digital poetry practicum: preservice english … poetry practicum: preservice english language arts...
TRANSCRIPT
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
157
Digital Poetry Practicum: Preservice English Language Arts Teachers’ Dispositions of New Literacies
KatieDredger,Ph.D.JamesMadisonUniversity
SusanneNobles,Ph.D.LearnerPositioningSystems
JennyM.Martin,Ph.D.BridgewaterCollege
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
158
Abstract
Thisqualitativestudyinvestigatedhowgraduatepreserviceteachers(PSTs)engagedina
digitalpracticumexperiencewithageographicallydistantsecondaryEnglishLanguage
Arts(ELA)classroom.ThegraduatePSTs,enrolledinaMastersofArts,EnglishEducation
programatauniversityinthemid-AtlanticUnitedStates,mentoredthe9th-gradestudents
intheonlinespacesofacoursewikiandvideoconferencing.Inthisportionofalarger
study,PSTsmentoredthestudentsduringapoetryunitorganizedbytheELAcooperating
teacherandhousedintheELAclassroom.AgoalofthispracticumwasbuildingPSTs’
PedagogicalContentKnowledge(Shulman,1986)andTechnologicalPedagogicalContent
Knowledge(Koehler&Mishra,2009)specifictotheuseofemergingtechnologieswithin
theELAclassroom.Thefindingsofthisstudyshowthatonlinespacescandevelop
dispositionsofNewLiteracies(Knobel&Lankshear,2007)andcanbridgetheoryand
practiceinteacherpreparationprograms.
Keywords:Teachereducation;wikis;NewLiteracies;poetry;digitalliteracy;EnglishLanguageArts;collaboration
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
159
Introduction
Effectivelyenhancingclassroomliteracyinstructionwithvalue-addedtechnology
canbechallengingwithoutmodels.Evenexperiencedclassroomteachersoftenstruggleto
leadstudentswithcurriculumratherthantoleadwithtechnology.Thisstruggleiseven
greaterforthepreserviceteacher(PST),wholackscurriculumandlessondevelopment
experienceinadditiontolackingmodelsfortechnologyintegration.Thisisthencoupled
withthechallengeteacherpreparationprogramsoftenhavewithfindingpracticum
placementsforPSTswheretheycanexperimentwithaconfidentteacherwhoeffectively
integratestechnology.Whenanytheoryinvestigatedintheuniversityclassroomisnot
enactedinaclassroomexperience,PSTsmaybelesslikelytoadoptit,andthedispositions
ofNewLiteracies(Knobel&Lankshear,2007)arenodifferent.Thiscouldthenperpetuate
thelackofmodelsofeffectiveintegrationofdigitaltechnology.Furthermore,K-12online
coursesareofferedinall50states;however,lessthan2%ofrespondingprogramsin
teachereducationaddressthisneedforonlineteachingandlearningexperiencesby
providingPSTswithchancestoexploreteachingwithdigitaltools(Kennedy&
Archambault,2012).
DigitalpracticacanprovidePSTsanintroductiontoteachingstudentsinonline
spacesandachanceforin-depthmentorship(Nobles,Dredger,&Gerheart,2012;
Townsend,Cheveallier,Browning,&Fink,2013).TheonlinepracticumplacesPSTsina
positiontoobserveaclassroomteacher’scurriculumdesignindigitalspaces,aswellasto
understandhowtoworkcloselywithstudentswhoarephysicallyfaraway.Thisstudy
explorestheresultsofimplementingasix-weekdigitalpracticumforPSTs.Theprimary
goalsofthispracticumexperiencewere1)buildingPSTs’PedagogicalContentKnowledge
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
160
(PCK,Howey&Grossman,1989;Shulman,1986)andTechnologicalPedagogicalContent
Knowledge(TPACK,Koehler&Mishra,2009),specifictotheuseofemergingtechnologies
withintheEnglishLanguageArts(ELA)classroom,and2)supportinghighschoolstudents
inthedevelopmentofacademicconfidencethroughcollegementorsandpeerreview.
WhilethislargerprojectimpactedboththestudentsandthePSTs,thisarticlearticulates
theimpactonthePSTs.
LocalpracticumplacementsforPSTsdonotalwaysmodelpedagogiessteepedin
effectivetechnologyintegration.Theteachereducatorsinthisstudydecidedtotakefull
advantageoftheaffordancesofdigitalpracticumexperiencesandplacedPSTswitha
teacherwhowasaleaderinintegratingtechnologyinherschool’s1:1program,even
thoughherschoolwasover200milesfromtheuniversity.ThePSTsneverphysically
traveledtotheirplacement.Instead,theyloggedintotheclassroomwikiand
communicatedwiththeircooperatingteacherandherstudentspredominantly
asynchronously.
ThisstudyinvestigatedhowthesesixPSTs,allpreserviceELAteachers,mentored
19ninth-gradestudentsinpoetryinterpretation,response,andrecitationwithinthedigital
collaborationspaceofawiki.Shulman’sPCK(1986)establishedthepremisethatPSTs
neededtobenotonlystrongintheircontentarea(ELAinthisstudy)butalsointhespecific
effectivepedagogiesthataremostsuccessfulinteachingELA.PCKimpliesthatteacher
preparationprogramsaremosteffectivewhendeliveredinacontext,thatmathteaching,
forexample,isdistinctivelydifferentthantheteachingofELA.Likewise,TPACKimplies
usingtechnologiesspecifictotheenactingoftheELAcurriculum.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
161
Thepoetryunit,commoninhighschoolcurriculum,isoneinwhichmanyteachers
lackconfidencebecauseofthesubjectiveartistrythatcandefinepoetry.Thislackof
confidencecan,inturn,affectstudentinterest.Somearguepoetryistheleastwell-taught
genre,atleastinpartbecauseofthiscycle:teachersthemselveswerenottaughtpoetry
wellwhentheywerestudentsandthereforelackconfidenceand/orinterest(Dymoke&
Hughes,2009).Thiscyclecanbehardtochangewithoutchangingpeople’sexperiences
withpoetry.
Toattempttobreakthecycle,theunitforthehighschoolstudentswasdesigned
aroundobjectivesfocusedonstudentchoiceandexplorationsupportedbythePSTinthe
roleofmentor.Thestudentswereasked:
• Toconnectwithpoetrybyfindingpoemstheyenjoyreading;
• Toreciteapoemtheyenjoybymemoryandwithexpression;
• Tounderstandthatpoetryisdifferentthanproseinwritingexpectations;
• Toidentifyandexplainanauthor’spurposewiththesupportofamentor;
• Tobeabletowritepoetryusingliterarytechniquestointentionallycreate
meaningwiththesupportofamentor;and
• Tosubmitanoriginalpoemforpossiblepublication.
Forengagementpurposes,thestudentschosetwopoemstopostontheirwikipagesand
annotateoverthecourseofseveralweeks,leadingtoafinaldeepanalysisofonepoemthat
includedanaudiorecordingofthestudentrecitingthepoem.Thecooperatingteacher
offeredthestudentsachoiceofthesepoemstheywouldstudyindepthtoincrease
engagement.Thestudentsalsoposteddraftsofatleastthreeoftheirownpoemsoverthe
six-weekperiod,culminatinginpostingthreefinalpoemsandsubmittingatleastonetoa
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
162
poetrycompetition.Tohelpherstudentsfeelcomfortablewithsharingallofthiswork,the
cooperatingteachercreatedawidesafetynetforherstudents’explorationsofpoetry,anet
thatincludedherselfandthePSTsservingascollaboratorsandmentorsforthestudentsin
theirpoetryanalysisandcompositioninthisdigitalspace.Thiscollaborationofferedthe
highschoolstudentsanexpandedsetofreadersfortheirpoetrywritingandrecitations,
makingthisworkmoremeaningful(Applebee&Langer,2011;Gee,1989).
TheunitwasdesignedtoofferthePSTspracticewithrespondingtostudents’poetry
interpretationsinasmallergroupsettingtohelpthemdevelopskillstheycouldthen
transferwithconfidencetotheirownfutureclassrooms.Objectivesfromthecoursethat
applieddirectlytothepracticumrequiredstudentsto:
• Evaluate and experiment with multiple strategies and a range of content materials
and texts, both traditional and alternative and both explicitly and in the context of
writing instruction, in order to move toward the goal of reaching all students;
• Use multimodal composition and communication technologies to facilitate
reflection and instruction; and
• Utilize major components of reader-response theory as a means of enhancing
reading within content-area environments.
Thispracticumwastitled“RealWorldReaders,”andthecollaborationcountedtoward
10%oftheirELAmethodscoursegrade.Followingtheexpectationsprovidedtothe
studentsbythecooperatingteacher(seeAppendix),thePSTsvisitedtheirstudents’wiki
pageseachtimethestudentspostedaneworrevisedanalysisorpoemorrepliedtothe
commentthread.Inthisway,thePSTswereaconstantpresencetotheirstudents,
supportivelyencouragingthemtodevelopasthinkersandwriters.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
163
Asanationallyaccreditedteacherpreparationprogram,thepracticeofformally
aligningactivitieswiththeNCTE/NCATE(nowNCTE/CAEP)standardsfocusedthiswork.
ThedigitalpracticumsupportedStandard2,3.1,and3.7:
• Standard2.Throughmodeling,advisement,instruction,fieldexperiences,
assessmentofperformance,andinvolvementinprofessionalorganizations,
candidatesadoptandstrengthenprofessionalattitudesneededbyELA
teachers.
• Standard3.1:Candidatesdemonstrateknowledgeofandskillsintheuseof
theEnglishlanguage.
• Standard3.7:Candidatesdemonstrateknowledgeofresearchtheoryand
findingsinELA.(NCTE/NCATEProgramStandards,2003)
Thisdigitalpracticumhousedwithinthepoetryunitservedthesestandards.Additionally,
self-efficacyinteachingwasdevelopedasPSTsworkedalongsideanexperiencedteacher.
