Wakelet Ambassador Samantha Shaffner asks her students what they think about Wakelet! Check out their responses!
If you’ve read anything I’ve written up to this point, you’ll know that I’m an advocate for student voice and choice. So I decided to ask my students if they like how I use Wakelet in the classroom. I want to share what my students have to say about using Wakelet in my ELA classroom!
I use collaboration as a means to share and assign student writing. I have come up with new and innovative ways to engage students and meet 21st-century learning standards by using Wakelet within my ELA classroom. These practices were well received by my students – they used Wakelet to write and also to share their writing with the class! I believe that if you use these practices alongside others, it will foster your students’ academic writing abilities like it has with my students!
How I designed the survey
I collected student responses using an essay-type question on an Edulastic assessment. Their responses were great, and mimicked some important points I was already considering! When designing and administering the student “Wakelet Engagement” survey, I wanted as unbiased an opinion as I could gather, so I did not brief the students on Wakelet or my opinion of the tool beforehand in class.
I introduced my students to Wakelet by having them write their assignments and publish them in real-time on the application. My students created about 50 collections collaboratively in my ELA classes! As an assignment for ELA class 7th and 8th grade, students were prompted to provide a pointed summary expressing their opinion of Wakelet. The prompt was:
“Do you enjoy using Wakelet as a writing tool in the ELA classroom? Why or why not?”
Here’s what they said!
Students say, “Wakelet makes responsible Digital Citizens”
- “I like that Wakelet’s security is on point. I am saying this because you have to put a specific code in to do that assignment. Also because if you are writing things it gives you the chance to put it as an anonymous person.”
- “I like the fact that I can share my work not only in school but publicly using a site that I can trust that is being operated by my teacher.”
Students say, “Wakelet is authentic”
- “Wakelet is useful for me because I can collaborate with other kids and learn how other people learn around the world. This lets me know how other people use their skills. Wakelet also lets me publish my work so that many people can see what I do and how I do it.”
- “Wakelet is a convenient place to write because it helps us stay organized and we share everything with each other.”
- “Wakelet gives everyone a choice to write what they want in their own opinion. It helps people see from your perspective and then you see from their perspective and it can even help you find a person to debate with.”
- ”I enjoy using Wakelet because it lets me share my writing assignments without having to present it.”
- “I like using Wakelet because I like sharing my ideas with my classmates and my teachers.”
- “My favorite thing to write on Wakelet is about the book Messenger By Lois Lowry. Ms. Shaffner shares our writing to her and if it is really good she will respond to it.”
Students say, “Wakelet boosts confidence in writing”
- “Wakelet shows you other people that can influence you to get better at writing. You gain more experience for what yours can look like if you practice.”
- “Using Wakelet in class has helped me get better typing skills. I also learned how to copy and paste what I’m typing in order to use quotes in my writing.”
- “I edit/revise/look more into my writing when I know my peers are going to see it on Wakelet. I really like that when I type essays I don’t get tired as I used to.”
- “If I need help, other people’s writings is always up there to help me if I get stuck on something.”
Students say, “Wakelet is easy and fun”
- “I like how on Wakelet I don’t have to do a lot of back and forth between websites.”
- “It is a simple way to turn in assignments instead of me sending a link to my teacher.”
- “It is like social media, which makes it more fun than other writing resources.”
- “Wakelet makes me proud of my work; makes me happy.”
- ”It is less pressure and more fun than other writing practices teachers use in school.”
- “I can copy and paste writing assignments and embed Google Docs from my other work and put it on Wakelet in a collection for credit. So you can really get an easy grade for doing nothing but sharing.”
- “Wakelet is a convenient place to write because it helps us stay organized and we share everything with each other.”
To summarize, one student responded; “Over the past school year and a half, Ms. Shaffner, our amazing ELA teacher, has been advising us to use Wakelet when we are typing assigned essays, summaries, or any typed response. Personally, I enjoy Wakelet. It helps others read my response, it helps me read others’ responses, and it is a simple way to turn in assignments instead of me sending a link to my teacher. It creates great discussions between me and my peers. I definitely recommend Wakelet! I believe it is a great platform to get your ideas out.”
Check out Samantha’s profiles! 😊
Wakelet profile: @SamanthaShaffner9061,
Twitter: @SamanthaShaffn2
LinkedIn: Samantha J. Shaffner