and Gary! We will talk a little more about this in the coming weeks, but I relate writing concerns to all sections of the rubric. I mark the APA and writing sections accordingly, but I also take writing skills, purpose, research, and clarity into account when reviewing the content sections as well. Stay tuned... we will chat more about that soon! :)
Angela Parker Timely feedback really helps! I try to set a goal to get written assignments graded within 48 hours so students have plenty of time to read feedback and ask questions.
I do also as I want feedback implemented in future assignments. I post that assignments have been graded and I need for all to open the document and review highlighted areas of concerns. Many times students only read the box in which we insert notes and have no idea what I am talking about. So I specifically question students about downloading my documents and review my comments.
Hi everyone!
I came across this article that I think you all will find interesting:
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/employee-relations/pages/employers-say-students-arent-learning-soft-skills-in-college.aspx
Among the many valid points in this article, the part about the digitization of college students really stuck out to me. This is what we are up against! Students of all ages are interacting in new ways and they do not always reinforce strong writing skills.
What can we do to combat this? What were your take-aways from this article?
Alli Schilling the article contained discussion of the lack of both soft and hard skills among graduates. Thus, the impetus seems to be graduates are not learning only earning degrees. Keeping the discussion specific to writing becomes difficult when all other skills appear to be lacking as well. Nevertheless, the onus is upon the university to ensure these skills are taught and developed. The problem is our programs assume learners have basic skills when entering the program. We cannot assume! As I shared in a previous post, I had a learner in the GCU doctoral program who writing was so bad I could not understand anything the learner wrote (no exaggeration!). This was a learner with an undergraduate and graduate degree. I was blunt, but caring, with the learner and informed her that if I was the first person to discuss her writing issues with her, the educational system has failed her. The learner did not pass the course and I have not idea what she did after the class.
Another problem is the limitation of core courses necessary to earn a degree. There are only so many courses a learner can take to earn the designated credits necessary to earn the degree. While instructors see the problems, administrators who make decisions do not seem to take these issues into account.
Therefore, I think universities must instill tests before learners enter a program to determine the learners' skills and abilities upon entering a program. Several years ago, I taught at a local community college in which all learners were required to take tests in English, reading, and math to determine if they had the skills, knowledge, and ability to matriculate into a college freshman English and math course. Those that did not pass the test, had to take and pass remedial courses without credit to enter courses for credit.
I would encourage GCU to test all learners at every level in English, reading, and math (math for programs requiring mathematic skills). The courses would not be for credit, but would enable the University to assist learners in the development of those skills or "weed-out" learners who do not have the ability to graduate. To me, this shows social responsibility as we could keep people from amassing large debt before discovering they could not graduate.
Sorry for the long post as I know my thoughts will probably not be considered by those who have the authority to make change.
Gary Piercy Gary, your thoughts are always so well thought out and I appreciate them! I think your points are right on and while I know that our faculty development department checks out these conversations, I will tell you that I will also pass on your suggestions. I think it is important to feel heard, no matter what!
Of course, these are bigger conversations than we are covering here... the education system at large, student debt, core classes, college prep... all of them can be overwhelming when we look at the small amount of time we have with students in a course. I think it can be daunting to think of this on a large scale and it can also make you feel like you don't make an impact.
The good news is that we can make a difference until these larger issues are addressed on a bigger scale. And you have shared so many wonderful suggestions of things we can do with classes and individual students. Thank you, Gary - I am happy to have you here!
Alli Schilling thank you for your kind words. I realize administration must make changes to affect real change in the system. Bringing it back to the classroom, the university should also screen potential instructors for writing ability. An advanced degree does not guarantee a candidates ability to write.
Nevertheless, assuming instructors know how to write, more rubric-weight should be given to writing and formatting. Currently in the College of Doctoral Studies, 5% is given to each. However, the expectation is that if writing is poor, the content portions of the rubric should be lower. This is not good as it brings more subjectivity to the grading rubric, which is what the rubrics should deter. Therefore, placing greater weight on writing and formatting could help create an environment in which we champion writing and formatting.
Finally, we as instructors must actually read the assignments. I know it can be arduous; however, we are not serving our learners if we are not reading their work. When learners tell me they have a 4.0, I often think, it is only because no one ever actually read their work. I have seldom read a perfect paper.
Gary
Gary, a statement I often get on my course feedback is this instructor is the first one to ever read papers and make true feedback
Gary Piercy You are welcome, Gary! I know so many instructors feel the same way and have those same concerns. We will talk more about grading and rubrics in the last week of the workshop. Sometimes you have to get a little creative when grading assignments that have writing and clarity issues when using the rubric... but more on that later! Cliffhanger, right? ;)
One thing that really stuck out to me in your response was that we actually have to read assignments! And not skim... READ! Time gets away from all of us, but we owe it to students to give real and thorough feedback. We are not doing anyone any favors by ignoring less than stellar assignments.
Angela Parker Hi Gary and Angela! Same! I get this comment from time to time as well. I find this is especially true with more specific APA related comments (capitalization of references, citations).
I am happy you brought up end of course survey results, Angela - it is so important to reflect on those when it relates to feedback. I have heard that my feedback made a student made a better writer and it made my day. I have also heard from one student that my comments were overwhelming and it made me think how I can better streamline and focus my comments so they allow a student to better focus on the most important things in a particular assignment.
It is a balancing act, right?
Everyone, how do your end of course survey results impact your focus on writing and grading?
Alli Schilling regarding EOCS results, I look at them put primarily take into account things the learners actually write. Unfortunately, the negative comments are from learners who scored failing grades or lower grades to which they are accustomed. The unfortunate thing about these comments is they seem to reflect learners whose work was passed over by other instructors. I am not dismissing those comments; however, I can often identify the learner. For example, one learner recently commented that my grading needed review. She even signed the comment so I knew who she was. My grading of her work was objective in accordance with the rubric. Her issue was not writing as much as it was cursory discussion of content. Thus, I graded her work as Satisfactory noting the cursory discussion.
I think that many learners in the doctoral program think that because they are in a doctoral program that they are exceptional academically. Thus, when they receive lower grades, they blame instructors. Such thinking is unfounded. The reality is that doctoral research and writing is different than undergraduate and graduate research and writing. Therefore, learners must be ready and willing to learn and grow academically in every level.
I am not suggesting I cannot be wrong. I am always looking for ways to improve. I welcome and eagerly read EOCS.
Many times I already know based on course discussions who said what on the EOCS as those students have voiced the same concern within the course. EOCS does not sway my teaching style. My goal is to learn and improve. At the beginning of courses, some students state I am a drill sergeant, by the end of the course those same students are stating how appreciative they are. Then I know I am doing something right, for the betterment of the student, GCU and myself.
As a trained HR professional, I see lack of soft skills all the time. Heck, I see this out in public and I am amazed how these individuals are going through life in a fog. Somehow, as technology demand increased, we also allowed technology to infiltrate and take over teaching or not teaching soft skills. My son is going to college, fall 2021. I am more afraid of him not using or acquiring soft skills than acquiring the technological skills to get a job. He is majoring in engineering. Sometimes, it seems as if I can see his mind never shutting down. Always going, then I say did we drop the ball somewhere?
I read an article some time ago, that stated the U.S. is one of the countries in which we work more than 40 hours/week and during our rest/relaxation time we continue to work. We have our children participating in more activities than they should to be competitive and get in the best schools and universities. All to satisfy us as parents. Is there a right or wrong? Who knows. Each generation states to their children they want them have a better future than previous generation.
Angela
Angela Parker Thank you, Angela!
How exciting for your son! I can certainly see the same kind of "always busy, always going" mentality in kids his age. I have a niece who is a junior at ASU and she is the same way.... always busy, always using technology, and balancing 400 things at one time. I think most of us probably have too much on our plates at any given time!
