Virtual Class
See the class agenda here.
Assignment for Wednesday, November 1st:
Please post a rationale for your research project in your blog by 4:00 pm on Wednesday. I would like you to explain your reason for doing this research (why is it important?), what you expect to discover, and a list of resources you have consulted (or intend to consult) when researching your particular topic.
Update:
I have read through all the essays and the comments for each, and I just wanted to let those of you who “showed up” know that you did an excellent job of closely reading and critiquing your classmates work. The responses overall were sharp, honest, and encouraging. Bravo!
Now, there are three things I would ask of you as follow-up:
- Share your candid feedback about this virtual class meeting -how did it feel to be reading and commenting on each other’s papers in a distributed, non-centralized manner?
- I noticed some of you referred to the person whose paper you were reading in the third person. For example, “Johnny used Bordo and Douglas quite effectively in this paper …” This makes it almost appear as if you were writing the comments more for me than the author -why? Does this kind of online, distributed workshopping breed such impersonality? Or was this more a product of how I framed the assignment? I would like your responses to both the first and second questions above in the comments thread of this blog post.
- You are now free to re-write your essays using the feedback you have received. The second draft will be due in the wiki no later than Friday, November 3rd.
I enjoyed it, I think it works especially well for the peer editing because we have more time to read the essay and really think about our responses. I like going to class for the discussions, however. I didn’t use third person, so I thought that you meant for us to address the person whose paper we were editing.
I liked the virtual classroom idea, since I could stay in my nice, warm room; however, I wouldn’t like to make a habit out of it, since it’s so impersonal. I like hearing what everyone in the classroom has to say and seeing everyone. Also, there are more distractions in my room, with my roommates and all. In the classroom, everyone is there doing the same thing. I can’t really answer the 2nd question, b/c I used 2nd person in my critiques.
I really liked the virtual class because it offered immediate feedback and allowed me to read and critique at my own pace. Some benefits of this type of class are more or less time according to how you work, and you are also not influenced by others opinions. Instead of getting to see what others think right away and discussing it, the virtual class lets us think for ourselves and respond just from our perspective. One drawback is that there is no class discussion. However, if we have the virtual class then the next class would be the discussion, so I think it works well. I answered in the third person because i thought that was what you wanted in the directions. Oops!
I am unsure about how I feel about the virtual classroom. I found it harder to focus because of people outside the window or in the hall, and my roommate andfriends preparing for dinner and I was watching. Typically I would have gone to dinner then class and avoided all the hustle and bustle to prepare for dinner. But also, I liked it. It was something different and instead of sitting in a group in the classroom we worked at our own pace and did not have to worry about the person sitting right there and checking what we are writing and feeling like we might somehow offend them. At least this way we have a few days for any heated heads to cool… Overall though I don’t have a preference between virtual or real classroom for this type of work.
I loved the virtual classroom just because it was way more convenient for me. I didn’t have to carry my laptop to rugby practice, I got to sit in my quiet room with the door closed, and I even finished early. However, I do agree that it’s a bit impersonal.
Why everyone was using third person in their comments… I don’t know. Maybe they wanted to be more formal because they knew you were reading their comments? Maybe that’s the way they prefer to write? I really can’t tell you.
I really liked the virtual classroom, and although I understand where everyone is coming from with it being too “impersonal,” I think it would be a good technique to use for class every once in a while. I enjoyed being able to participate without having to leave my dorm room, and I felt that I still got a lot out of the “class” even though we were not all together. The assignment was good at providing insight, and having other people read my paper gives me a different perspective on it. I also liked having a set amount of time to do the assignment, as in class it is sometimes hard to get everything done since everyone works at a different pace. I do not know, though, why a lot of people left their responses in third person. I did not, but maybe they thought it was better to be more formal?
I enjoyed doing the in-class assignment from the comfort of my own room; I like being in my pj’s whenever possible. This is one of the benefits of attending a virtual English class. I also think that it gave me a little more freedom to write what I was actually thinking without wondering how others would be reacting.
However, I did become a little distracted, with my roomates coming in the room and talking on the phone, and talking on AIM to people. But, all in all, I like the idea of having a virtual class and would be willing to attend another.
I was one of the people in the wiki that refered to my group members in the third person as opposed to the second person. I felt that it would better help to demonstrate my criticisms and thought it would be better for others to observe my comments. “You” would have been more personal, but it is an open blog and therefore everyone in the class sees it.
I know that you mentioned at the beggining of the year that we would be doing something like this so I wasn’t too shocked last night. I kind of liked the virtual classroom because I used to be homeschooled and the experience was similar to the way I used to do my schoolwork. I felt a little stressed because if I had run into any technical problems I would have been stuck. I think that it is an interesting way to have class once in a while and I am totally open to doing it more. The benefits are that we get to stay in our rooms and be more relaxed. I also felt like people could be more free to be honest in critiquing papers if the author was not in the same room. The drawbacks might be the fact that it is a little distracting to be in one’s bedroom during class. I did start to talk in the third person but I stopped because it seemed so impersonal. Maybe other people did it to be more formal.