Finally,thisdigitalpracticumgavePSTsaneededopportunitytoworkwithatech-
savvyEnglishteacher(Hicks,2016:Kajder,2010;Kist,2005).TPACKmakesasimilar
argumenttoPCKaboutthecriticalimportanceofcontext.Technologyintegrationcourses
inteacherpreparationprogramsshouldnotbesiloed,divorcedfromthecontent.Instead,
effectiveteachingwithtechnologycanbeeffectivelyembeddedincontent-specificteacher
preparationcourses.Thedigitaltoolsandstrategiescanbeleveragedthoughtfullyto
enhancestudentlearningineachcontentarea.ThispracticumofferedthePSTsamodelfor
effectivecontentandtechnologyintegrationwithinasecondaryELApoetryunitthrough
itscarefuldesigntomeettheneedsofeachlearnerbyleveragingthedigitalspacefor
increasedindividualstudentsupport.Thecooperatingteachermodeledinstructional
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
164
practicesthatintegratedtechnologyinsupportofcurriculargoals,aswellassupporteda
differentapproachtopoetry.AndthePSTspracticedtheirprofessionalresponsibilitiesof
bothPCKandTPACKinasafe,instructiveenvironmentwithsupportfromauniversity
supervisorandincollaborationwithamasterteacher.ThispracticumprovidedthePSTsa
richdigitallearningmodelofhowatraditionallynondigitalELAunitcanbeamplifiedwith
adigitalconnection.
ClassroomInnovationUsingWikis
Thispoetryunitwashousedinawiki.Awikiisadynamicinternetcomposition
spaceinwhichmultipleuserscanadd,change,andrevise,eithercollaborativelyor
individually.Userscanalsostoredocumentsandmultimodalartifactsinthewikispaceand
trackarevisionhistorytoseethecollaborativeprocessinaction.Thisrevisionhistory
servedasarecordofaccumulatedknowledgecreation.
Asametaphor,thewikiisadigitalthree-ringbinder.Imagineabindersolargethat
students,yearafteryearifneeded,cansharenotesandinsightsontheconceptscoveredin
acourse.Thenimaginethatstudentnotesinthisbindercouldincludemultimedia
perspectivesoftheskillsandcontentoftheclassandthatallofthisknowledgecouldbe
accessedelectronically.Thisnotebookmetaphor(Nobles,Dredger,&Gerheart,2012)or
“knowledgeplatform”(Parker&Chao,2007,p.58)hasbeenusedtodescribethepowerof
acoursewiki.Coursewikiscanincludenotesandperspectivesfromeachstudent,and
teachersmayorganizethespacebystudentname,muchlikefilesinafilingcabinetor
tabbeddividersinanotebook.Teachersmayalsosetupthewikiwithtabsdelineatedfor
courseobjectivesorthemes.Furthermore,wikiscanbestoredindefinitelysothatthe
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
165
accumulatedknowledgecanliveyeartoyearorcanbeconfinedtospecificunitsof
learning.
Whatmakesthewikimuchimprovedoverthebinderistheeaseofsharingboththe
creationofknowledgeandtheknowledgecreated.Wikisprivilegeauthenticcollaboration,
animportantskilltoday’sstudentsneedtolearn(Dredger,2014;Dymoke&Hughes,2009;
Edmonson,2012;Kajder,2010;Wake&Modla,2012).Teacherswhobelievethat
“everyonetogetherissmarterthananyonealone”(Richardson,2009,p.57)findthatwikis
encouragestudentstoworkmoreefficientlywhileco-constructingknowledge.Theword
“wiki,”derivedfromtheHawaiianlanguage,means“fast,”and21st-centurylearnershave
theopportunitywithwikistoaccessandevaluatedigitalinformationcriticallyandquickly
andto“engageinthepurposefulworkofnegotiatingandcreatingtruth”(Stevenson,2010,
p.57)usingmultipleperspectives.
Usersofthesetoolsespousetheireaseofnavigationandthepowerofthe
collaborativespace.Eventhoughwikisaredeemedbyresearchassupportiveinhelping
teachersdevelopstudents’onlinecompetenciesinanetworkedage,theyareusedwith
studentslessthan1%ofthetimefortheintendedcollaborativepurpose(Reich,Murnane,
&Willet,2012).Thatsaid,educatorswhoarewaryofnewtechnologiesthatswirllikefads
throughin-servicepresentationsandpractitionerwebsitesarewise.Classroomteachers
whoaretryingtousethepowerofWeb2.0and3.0(mobile)technologiestomeetstudents
inlearningspacesthatarefamiliartothem,suchassocialnetworkingspaces(Abbitt,2011;
Ertmer,Ottenbreit-Leftwich,&York,2007),alsocanstrugglewiththelackofmodels
guidingthemineffectiveacademicintegrationofdigitaltools.Empiricalresearchthat
helpsteachersunderstandthequestionsofwhatworks,when,andwhywithtechnology
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
166
integrationshouldbeusedtoinformclassroompractice.Inadditiontostudyingtheimpact
ofdigitalpractica,thisstudyalsohopestoprovidearesearch-basedexaminationofthe
impactofthoughtfullyintegratingwikisintotheclassroom.
AnchoringtheCurriculum
Forthisfour-weekunit,theninth-gradestudentsstudiedpoemsandpoetrywriting
intheirtraditionalclassroomwiththeirregularteacher,Ms.King(apseudonym).
Meanwhile,PSTsreadpoemsanddiscussedintheirtraditionalmethodsclassroomwaysto
respondtostudents’poeticattemptsandtostudentobservationsandanalysisofpoetry
thatservedasmentortextswithinthecompositionprocess.Thewikithenofferedashared
classroomspacewherethestudentsandthePSTscouldcollaborateandtesttheirlearning.
Thestudentspostedtheiranalysesofpoemsaswellastheirownpoemsandpoetry
recitationaudiorecordingonthewiki,andthePSTs,usingthediscussiontab,commented
onstudentwork.Thestudentsthenrespondedbothinthediscussionaswellthrough
revisionstotheirpoemsandrecitations.
ThisunitandsubsequentlythisresearchstudyalignedwiththeCommonCore
Initiative(NationalGovernorsAssociation,2010).Thestudentsworkedwithin“adeepand
flexibleunderstanding”(CCSSO,2011,p.8)ofpoetryasagenre.Specifically,students:
• Citedstrongandthoroughtextualevidencetosupportanalysisofwhatthe
textsaysexplicitlyaswellasinferencesdrawnfromthetext(CCSS.ELA-
Literacy.RL.9-10.1);
• Showedtheirabilityto“determineathemeorcentralideaofatextand
analyzeindetailitsdevelopmentoverthecourseofthetext,includinghowit
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
167
emergesandisshapedandrefinedbyspecificdetails;[and]provide[d]an
objectivesummaryofthetext”(CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.2);
• Determined“themeaningofwordsandphrasesastheyareusedinthetext,
includingfigurativeandconnotativemeanings;[and]analyzedthe
cumulativeimpactofspecificwordchoicesonmeaningandtone(e.g.,how
thelanguageevokesasenseoftimeandplace;howitsetsaformalor
informaltone)”(CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.4);and
• Drew“evidencefromliteraryorinformationaltextstosupportanalysis,
reflection,andresearch”CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.9).
WhilestudentsalsoreadpoetryassuggestedbytheCCSS,itisinappropriateto
suggestwhethertheywerereadingwithinCCSSgradelevelbandsbecausepoetryisnot
appropriatelyanalyzedwithareadabilityscore(Mesmer,2007).CCSSsalsodonotsuggest
thatstudentwritingofpoetryisanessentialskillinninthgradeELAclassrooms.Thisstudy
showsthevalueofthepractice.
ResearchQuestion
Whatbeganasapartnershipbetweenanindependentsecondaryschoolanda
universityin2008becameaformalizedresearchstudyinthefallof2011.After
experiencingthissymbioticpartnership,theauthorsdeterminedthatpursuingthisproject
asaresearchstudywouldhighlightthenatureofthediscoursebetweenthelearning
groupsinvolved,uncoveringtheeffectsofboththedigitalpracticaandtheparticipationin
awiki.
Joiningthediscussionabouttheuseofclassroomwikisandaboutmentorshipin
areasofPCK(Shulman,1986)andTPACK(Koehler&Mishra,2009),theauthorswantedto
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
168
knowwhetherperceptionsofqualityinteractionsboreoutunderrigorousdiscourse
analysisviewedfromaNewLiteracieslens(Knobel&Lankshear,2007;Lankshear,&
Knobel,2011).Theresearchquestionofthisstudywas,“Whatisthenatureoftheonline
discoursebetweenPSTsandninthgradersinteractingfromgeographicallydistant
places?”
TheoreticalFramework
TheexaminationofthediscourseofthePSTsandthestudentswithinthespaceofa
coursewikioffersinsightintoEnglisheducators’responsibilitytopreparefutureteachers
tonegotiatethedemandsandaffordancesofferedbytechnologyintegration.New
LiteraciesandCognitiveFlexibilityTheory,definedbelow,cometogethertoframethis
study.
NewLiteracies
Forthepurposesofthisstudy,werefertoNewLiteraciesasKnobelandLankshear
(2007)definetheminANewLiteraciesSampler.Thistheoreticalframeworkinformedour
purposeinthatteachingdigitallywillalwaysmeanthattheavailabletoolswillchangebut
thatanattitudeofreflectiveimplementationwhenenactingcurriculawithemerging
technologywillalwaysbeimportant.Whatmightbecalled“OldLiteracies”valuedthe
dispositionsofcentralizedexpertise,ownership,normalization,andfixidity.NewLiteracy
practicesvalueparticipation,distributedexpertise,sharing,experimentation,and
evolution(seeFigure1).NewLiteraciesisatermthathasbeencoinedinlightoftheinflux
oftoolsthathavefloodedourexistence.HowweusethesetoolsintheELAclassroom
requiresreflectivepractitioners.NewLiteraciesprovidetheopportunitytousetechnology
inatransactionalway.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
169
Figure1:MovingtowarddispositionsofNewLiteracies(ConceptsynthesizedinDredger,
Woods,Beach,&Sagstetter,2010).
