Tech Life (Effects of Writing Instruction)

What possibilities for teaching with technology most excite you? Why?

The possibility for teaching with technology that I find most exciting is the idea of more efficient collaboration among students and the opportunity that students to write for real audiences. I feel like the ease with which anyone can publish on the web opens doors for students to connect with people of similar interests and to see audience as more nuanced that "Americans" or "college students." As students have to consider how someone will really react to their writing and the focus on writing for a single person (a teacher) fades, I believe that students are likely to see more value in what they write and how. At the same time, I worry that the ease of publication makes it less likely that students will take the time to really craft what they have to say. I also worry about students (and my own) privacy. The politics of the classroom can make it difficult for students to express their reservations about posting their writing online. The ubiquity of online text makes the dangers seem less apparent, but the dangers range from the annoying (trolls) to the dangerous (stalkers). 

Additionally, I want students to be connected to a range of resources--I find that another compelling aspect of technology. But the sheer availability of material makes it hard to recognize that some students are still uncomfortable with technology--not everyone has a smartphone or a laptop or a computer. And even those that do may know how to do the bare minimum with them--make a call, write a letter or a paper, check for email. In a classroom setting, the desire to teach with technology then creates a series of logistical concerns about whether students will be able to do what I would be asking them to do, and if not, would we have time to teach the technology and make it understandable enough to employ it in writing.

Generally, I feel fairly confident with the most usual forms of technology for personal use--email, Word processing programs, scanning, surfing the Net, making online purchases, etc. And I even feel fairly comfortable attempting nearly forms of technology for personal use--blogging, RSS feeds, creating a webpage, and so on, but I don't feel comfortable bringing these technologies into the classroom because I am not sure enough about how to manage any technological problems that I could help students manage those in a way that would help them be successful in the assigned pedagogical task. In other words, I am concerned about the technology impeding learning rather than aiding it. Yet I realize that I am not doing my students any favors by ignoring the technology--at some point, they will have to be exposed to it, and I would rather have them deal with it in a writing class so they can deal with rhetorical and critical issues.