Peer Learning Facilitation (100 points)

Peer learning is where students formally support each other in their learning. For our class, we will assume that peer learning involves two groups of students, those whose learning is facilitated, and those who facilitate. We will have 4 groups who will facilitate the learning on given topics.

Through the first half of the semester, I have provided the resources and led the discussions for the various topics involving technology and our interaction with technology. Later this month, we will engage in some peer learning facilitations, where groups of students will select the resources for their topic, post blogs about those resources, and facilitate a discussion about their topic.

Each group will have 3-4 members. Each group must decide on how they will focus on their particular topic. Resources can be news stories, scholarly articles, reports, video, podcasts, etc. While the team should collectively agree on the resources that will be utilized, each member of the team will be responsible for selecting a resource and writing a blog post (Blog Post #5) on this resource.

Timeline

Below is the timeline of activities in order for these facilitations to work well.

Tuesday, October 2: Topic Selection: https://goo.gl/forms/7VebwkaFVQIrPRez1

Thursday, October 4: In class, meet with group to define the focus and scope of your topic as well as search and discuss resource options. Resources must be approved by Tina by Saturday, October 6.

• Advertising (must focus on technology/social media context): Dylan, Johannah, Jonas, Suzane
• Cyberbullying: Jimmy, Lucas, Meranda
• Digital Citizenship: Eric, Kaley, Renee
• Gaming: Charlotte, Jay, Patrick, Vanesa 

Week of October 7: Meet with Ryan to discuss writing process and blog post (#5). This is a required meeting; points will be deducted if you do not meet with Ryan. Sign-up here. 

October 16: All blog posts must be posted by noon on October 16. Include the normal categories for blog posts, as well as a tag for your topic.

Tuesday, October 16: We will not meet as a class, but groups should meet together to discuss their strategy for their topic in-class facilitation.

Tuesday, October 23: 2 groups will facilitate their topics. Each group has 30-35 minutes to facilitate the discussion.

• Advertising (must focus on technology/social media context): Dylan, Johannah, Jonas, Suzane
• Digital Citizenship: Eric, Kaley, Renee

Thursday, October 25: 2 groups will facilitate their topics. Each group has 30-35 minutes to facilitate the discussion.

• Cyberbullying: Jimmy, Lucas, Meranda
• Gaming: Charlotte, Jay, Patrick, Vanesa 

Peer Learning Facilitations:

Each team will facilitate the discussions for their topics. Each team will have 30-35 minutes to present on their topic and lead a class discussion (all students will be responsible for reading/reviewing the resources prior to the class).

Tips for Facilitating Discussions:

• There are several ways you can lead class discussion. You might focus on one passage from a resource and discuss issues/themes within the passage. You might want to focus on how the resources are related/connected. Be creative.
• Remember you are attempting to help the class gain a deeper understanding of your particular topic, to critically review and think on the resources selected, and to draw connections to the resources and concepts.
• You can draw on some of the tools and techniques from Writing Analytically or that we have utilized in class. If you have experienced strategies that have worked for you in other classes, feel free to incorporate those strategies here. Try to utilize strategies that will engage the entire class.
• Focus on one or two specific issues/themes for discussion. This will help focus the class. Do not expect to be able to have a comprehensive discussion on the whole topic, as all these topics are quite broad.
• Each person within the facilitation group must talk/participate at some point during the 30-35 minutes allocated.
• Handouts, presentation software, overheads, Internet sites, etc. are optional.
• If you need additional resources for your facilitation, such as flip charts, markers, etc. be sure to let Tina know in advance of your group’s facilitation.

 

Grading

You will be graded as a group. Each member will receive the same grade for the facilitation itself, but there is discretion in certain areas such as resources, group dynamics, presentation skills where individual scores may differ. Grading will be based on the following criteria:

• selection of resources (10)
• relevance and connection between resources (10)
• particular focus of topic (10)
• group dynamics and collaboration (10)
• facilitation of discussion (30)
• class engagement with topic (15)
• overall presentation (15)