Interactions Audit

Interactions Audit:
I try to keep all the types of interactions I encourage in a given unit flexible and adaptable. However, I do have a pattern of interaction stemming from the activities of reading, writing, review, and consultation.

Early on in a given unit I encourage group-related activities that reinforce collective invention and resource pooling. I like to get the kinks out of a project as soon as possible. Additionally, I find that students grow less intimidated by an assignment prompt the more they hear others’ questions and observations.

Once students evidence a command over the prompt I begin supporting their individual inquiry. This often takes the form of an invention activity followed by a proposal/brainstorm. With an articulation (no matter how vague or incomplete) of their project in hand, we are able to discuss pragmatic strategies and concerns for executing the work. Interactions in this phase are primarily one-to-one.

After this phase of invention I enact activities that oscillate between one-to-one and many-to-many type interactions. What links peer reviews and student-to-student activities in my pedagogy is how they are coordinated across the unit. Because knowledge making is always a collaborative activity, I do my best to persuade students of this by getting them to engage in a variety of interactions in hopes that they will recognize the value of others’ knowledge throughout the writing process. If an individual receives similar advice in multiple locations from multiple people, they are more likely to acknowledge the expertise of those around them.

As the end of a unit approaches I once again place a special emphasis on small group peer review activities and instructor guidance (one-to-one). So I suppose my interaction strategy progresses from individual to group to individual and back again.

By starting with individual/small group interactions I work to make visible common writing tensions early on. As we engage in more large group activities I utilize the space for collective instruction, but tailored to the known concerns and tensions. After seeing representations of the group’s overall performance, it is then back in the student’s hands to make the best product they can after having multiple sets of eyes and perspectives on their work.

And in the end, I hope that teaches writing as a process.