AnalysisofNewLiteracies(Knobel&Lankshear,2014)requiresthatresearchersexamine
howparticipantsusetoolsandpracticesinordertoinformteachingandlearning(p.97).
CognitiveFlexibilityTheory
CognitiveFlexibilityTheory(CFT,Spiro,Coulson,Feltovich,&Anderson,2004)
statesthatadvancedknowledgeacquisitionhappensinclassroomsthatavoid
oversimplification.Forexample,thistypeofknowledgeacquisitionwouldbeevidencedin
thehighlightingofexceptionsinabodyofknowledge.CFTcanbeappliedtoteachingwith
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
170
technology,astechnology-richclassroomsarealsoinformation-richandthereforemust
focusonmanagingalltheavailableknowledgewithoutsimplifyingit.
CFTisalsoapplicableintheteachingofpoetry,anintricatelyrobustgenre.The
followingthemesofCFTmapstronglywithdevelopingadeepunderstandingofpoetry.
• MultipleRepresentations:Inpoetrytexts,theamountandtypeofdiversified
examplesleadtocomplexthinkingabouthowconceptsmanifestthemselves.
• CaseStudies:CFTrequiresthatclassroomslookatactualoccurrencesof
phenomena,referredtointhemedicalcommunityas“cases.”Hence,case
studyhasbeendeemedaneffectivewaytostudycomplexissues.The
cooperatingteacherinthisstudyplannedtheinstructionwithinthiswikito
exploremultiplepoetictexts,or“cases,”tohonormultiplewaysoflookingat
apoem.
• FlexibleSchema:Inclassroomsthatarehoningflexibleschemas,patternsare
disrupted.Fixedknowledgeisdevalued,andpotentialknowledgeis
privileged.Thecooperatingteacherinthisstudyusedthisconceptby
creatingaculturewheretherewerenotsingular,“correct”interpretationsof
poetry.
• Multiple-Connectedness:CFTclassroomsaremarkedbyanefforttosee
similaritiesanddifferencesacrossrepresentations.Thus,studentsand
teachersinanELAclassroommaypointouthowpoemsrelatetoother
poems,othertexts,tohistory,ortopersonalexperience.
• MentorSupport:CFTsuggeststhatthelearningofcomplexconceptscannot
justbehandedtothestudent.Instead,guidance,offeredinmyriadways,
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
171
shouldsupportknowledgeacquisition.Thecombinationofthecooperating
teacherandthePSTsasmentorscreatedstrongsupportforthestudentsin
thisstudyastheyembracedthecomplexityofpoetictexts.
Thehigh-levelthinkingtasksthatengagedboththesecondarystudentsandPSTsrequired
morethanconnecting.CFT,withitsfocusonapplication,multiplerepresentations,diverse
interpretations,multipleconnections,andmentorsupport,bettersuitedthegenreof
poetrywithinthiscollaboration.
Fromthisweusethetermaffordances,explainedbyBeachandO’Brien(2012)as
“boththoseliteracypracticeswhichthe[technologies]aredesignedtofosteraswellas
thoseliteracypracticesyouareinvitingstudentstoemploy”(italicsinoriginal,loc.133).
ThisexplanationisgroundedinGibson’s(1977)suggestionthathumansaltertheworld(in
thiscaseintheiruseoftools)toserveanemergingpurpose.Hencetheuseofthetool
supportsboththeteacher-identifiedoutcomesandtheunexpectedbutappropriate
learningthatemergesfromthepractice.Assuch,studentsdoing,inthiscasecreating,
reflecting,sharing,andrevisingpoeticworks,withthetoolsavailableframetheenduring
understandingoftheunitoflearning.
IntersectionsofFrameworks
NewLiteraciesandCFTconvergeinalogicalplacewhenstudyingtheaffordancesof
anewtoollikeaclosedcoursewikiusedtocreatealearningspacefordifferentsetsof
learnerswithdifferentlearninggoals.WhileourPSTswerebeingchallengedwithinthis
spacetoconsiderthelearner,thecontent,theinstruction,andtheirownprofessional
dispositions(CCSSO,2011),thesecondarystudentswereconcurrentlybeingaskedto(a)
refinetheiracademicthinkingwithinmultipleperspectives;(b)createoriginalpoetry;(c)
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
172
thinkcriticallyabouttheaspectsofpoetrythatincludefigurativelanguage,polysemous
words,appealstoemotions,author’sstyle,economyoflanguage,narrativearc,rhythm,
tone,speaker,andpurpose.
NewLiteraciesmovesbothsecondarystudentsandgraduatestudentstoaplaceof
experimentationandinnovation,privilegingsharinganddistributedexpertise.The
paradigmofNewLiteraciesandtheaffordanceofthetoolssupportsstudentsintheir
developmentofcognitiveflexibility,withtheintendedconsequenceofdevelopingcritical
thinkinginstudents.Theunitwasbasedincomplicateddiscussionaroundpoetry,and
NewLiteraciessupportedtheacademicdiscoursethatresulted.
LiteratureReview
Thebodyofliteratureabouttheuseofwikisintheclassroomhasdepth,breadth,
andlongevity.Richardson’s(2006)firsteditionofBlogs,Wikis,PodcastsandOtherPowerful
WebToolsforClassroomsandKajder’s(2003)TheTech-SavvyEnglishTeacherareearly
examplesofpractitionertextsthatexaminedtheseissues.Bothauthorsarepioneersof
technologicalintegrationinsecondaryELAclassrooms.
Preparingstudentsfor21stCenturyLiteracies(Kress,2003;NewLondonGroup,
1996)meansmodelingwaysthatgeographicallydistantcolleaguescancollaboratively
constructknowledgeandcoursedesignindigitalways.Secondaryteachershaveshared
thatstudentsareengagedwhenNewLiteraciesofferthemspacestocollaborateandcreate
tomeetindividuallearningneeds(Kajder,2010;Kist,2005;Richardson,2009).
Differentiatedclassrooms(Beecher&Sweeny,2008;Tomlinson,2001)allowfor
individualizedlearningenvironmentsthatcreatebothfamiliarlearningspaces(Dredger,
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
173
Woods,Beach,&Sagstetter,2010;Moll&Greenberg,1990)andmovestudentsinnew
directionsforessentialgrowthincontentskills.
Theresearchonteachingpoetrythroughdigitalmeansshowsthatmultimodality,
largeraudiences,andperformanceenhancetheteachingofpoetry(Dymoke&Hughes,
2011).ThisstudyfoundthatsomePSTsresistteachingpoetryattimesbecausethey
dislikethegenre.Theymaythinkthatpoetryisonlyfortheelite,isinaccessibleandtoo
difficulttoassess,isnotasimportantasothergenres;andisnotacollaborativecreative
space(Dymoke&Hughes,2011).Teachereducators,armedwiththefindingsofsuch
research,canstarttosupportPSTsinbreakingdownthesenotions.DymokeandHughes
(2011)discusswaysthat,pedagogicallyspeaking,ELAPSTsneedmentorshipintheartand
scienceofteachingsuchcreativecomposition.Thisspecificallyspeakstosomeofthemore
recentscholarshipontheimportanceofcontentknowledgedevelopmentinteacher
education(Forzani,2014;Gitomer&Zisk,2015;Lowenberg-Ball,Thames,&Phelps,2008).
AdditionalliteratureintheuseofdigitaltoolsintheELAclassroomhasfocusedontheuse
ofdigitalliteraciestosupporttheaccessingandsharingofknowledge,thecollaborative
powerofgainingconceptualunderstandings,andthewaysthatnewtechnologiescan
supportreflectiononlearning(Beach,2012).Poetrypedagogy,particularlyindigital
contexts,hasbeenexploredintermsofimplicationsandrestraintsofthetools(Carlin-
Menter,2013;Dymoke&Hughes,2009;Li,Snow,&White,2015).
Teachereducatorsneedtocontinuetofindwaysto“keepthepace”(Alvermann,
2011)asdigitaltechnologiesofferopportunitiesforengagementinspecificdisciplines.In
sum,thisworkfollowstheleadoftheseaboveresearchstudiesinexaminingspecifically
thewaysthatPSTsareguidedinthethoughtfulintegrationoftechnologyintheELA
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
174
classroom.Asnewtoolsmoveintoclassrooms,teachersneedtobetrainedintheir
implementationandthewaysthattheycanamplifylearningtheenduringunderstandings
ofthediscipline.
Methodology
Thethreeresearchers,educationprofessionalswithnearlyfortyyearscombined
experienceteachinginsecondaryELAclassrooms,formalizedthisqualitativestudytwo
yearsintoasix-yearpartnershipbetweenasecondaryclassroomandauniversity
classroom,specificallyinateacherpreparationcourse.Theresearchersuseddiscourse
analysistoanalyzetheanonymizedcollectionofallwritteninteractions,collectedonthe
coursewiki,betweenthestudentsandthePSTswithinthecourseofoneunit.Theresearch
teamdefineddiscourseasGoldmanandWiley(2004)do.Discourseanalysisofwrittentext
describesthe“ideasandtherelationsamongtheideaspresentinatext”(p.64).Thisis
especiallyimportantinatextsuchasawikiandinageographicallydistantmentoring
environmentwherethemaininteractionbetweentheadolescentclassroomstudentsand
theirmentorsisintext,notinverbaldialogue.GoldmanandWileyproposethatwritten
textisawindowintothe“mentalmodel”(p.74)ofthelearnerandthattheselearner-
producedtextsgiveresearcherssounddataforsubjectivelybutnotarbitrarilyfurthering
understandingofstudentlearning.