I also share your concern about students not learning the soft skills they need to be successful. Ultimately, students will be trained in a new position to learn the specific things they need in a job (in most types of job, certainly not all of course!). However, no one will be training on them on writing, communicating, and handling conflict.
I like to stress to students that these are skills they will need regardless of job or industry. Let's control what we can control. Learning and being confident in soft skills gives an automatic leg up in the job market.
Any thoughts?
If I could name all the courses my organization has required employees to take the past two years to improve employee morale, it would be astounding. Certain courses and training have become mandatory as there is so much division within the organization. I never had to learn soft skills either, however, I do recognize now those skills are needed especially with the strife we all are experiencing.
Angela Parker I just popped on Instagram and found this great graphic that drives the soft skills point home!
(Via @careercontessa)
There is also a great article that corresponds with it.
https://www.careercontessa.com/advice/20-must-have-skills-to-put-on-your-resume/
I like to share fun outside sources like these with students - I think it drives the point of strong writing skills in a new way... and one that doesn't involve me! I think it is important for students to see that these things DO matter outside of college.
I just finished a Data Analysis and Critical Thinking course with my federal employer. Companies are certainly looking at these skills to keep them above the competition. Unfortunately, I too have had to learn these skills during my employment journey. As an instructor with GCU, it is funny that I have had to use active listening more than ever online. This has increased my listening skill as a whole as I listen more intently, repeat information for clarity and use more EI to make sure I am conscious of my behavior.
Angela Parker Angela, you always have great points! Active listening and emotional intelligience are discussion thoughts for next week, when we talk more about modeling our behavior. You read my mind!
Hello everyone!
One way I have found to stress the importance of strong writing and communication skills to students is to relate it back to GCU’s mission and vision. Students are usually introduced to this in their first class, but we know how easily things get forgotten. ;)
If you scroll all the way to the bottom, you will see this point:
https://www.gcu.edu/why-gcu/university-snapshot
I think this is a nice reminder for students – these are the traits and qualities that you should have when you graduate. I like to think that it maybe brings up a feeling of school spirit and want them to reflect on how far they have come.
What are your thoughts on this? Is this something you would refer students to?
Alli Schilling I am going to paste the Mission Statement.
Grand Canyon University prepares learners to become global citizens, critical thinkers, effective communicators and responsible leaders by providing an academically challenging, values-based curriculum from the context of our Christian heritage.
I have underlined the portion that learners must understand. GCU provides an opportunity for learners to become global citizens, critical thinkers, effective communicators, and responsible leaders. However, learners are responsible to take advantage of the opportunity provided.
Unfortunately, I find adults in school often resume the role of child in a classroom setting. That is, they depend upon the instructor to provide all the answers rather than being responsible to discover the answer. In a recent course, a learner submitted an assigning in which she missed a major objective. In my feedback, I pointed out that she had missed the objective in the essay. In the Private Forum, she asked me where she could locate missing information. I responded she could find the information in the course readings. She asked me again where she could find the information. She was wanting me to give her the information. I again responded and narrowed it down to the specific module in which she could find the information. She never responded.
My job is not to give information. My job is to facilitate learners in the discovery of information. We provide opportunity. Learners must be responsible.
Yes, I have had to do so as well.
It is imperative that students communicate effectively in whatever medium they choose and on the many social media platforms. I emphasize communicating, either verbally (Flipgrids) or in writing (discussions and assignments) in MEAL paragraphs with at least one citation to the current scholarly literature. In education, current is usually three to five years. Scholarly literature is found in the deep web or databases housed in university libraries. I provide tutorials for all of these things and will correct but never require perfection.
Lisa Durff Thank you, Lisa (love your Bitmoji!) - I would love to hear how you emphasize communication in FlipGrid! I use FlipGrid as well and I think it is something I could use in a better and more meaningful way.
It sounds like you have a great approach and I love that you offer help and tutorials. We have to give students tools ot be successful - more on this in the coming weeks!
For anyone looking to know more about FlipGrid:
https://info.flipgrid.com/
Such a fun resource!
Thank you so much for your activity, posts, and views in Week One of our discussion! In this first week, we touched on why writing is important, common issues that we see, and instructor involvement in the writing process with students. We also had a few great resources that were shared among the group!
If you have any questions or thoughts on Week One, please feel free to leave them here! Also, be sure to view/save the attachments with this post. Each week, I will copy and post any great resources that were shared. This will allow us to have a little library of information we can all use.
On to Week Two!
Attachments
Thank you for considering and actually planning to do this series. I hope I can carve some time out to sit in on at least one of them. I also look forward to access to the resources you share. Have a great week!
Marcia Livingston-Galloway Hi Marcia! Thank you so much for stopping by! Please feel free to jump in and out as you have time! I would love to hear your thoughts! =)
Welcome to Week Two!
This week, we will focus on how we can model the kind of writing we want to see in our students. We will focus on setting the right expectations, sharing resources to help set the tone, and discussing the differences in requirements based on classes and degree program. We will also explore everyone’s thoughts on creating outlines and templates.
We briefly touched on this last week, but to start the week, let’s discuss the importance of setting the tone in the first week of class. Do you have specific materials that you post to relay your expectations about strong writing skills to your students? Please share your thoughts!
Alli Schilling My expectations that I post are really about how to receive participation points, posting in the Class Wall, and about the first assignment. I had not thought about having strong writing skills. I teach in the College of Education for a masters level program and found that most of the students are good writers anyway, but it doesn't hurt to remind them about having strong writing skills.
Thank you,
Greg
Greg Finkbonner Thank you, Greg! I bet you are one of the lucky ones that generally gets strong writers in your classes! Lucky you! :) But like you said, a reminder never hurts! I like the idea of challenging students to get a little out of their comfort zone and encouraging great writing skills is a great way to do that. I am so glad to have you in our conversation, Greg!
Hi, Alli, I too teach primarily in the Colangelo College of Business and I have been with GCU for about four years. I find that sometimes the course instructions can be rather difficult to understand. Students get confused and before you know it you can get a hodge-podge of “stuff” being submitted that doesn’t really address the requirement. As a result, expectations can be difficult to communicate. Based on that, I’m a big believer in templates that lay out the requirement in a systematic and easy to understand format. This keeps the reader focused on content and not worried about having to try and figure out writing format in addition to content.
Attached is an example regarding an ethics and values assignment. On the first two pages, I have displayed an example of what I am looking for with the actual template provided on page three. This does a couple of things. First, the student can stay focused on content because each “piece” of the template is asking for a specific response. Second, by using a template, the student doesn’t have to worry about a number of writing issues, such as transitions. When the requirement calls for a compare/contrast of different theories, approaches, etc., (prevalent in graduate work) the taxonomy is also a good approach. Much like a template, it lays out the requirement in a more methodical and understandable fashion that the student can better comprehend. In the attachment, I build a template and then I show an example, which lays out my expectations.
Neither of these is a panacea for good writing,… you can still get atrocious grammar and sentence structure problems, but it does seem to help, and students appreciate the template versus a blanket requirement.
Perhaps this glosses over the problem of trying to teach better writing. Students should be able to write an essay free of errors but in the business world, my experience has been we have devolved into a “bulletized” culture where everything is a PowerPoint chart or a point paper. Emphasis is placed on clear and concise content with some, but not a lot of context. Hope this adds to the conversation.
Attachments
Tom Roberts This is awesome, Tom! Thank you for sharing! I also create templates for my CCOB assignments and I do think it makes a world of difference. I have attached one of mine so you can see how I approach them.
For me, creating templates serves a few purposes. Like you mentioned, it lets students focus on content and not stress too much about formatting and APA. It also makes our jobs a little easier, as if students actually use the templates, grading is generally more streamlined and a bit faster.
