Collaborative Writing Using Google Document

Collaborative Writing Experience

        Hi, readers. So, this is the last-two-post I should write about the subject called “Computer Assisted Language Learning”. In this post, I would like to share my experience in creating an argumentative essay in Google document. Why should be in Google document is because our lecturer, Miss Priska, wants us to learn to make or create something as if we do not meet face to face, and we are in different place. Okay, let’s go straight to the content.

          In this work, we were supposed to work in group. Then, each member should choose 1 role between initiator, outlining facilitator, and content facilitator. I chose to be the initiator. As stated in the job description of each role, I have created a shared Google doc, and sent it to the emails of the group’s members. I also sent it to our lecturer’s email so that she can monitor our work and help our group in working on the essay. I have also organized the technique of the writing such as deciding how many paragraph, the thesis statement, the topic sentences and supporting details, and reminding the group that they should refer to the reading segment for the ideas. The other thing that I made to the collaborative writing task which was not directly related to the role I chose is about the order of the paragraph. For example: 1^st paragraph is about introduction, 2^nd is the first agree argument, 3^rd and 4^th are about the disagree arguments, and the last paragraph is the conclusion. I think it should not be my work to decide, but to make it simple and quick (so that we can directly work on our own part), I help to decide it as well.

          My collaborative writing experience is quite good and interesting. What makes it interesting is the interaction to make something even the writers do not meet face to face. The thing that was successful in my collaborative writing is the work’s distribution of each member in group. We were equal in dividing the job. Until finally, we could do and finish it well. And then, the thing that was not successful is about the time in working it. It is very difficult to find the time when all of us could open the document together and work on it together. Yeah, because each of us has our own business, so we have different free time. However, at least, we have done it without any face-to-face meeting.

          Based on my experience in writing collaboratively, I have some points I should and should not do in designing the same kind of assignment to my future students.

Things I should do are:

1.    Ask the students to make a group which the number of the members is decided by the teacher.

2.    Give certain topic, so the students can write it in purpose.

3.    Give example of certain genre of text that the students should create.

4.    Give the generic structure and language feature of the genre of the text they should make (this depends on the students’ level).

5.    Give enough time for the students to work on it.

6.    Ask the students to decide the roles of initiator, outlining facilitator, and content facilitator.

7.    Monitor the students’ work by asking them to cc my email when the initiator wants to send the Google document to the member of the group.

Things I should not do are:

1.     Ask the students to do the “jigsaw” technique first before continuing to the collaborative writing. (This depends on the students’ level).

2.    Force the students to finish the work in 1 point of time in the very near future.

3.    Be too strict and too talkative on commenting on their work while they are writing their parts.

Okay, I think it is enough for the sharing about my experience in doing the collaborative writing. Here, I attach the link of the result of my group’s collaborative writing assignment.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ASo_yAn_PGfSG8W4UbRBJvmEMLWuHFzswLmQGip6c5M/edit?usp=sharing
 

Thank you and Jesus bless you!