The19ninth-gradestudentparticipantswerepredominantlywhite(20%werenon-
Caucasian)studentsatacollege-preparatory,independentPK-12schoollocated220miles
awayfromtheuniversity.Twelvewereboysandsevengirls.Thestudentsownedorleased
fromtheschoollaptopsthattheyusedintheclassroomeachdayaswellasbroughthome.
Allofthestudentshadinternetaccessathomeinadditiontotheaccesstheyhadatschool.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
175
InadditiontotheirEnglishclass,eachstudentwasenrolledinfourotheracademicclasses
andatleastoneelectiveclass.
TheparticipantsinthisstudyincludedsixPSTsinaMastersofArtsinEducation
teacherpreparationprograminEnglishEducationinalargeresearchuniversityinamid-
Atlanticstate.ThePSTswereallCaucasian,andfivewerefemalesintheirearlytwenties
workingtowardteacherlicensure.Theonemaleparticipantwasinhismid-thirtiesandhad
chosenacareerchangetopursueteaching.AllofthePSTsownedlaptopcomputerswith
internetaccessandalsohadaccesstouniversitycomputerswhenneeded.While
participatinginthisproject,PSTswereconcurrentlyenrolledinatleastthreeother
master’sleveleducationcourses,includingafallfieldpracticumexperienceinalocal
secondaryschooltwodaysaweek.Theexamplesintheanalysisanddiscussionsections
aretakenfromfivePSTsand10students.Thepseudonymsfortheseparticipantsare
showninTable1.
Table1
StudyparticipantsCooperatingClassroomTeacher
PreserviceTeacher(PST)Mentor
CorrespondingStudentMentee
Ms.King Ms.Aldich Prekan
Ms.Reznik Jake
Alice
Erika
Ms.Dean Camille
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
176
Colton
Kobe
Ms.Wilkins Aaron
Ms.Atkins Peyton
Becausethecoursewikiandthewrittencommentsthatweresharedbetween
studentandPSTwerepreservedinanonlinedocument,thisworkiswell-suitedtowritten
discourseanalysis.Thisstudyisespeciallyinformativeinthattheparticipantsonly
exchangedverbalconversationstwice:shortintroductionsatthebeginningoftheunitand
poetryrecitationsviaSkypeasaculminatingactivity.Thedialoguethatexistsonthewikiis
essentiallytheentiretyoftheinteractionbetweeneachstudentandtheirPSTmentor.
Thus,athirdspace(Bhabha,1990;Soja,1996)apartfromthesecondaryclassroomandthe
universityclassroomwascreatedthroughthepowerofWeb2.0technologiesthatinturn
createdacommunityofpractice(Lave&Wenger,1991)forallofthecommunity’s
participants.
Theresearchteamcodedthedatausingtheconstantcomparativemethod(Strauss
&Cobin,1994).First,eachresearcherseparatelyreadandrereadeachinteraction
recordedonthecoursewiki,includingposts,uploads,andcomments.Theresearcherseach
codedthesedigitalinteractionsofthesecondarystudentsandthePSTsusingtheseinitial
codes:
• Socialniceties
• Expertlanguage
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
177
• Expertthinking
• Complexcommunication(e.g.aprobingquestionordialogue)
• Integrationofcomplexcommunicationandexpertthinking
Theresearchersthenrereadthedatatogether.Aftercollaborationanddeliberation,
theoriginalcodesweremeshedandsituatedwithinthetheoreticalframeworksofour
research.Forexample,theterm“expertthinking”emergedasimportanttowhatthe
studentsandPSTsweredisplaying.Theresearchteamchosetoexplainthatwithina
broaderthemeof“expertise”then“distributedexpertise”overcentralizedexpertiseto
showthechangingfaceofwhatliteracymeansandhowthedigitaltooloffersaffordances
tosharetheknowledgeandclassroomlearning.Thefinalcodeswere:
• Participation
• Distributedexpertise
• Sharing
• Experimentation
• Innovation
• Evolution
ThetheoreticalframingofthesecodesintoaNewLiteraciesframework,organized
hierarchically,informedourfindings,discussedbelow.
Findings
Inthiscommunityofpractice,fourdistinctfindingsemerged.Thediscoursesofthe
PSTsshoweddevelopingdispositionsintenetsofNewLiteracies(Knobel&Lankshear,
2007),specificallyinthefollowing:
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
178
• the support of student participation;
• the distribution of expertise to the students;
• the encouragement of sharing knowledge over owning it; and
• the spirit of experimentation, both for the PSTs in their practicum classroom and
in their own pedagogical choices.
Asateam,weorganizedthesefindingshierarchically,suggestingthatlearnersmustfirst
participatetobeseenasaknowledgeableexpert.Thenwesuggestthatsharingcomesfrom
respectinthelearningcommunitytosupportothers’knowledgegrowth.Finally,wewant
toseewaysthatlearnersareempoweredtotrynewthingsastheyapplyknowledgetonew
situations,effectivelyexperimentinginasafeenvironment.
Finding#1:ParticipationOverPublishing
TheNewLiteraciesparadigmofparticipationoverpublicationwasevident
throughoutthisdigitalcollaboration.Oneoftheaffordancesofawikiistheeaseofthe
creativeprocess.Therevisionhistoryofthewikishowsthatafinalproductisnotproduced
uponafirst,orevensecondandthird,draftofanycomposition.Forexample,Erika’s(all
namesarepseudonyms;seeTable1)wikipageshowed26revisions.Erikaclearly
understoodthatcompositionisaprocessandthattheproductmaynotbeasimportantas
thisprocess.
Thepowerofthewikitoenhancecreativecollaborationwithinthefocuson
participationwasshowninthedialoguethatdevelopedbetweeneachstudentandtheir
PSTmentor.Eachofthe19studentswasassignedaPST.ThePSTspromptedeachoftheir
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
179
menteesthroughinquiry,helpingthembothlearnandencouragingparticipation.For
example,Ms.Aldichprobedherstudentmentee,Prekan:
I’dliketohearmoreaboutyourprocess.Didyouwritewhatyouwantedthepoem
tosay,thengobackandmatchittotheacrostic,ordidyoukeepitinmindwhileyou
werewriting?Howdidyoudecideonthesubjectofasalsamaker?
ThePSTswereencouragedtoengagethroughthoughtfulquestioning,honoringthe
learningprocessandrespectingthepersonalnatureofartisticcreation.
Participationoverpublicationalsowasshowninthethinkingprocessesofthe
students,asevidencedintheircomments.Forexample,Camilleexplainedtohermentor,
Ms.Dean,“Iputlinebreaksinthispoemsopeoplewouldtakepausestoslowdownthe
poemandmakethereaderstopforamomentandthinkaboutwhattheyarereading.”This
exampleshowedadevelopingauthorattendingtoherfutureaudience,onethatwasnot
justherteacher.Shereferredto“people”withtheconfidencethatshewouldhavereaders.
Hercurrentaudience,theassignedPSTMs.Dean,servedasasoundingboardwithinher
process.
Theprivatewikialsogaveasafespaceforstudentstoparticipate.Participatingin
anonlineenvironmentcanbeintimidatinginitially,butthedatashowedstudentsandPSTs
mentoringeachothertoparticipate,evenwhenreluctant.PSTMs.Atkins,seeingthat
Peytonwasnotparticipatingoftenorfully,commentedtohim,
I’mstartingtoseethatyouaren’tapoetryfan:)[sic]That’sfine,thereareplentyof
peoplewhodon’tlikepoetry.Maybeyoudon’tlikewritingit?Maybeyou’vejust
readsomebadpoemsovertheyearsthatmakenosense?Idon’tknow,butIhope
younevergiveuponthegenre!There'sapoetforeverybody.:)Ireallylikethis
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
180
poembyWilfredOwens.Ithinkitisverypoignant,andIlikethatitiswrittenbya
youngmaninhisearlytwenties,reflectingonthehorrorsofwar.Likeothersof
Owens'poems,thisonedoesagoodjobofexpressingsadnessandangerandgiving
readershonestthoughtsonwar.Goodchoice!
ThisdemonstratedtheaffordanceofthewikiasadigitalspacewherePeytonwasableto
getindividualsupporttohelphimovercomehisreluctancetoparticipate.
ThePSTs,too,showedsomeconcernintheprocessofengagingindigital
interaction.Ms.Reznik,forexample,failedtorespondinitiallytoJake’sposts.University
facultyclarifiedexpectationsandencouragedpromptparticipation.Ms.Reznikgave
pointed,positivefeedbackandwrote:
Ialsowantedtowriteashortmessagetoapologizefornotcommentingonyour
wikipostsearlier.Iwasveryconfused;Iwaslookingforyourpostsinthewrong
spotandthoughtthatyoujusthadn’tpostedyet!Thankyouforbeingpatientwith
me;Ienjoyedreadingyourwikipostsandhopethatyoufindmycommentshelpful.
Jakeresponded,“Also,bytheway,it’sokayforthedelayincomments.Ididn’texactly
understandhowtheWikisworkedeither,butasyouprobablyknowIwasdelayedin
postingasecond,originalpoemIwrote.”StudentsandPSTs,throughthesupportive
natureofthewiki,overcameanyinitialreluctanceandembracedtheparticipatory,
collaborativenatureofawiki.Indoingso,thestudentspracticedbeingtruewriterswho
knowthatwritingisneverdone,andthePSTspracticedsupportingstudentsastheymade
thissometimesintimidatingstepintothiscommunityofwriters.
