Tech Tip Tuesday: Tools to Support QuickWrite Assignments

We all want to find different ways to get our students to reflect on their learning.  One way to do this is to have students do a quickwrite.  You can use this type of assignment as a weekly, in-class exercise, or you can ask students to do this in preparation for class.  The quickwrite is designed to encourage students to reflect on the week's content and revisit their notes to review what they learned.  It is a way to ask questions about course concepts without having to do a review in class.  Quickwrite also helps the instructor to identify areas of review; for instance, if many students mention they are still confused about a concept, the instructor can follow up with review immediately instead of waiting to see students miss certain content questions on the exam.

Here are five questions you can use in a quickwrite assignment, though feel free to create your own as well:

1. What terms were the most important in this week's content?  Define any important terms in your own words.  
2. What was the muddiest point for you (what did not make sense)?
3. What would you like to know more about and why?
4. How does this lesson relate to your other classes and/or experiences you've had outside of this class?
5. Why do you think you were asked to learn this content?  How does it connect to what you've learned so far this semester?

When giving instructions about the quickwrite, be sure to point out that students should focus on the content information and not the operation of the course (i.e., grading).  Also point out students should write in complete sentences and answer each question thoroughly.  While they may not have an answer for question #2 (great!), they should definitely have answers for the other questions.  You can assign points to each question as a graded assignment, or you could leave it open as a participation and process grade.  Choose whatever method makes the most sense for your course and your students.  The quickwrite never needs to be a high stakes exercise; instead, it should be a way to ask students to reflect on their learning and give you information on what content needs to be reviewed.  

The quickwrite can be done on paper, or you can ask your students to do the quickwrite digitally (it all depends on your objectives, but be sure to consider TPACK!).  If you choose to go the digital route, you can give students options to complete the assignment.  Below are some great tools that your students can use to complete the quickwrite and easily share with you in a digital format:​

• Evernote - Your students can create notebooks where they add their quickwrites and then share with you.
  
• Google Drive and Docs - Google Drive is a great way to store and share documents.  Your students can create their own Google Doc and send to you via email, or you could create a class folder and share with your students so they can share their documents with you.
• ​OneNote - Similar to Evernote, your students can create their own notebook for your class where they add their notes, assignments, and quickwrites and then share with you.
  
• ​Padlet - (formerly Wallwisher) allows users to create their own virtual wall where they may post sticky notes with text, images, or other media.  Padlet is good for brainstorming and organizing during the writing process and may be used individually or in groups, either in real-time or asynchronously. 
• Penzu is a free online diary and personal journal.  Students can write in their own diary or journal and keep it private or share it with their class.  

For more writing ideas, check out this list of writing tools!  Want to share how you use quickwrites with your students, please leave a comment below!

​Happy writing!