But like you mentioned as well, does creating templates avoid the idea of teaching writing? Maybe, maybe not. I have had students say the templates have taught them how to organize their papers for a better impact and show them exactly what is expected in APA.
I can certainly see both sides on this issue and I would love to know everyone's thoughts... are templates helpful or harmful? I am a big fan.... but is there a point that makes it too easy for students?
Attachments
Happy Tuesday everyone!
I want to share a few of my resources in relation to how I set the tone in my classes. I do feel strongly that it starts in the DQ forums. I require citations and a certain word count for my DQ responses and I stick to it throughout the class. However, I do not require citations for participation comments and am okay with a less formal tone (less formal does not mean I am okay with sloppy writing though!). You can see my DQ/participation “read and acknowledgement” post below. I also include a video that walks them through my expectations.
DQ and Participation Policies
Hi Class!
I want to take a quick moment to go over the expectations for DQs and participation for this course.
**You can also view the video explanation of this, if you would like:
https://www.loom.com/share/3b6b23e9dc4f4c7c86f35aa876ba0977
As you have probably noticed, we have two DQs a week in this class. They are due on Wednesday and Friday of each week. You are more than welcome to complete any of them early in the week. DQs should always be at least 150 words or more. The DQs in this class are detailed and they require a detailed response to address all aspects of the question. Just about every DQ in this course should contain cited information. I want to know what you learned about the topic from the text.
As you respond to DQs, you typically share information you have learned from a source. You should always include the in-text citation and reference in your response when you are defining a new term. Let’s look at an example:
If the DQ asks you to apply the concept of Tuckman’s five stages of group formation to a workplace situation, you would learn what this term means by reading the course material first. When you do this, you must use an in-text citation in your post because you got the information from somewhere else. Even if you are paraphrasing this is necessary to prevent plagiarism, as well as lend validity to your assertions. And of course, when you use an in-text citation, you must also provide a proper reference as well. Others should be able to see where you retrieved this information. Not using scholarly sources is merely offering your opinion, which is not an academic discussion.
This might look like:
Tuckman’s five stages of group formation include forming, storming, norming performing and adjourning (Oke, 2011). These five stages….
Oke, R. (Ed.). (2011). Organizational behavior and management. Hoboken, (pp. 14) NJ: Wiley Custom Learning Solutions. Custom (abridged) text ISBN-13: 9780470942710
Please note… this IS NOT optional. If you are discussing something you have learned from your reading (which you should always do in your DQ responses), you should always cite it.
Here is a good way to approach your DQ responses:
When introducing a concept, you must:
1. Define/explain what the concept means using a scholarly source
2. Cite it properly
3. Then apply the concept to the topic of the DQ
Think of it as validating your statements. Using scholarly sources reinforces your ideas and ensures that we stay on topic in class. Also, remember that grammar and writing style do play into your grade, so be sure to proofread.
As a re-cap:
DQ responses typically require a 150 – 200 word response. DQs do NOT count towards participation – they are two different grades.
Your participation requirements are two substantial posts on three days. Make sure to hit the three days – six posts on one day will not earn credit. In order to be substantive, your post should incorporate your own experiences/opinions, ask questions to further the conversation and add new ideas. A sentence or two is very unlikely to accomplish this – I am looking for a paragraph at least, generally about 75 -100 words. Also, don’t fall into the habit of the “I agree!” responses that merely restate the main point of their post. Challenge yourself to avoid these words and find new ways to “agree” with someone- it makes posts much more interesting to read!
Please respond to this note to let me know you have read it. Thank you!
I would love to hear your perspectives on using posts like these to set the tone that research, clarity, and well-developed writing is important. What do you post in week one to stress this point?
Alli Schilling thank you for sharing your expectations and examples with us! One thing I have often thought about was learners who post in the final hours of the module. My problem is such posts would be similar to entering an empty classroom and having a discussion. Those who post in the final hours of a module may be meeting the requirements for posting; however, they are not actually engaging in discussion. Has anyone thought of a way to address this issue?
Gary
Gary Piercy So true, Gary! This is a pet peeve of mine as well. While I encourage students to post early in the week, I do not have a sure fire way to make this happen. I do post an example schedule to my new graduate students that shows participation earlier in the week, with more time dedicated at the end for assignments. I am not sure if it does the trick, but I do notice more interaction during the middle of the week - which I enjoy!
I am SO open to any thoughts or suggestions here!
I think I already addressed much of the issues for this weeks discussion in the previous week. However, to recap I model the writing I expect from learners. This includes employing formal words and tone and proper formatting. People write as they speak, which is typically informal. Therefore, people often do not understand what formal writing looks like. Therefore, by modeling formal writing, they are able to see formal writing.
Additionally, in the Module 1 DQ 1 I post my expectations for the discussion forum (see below) and a Writing and APA Challenge (see attached). These posts give learners clear directives regarding expectations.
I understand the desire to be a friend and to be friendly with learners. I am their friend by enabling them to achieve success by modeling scholarship. I am their friend by reading their work and offering comments regarding ways to improve and praise when they emulate the desired behavior.
Gary
Dr Piercy's DQ Expectations - Response Required
Following are my expectations for the discussion forums.
Please respond to this post noting you have read and understand the requirements. Please note your response does not count toward a substantive post.
Dr Piercy
Writing and APA Challenge - This will help you, I promise
Class,
I have taught at GCU since 2007. Trust me when I tell you that every student needs help with writing and APA. Good writers are not born. People learn how to write and thus become good writers. Every person in this class (at GCU for that matter) needs to learn and improve writing and APA skills.
Attached you will find Word document with writing and APA issues that I correct on student submissions every day. Use it to test your knowledge. Make the corrections and then check your answers with the PowerPoint, which has the correct answers. Now, if all you do is use the PowerPoint, you will not learn. You will learn by your mistakes. If you ignore this thinking I am not writing about you, OK. Wait for your first essay submission and then you will wish you had taken this little challenge.
This is not for a grade. It is something you can do by yourself or with others. Let me know how you did by posting your general thoughts after completing the challenge. Please note your response does not count toward a substantive post.
Dr Piercy
Attachments
I may touch upon a few things that came up earlier because I am just joining the conversation now. As for Dr. Piercy's most recent post, I like the the challenge as a way to address writing issues before the students' first graded assignment. Since there is not a given rubric for the discussion posts, I tend to grade those based on content -- so I have to read them -- but I give a lot of feedback on the writing to prepare them for their first assignment. Likewise, the feedback on the discussion posts and early assignments clearly explains how to fix the problem, so it is not repeated, and so that they earn those points on future assignments.
Thanks for hosting this discussion. It helps to make me feel I'm not so alone as an adjunct in the College of Education. I, too, was surprised to have gotten comments on the EOCS like I was the first professor to do such and such when I thought that was what was expected of all professors. It may be true that it is expected of all professors, but students clearly do not perceive it that way.
Brian Stevens Great advice, Brian!I am so happy to have you here with us in this conversation!
Honesty moment for me.... when I first started requiring citations and a reference in DQs, I did not care if it was formatted correctly and did not take off points if it was not. I quickly realized this was a huge mistake. If we are going to require something, we better make sure that we give them everything they need to do it right - including great feedback. I had the perception that it was going to be too much work to correct every incorrect citation/reference, but in reality, after a couple times, students actually learned it! And it made my grading in essays that much easier.