Finding#2:DistributedExpertise
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
181
Asecondaffordanceofusingtheeducationalspaceofthewikitechnologyisthe
shiftingroleswesawintheteachersandthestudents.Asillustratedintheaforementioned
exampleofMs.ReznikandJake,thePSTsshowedthattheywerelearningwiththe
students,andthestudentsattimestookanurturingresponse.
Thisdistributedexpertisereflectsaparadigmshiftfromtheteacherproviding
informationtothestudentstoanenvironmentwheretheteachermodelslearningandthe
studentsarevaluedholdersofinformationaswell.Inthisauthenticlearningprocess,
expertiseissharedamongallparties.WhenMs.ReznikacknowledgedErika’sexpertisein
usingimagery,forexample,sheshowedErikaastrengthinherwritingthatshemaynot
havebeenawareofbeforethepracticumexperience.AfterMs.Reznikpointedouther
strengths,Erikasaid,“Iappreciateyourthoughtsandhavenoticedthatmystrongestareas
inpoetryareusingstrongimageryandwords.”Erikahadclearlydevelopedasenseofher
ownexpertiseasawriter.
Ittakestimetoreadandcommentonthestrengthsandareasforgrowthforeach
student,andthedigitalpracticumaffordedmoreone-on-oneattentionthanasingle
classroomteachercangive.Becauseofthis,distributedexpertiseismuchmorechallenging
toachieveinatraditionalclassroom.Inthethirdspaceofthewiki,theclassroomteacher
hadtheassistanceofthePSTstoacknowledgeallstudents’expertiseandencouragethem
inwaystheyexcelledinwriting.Noneofthiswouldhavehappenedwithoutthehighschool
Englishteacherlettinggosothatherstudentscouldbementoredbygrowingprofessionals
inthefieldofEnglishEducation.Thatis,noneofthisexpertisewouldhavebeendistributed
withouttheteacherbeingopentotheaffordancesofthewikiandsheandtheuniversity
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
182
supervisortrustingthestudentsandPSTstoworkprofessionally.Distributedexpertise
camewithlettinggo,whilemaintainingathumbonthepulseoftheinteractions.
Astheexampleaboveshowed,encouragingsharedexpertisehelpedthestudents
gainconfidence.Whatwasevenmorepowerfulwaswhenstudentsbecameconfident
enoughtonotetheirownstrengthsandexplainthechoicestheymadeinwritings.Colton
explainedsomeofhispoeticchoicestoMs.Dean:
Ithoughtthetoneormessagemightjustbetolivethroughtheday.Ithoughtit
mightbecalmingtothereader.Ireallyjustchosetouseabattoshowthisbecause
it'seasytorhyme.IdecidedtotakeoutthealliterationinsomepartsbecauseI
didn'tlikehowitchangedtheflow.
Colton’sconfidenceinhisdecisiontotakeoutalliterationbecauseitseemedforcedand
“changedtheflow”showedhisemergingexpertiseinexperimentingwithfigurative
language.
TheWeb2.0toolsusedinthiscollaborativepoetryunitfosteredaspaceforthese
higher-levelthinkingskillsthatwereinvitedthroughinquiryandaplacetothinkand
respond.Kobeshowedthisreflectionwhenheexplainedsomeofthechoiceshemadeto
hisassignedPSTMs.Dean,“Ireallytriedtomakeitfeelasthougheventhoughgettingover
afearisscary,lifeordeathsituationsreallyhelpyouout.”Whiletheexpertiseshownhere
wasnotinvolvingfigurativelanguageorspecificpoeticdevices,Kobewasshowing
confidenceinhiswritingchoices,anareawherehesawhimselfasanexpert.Beyond
reflectingonhisownwriting,Kobenotedapoet’suseofrepetition:
Repetition-thisreallyhelpedforthispoembecauseitexplainshowimportantitwas
forthesementobe‘free’fromtheirlivesthattheyhadsupposedlybeenunhappyin
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
183
previously.Italsoreallyforcesthereadertomemorizethisstatementmakingit
sticktothereader.
Itispowerfulforwriterstousementortexts(publishedpoems)astheygainexpertise.
Similarly,significantsupportfromamentor,inthiscasePSTs,canhelplearnersgain
confidence.
Thestructureofthedigitalpracticumkeptstudentsfromfeelingunsupported.
WhenMs.Wilkins,aPST,suggestedtoAaronthatheendapoemwithastanzahehadused
previously,heresponded,“Wellthereasoni[sic]didn'twasbecausetheformatofthis
poemdidnothavethatiwillaskMs.Kingificandothat.Thanks!”Therewasasenseof
needingtoreturntotheclassroomteacherfortheexpertisethatfitherrole,butthat
expertisewasnotlimitedtoher.
Similarly,thePSTsnotedlearningfromthestudents.Ms.ReznikwrotetoAlice:
Ireallyenjoyedyourpoem.Ilovethatsomuchofitiscomprisedoftwo-word
sentences...thosearehardtocomebyinliterature,andIlovethem.Ithinkthatthey
emphasizethepowerofwords,andinyourpoem,theyshowthepowerofastateof
beingandhelpyourreadertostaytunedintoyourhumanexperience.Ithinkyou
hadaniceuseofrepetitionthroughoutyourpoem--itseemedtoemphasizewhat
wasmostimportanttoyou.Ithinkitshowsthatashumanswetendtohavearoot
issuethatshowsupinourlivesinvariousway.Inthiscase,youtouchedonanissue
thatalmosteveryonedealswithatsomepoint:worry.Ilikedhowhonestyouwere
inthispoem...Iamnotatalentedpoet,andIappreciateanyonewhocanexpress
suchhonestyinsofewwords.Thankyouforsharing!
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
184
Thestudentsmaylearnfromtheteacher,butultimately,distributedexpertisemeans
studentslearningfromstudents,fromtechnology,fromexperience,andfromproblem-
solving,andtheteacherslearningfromthestudentsaswell.
Finding#3:SharingOverOwnership
AthirdtenetofNewLiteraciesthatemergedfromthedatawentbeyondsimply
puttingone’sworkonlinetoberead.InNewLiteracies,sharingisbeingwillingtoputone’s
workonlineforotherstouse,thatistoborrow,remix,andexcerpt.Theethosofnewmedia
isoneofopenaccess.
ThediscoursebetweenthePSTsandstudentsshowedthatbothpartiescould
practicethistenetofsharingviathewiki.OneofthePSTs’roleswastosuggestnewpoems
forthestudentstoreadbasedonthetypesofpoemsthestudenthadsharedonthewiki.
WhilesomeofthePSTssimplysuggestedatitleandauthor,otherslinkedtowebsitesthat
freelyprovidedtheirchosenauthor’spoetry.Forexample,Ms.ReznikwrotetoJake,“I'd
liketosuggestthatyouread‘FreeRiver’byPatrickDumas.Iwantedtosuggestanother
poemaboutariverbecauseyouchosetowriteapersonalpoemaboutariver.Here'salink
tothepoem:http://poemhunter.com/poem/free-river/.”Ms.Reznikwasrelyingonthe
openethosofexistingwebsitestoprovideapoemthatJakecouldeasilyaccess.The
websitePoemHunter(www.poemhunter.com)isafreesiteforauthorstopublishtheir
poems.Thesite’scopyrightnoticeexplainsthatpoetsstillholdtheirowncopyrights,sothe
poemscannotnecessarilybepublishedelsewhere.So,Ms.RezniksupportedJakeby
sendinghimtothesitewherethepoethimselfhadchosentosharehispoem,andJake,like
mostpeople,wasmuchmorelikelytoreadthissuggestedpoembecausehecouldaccessit
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
185
immediatelyandforfree.Awikimakesiteasytotakeadvantageoftheopensource
possibilitiesofthedigitalworld.
Thistypeofsharing(linkingtoworkputontheInternetbyotherauthors)hasbeen
embracedbymany.ThisprojectpushedthePSTsandstudents,particularlythestudents
whoweresharingtheirownpoems,muchfurtherintotheNewLiteracyofsharingby
havingthemagreetohavetheirworkbepartoftheopenaccessarchiveoftheInternet.Ms.
DeanapproachedCamille’spoemwithasimilardisposition:ifitisaccessibleonthe
Internet,thenitisavailableforsharing.ShewrotetoCamille,“I'mgoingtobecompletely
honest,Itearedupwhenreading‘Tides.’IcalledmyMomandreadittoher,itmovedmeso
much.(Ididn'tgiveyournameoranythinglikethatobviously.Ihopeyoudon'tmind.)”Her
explanationtoCamilleshowedthatonlyafterthefactdidsheconsiderthatCamillemight
nothavefullyembracedthenewliteracyofsharing.Ms.Dean’sdiscourse,evenasshe
realizedthissomewhattoolate,showedhowthislevelofsharingissomethingpeoplemust
learnandpractice.
Camille’sresponsethenshowedthat,notonlywasshewillingtohaveherpoem
shared,thissharingwasapositiveexperienceforherasawriter:“ThankyousomuchandI
amgladyoulikeditenoughtoshareit.”ThePST’schoicetosharethepoem,whichwas
madepossiblebythecollaborativeaffordancesofthewiki,ultimatelybecameapowerful
momentoffeedbackforCamille.ItwasnotCamille’soneclassroomteacherwhohadread
andappreciatedherpoem;itwasaPSTtwohundredmilesawayandhermother.
Finding#4:ExperimentationOverNormalization
Atthehighestlevelofoursuggestedhierarchyisexperimentation.ThistenetofNew
Literacieswasexemplifiedinthisdataasthechoicetotrysomethingbeyondtheexpected
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
186
orestablished.JustasNewLiteracysharingbecomessharingwithanyoneintheworld,the
NewLiteracyofexperimentationholdsmuchwiderpossibilitiesthroughtheaffordancesof
digitaltools.Forexample,audioandimagescanbereadilycreated,borrowed,andremixed.
