A paperless class would change my role as a teacher in many ways. (My husband would like me to first mention that a big advantage of paperless spaces is the total elimination of paper cuts. Such a sense of humor this man has.) As I just gave my first paperless assignment, I have given a bit of thought to this topic. When I gave the same assignment in a folder two years ago, I spent hours finding articles and creating assignments and then copying, collating, hole punching, and loading the papers into the folders. When I put it all on-line this year, I had to rethink what I wanted students to do. I couldn’t ask them to fill in the blanks. I had a lot of large and small writing assignments which I think were beneficial, but were too numerous. Instead, I decided them to do ten activities and then write one comment about each one. In addition, I learned that if I gave up some control of what they saw or read, they could learn more. Thus, while I did include some required reading and viewing, I also included some “go explore” type activities. My role changed from the one provider of information to a facilitator of information sources. Students are now able to access far more information than I was able to put in a folder.
Their learning changes because they are more in control of which direction they want to take their learning and they are now more likely to teach each other as well as me. This week, there have been the inevitable technical glitches, and I’ve enjoyed being able to say to them, “I don’t know. Let’s figure it out,” or “What do you think we should do next?” or “We’re all learning together.” After beginning only the first assignment of this project, I’m hugely impressed by how much they seem to have learned. Learning has also changed because on-line learning is great for both auditory and visual learners. The videos and pictures I’m able to share with students are quite powerful. It is also helpful that students can read each other’s work.
Learning could still be measured in traditional ways with on-line tests, but what would the purpose be when there is a record of authentic work which documents learning? In the first assignment of my paperless project, students had to read two articles and watch a video. Then they had to summarize the important parts of what they’ve learned and give their opinions. They wrote descriptive, insightful responses. What more information would I get about their abilities and knowledge from a test?
Clearly, a paperless space makes it easier to build a learning environment as all work takes place in public. Looking at someone else’s work is no longer called cheating, it is called sharing ideas. I am thrilled when I am able to share work with my colleagues. Students, too, benefit from learning from each other. We’re social creatures. This interaction not only helps us learn in the moment, but motivates us to continue learning. Once a bond has been established, we’re more likely to return for more help in the future. My students have explored the Internet and brought information back, but we haven’t yet experienced an outsider coming into our world and sharing information. Just seeing the dots on our ClustrMap excites my students. I can only imagine what an actual comment would do.
