Writing and related commentary

After watching the videos and listening to the very interesting conversation today I was left to ask, "What's the deal?" Why is it so hard for people to move beyond the idea that learning must be a painful, tedious process in which we must have paper-and-pencil tasks to prove "real" learning? When I am mired in this debate I often ask, "What do you really want to know?" It seems like a straight-forward question if you ask me.

Too often we make presumptions on what students know and don't know. Students can look like they're not paying attention, show weak academic skills, and are not engaging in the process. But I'm left to wonder, without technology or assistive devices, what else could we learn? What is a child's potential that is otherwise untapped?

This week I was thrilled to see a student create the most beautifully written piece I've ever read by a student. He used Co-writer and while there wasn't a capital or punctuation mark to be found on the piece, the language and other choices that he made to engage the reader took my breath away. Previously, this student was perceived to be a "C" or "D" writer throughout his academic career in part because he was reluctant and unwilling to engage in the written process. Utilizing this technology helped me to see him; and more importantly, for him to see himself as an amazing writer.

What is writing? How do we write? There is so much involved in the task; from position in space to accessing short and long-term memory. Engagement, social factors (e.g. did the student eat breakfast, fight with a sibling, etc.), being able to filter outside noises, and most importantly attending to each step of a task are also critical factors in the writing process.

Learning how a student sits and more importantly holds a pencil was quite an eye-opener for me. I had not considered all of the stages that a child engages prior to the act of picking up a pencil. What is to consider? You just pick it up. However, the devil is in the details. In picking up the instrument and how they utilize it is merely the beginning.

As I watched the videos and seen samples of other students work I kept identifying past and present students that have similar difficulties. I appreciated learning about a few websites, places for testing, and some assistive technology which are as follows:

http://misunderstoodmindsld.blogspot.com

Handwriting without tears

SCAN TEST - NS HEARING AND SPEECH - kids have to be about in Grade 2 - Can tell if they can discriminate with short vowel sounds, etc. - parents can self-refer

LIPS - auditory discrimination - central auditory processing - filtering out sounds

KLIC - Ontario - whole class

As per usual I feel a bit overwhelmed by it all, but at least I know how important it is to consistently use technology to support students. I've witnessed it in my own classroom and it is the needed push that I need to perservere.