It was truly a learning moment for my students... and also for me. :)
Brian Stevens and Alli Schilling, I agree, we must remain consistent as we grade DQs and essays. To overlook errors in the DQs could suggest to learners they are formatting correctly. I see formatting errors so much that I have created a Word document on which I have written feedback pointing out the errors for which I reduce points. This way, I only have to copy and paste the feedback in the comments for the DQ grade or on the essay. Following are three examples of the copy/paste feedback.
your response addressed the DQ objective. However, please review APA for the proper format for listing sources on the reference page. Specifically, the capitalization exception rule for titles on the reference page. The rule is to capitalize the first word of the title, all proper nouns, and words following a dash or colon. The point reduction reflects this error. I hope this helps you going forward. Dr Piercy
your response addressed the DQ objective. However, when citing, use & when citing parenthetically. Use “and” when using a narrative citation. The point reduction reflects this error. I hope this helps you going forward. Dr Piercy
your response addressed the DQ objective. However, please review APA regarding citing sources. Specifically, do not include the author’s first/middle initials in a citation. The point reduction reflects this error. Dr Piercy
As to comments on essays, I have another Word document in which I do the same thing. Following are four examples. Note I highlight this error occurs elsewhere in the essay so I do not have to make the same comment throughout the document.
Pronouns must match nouns in number. This error occurs elsewhere in the essay.
APA requires writing in third person. Avoid using first and second person pronouns. This error occurs elsewhere in the essay
What is it? There is no antecedent noun. This error occurs elsewhere in the essay
please review a writing manual to learn to write a thesis statement verses an announcement. This sentence represent an announcement, which is less preferable to a thesis statement.
Gary
Gary Piercy Gary, you are always one step ahead of me! :) Thank you for your awesome suggestions! I know I say this to you all the time, but creating and saving grading comments for common issues is something we will focus on in week four. I do the same thing and it is honestly life changing when grading! Who wants to type the same grading comments over and over? Definitely not me! Doing things like this allows us to give great feedback in an efficient way. Everyone wins!
Brian, I get those comments too and I know it is not so - I have met too many innovative educators here at GCU. This week I think we are focusing on modeling, so I strive to post two to three times per day (depends on how many enrolled) in MEAL paragraphs with APA 7th citations to model how students should respond. I emphasize graduate students from GCU will have two skills - they will communicate well (hence MEAL paragraphs) and they will be comfortable with backing up what they say from the current scholarly literature (hence intext and reference citations).
Lisa Durff Lisa, you nailed it - this is exactly what we want students (and instructors) to do! Setting the example in our own posts and interactions sets the stage for positive student behavior. I have noticed that when most students write lengthy, well written and well supported posts, it typically kicks the rest of the class into high gear. No one likes to look like the slacker in the class, right? :)
I also love the MEAL paragraph and this acronym is super helpful to students. For anyone unfamiliar, here is a great explanation:
https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/paragraphs/organization
Thank you so much, Lisa!
You both are correct. I have noticed when students read my comments in which I respond to those lengthy posts, those who are slacking seem to become more aware of what discussions should include. I often refer to my posts to other students in which I have acknowledge a student for scholarly work, APA, etc. Something as to the fact, please see my post to Alli in which the response indicates.....
Then everyone starts to respond and finally say they get it.
It is intriguing how we have to figure out how to get things to going or generate a conversation.
Angela
Alli Schilling I must confess I went to Walden.
Hi everyone!
Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!
A question to ponder…. Do we expect perfection? Is it attainable in writing?
For me, I know little mistakes happen. They happen to me… and the worst thing that can happen is when students notice my mistakes (palm in face emoji here). I do take into account that spellchecker does not catch everything and it is easy to miss a comma or capital “I” if we aren’t paying attention. I can let little things go on occasion.
But do we become complacent if we always let these little things go? Does this lead to a bigger problem? On the other hand, how do we give ourselves a pass, but not one to our students? Thoughts?
Alli Schilling no one is perfect and thus perfect papers, though attainable, are the exception not the rule. The expectation should not be for perfection; rather, the expectation should be for scholarship, which includes writing and formatting. Since I desire such from my learners, I work to attain such in my posts and interactions within the class - even in Private Forum and Questions for Instructor. How could I mark a learners posts or papers down if I am making similar errors? I cannot. Therefore, I work hard to make certain that my communication with learners reflects that which I desire to see of my learners.
Regarding complacency, I inform my learners (especially regarding a dissertation) that details (little things) will make or break a dissertation as the document must be publishable. Therefore, learners should be aware of even minor details as such errors will result in revisions, which means more time and money. Being detailed oriented does not equal perfection; however, it enables learners to move toward scholarship.
Gary
Gary Piercy Wonderful points as always, Gary! We have to set the example - no other way around it!
Alli Schilling I agree perfection is not attainable all of the time. One can strive for perfection, but should be satisfied with high quality writing. When I am working with fourth graders learning to type, for example, our goal is 95% accuracy instead of 100% for that reason: no one can be perfect all of the time. If someone is getting 100% all of the time, I ask if their speed has improved. Because one can never be perfect, one can always get better -- like a growth mindset promotes. Writing and a growth mindset go well together. Our rubrics (in the College of Education at least) describe the Target for Writing Mechanics as "virtually error-free," so if there's one minor comma missing, for example, I consider that on Target.
With that said, I have to add that writing about writing like this feels a little more nerve-racking than my typical writing because I am trying to be more conscious of not making any minor mistakes -- which I realize goes against what I was saying in my first paragraph.
Brian Stevens Brian, I am jealous of the wording in College of Ed rubrics! Ours in CCOB are worded a bit differently (Writer is clearly in command of standard, written, academic English). I like that it allows you to use your discretion as to what is the best fit for the situation. More on grading and rubrics in our final week!
I also cannot agree with you enough about writing on the subject of writing! I have double checked myself so many times to avoid any mistakes! :)
I do not expect perfection and I note this at the beginning of the course. I do expect excellence. I share my challenges and experiences in graduate school and how those paid off with practice. I note all instances in which a student should be aware of a concern and why.
What I am finding is students are not familiar with tools such as spell check, grammar check, etc. They prefer to use tools outside MS office as the means to an end. However, I do note using an application does not substitute for a student not knowing. I still hold them accountable. That is how we got to where we are with poor writing.
Angela
Angela Parker Very true, Angela! While I do encourage the use of tools and resources for students, they are absolutely not a substitute for actually understanding how to write and APA requirements.
Alli Schilling True spellcheckers don't catch all mistakes - the free Word Add-In and the Chrome extension for discussion points does a very good job. There is nothing like proofreading one's work, however. I like to make Word read aloud to me as I proof - Mayer's cognitive theory at work.
Lisa Durff YES! I love this feature too, Lisa! I encourage my students to use this or at the minimum, read their work out loud or have a friend or family member read it to them. We catch so much more when we hear our own work!
Good Afternoon!
Related to this week's question of specific resources to set the tone for writing expectations in the courses we are teaching, I have a statement of writing expectations that include the requirement to use correctly formatted APA 7.0 in-text citations and reference citations.
To help students understand this, I will post resource videos and links, such as scribber.com to be used for in-text and reference citations and I use another portion of the scirbber.com website for a visual reference and explanation of APA 7.0 research paper format. This website is located at: https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/apa-seventh-edition-changes/
For those students who are struggling with writing, I encourage use of the University's Writing Center, and I will also hold weekly ZOOM calls for those students who are really struggling to support them, personally. Finally, I also provide another link on the scribber.com website that is an easy-to-understand academic writing resource at: https://www.scribbr.com/category/academic-writing/
In my writing expectations, I explain that there are minimum word lengths required for all posts and replies and all sources must be cited in correctly formatted APA 7.0 format.
Nothing above is earth-shattering, but for a working professional who may not have been in an academic setting for a period time, these resources have been reported to be helpful and supportive for them to "get back into the groove of graduate-level writing" habits.
Thank you!
Laura Schaffer-Metcalfe Thank you, Laura - these are wonderful resources! While it all was wonderful, I think the most important aspect here is to remember that our students may have been away from the classroom for some time and a refresher might be needed. I hear that so frequently in UNV/504. So many students are a little scared and overwhelmed. They WANT to do well, they just need the information to get where they need and want to be.