Thediscoursefromthisprojectexhibitedexperimentationinthreeways:thePST
experimentingwithherroleasteacher;thestudentexperimentingwithwaystopresent
herideas;andthePSTandthestudentexploringexperimentationtogether.
Ms.AtkinsperformedwhatwasexpectedofallPSTsonthewiki.Sherespondedto
Peyton’spoemsbyexploringtechniquesshesawhimusing.Yetthroughherdiscourse,it
becameclearthatshewasintuitingaresistancetopoetryinPeyton.Peytonwrotenothing
directlyabouthisfeelingsaboutpoetry,butMs.Atkinsdecidedtoexperimentwithherrole
onthewiki.Excerptedfromwhatthelongersegmentwequotedearlier,shewrote,
I'mstartingtoseethatyouaren'tapoetryfan:)[sic]That'sfine,thereareplentyof
peoplewhodon'tlikepoetry.Maybeyoudon'tlikewritingit?Maybeyou'vejust
readsomebadpoemsovertheyearsthatmakenosense?Idon'tknow,butIhope
younevergiveuponthegenre!
Ms.AtkinstookthisriskofwritingtoPeytonaboutsomethingshewassensing,albeit
withoutface-to-facecontactwiththeyouth.Thiscarefulattentiontothenuancesofone’s
student’sdiscourseisanimportantaspectofbeinganeffectiveteacher.Thewikiafforded
Ms.Atkinsthechancetoexploreandgrowasateacher.
Camillealsodemonstratedself-explorationthroughthewiki.Asastudent,shewas
assignedtopostanimagewithoneofherchosenpoems;however,Camilledecidedto
experimentasapoetwithhowvisualscontributedtoherpoems’meanings.Shechose
imagesforallherpoems,somethingmadeeasybytheimageuploadingcapabilitiesofthe
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
187
wiki.Shethendecidedtoexplainoneofherimagechoices:“Mypictureisalsokindoflikea
Metaphor[sic]becauseitisinthegroundandthengrowsandfind[sic]outwhatlightis
andkeepsgrowingwithoutquestion.Thisislikehowifyoudon'tknowwhatloveisu[sic]
fallinlovewithoutquestioneventhought[sic]itmightbeabumpyroad”(seeFigure3).
Figure3:Creativecommonslicensedphotographincludedinwiki,http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en,PhotobyKuniakiIGARASHI.
Camilleappliedherknowledgeofpoetictechniques,specificallythemetaphor,by
experimentingwithimages,showingevenmoredeeplyhowmuchsheunderstoodwhata
metaphoris.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
188
Ms.ReznikandAlicediscussedaboutexperimentationinwriting.Ms.Reznikfirst
wrote,“Your‘IAm’andPantoumpoemsseemtobeverypersonal;Ilikethewayyouused
refrainsinyourPantoumtoemphasizetherealizationyou’vehadabouthowyoulivelife.”
Ms.ReznikwasaskingAlicetothinkabouttheexperimentationAlicewasdoingwithher
writing:beingautobiographical.ItwasAlice’sresponsethatshowedthetruelevelofher
experimentation:
Thankyousomuch!Igladyoulikedallofmypoemsandcomments.Asformy“I
Am”andPantoumpoems,Iwrotethemtomakeitseemasthoughitwaspersonal
butinrealityits[sic]notallentirelytrue.:)Ijustreallyenjoywritingaboutreal
thingsthatdon'thappentomeorneverhave,its[sic]fun!
Alicewaspushingherselfasawriter,somethingthatcancertainlyhappeninatraditional
classroom.However,thefirstpartofwhatshewrotealludestothefactthathavinga
responsiveaudienceonthewikimadethisexperimentationevenmoreworthwhile.
Discussion
ThisresearchdetailsthewaysthatPSTsandstudentsworkedwithoneanotherin
thisdigitalliteracypracticumthroughwrittencorrespondenceonacoursewiki.Thedata
showedawillingnessonthepartsofalltheparticipantstoexperimentwithemerging
technologies.ThestudentwriterssoughtfeedbackandmadeconnectionswiththeirPST
mentors,andtheserelationshipshelpedthestudentsfeellikefullmembersofawriting
community.Inturn,thePSTspracticedapplyingthecontentknowledgeandtheoretical
digitalpedagogytheywerestudyinginapracticumthatwasunavailableinlocal
placements.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
189
ItmattersthatthisinteractionhappenedbetweenPSTsandninth-gradestudents.
Peerswithinaninth-gradeclassroommaynotsituatethemselvestoencourageothersbut
insteadwanttoshowacademicknowledgethattheyfeelright.Thetendencymaynotbeto
bequietandlistentootherstudents.Inthethirdspaceofthewiki,nostudentdominated
theconversations.Everystudenthadtimetothinkabouttheirwork,andasevidencedby
thecontentontheirindividualpages,studentsparticipatedmuchmoreequallythanin
traditionalclassroomdiscussions.
Thistimeandspaceforreflectionalsohelpedstudentsgrowintheircomfortas
readersandwritersofpoetry.Formanyninthgraders,eventhosewhohaveanEnglish
teachertryingtochangethecycleofpoetryanxiety,thegenredoesnotlenditselfto
experimentation.Ninthgraderswantthepoemtorhymeandtomeansomethingclear.This
wikicollaborationofferedplacesforPSTstobeadditionalvoicestotheclassroomteacher
toshowstudentsthatrealpoetsexperiment.Thisunit,becauseoftheaffordancesofspace
andtimeoftheembeddeddigitalpracticum,mademoreofthestudentsfeellikepoetsthan
wehadeverseenbeforeinourcombinedyearsofteaching.
Poetryiscomplex.Polysemousvocabulary,sophisticatedsubjectmatter,nuanced
tone,elusivespeakers,andnontraditionalsyntaxvexadolescentsastheyarechallengedto
constructmeaningfromthesevariedtexts.AnELAclassroomcommittedtoadvanced
knowledgeacquisitionhasevenmoreopportunitiesforcomplexthinkingand
communicationtodevelopwiththementorsofferedbythisdigitalpracticum.ThePSTs
servedaslearningmentorswhohelpedstudentsembraceversussimplifythecomplexities
ofpoetry.Forexample,oneoftheconsiderationsthatDymokeandHughes(2011)caution
againstisthemistakeofassumingthatpoeticvoiceisnecessarilyequatedwiththeauthor.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
190
Wesawstudentsgrapplingwiththiscomplexityindiscussionswiththeirmentors.One
studenttriedonanidentityasaspeakerinherpoetrywritingthatdidnotreflectherasa
person,andthePSTencouragedhertotalkaboutthischoiceandhowwritingfroma
differentspeakerperspectivefelt.Successforstudentscomesin“offeringmany
opportunitiestodiscussinasafeandcollaborativeenvironment[bytapping]intonew
communicativespaces,suchaswikis”(Dymoke&Hughes,p.55).Thewikiinthispracticum
andtheaudienceofthementorsprovidedthisexpanded,safe,communicativespace,and
thedatashowedexperimentationthatwelcomedspecificfeedbackandincreased
discussionsbeyondthetraditionalclassroom.
Asaresearchgroup,wepusheddeeperintothisconceptofauthenticaudience
withinthisproject.Weaskedourselveswhethercommentingonartisauthentic.Whilewe
imaginethatleavingatheatreanddiscussingaplayorcommentingonapieceinanart
museumisauthenticconversationaboutart,thereissomeperformativenaturein
modelingthediscussionofpoetryforneophytepoetsandneophyteteachers.Whatwe
foundtoworkasasharedexperienceforus,theresearchers,wasacomparisontothepeer-
reviewprocess.Werecognizedthatthereisalanguageandanarttothinkingcritically
aboutwrittenpoetryandproseintheacademicworld.Thisistheforumthatwesaw
createdbythisdigitalnetwork.Studentswereencouragedtothinkandcreatewithalarger
audiencethanjusttheirclassmatesandtheteacherinmind,anaudiencethatmodeledthe
academicdiscourseofpoetryanalysis.Theninth-gradestudentsshowedsomenervesand
sawthisforthechallenginglearningenvironmentitwas.Buttheyalsogrewintoconfident
thinkersandwriterswhocouldclearlyarticulatetheirunderstandingofthechoicesthat
writersmake.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
191
PSTsalsohadanauthenticaudienceofstudentsandthereforehadtheopportunity
topracticetheirdevelopingteachervoicewithinthediscourseofthewiki.Theyworkedon
beingencouragingbutalsoconstructivelycritical,andthisbalancewasdifficultforthese
neophytes.Encouragingstancesincommentstostudentpoetryareachallenge,evenfor
seasonededucators,andthisinvitedspaceforinteractionseemedtomakethePSTswant
todowell.Revisionandreflectionservedapurpose,beyondtheclassroomteacher;this
additionalaudienceseemedtomakeadifference.
Inadditiontoworkingwithstudents,thePSTswerementoredinanELAclassroom
whereNewLiteracieswaspracticedfortheskillsthatcouldbenurturedinsteadofjustasa
fascinationwithemergingtools.Inthisway,thePSTswereofferedabridgebetweentheory
andpractice.PSTssawinnovativeteachingpracticeswithtechnology,andthecooperating
teacher’sclassroombecameamentortextthatPSTscould“read”toconceptualizetheir
futureclassroom.Toooften,cooperatingteachersareencouragingoftechnologybutmay
notbeparticularlyinnovative,ormayevenbereluctantbecauseofpastnegative
experiences.IfateacherpreparationprogramwantstoteachNewLiteracies,theyneedto
offerpracticumexperiencesinrealclassroomsthataretechnologicallyrich.Those
placementsmaynotbenearby.
