DIWE Modules: What They Do and How to Use Them

DIWE has several modules, including Interchange, Invent, Respond, Mail, Write, Class Assignment, and Bibliocite.

Interchange: a conferencing module similar to online chat rooms. Students can write back and forth to each other in small groups, working on assigned discussions questions, self-generated discussion topics, or the generation of paper topics. Most valuable for synchronous exchange, the module can also be used (with some limitations) for asynchronous exchange.

Invent: facilitates the invention process: prewriting, brainstorming, definition of terms, defining scope and range of topic. Used by individual students.

Respond: facilitates peer reviews of essays and self-evaluations; also used to ask students a set of questions about their readings. In Respond, all questions are answered individually without input from a group.

Mail: a place for students to exchange messages, similar to an online bulletin board. Students can post mail in response to an assigned topic or they may generate their own topics. Mail may also be used as a tool for students to present materials (such as current events or response papers) or Internet links to other students. Mail can be used in small groups or with a single mail group for the entire class.

Write: operates much like a word-processing program. Also contains a special Concordance feature to track writing level, number of unique words, word use, passive verb use, etc. Students may bring in a paper via disk or email and paste a copy of the paper into the Write module, then use the Concordance feature by selecting “Make Concordance.”

Class Assignment: allows students to read an introduction to the lesson. May be used to post reminders, announcements, definitions of terms, the plan of modules for that day’s session, etc. A Class Assignment window appears automatically when students log in to DIWE and most instructors leave some type of message in it for students to read at the beginning of the class period.

Bibliocite: allows students to enter the basic information about their sources for a paper on a form, then generates a Works Cited page using the format that the student selects (MLA, Chicago, etc.).

How to use the Modules in the Classroom

It’s crucial to have a plan of which modules to use, in which order, and to what end. You should also program your lesson plan 48 hours in advance of using the computer lab. This time frame allows you to check your materials at least 24 hours in advance, and then to contact the DIWE Coordinator if you have any problems. Below you will find several sample sequences of modules, listed by class objective. Note: The sample sequences are based on 50 minute classes; you may want to plan more material for longer classes.

Objective: To respond to assigned reading

Ideas:

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 15 minutes of Respond (with targeted questions about the reading; you may want to plan 3-4 prompts for this time period, allowing several minutes for saving and printing) followed by 30 minutes of small group discussion in Interchange. Students will need a multi-part prompt or a more complex question to stay in Interchange for 30 minutes with the same group.

Note: This is the plan of choice for many instructors. It allows students to warm up by themselves and to enter Interchange already focused on a topic and ready to share their ideas.

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 35 minutes in small groups in Interchange, 10 minutes in Main Interchange (all students in a single group) to post final or summary comments for the day.

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 30 minutes in small groups in Interchange, 15 minutes in Respond. In this respond, students can react to the group discussion, or you can use Respond to check for reading/main point comprehension.

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 20 minutes in small groups in Interchange, then 5 minutes to assign students to new groups, then 20 minutes in Interchange with new prompts and new group members.

Objective: To perform peer reviews of papers.

Ideas:

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 5 minutes to switch papers, 10-15 minutes to read peer’s paper, 25 minutes to complete Respond sequence of peer review questions.

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 15 minutes in Interchange to discuss paper issues in small groups, 30 minutes to switch papers, read, and complete Peer Review on Respond. Note: This activity might be suited for very short (1-3 page) papers because there may not be enough time to thoroughly read and review a longer document.

Objective: To jump start paper writing

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 20 minutes in Interchange in small groups working on intriguing (thesis-level) questions about the reading, followed by 25 minutes in Respond, answering prompts about the topic.

Same plan as above with the final 25 minutes in Invent.

Same plan as above with the final 25 minutes in Write. Ask students to bring a disk so that they may take their writing home.

5 minutes to enter program and read Class Assignment, 15 minutes in Respond answering questions about the reading for the paper, 30 minutes in Invent or Write developing a topic.

Please see the “Troubleshooting” page for more information on classroom time management in DIWE.