I have started to challenge myself with Flipgrid, Teams meeting, Zoom, etc. It is here to stay, so I have to adapt as well.
Angela
Angela Parker It gets easier as you get used to it! FlipGrid is one of my favorites. It gives students a nice break from typing and it is fun to see students face to face. Also, try Loom - it is really easy and a great way to post videos to further explain assignment directions or a tough course concept!
Hi everyone!
Another important aspect to consider when stressing clear, concise, and researched writing is discussing LopesWrite, plagiarism, and direct quotes. Although students should know the expectations, they can vary a bit from instructor to instructor. This is what I post – I ask students to read and acknowledge this post (among others). I know it is lengthy!
How do you set the tone as far as research and plagiarism goes?
Hello Class!
Grand Canyon University is committed to academic integrity, and our goal for all written assignments is to have students producing the most academically rigorous and substantiated work (“GCU Plagiarism Tutorial,” n.d.). All students must have a solid understanding of what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.
“Plagiarism is defined as the use of another person’s thoughts, ideas, words, quotations, or phrases without showing proper acknowledgment of where the information came from” (“GCU Plagiarism Tutorial,” n.d.). It is literary theft or what would be considered as the stealing of words of another author and taking credit for them as your own work.
Plagiarism is not tolerated at Grand Canyon University. Please read the Student Handbook to become aware of the consequences associated with plagiarism. This may include, but is not limited to taking a zero on an assignment, failing a course, being suspended, being expelled, or having your degree revoked.
Here are six helpful rules to follow for any and all assignments, discussion questions, and participation posts in this class:
1) Write your own original work, with your own thoughts, and in your own words.
2) When you use anything from another author or source, you must give proper credit to that author or source by citing within the text and including the same source on the Reference page at the end of your work. Even if you are using your own words, you must cite your source material (paraphrasing) if the idea came from a third party source.
3) If you use a quotation from another source (word-for-word, or extremely similar) you must use quotation marks, and then cite the source correctly. Avoid quoting too much. In this class, you are only allowed to use two direct quotes in each paper.
4) Always avoid using long quotes and do not use more than one quote that is more than 40 words in any paper. Any quote more than 40 words must be formatted as a block quote (Owl at Purdue, n.d.).
5) Turn in all assignments to Lopeswrite to check for similarity and make corrections before submitting your work. The Lopeswrite software is already included within the assignment dropboxes. It is your responsibility to review and correct any issues before you submit to the dropbox. Once you have submitted the assignment to me, you may be held responsible for any issues.
6.) If you have taken this course in the past and are retaking it, please reach out to me in your Private Forum before using any material from a previous course. The class has recently changed and I want to make sure you are in line with GCU policy regarding reusing work.
In addition, also keep the following in mind when completing work for this class:
Please note that in this course, your LopesWrite score must always be at 20% or lower. If it is not, your paper will not be accepted and you will earn a zero and not be allowed to revise your assignment. Please keep this in mind as you complete papers in this class.
To assist you, I have listed some very helpful sites concerning plagiarism below. Please take time to look through them, and consider the material presented.
Please commit yourself to academic integrity throughout your entire educational journey. I will support that strongly. Please acknowledge that you have read and understand these requirements. If you have questions, please reach out to me in your Private Forum.
Sincerely,
Alli
References
Plagiarism (2013) Retrieved from http://students.gcu.edu/academics/academic-integrity.php
Plagiarism Tutorial (2015). Retrieved from http://gcumedia.com/mediaElements/gcu-plagiarism-prevention-tutorial/v1.1/
Purdue Online Writing Lab (Owl) (2013). In-Text Citations. Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/02/
Resources
Plagiarism Tutorials
http://gcumedia.com/mediaElements/gcu-plagiarism-prevention-tutorial/v1.1/
http://tutorials.gcumedia.com/plagiarismVideo/vp02.swf
https://www.gcumedia.com/lms-resources/student-success-center/v3.1/#/media-element/academic-integrity/how-to-cite-properly/76/277/1162
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/02/
Lopeswrite
https://www.gcumedia.com/lms-resources/student-success-center/v3.1/#/media-element/academic-integrity/lopeswrite
Student Handbook
https://www.gcu.edu/academics/academic-policies.php
http://students.gcu.edu/Documents/Policy-Violations.pdf
http://students.gcu.edu/Documents/Student-Code-of-Conduct.pdf
I provide the plagiarism link at the beginning of my course. During my graduate studies, graduate students had to meet a different set of requirements. Such as GCU allows for Lopeswrite score up to 20%. I request for my students to meet 10%. I notice students tend to do more editing after the first few weeks. I explain the Lopeswrite report and why their score is a certain percentage. I would rather read original work by a student and not regurgitated quotes that do not apply to the content.
Angela Parker Agreed, Angela! I always encourage students to avoid direct quotes. I want to see what they understand and can explain, rather than quotes that may not always apply.
Whenever, I participate in these forums, I find out how much my game needs to improve as an instructor.
Tom Roberts We all can learn so much from each other, Tom! We are lucky to work among peers who are happy to share their great resources. :)
Each week, I will post a wrap up and include all of the great posts /comments that have been shared and that we can all use in our classes. Feel free to check those out and use what you like!
Hi everyone!
Please join us next week for a “Writing Across Disciplines” Zoom workshop, hosted by Dr. Shaunna Waltemeyer and Dr. Jeff Cranmore! This workshop compliments our discussion and will be helpful and beneficial!
This workshop provides an overview of the tools and resources available to faculty related to student writing skills. Shaunna and Jeff will share tips on creating useful and holistic feedback, explore online resources that check for grammar and spelling, examine edit functions in Word, and discuss how to align and utilize the rubric for grading written assignments.
Hope to see you there!
Everyone, I provide tutorials on finding and citing from the current scholarly literature, and as Alli mentioned I use loom to make these. I have all my looms in folders by class, midweek motivations, and tutorials. I also go over avoiding the plague in my Nothing But the FAQS video to begin the course - an idea gleaned from a GCU faculty member. I stress reading the source, walking away, writing the gist upon return, and then proofing. I use a piece of my own published writing to demonstrate how not to plagiarize. Another writing tool I introduce to early childhood educators is Seesaw - a great way to get early learners communicating well and families can see their work too.
Lisa Durff Lisa, these are great suggestions! I love the idea of sharing your own published work to show how to avoid plagiarism. I think this is a fun way to show students your own research, while teaching something important. I am going to take this suggestion and apply it to my classes too!
I have not heard of Seesaw before... I will look into it! Is this something geared towards education students in particular?
As always, thank you for your excellent suggestions!
Hi everyone!
Thank you so much for joining me for Week Two! We talked about the importance of being a role model, how to set the right tone to stress positive writing habits, posts that can help in this process, and if expecting perfection is the right avenue.
If you have any questions or thoughts on Week Two, please feel free to leave them here! Also, be sure to view/save the attachments with this post. Each week, I will copy and post any great resources that were shared. This will allow us to have a little library of information we can all use.
On to Week Three!
Attachments
Welcome to Week Three! Thank you so much for joining me!
I am so excited for our topic this week! We will focus on writing resources for students, how to share them, how to and encourage students to actually use them.
A few resources we will focus on this week:
Grammarly
Student Success Center
LopesWrite
Owl at Purdue
Microsoft Word tools
YouTube videos
Templates, outlines, and videos (created by instructor)
To start us off, please share what resources you recommend to students and why!
Student Success Center - after students enter a program, for some reason they fail to use SSC. I highlight SSC at the beginning of each course.
LopesWrite- I prefer for students to be able to interpret the feedback issued, so I like to highlight information presented in the document.
Microsoft Word tools/YouTube videos - locate videos on Youtube that explains the in's & out's of MS Word and PPT. Students seem to like shortcuts such as a video to watch instead of me always talking. It works, so I stick with it. In the age of accessibility, students can view videos on their phones.