Might the dorm room distractions make a case for doing a virtual class from some place quiet like the library? I think they let you wear your PJs there!
The virtual classroom at first caught me off guard, and I was a little aprehensive as to whether I was going to like it or not. I enjoyed doing it because it was nice to be able to focus, in my own room, in my own comfort area and read everyone’s paper. If there is other assignments like this in the future, I definitelly would do the virtual classroom again. There were a few distractions with roomates, and stuff going on in the halls, but they were easy to disreguard knowing we had a time limit. It was kind of impersonal, but then again we were reading our groups papers and really taking time to analyze every aspect. I will always choose the classroom setting over the virtual stuff, but if there are things to do like peer editing then this was quite successful.
I enjoyed the virtual class. It was fun and different. I got to stay in the dorm and read each essay and critique each and at the same time read others opinions on my own essay. It was different. However, I personally prefer going to class because there are a lot more distractions in the dorm than in class where everyone is on the same topic and doing work, instead of talking and listening to music. So I was more distracted in the dorm but I did enjoy the experience and would have no problem with doing it again. Plus I got to go get dinner. On the second question about third person, I felt it would be better in third person because this was an open blog and everyone can read it. So instead of second person I usually use third. That way everyone knows whose essay I am writing about.
I enjoyed the virtual classroom. It was a good change from the normal classroom setting and would definatly like to do it again. I feel like it gave me more time to read and comment on everyone in my group’s papers. I was able to focus more and give individual attention to the papers in the comfort of my own room versus the classroom with everyone else typing around me. My roommate was gone and I just locked the door so i would not become distracted from everyone on my hall. Also, I liked how you gave us specific questions to answer and It gave us immediate responses to the questions. I think the virtual classroom is perfect for this type of assignment. IN my comment I began writing to the members of my group, then as i went on I changed to the third person for some reason. Probably because it seemed more formal.
I LOVE THE VIRTUAL CLASSROOM! I got to sit at my desk and chillax and eat snacks. I still felt that even though I wasn’t in the classroom it was about the same as being in class, along the lines of commenting on other’s work. I’m not sure why others wrote in the third person, but I as I commented I felt that they were solely for the benefit of the person who’s paper it was.
I really enjoyed the virtual class. It was kind of weird because I sit at my desk and I felt like it deosnt seem like “real” class, but while I was anwsering questions, it was more easily to focus on class kind of. Any way, I reall liked it. I don’t know why I wrote answers in third person, but I think that I looked your questions first and tried answer what you asked to do so I think that is why I wrote in third person.
I really enjoyed the virtual classroom idea. I found it to be very different, but structured and entertaining just the same. I tended to word my responses in the manner in which you were talking about (third person, etc.), but I don’t think it was a result of impersonalization. I believe it was more the way I interperted the questions left in the assignment. I focused a little more on fulfilling your requirements than on giving a straight critique. However, know that it’s been brought to my attention, I’ll probably avoid doing that from now on.
It was weird. I liked it and didn’t like it at the same time. it was nice being im my room, but there were distractions outside and i was too comfortable. Being in your living space and being in a workspace are completely different, so i couldn’t concentrate like i could in the classroom. Also, i missed the human interaction. One way i like to edit is to bounce ideas off people face to face, and share ideas in a group, because that helps me the best, and that’s better face-to-face. Also, it doesn’t seem like a class when it’s over the computer, kind of like taking an online test, it takes away some of the seriousness of the assignment.
Also, the questions seemed to be framed in a way that they needed to be answered in a detached manner rather than a personal one, so it , to me, was the framing of the assignment.
I thoroughly enjoyed virtual class. It felt like we were communicating without even having to leave the comfort of my dorm room. When it came to critiquing, I felt like it was easier to say what I meant instead of feeling awkward about telling someone like it is. But I guess that could also be a drawback. It might hinder our communication skills.
I was not one of the people who wrote my responses to you (Prof. Groom). I didn’t feel like I needed to since it is the author that would be the one reading and using the comment/suggestions.
The virtual class was sweet because i didn’t have to get out of my pj’s. however, i couldn’t help but feel like i could be doing something wrong the whole time because of the fact that i wasn’t actually sitting in class. I was also nervous because there wasn’t a teacher that i could turn to if something went wrong. I started writing my responses in third person because of the way that the queestinos were written (like referring to the author and such) then i felt too weird and switched to writing to the authors themselves becuase i felt better and more personal that way.