ThisdigitalpracticumalsoofferedaplacewherePSTs(movingtotheothersideof
thedesk)couldbegintoseethemselvesastheteacherinaclassroom.Thenatureofthe
collaborativespaceofthewikimadeitclearthatthereweremanyexpertsinthisspace,
fromthecooperatingteachertothefellowPSTstothestudentsthemselvesasthey
developedtheirdistributedexpertise.ThepracticuminvitedthePSTstopracticeteaching
withintheseshiftingrolesbyconveyingthemselvesasnotknowingeverything.Ultimately,
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
192
thiscreatedaspacethatencouragedpossibilityversusaspacetocontrol.Thisnotionof
distributedexpertiseisespeciallyimportantwhenconsideringemergingtoolsintheELA
classroom.WhenPSTsarementoredindistributedexpertise,theycanbegintoseethat
theywillneverbeexpertinallcontentorinthetoolsthattheywillteach.Theycantake
confidenceasalearningcoachasopposedtoanall-knowingsage,continuallylearningwith
theirstudents.
Classroommanagement,oftenastruggleforPSTs,wastakenoutoftheequation
withthewiki,givingthemevenmorespacetoexploretheirrolesasfellowexpertswith
students.PSTscouldfocusonhoningpedagogicalskillsinsteadofthemanagementones
theyneedtomasterinface-to-facepracticumexperiences.Asanintroductorypracticum,
thisexperienceproveddynamiceventhoughastudentwasontheothersideofthescreen
andthePSTneverlefttheiruniversityclassroomandneverdealtwithclassroom
managementissues.ThePSTscouldfocusonconstructiveresponses/feedbackthat
promotedcriticalthinking.
Conclusion
Ultimately,thiswasaDeweyanexperienceforthePSTsinthesensethattheywere
doing,whileinteractingwithrealstudentswhowerereadingandwritingwhileusing
technology(Dewey,1938).Becauseoftheaffordancesoftechnology,thelinesareblurred
inregardstothelimitsofnotleavingtheuniversityworldoftheoryanddiscussion.Online
spacescanbridgethegapbetweentheoryandpracticethatisoftenlamentedinteacher
preparationprograms(Perrow,2013).In2009,21%ofteacherssurveyedreported
requiringstudentstocontributetoclasslearningviablogsorwikis(Gray,Thomas,&
Lewis,Tice,&NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,2010).Wikismaybetheeducational
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
193
Web2.0toolthatbestharnessestheeaseandpowerofcollaborative
publishing.Richardson(2009)acknowledgesthattheideathat“anyonecaneditanything
onthesiteanytimethattheywant”(p.56)maybedauntingtoteachersfromthe
managementperspective,butitneednotbe.Justasatravelerinanewtownfeelsabit
disconcertedatfirst,frequentingthesiteandexperimentingwiththenavigationoptions
bringsfamiliarity.Thecontrolsonthewikithatrequirevisitorstogainpermissionto
accessthesitemayhelpmitigatesomeoftheconcernsofinitialwikiusageaswellasmini
lessonsandclassroomrulesonacceptableuse.Ultimately,wearelivinginnewtimeswhen
itcomestocreating,collaborating,andinteractingintheworld,andtheinnovatorswith
thedispositionsofNewLiteracieswillthrive(Coiro,Knobel,Lankshear,&Leu,2014).
Teachereducationcancreatespacesforthesepractices.
Thisstudyhaslimitations.Whilethisanalysisisofonesemesterofasix-year
partnership,itchroniclesasmallgroupofstudentsandPSTsandisnotmeanttobe
generalizable.Weseewaysthatfurtherresearchcouldexplorelongerinteractionsand
couldstudyachievementdataandstudentandPSTperceptionsofsuchpracticum
experiences.Weseewaysthatthedynamicsofthisparticularclassroomteachercouldhave
madeforaparticularlypositiveexperiencewhenanothermaynothave.Werecognizethe
importanceofdevelopinginPSTsacriticalstancewithemergingtechnologies;wedonot
claimthatourPSTscontinuedtotakethisstanceintotheirownclassrooms.Thisisripefor
furtherresearch.
Whilenotwithouttheselimitations,thisstudyhasimplicationsintheteacher
educationclassroom.HughesandDymoke(2011)cautionPSTsto“evaluatethepoem,not
thestudent”(p.55).Thewikiaffordedthis,asthePSTsworkingasynchronouslywereable
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
194
tofocusonthewordsineachpoem.Thelackofface-to-facecontactactuallyaffordedthis
focusonthepoeticdevicesversusafocusonthepersonwhowrotethepoem.Whilesocial
connectionswereforged,equatingthepoemwiththepersondidnotoccur.
Richardson(2009)remindsus,“Aswecontinuetomovetowardaworldwhere
everyonehasaccesstoideasandwherecollaborationistheexpectationratherthanthe
exception,wikiscangoalongwaytoteachingourstudentssomeveryusefulskillsfortheir
future”(p.59).Mentorsusingtechnologylearnquicklythatthementorshipgoestwoways,
thatwearealwayslearningnewskills,hacks,andremixeswhenitcomestoliteracies,
technologyuse,andpracticalapplications.Thiscloseexaminationofonesemesterof
interactionsexemplifiessomeoftheseexpectationsinatimeofshiftingdispositions
towardsliteraciesandtechnologiesintheclassroom.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
195
References
Abbitt,J.T.(2011).Aninvestigationoftherelationshipbetweenself-efficacybeliefsabout
technologyintegrationandtechnologicalpedagogicalcontentknowledge(TPACK)
amongpreserviceteachers.JournalofDigitalLearninginTeacherEducation,27(4),
134-143.
Alvermann,D.E.(2011).Movingon,keepingpace:Youth’sliterateidentitiesand
multimodaldigitaltexts.InS.Abrams&J.Rowsell(Eds.),Rethinkingidentityand
literacyeducationinthe21stcentury.NationalSocietyfortheStudyofEducation
yearbook(vol.110,partI,109-128).NewYork:ColumbiaUniversity,Teachers
College.
Applebee,A.N.,&Langer,J.A.(2011).Asnapshotofwritinginstructioninmiddleschools
andhighschools.EnglishJournal,100(6),14-27.
Bhabha,H.(1990).Thethirdspace.InJ.Rutherford(Ed.),Identity,community,culture
anddifference(207-221).London,UnitedKingdom:LawrenceandWishart.
Beach,R.(2012).UsesofdigitaltoolsandliteraciesintheEnglishlanguageartsclassroom.
ResearchintheSchools,19(1),45-59.
Beach,R.,&O’BrienD.(2012).UsingiPadandiPhoneappsforlearningwithliteracyacross
thecurriculum.Retrievedfromhttp://www.amazon.com/iPhone-Learning-
Literacy-Curriculum-ebook/dp/B00ATIVZCK
Beecher,M.,&Sweeny,S.(2008).Closingtheachievementgapwithcurriculumenrichment
anddifferentiation:Oneschool’sstory.JournalofAdvancedAcademics,19(3),502-
530.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
196
Carlin-Menter,S.(2013).Exploringtheeffectivenessofanonlinewritingworkspaceto
supportliteracyinasocialstudiesclassroom.E-LearningandDigitalMedia,10,407-
419.http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/elea.2013.10.4.407
Coiro,J.,Knobel,M.,Lankshear,C.,&Leu,D.J.(Eds.).(2014).Handbookofresearchonnew
literacies.NewYork:Routledge.
CouncilofChiefStateSchoolOfficers.(2011,April).InterstateTeacherAssessmentand
SupportConsortium(InTASC)ModelCoreTeachingStandards:AResourceforState
Dialogue.Washington,DC:Author.Retrievedfromp.8
http://www.ccsso.org/documents/2011/intasc_model_core_teaching_standards_20
11.pdf
Dewey,J.(1938).Experienceandeducation.NewYork:Macmillan.
Dredger,K.(2014).Preparingintermediateandsecondaryteachersofreadingtoday:
Apprenticeshipmodelswithemergingtools.InD.Loveless,B.Griffith,M.Bérci,E.
Ortlieb,&P.Sullivan(Eds.),Academicknowledgeconstructionandmultimodal
curriculumdevelopment(pp.283-299).Hershey,PA:IGIGlobal.doi:10.4018/978-1-
4666-4797-8.ch018
Dredger,K.,Woods,D.,Beach,C.,&Sagstetter,V.(2010).Engageme:UsingNewLiteracies
tocreatethirdspaceclassroomsthatengagestudentwriters.JournalofMedia
LiteracyEducation2(2),85-10.
Dymoke,S.,&Hughes,J.(2009).Usingapoetrywiki:Howcanthemediumsupportpre-
serviceteachersofEnglishintheirprofessionallearningaboutwritingpoetryand
teachingpoetrywritinginadigitalage?EnglishTeaching:PracticeandCritique,8(3),
91-106.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
197
Edmondson,E.(2012).Wikiliteraturecircles:Creatingdigitallearningcommunities.
EnglishJournal,43-49.
Ertmer,P.A.,Ottenbreit-Leftwich,A.,&York,C.S.(2007).Exemplarytechnology-using
teachers:Perceptionsoffactorsinfluencingsuccess.JournalofComputinginTeacher
Education,23(2),55-61.
Forzani,F.M.(2014).Understanding“corepractices”and“practice-based”teacher
educationlearningfromthepast.JournalofTeacherEducation,65(4),357-368.doi:I
0.1177/0022487114533800
Gee,J.P.(1989).Literacy,discourse,andlinguistics:Introduction.JournalofEducation,
171(1),5-14.
Gibson,J.J.(1977).Perceiving,acting,andknowing:Towardanecologicalpsychology.The
TheoryofAffordances,67-82.
Gitomer,D.H.,&Zisk,R.C.(2015).Knowingwhatteachersknow.ReviewofResearchin
Education,39(1),1-53.