Angela
Angela Parker They really do forget the SSC! I refer students to it quite regularly and they sometimes have no idea what I am taking about!
Love that you also mentioned YouTube videos... I have a post that I will share below here in a few! If you have any particularly awesome ones, please share the link! I would love to add them to the list!
Angela Parker I like students to use Lopes Write too, so I make comments on the Report and make a comment on the rubric saying that there are comments on the Lopes Write Report. The only problem with that is that some don't seem to read all of the comments in the rubric. That feels like leading the horse to water, but not being able to get it to drink.
Brian Stevens Good points, Brian! I feel that many students do not know how to find their feedback. This is a helpful link that I post in my assignment instructions and in my weekly wrap up on how to find comments and feedback. I do think that helps a little bit.
https://support.gcu.edu/hc/en-us/articles/360052412614--LMS-Viewing-Your-Rubrics
Unfortunately, there will probably always be students who do not read the comments each week. I know I feel frustrated when I see the same issues week after week without improvement. But there is nothing better than either having a student reach out with questions or seeing improvement after providing resources and great feedback! :)
Hello Everyone!
Collecting relevant and timely resources for helping students write effectively is a great way to add additional "tools" for our "instructional toolboxes"! Here are some of my "tools":
scribber.com This is a free service for the citation generator and other writing supports. There are other services, such as plagiarism checker and a proofreading and editing service that charge a fee for this detailed support.
https://www.accreditedschoolsonline.org/resources/student-writing-resources/ This resource is almost a one-stop resource for determining how to write different types of essays, it has example papers, information regarding how to conduct research, and how to ensure that sources for research are evaluated for quality and accuracy. It is a free website, as well.
https://researchguides.austincc.edu/c.php?g=560868&p=3859559 This research site is offered by Library Services of Austin Community College, and it is a composition of very basic adult literacy resources, videos, and other ways for adult learners to brush-up on their writing skills. There are also opportunities for improving reading skills, as well. This would be a resource for those adult learners who have not had a chance to improve their skills in a long while.
I hope these resources are useful and I look forward to your comments. Thank you for reading!
Laura Schaffer Metcalfe, Ed.D.
Laura Schaffer-Metcalfe Laura, these are WONDERFUL! There are just so many out there and it always reminds me that there is just no excuse for not using at least one of these!
I really find that anything that shows students an example is so helpful, especially in assignments like Article Summaries or Annotated Bibliographies.
Laura, do you have any tips for getting students to actually use these resources? :)
Hi Alli,
Thanks for your reply! I start out with scribber.com as the first stop for students to use, and this resource is posted as a pre-class announcement. I also ask students to cite their resources in their posts as a start with this website, and then they are to add a statement to their post regarding their use of the scribber.com web site.
The remaining resources I provide to students in my weekly class ZOOM meetings or in one-on-one ZOOM meetings with individuals. Most of my classes seem to like the scribber.com site, as it is complete and easy-to-use.
Laura Schaffer-Metcalfe Love this, Laura! I think I will create a post about scribber as well! This is a great resource!
Hi everyone!
Happy Tuesday! One of the first items I would like to share from my arsenal is a list of really helpful videos. I post a version of this in every class I teach (grad and undergrad courses). I love the idea of these short videos. Students can save them and access them over and over and they apply to just about every class.
Do you share videos like this? Please post them and we can make a master list of great video resources! Sharing is caring! =)
Here is my post:
Hi everyone!
Feel like you may need an APA refresher as we get started on academic writing? Here are some very helpful videos to walk you through some formatting information and help you better understand APA 7th edition.
In-text citations, quotations, and plagiarism:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8914hv18xnU
Creating a Reference List:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teErxDIPP5M
Formatting a paper in 7th Edition:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9hXY1xiZjo
Seven Changes in APA 7th Edition:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD5m1Wk1KM8
How to Locate a Scholarly Article in GCU Library (by Dr. Shaunna Waltemeyer, GCU full time faculty):
https://www.useloom.com/share/4778c9e7591342c4bb7e1d66383dcd6a
GCU Library APA 7th Edition Website:
https://libguides.gcu.edu/APA
All of these videos are very helpful, so please save/bookmark them to save for the future!
I think it is important to note that there are SO MANY great resources out there. In a perfect world, I would make all of these videos myself. But why reinvent the wheel? These resources are out there for you! For me, I would rather spend time making more specific videos that relate directly to my students and my classes. For example, I post videos that match up with my templates and assignment directions. Those are very specific and students (who watch them ;)) really get a lot out of them. In fact, I offer a few little special tips on what I am looking for, so I can usually tell who has spent the time watching them.
Do you make videos for assignments? What about templates? I think it is important to remember that while it does take time to create these resources, once you have them you are done! Make them once, use them over and over!
I want to share a video that Dr. Shaunna Waltemeyer shared in her FAB workshop this week (presented with Dr. Jeff Cranmore). The concept is similar to a video that I shared earlier in our workshop and I really cannot stress to you enough how well these work!
Check out the attachment and share your thoughts!
Attachments
I attended the workshop, it was excellent. As we have to accept that challenges will exist for our students, I also have to accept challenges will exist for me as well. My goal is to keep up with technology and keep my students engaged.
Thanks, sometimes I know I need to slow down for the good of my students as each student receives information different. Today, I was speaking to a student who requested that I create short videos, which made me laugh. Not me, I stated. I appreciate this information as I just posted in my course.
Angela
Hi there everyone!
I think it is important to get this out of the way…. Not one of these resources can replace actually knowing how to write and understanding at least the basics of APA formatting. I always tell students that they should know the basics and for more specific formatting or writing questions, they should know where to find the answers. I really think that this is where many of these resources come into play.
For example, I really encourage Grammarly. I love that it is easy to use, encourages vivid language/wording, and picks up on tone. Tone is something that I feel is often overlooked, especially in business writing, so I enjoy this perspective.
But the reality is that students need to have the ability to pick up on writing errors, language use, tone, and APA on their own and that these resources should compliment their essay writing process.
Thoughts?
Today, I explained to a student the requirements of GCU's graduate programs. The student and I addressed the feedback in a recent assignment and the areas of improvement. The student indicated her concern was trying to write in her own words. The student noted she has always attempted to write in which her professors could understand, however she believes she misses the interpretation, so her action is to insert quotes. We discussed a couple of areas I highlighted in her assignment, then there was a light bulb moment. When I have verbal communication with students, I feel validated as GCU faculty.
Angela
Angela Parker I agree that I enjoy being able to communicate verbally with students now. That wasn't always the case for me. I dreaded having to talk on the phone for some reason, so I never initiated that. Then, I had a student at the very beginning of class ask me in the Private Forum to give him a call. He didn't even say what it was about, which made me more nervous. But it went so well, I've started to suggest it to students when I have to explain a lot in the Private Forum. I still explain it the best I can in the Private Forum, in case they don't like talking on the phone yet, but I often add a phone call as an option if they feel it would be helpful.
Angela Parker SO true, Angela - there is something about actually speaking to a student that really makes a difference. WE are really the best resources, right? I think there are times when picking up the phone or doing a Zoom meeting is just the way to go. It builds rapport and can really be faster than going back and forth in the forum.
I think it also allows students an opportunity to see that we are real people who care about our content and helping students reach their goals.
Brian Stevens I relate, Brian! I like to be prepared for phone calls, especially if it is about a specific assignment or concept. The "can you please call me" note in the PF can be scary!
I know some students prefer a call and some students do not. For the ones who do not enjoy chatting on the phone, I have started doing Loom videos to quickly explain a concept or question. I think it allows me to be a bit more thorough and detailed and keeps the conversation in the PF if that is what the student prefers.
If anyone has not used Loom yet, I cannot recommend it enough! It is super easy and quick - you can show your face.. or not!
Here is the link if you are interested!
https://www.loom.com/
And a helpful tutorial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11pfvBNsXkA
This is the way I record my assignment template videos as well!
Hi everyone!
I just want to go over all the great tools in the Student Success Center. There may be some things you know and some you do not – but they are all worthy of taking a closer look!
https://www.gcumedia.com/lms-resources/student-success-center/v3.1/#/
There are two routes in the Student Success Center – College specific and Tools.
College specific houses… you guessed it! College specific materials! Some colleges have more than others on their pages, but you will generally find helpful videos and tutorials about subject matter related to that specific college.
The Tools area is not specific to any college and houses a ton of great information ranging from writing information, the career center, math and science tools, and COVID information.
Let’s jump into the Writing Center!
First category – Helpful Tools. Here is where you will find worksheets and brief presentations on specific assignment concepts like annotated bibliographies, outlines, and PowerPoint presentations.
Second category – Example of Writing Assignments. Scroll down to APA 7th edition, as that is what GCU is using in just about every class at this point. You will see example papers for students – even example DQ responses! This is a great area to refer students to if they are way off the mark on academic formatting and writing.
Third category – Webinars and Tutorials. Among the great resources here ate the APA 7th edition webinar and the Library Webinar schedule. These are both very helpful resources for any level student.
Fourth category – Templates and Style Guides. THIS is the place to refer students to if they are new to writing academically. There are templates they can simply save and use over and over again. I like to post the templates in my class (especially if I do not have a template created for a specific assignment).
Fifth category – Research and Writing Help. There is an awesome link to Grammar Development that would be very helpful to struggling students. Here is th direct link:
https://www.gcumedia.com/lms-resources/student-success-center/v3.1/#/skills-development/general-skills/grammar
You can also find library and research help in this area. My favorite is resource here“ask a librarian”. Have a student that is struggling with finding a peer reviewed journal article? This is the place to send them! Many students are unaware that we have librarians who are willing and ready to help them with finding appropriate research!
Sixth category – Writing websites. You will find very basic websites here. You can also find some very helpful websites that others have shared above. I will copy all of them into one document at the end of this week.
So, what are your thoughts? What is an area of the SSC that you find helpful?
Hi everyone!
Do you recommend that students increase the capabilities of Microsoft Word’s spelling and grammar checker? This is a great tool that is often overlooked and can work as well as tools like Grammarly. Here is a website with more information.
https://www.howtogeek.com/412883/how-to-improve-microsoft-words-grammar-checker/
What are your thoughts?
I do Alli. It is interesting many students note they were not told to they would have to learn Microsoft Word or PPT. I do believe the templates provided by GCU assist as well.
Hi everyone!
Thank you so much for joining me for Week Three! We talked about resources to help students improve their writing and proofread. We also discussed how to best reach students that are struggling and could use some extra help.
If you have any questions or thoughts on Week Three, please feel free to leave them here! Also, be sure to view/save the attachments with this post. Each week, I will copy and post any great resources that were shared. This will allow us to have a little library of information we can all use.
On to our last week together!
Attachments
Welcome to Week Four! Thank you so much for joining me for our last week. I know this week will be pretty busy outside of our discussion, so I really appreciate you being here!
This week, we will focus on grading resources – ways to help students understand our feedback in a more meaningful way, grading using the GCU rubrics, and ways to grade faster and more importantly, BETTER. We will also chat about pre-grading and grading versus correcting.
To get us started, please share how you approach grading in relation to writing. Do you correct every error? Or do you provide information on general areas of concern?
Alli Schilling I don't correct every error because often it is the same type of error multiple times like no comma between independent clauses, for example. So, I tend to focus on the error that I think is most important to correct for the next assignment. If there are a lot of different types of errors, I may not address the less frequent ones because I don't want to overwhelm the student or take anything away from my more important comments. If the student corrects the major mistakes early in class, there will be time for me to address the minor issues later -- I hope.
Brian Stevens Brian, great points! I can remember getting a paper back from an instructor in college that was full of the "red pen" type remarks. It left me defeated and overwhelmed. I like your approach of starting with the big issues, then getting down to the smaller ones in the coming weeks.
I have a success story related to your approach right now! In a MGT/420 course, I have a student that was still using the GCU Style template and rarely used citations. He also always wrote in first person. I tackled the big stuff on his first paper and DQ responses and now I am seeing a big improvement. I was just grading his Week Six paper and it really was much better, but there were still some writing errors. I was able to focus more on writing inconsistencies and phrasing errors this time around and hopefully, will see a big improvement in the last weeks of class.
I also think the comments should be balanced between content and APA/writing. Obviously, content is so important.... but like we have mentioned several times, if a student cannot communicate a concept clearly, they may not understand it.
Thank you for sharing, Brian - awesome points!
Alli Schilling
Thanks Amy for broaching this issue. I have found the grading schema used by GCU to be very efficient, obviously something we all appreciate, but constraining as well. It’s hard to really communicate on a paper’s format, overall quality of writing, and content without downloading the document and using the markup features in Word. I predominantly teach MGT 660, which involves a lot of group work, so you are not just working with one student but an entire team as the work is usually broken up and then “reassembled” at the end of the week (usually with limited editing).
To better work with the team, I download the paper and use “track changes” and “new comment” to inform the student of my concerns and suggestions. I also build a rubric in Excel where I have a separate tab for each team. This rubric mimics the college rubric, which I then embed into the document. An example is below. My belief is this allows the individual student/team to better correlate their grade with what they see in their paper. I usually don’t try to correct as much as I do comment. For example, this is one comment I made in the paper that relates to the rubric item below --- Mechanics of Writing.
“This sentence is 68 words long… several thoughts seem to be rolled into this one sentence. Breaking it up could improve the overall message.”
This is my approach and based on EOC comments, it seems to resonate with students.
Tom Roberts Thank you, Tom! What a detailed and thorough approach! Grading CLC assignments presents a different challenge with writing clarity/errors. Like you mentioned, students often reassemble sections with limited editing just hours before the assignment is due. This often leads to multiple voices in each paper and makes flow in an inconsistent way.
In classes that have several team assignments (like MGT/420 and MGT660), I find that students usually do much better on the second team assignment because they can see the writing issues that were present in the first paper.
Everyone, what are some grading tactics to address writing issues in team assignments? How do you stress the importance of editing team assignments before final submission?
From the beginning, I ask my teams to select a leader for each assignment. No student shall serve as leader more than once unless the class/team size is small. I ask students to identify their strengths and weakness within the CLC, areas of improvement and the action steps. Since a course charter is not required, my goal is to help students get out of their comfort zone and increase leadership as the course matriculates. It works, I read through the CLC discussions and see that students are noting my requests and asking each other for feedback. One leadership course I facilitate, the students are required to do a self-reflection each week and I am amazed about the comments that state students were glad they had the opportunity to lead.
Angela Parker What great advice, Angela! This is a great technique that not only leads to a better CLC assignment but also gives practical skills that students can use outside of the classroom. I love that your students are telling you that this approach works! Thank you for sharing!
Hi everyone!
I want to share a grading technique that is incredibly helpful for me – the creation of a database of comments. How many times are you writing a comment about citations, title pages, or subject-verb agreement? What about a thesis statement, transition sentences, or reference pages? I know that I see the same issues pretty regularly and it is very time-consuming to write them over and over. Creating a database of comments allows me to give better feedback and do it faster!
I create basic comments about grammar, APA, writing issues, and essay content. I use Typeitin, but you can also use macros in Word or simply just save them in a Word or Excel document.