Goldman,S.R.,&Wiley,J.(2004).Discourseanalysis:Writtentext.Literacyresearch
methodologies,62-91.
Gray,L.,Thomas,N.,Lewis,L.,Tice,P.,&NationalCenterforEducationStatistics.(2010).
Teachers'useofeducationaltechnologyinU.S.publicschools,2009:Firstlook.
Washington,DC:NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,InstituteofEducation
Sciences,U.S.Dept.ofEducation.
Hicks,T.(2016).Researchwritingrewired:Lessonsthatgroundstudents’digitallearning.
ThousandOaks,CA:Corwin.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
198
Howey,K.R.,&Grossman,P.L.(1989).Astudyincontrast:Sourcesofpedagogicalcontent
knowledgeforsecondaryEnglish.JournalofTeacherEducation,40(5),24-31.
Hughes,J.,&Dymoke,S.(2011).“Wiki-edpoetry”:Transformingpreserviceteachers’
preconceptionsaboutpoetryandpoetryteaching.JournalofAdolescent&Adult
Literacy,55(1),46-56.
Kajder,S.B.(2003).Thetech-savvyEnglishclassroom.Portland,ME:Stenhouse.
Kajder,S.B.(2010).Adolescentsanddigitalliteracies:Learningalongsideourstudents.
Urbana,IL:NCTE.
Kennedy,K.,&Archambault,L.(2012).Onlinelearning:Anationalsurveyofteacher
educationprograms.JournalofTeacherEducation,63(3),185-200.
Kist,W.(2005).Newliteraciesinaction:Teachingandlearninginmultiplemedia(Vol.75).
NewYork:TeachersCollegePress.
Koehler,M.J.,&Mishra,P.(2009).Whatistechnologicalpedagogicalcontentknowledge?
ContemporaryIssuesinTechnologyandTeacherEducation,9(1),60-70.
Knobel,M.,&Lankshear,C.(2007).Anewliteraciessampler(Vol.29).NewYork:Peter
Lang.
Kress,G.(2003).Literacyinthenewmediaage.Oxford:PsychologyPress.
KuniakilGARASHI.(2006,September).Sunflower.[photograph)].Retrievedfrom
https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id=87545778%40N00&view_all=1&text=sun
flower
Lankshear,C.,&Knobel,M.(2011).Newliteracies:Everydaypracticesandsociallearning
(3rded.).NewYork,NY:OpenUniversityPress.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
199
Lave,J.,&Wenger,E.(1991).Situatedlearning:Legitimateperipheralparticipation.
Cambridge,MA:CambridgeUniversityPress.
Li,J.,Snow,C.,&White,C.(2015).Teenculture,technology,andliteracyinstruction:Urban
adolescentstudents’perspectives.CanadianJournalofLearningandTechnology,
41(3).
Lowenberg-Ball,D.L.,Thames,M.H.,&Phelps,G.(2008).Contentknowledgeforteaching:
Whatmakesitspecial?JournalofTeacherEducation,59(5),389-407.doi:
10.1177/0022487108324554
Mesmer,H.A.E.(2008).Toolsformatchingreaderstotexts:Research-basedpractices.New
York:GuilfordPress.
Moll,L.,&Greenberg,J.(1990).Creatingzonesofproximaldevelopment.InL.Moll(Ed.)
Vygotskyandeducation:Instructionalimplicationsandapplicationsofsociohistorical
psychology.Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress.
NCATE/NCTEProgramStandards.(2003).Englishlanguageartseducation.Retrievedfrom
http://www.ncate.org/Standards/ProgramStandardsandReportForms/tabid/676/
Default.aspx#NCTE
NationalGovernorsAssociationCenterforBestPractices&CouncilofChiefStateSchool
Officers.(2010).CommoncorestatestandardsforEnglishlanguageartsandliteracy
inhistory/socialstudies,science,andtechnicalsubjects.Washington,DC:Authors.
NewLondonGroup.(1996).Apedagogyofmultiliteracies:Designingsocialfutures.
HarvardEducationalReview,66(1),60-92.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
200
Nobles,S.,Dredger,K.,&Gerheart,M.D.(2012).Collaborationbeyondtheclassroomwalls:
Deepeninglearningforstudents,pre-serviceteachers,teachers,andprofessors.
ContemporaryIssuesinTechnologyandTeacherEducation,12(4),343-354
Parker,K.R.,&Chao,J.T.(2007).Wikiasateachingtool.InterdisciplinaryJournalof
KnowledgeandLearningObjects,3(1),57-72.
Perrow,M.(2013).“Welcometotherealworld:Navigatingthegapbetweenbestteaching
practicesandcurrentreality.”StudyingTeacherEducation,9(3),284-297.
PoemHunter(2017).Retrievedfromhttps://www.poemhunter.com/.
Pyper,J.S.,Chin,J.,&Reeve,R.(2016).Professionalliteracieswithmathematics,English
languagearts,andscienceteachercandidates.JournalofLiteracy&Technology,
17(3),41-60.
Reich,J.,Murnane,R.,&Willett,J.(2012).ThestateofwikiusageinU.S.K–12schools:
Leveragingweb2.0datawarehousestoassessqualityandequityinonlinelearning
environments.EducationalResearcher,41(7),7-15.doi:
10.3102/0013189X11427083.
Richardson,W.(2009).Becomingnetwork-wise.Supportingthewholechild:Reflectionson
bestpracticesinlearning,teaching,andleadership.Arlington,VA:Associationfor
SupervisionandCurriculumDevelopment.
Shulman,L.S.(1986).Thosewhounderstand:Knowledgegrowthinteaching.Educational
Researcher,15(2),4-14.
Soja,E.W.(1996).Thirdspace:JourneystoLosAngelesandotherreal-and-imaginedplaces.
Oxford:Blackwell.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
201
Spiro,R.J.,Coulson,R.L.,Feltovich,P.J.,&Anderson,D.K.(2004).Cognitiveflexibility
theory:Advancedknowledgeacquisitioninill-structureddomains.InR.B.Ruddell&
N.J.Unrau(Eds.),Theoreticalmodelsandprocessofreading(5thed.)(640-653).
Newark,DE:InternationalReadingAssociation.
Stevenson,P.(2010).Openingupthecurriculumwith21stcenturyliteracy.NATE
Classroom,10,41-43.
Strauss,A.,&CorbinJ.(1994).Groundedtheorymethodology:Anoverview.InN.K.Denzin
andY.S.Lincoln(Eds.),Handbookofqualitativeresearch(273-285).LosAngeles,CA:
SagePublications.
Tomlinson,C.A.(2001).Thedifferentiatedclassroom:Respondingtotheneedsofalllearners
(2nded).Alexandria,VA:AssociationforSupervisionandCurriculumDevelopment.
TownsendJ.S.,Nail,A.,Cheveallier,J.,Browning,A.,&Fink,L.S.(2013).Anonlinewriting
partnership:Transformingclassroomwritinginstruction.EnglishJournal,102(4),
74.
Vygotsky,L.S.(1978).Mindinsociety:Thedevelopmentofhigherpsychologicalprocesses.
Boston:HarvardUniversityPress.
Wake,D.G.,&Modla,V.B.(2012).Usingwikiswithteachercandidates:Promotingpractice
andcontextualanalysis.JournalofResearchonTechnologyinEducation,44(3),243-
265.
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
202
AppendixPoetryPracticumExpectationsinELAMethodsCourse
ExpectationsofPreserviceTeachersWednesday,Oct.15:
• Getfamiliarwithwikisite• Commentonintroductionpageonstudents’wikipages• ResearchwhatPoetryOutLoud(POL)is
Wednesday,Oct.22:
• CommentonPOLpage:• theirpoemchoice,theimagetheychosetorepresentaspotinthepoem,and
techniquesstudentshaveexplained• Whatdoyouseehappeninginthepoemtohelpstudentsunderstandit?
• Commentontheintroductionpage:• Respondtostudentcommentsbacktoyou
Wednesday,Oct.29:
• CommentonthePOLpage:• Respondtostudents’’newreflection• Whattone(s)doyouthinkthestudentevokewhenrecitingthispoem?• Listentotheiraudiorecordings(onthebottomofthePOLpage)andgive
feedbackforreflectionorimprovement• Commentonthenewpageoriginalpoetrypage:
• GivefeedbackonthisfirstpoemstudentschosetosharewithyouWednesday,Nov.5:
• CommentonthePOLpage:• Respondtotheirreflectiononstudentrecitation• Suggestanewpoemthestudentmightwanttoread
• Commentonoriginalpoetrypage(s):• Givefeedbackonpoemdraft(s)lookingspecificallyathowtheyaretryingto
usepoetictechniquesWednesday,Nov.12:
• Readthefinalprojectguidelines(postedonwiki):• Besuretoclickonfullassignmentandexemplar• YoucanviewotherexamplesonPastReadersandWriters/PoetryPages
frompastClasses(linkedatbottomofpagelistonleft)• Commentonthestudents’finalprojectpage:
• Whatthoughtsdoyouhaveontheirpoemchoiceandhowtheymightmaketheirfinalanalysisandrecitationforit?
• Commentonoriginalpoetrypage(s):• Studentswillhavepostedrevisedpoem(s)ornewpoem(s)
Journal of Literacy and Technology Volume 18, Number 1: Spring 2017 ISSN: 1535-0975
203
Friday,Nov.14-Sunday,Nov.16:
• Commentonoriginalpoetrypage(s):• Studentswillhavepostedrevisedpoemsforyourfinalfeedback,revision
ideas,etc.Wednesday,Nov.19:
• Commentonoriginalpoetrypage(s)• Studentswillhaveposted3ormorefinalizedpoemsforyourfinalcomments.
Wednesday,Nov.26:
• Commentonfinalprojectpage:• Watchfinalprojectandgivefeedback• Suggestonelastpoemforthestudentstoexplore