Like several things we have discussed in this workshop (templates, videos…), this takes time on the back end. But it is SO worth it! One way to go about this is to just save your comments as you grade. This is a great way to build your library of comments. Once you have them, find a way to organize them in a way that makes sense for you and your grading style. For me, I have all of my comments organized by assignment. For example, for my Week Two case study assignment, I have saved comments for each rubric requirement, common writing issues/errors, and APA information. I will pop these comments in and then add more detailed information that applies specifically to the student’s work.
I really cannot tell you how much of a positive impact that this has had on my grading. I love avoiding writing the same thing a million times and it allows me to make a bigger impact on students by blending writing rules with specific information. You can pop these comments right into a paper or a rubric!
Have any of you built a library of comments? What are some of your most used comments? How do you organize them?
I also follow a similar plan Alli. This keeps me focused while grading the assignment to be sure I am fair with grading. I do have a general statement, then I indicate/specify how the student correlated the requirement to the assignment(or not).
Angela Parker Remaining fair is such a good point, Angela! Do you ever feel like as you grade (especially in a big class), you may get distracted or in a hurry? Raising my hand over here! I take breaks in between groups of assignments to make sure I stay focused on all the important elements of a paper. I really give my students the same advice... take a break, walk away from your computer for a bit, then come back. This ensures you are focused and in our cases, fair! Grading papers in a consistent manner, making sure that all students are held to the same standards is KEY! Premade grading comments also really help with this, as you mentioned Angela. Thank you!
Oh yes. I have to walk away and finish on multiple days. I know when I have led myself astray as I start to just issuing general comments and then say to myself, what did I just say?
With such feedback, I do not publish because I want to take a second look another time/day
Angela Parker Angela, I relate to this so much! :) I have definitely had moments when I read what I typed in a sleepy moment and wondered what in the world I was talking about!
Taking a break benefits ALL of us!
Alli Schilling
Hi Alli,
Thanks for sharing information about "Type It In"! I have looked at the website and it looks like a fantastic resource.
Yes, I have a set of documents that have assignment comments aligned them, and I adapt and change many of them to meet the student's specific issues or needs. For example, I have one document with course resources, such as a selection of relevant CATs, and discussion posts. I respond to each and every post by all students in a personalized way, but every student gets the same resources for each discussion question. Whether that be a short video or article to read. I also like to make sure that these resources extend the discussion topic prompt or CAT prompt to think or view the topic in a different manner or application usage. I keep these comments in a Word document, for now. I may use the "Type It In" resource, in the near future, once I learn it!
These resources of prepared assignment comments, with specific changes for each student, have really made grading more organized, time efficient, and not so mind-numbing. It is really a blessing to be able to have created these comments to address the commonly used statements, but I don't become a "robot grader" to just copy and paste the same comments for every student!
Happiest of Holidays to everyone! Thank you for the opportunity to share and learn from everyone on this discussion forum!
Warmly,
Laura Schaffer Metcalfe, Ed.D.
Laura, I have commonly used documents, weblinks, videos, etc. Since I teach public health and environmental health, our current events are consistently changing. However, I have to correlate what is going on in the classroom to events and experiences and allow students to think outside the box, to say. Weekly CATs are a necessity for me as a majority of my students are nursing students. The courses I facilitate are centered around environmentalism and civic/community engagement and students are unfamiliar with that aspect of public/environmental health as most are treatment professionals. I love inspiration and generating knowledge, especially when my EOCs indicates the student has gained more insight during my course.
This forum certainly has afforded me more tools to use.
Angela
Laura Schaffer-Metcalfe Thank you, Laura! I am such a fan of Typeitin - such a time saver and I LOVE it!
I also appreciate that you brought up avoiding being a robot grader. I think this is a very important point. Just because we have saved comments, does not mean that is all we should do! I use my saved comments and then add personalized comments. Students know when we provide canned feedback and we always need to avoid that. I think thanking students for their work and noting the positive is so important as well. Always sharing the good vibes (especially in the strange times we are living in) is something we can do to not only help students learn, but also be a positive influence in their lives.
Hi everyone!
We touched on this earlier in the workshop, but I want to share my approach to grading using rubrics. I know that if a student has significant writing issues and is marked low in the writing/APA areas of the rubric, it sometimes does not make a big difference in his grade. I want to show you a few areas of the rubric that you can also make an impact in a student’s grade if needed. Of course, all rubrics can be a bit different from college to college, so keep that in mind.
First, let’s look at the content areas of the rubric. In most rubrics, you will see a notation about using credible sources and if the information provided is clear and concise. If it not, this is an important area to note correctly in the rubric. If I have a student that does not have a clear purpose to the section and does not use several citations in that section, the grade will be lower.
You will also usually see a rubric section on a thesis statement and argument logic. This is also a place in which you can make an impact on grading. For example, is there a clear thesis statement? Does the thesis clearly align with the purpose of the paper? If not, this is a great place to focus on and add resources for the student on future papers. I also make sure to notate if the student is missing credible sources in relation to the argument of the paper. If the sources do not back up the argument of the thesis and the purpose is unclear, you can also note that and provide resources to help.
Finally, you have the mechanics/language areas in each rubric. Obviously, this is where you can make an impact if there are grading issues. But I think we also need to remember that just because there are not glaring writing issues, we should still note if there is room for improvement. For example, are you seeing the same structure over and over? Are you seeing contractions and the use of first person? This is the place to work on fine-tuning a student’s writing skills.
Thoughts? How do you best utilize rubrics?
Hi everyone!
Merry Christmas Eve!
Part of our struggle in grading is getting students to not only read our feedback, but actually apply it on future assignments. One trick that was worked with me is the use of the Socratic method and asking questions within their feedback comments.
The idea behind this is to ask questions and encourage critical thinking from our students. Does it work all of the time? No, but it is a start! I find that a good portion of students will follow up in their Private Forum to address any questions you have posed in their feedback. This is an awesome way to open up a dialogue about content and writing issues in an assignment.
Have you tried this approach? Here is a great link with ideas about using the Socratic method and asking questions:
https://www.unl.edu/gradstudies/connections/asking-good-questions-socratic-method-classroom
Hello everyone!
Merry Christmas!
Ever have a student who does not seem to read feedback and does not ask questions? I think all of us have been there before! It can be frustrating to leave great feedback for a student and feel like it goes unnoticed. Remember – use your resources! I start with notes in the Private Forum and if I do not get a response, I will send an email asking him/her to follow up in the PF.
Early Alerts are another great option. Ask the SSC to follow up with the student and ask him/her to follow up on the feedback for a specific assignment or to respond to a post in the PF.
Finally, don’t forget about calling students! I know we live in a phone call free world, but don’t underestimate how helpful a quick phone call can be! Plus, it really helps students understand that you are a resource and there to help.
What works for you?
When I read discussions, I can discern what errors will pop up within assignments. As I was told during my graduate studies, errors that are present in discussions usually become the same concerns within assignments. I grade my discussions as if they are assignments. I highlight everything within posts. Hopefully, by the time the second assignment is submitted, the student has reduced such errors.
My note within the private forum tells the student to download the assignment provided with feedback, review each error and provide an action plan. If all else fails, I issue an alert.
I also refer students back to my announcements in which I have provided resources. I consistently post within the discussion forum my expectations for graduate students. Again, I facilitate graduate courses, so the expectation is that I do not have to direct cohorts through everything. They should know how to locate information and use properly.
My comments also note GCU provided everything the students needs to be successful and my requirement is for the student to use that information. Usually that statement wakes up everybody and I notice changes.
The final straw is I start rejecting assignments and request the student to make corrections before a grade is issued. This action makes the student contact me to go over feedback. Sometimes I have to put the ball in their court. I cannot keep going over the same things when I have other students who are proactive, who read feedback and incorporate the recommended improvement
Angela
Thank you so much for joining us for the final week of the workshop! I hope you all had a great holiday!
If I can ever help with anything, please do not hesitate to reach out!
Alli Schilling
[email protected]
Thank you!