using google drive to prepare students for workplace writing and to encourage student responsibility, collaboration, and revision

Instructional Note Using Google Drive to Prepare Students for Workplace Writing and to Encourage Student Responsibility, Collaboration, and Revision > Marianne Cotugno In this article, I explain how integrating Google Drive into your classroom can help prepare students to participate effectively in workplace writing practices and can promote student responsibility, collaboration, and effective revisions A s a teacher at an Miami University’s open-access, regional campus in Middletown, Ohio, I work with a student population diverse by many definitions—whether one uses the traditional demographic data of college students, socioeconomic status, ideology, academic preparation, or access to technology I teach a range of courses, including first-year writing, technical communication, literature surveys, and upper-division literature and professional writing courses Regardless of the course I teach, as a teacher, two of my goals are to connect the work of the class with students’ professional goals and to promote students’ responsibility for their learning Google Drive helps me this In this article, I explain how integrating Google Drive into my classroom helps prepare students to participate effectively in workplace writing practices and promotes student responsibility, collaboration, and effective revisions I also acknowledge the challenges of using Google Drive and offer strategies for addressing them These challenges are both similar to and different from the challenges experienced when using any technology in the classroom Becoming a Google Apps for Education Campus Approximately two years ago, my university became a Google Apps for Education campus Google first launched its Apps for Education in October 2006; it now has more than 25 million users (Google) Google Apps provides web-based applications, so users not download and install software Thus, Google Apps offers a direct challenge to Microsoft Office and other software suites that require downloading and installation In response to Google Apps, Microsoft now offers its own cloudbased application, Office Web Apps According to a university webpage providing information about the academic experience at our university, Google Apps allows users “to create, store, share, U s i n g G o o g l e D r i v e t o P r e p a r e S t u d e n t s f o r Wo r k p l a c e W r i t i n g   65 Copyright © 2014 by the National Council of Teachers of English All rights reserved h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 65 8/25/14 4:12 PM and edit files in Google Drive, one of the many tools available through Google Apps for Education” (Miami University, “Academic”) The university supported the transition through a series of forums, online tutorials, and frequent email communication When explaining the advantages of this move on a page devoted to GoGoogle, two reasons are cited: a substantially greater amount of storage and the ability to collaborate with the entire university community (Miami University, “GoGoogle”) A more detailed review of the reasons for the change can be found on a webpage, “Why Google Apps?” (Miami University) That page offers reasons tied to lower infrastructure and support costs Using Google Drive in the Classroom I teach a range of courses in multiple delivery modes—from first-year writing courses in a seated environment to advanced professional and technical writing courses online I use Google Drive in all my courses, but I focus here on its application in first-year writing Currently, our university requires students to complete six credits of first-year writing For many of our students, these six credits are essential to their academic and professional success, because our students are often many years removed from previous academic experiences—whether that’s college course work or high school work It should be noted that we are in the midst of a revision of our liberal education program, and, sadly from my perspective, three of those six credits might be eliminated A few years ago, the university invested significant resources to revise the curriculum for both of these courses, so that they are more firmly grounded in inquiry-based learning and the use of multimodal technologies All of our classes are taught in mediated classrooms, and some classes are taught in rooms with individual computers available to students—either desktops or through a laptop cart Some students will bring personal laptops to class We also offer online sections of first-year writing Although it is easy to recognize technology in the classroom, whether a computer, a SMART Board, or a chalkboard delivers the content, it is essential that teachers and students understand technology not merely as a means for delivering content but as both a tool and a subject for intellectual inquiry Continuing to use outdated technologies in the classroom does not prepare our students for the demands of twenty-first-century life Google Drive helps me help my students Using Google Drive in the classroom provides an immediate connection between the work of the class and students’ everyday lives, because of Google’s pervasiveness Clearly, this concerns some Some critics see Google as a monopoly that uses improper business tactics and lacks concern for individual privacy (Hatch) Questions have been raised about Google’s operations in China, with George Brenkert asserting, “the framework Google has used to respond to criticisms of its actions does not successfully or obviously address the important ethical issues it faces” (453) I not dismiss these concerns or criticisms, but Google’s omnipresence remains the reality of most students’ daily experience 66  TETYC September 2014 h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 66 8/25/14 4:12 PM That daily experience exists beyond the boundaries of their college education By using Google Drive, students also ensure that the technology they use while in the university will be accessible to them once they graduate the university In contrast, students who use software packages purchased while enrolled at a college or university often cannot use these resources after they graduate Cloud Computing and Google Drive as Web 2.0 Tool Kris Jamsa notes, “The concept of a cloud and the Internet is not new For years developers and network administrators have represented the Internet as a cloud,” but this approach ignored the “underlying communication complexity” and assumed “that messages would flow successfully from one Internet-connected network to another” (15) Today, cloud computing “describes the abstraction of web-based computers, resources, and services that system developers can utilize to implement complex web-based systems” (Jamsa 1) Google Drive exemplifies cloud computing and Web 2.0 William I Wolff argues that “writing in the age of Web 2.0 exists within an ecosystem of dynamic, overlapping, and evolving interactivities” (223) Certainly, Google Drive expresses that ecosystem.The term Web 2.0 was popularized by Tim O’Reilly in 2005 Web 2.0 describes “the set of tools and websites that allow users to publish content to the web without the direct use of HTML” (Jamsa 3) For example, a blog, which allows a user to publish content directly to the Web, is a Web 2.0 tool Critical literature is beginning to address the impact that Google Drive can have on classroom teaching and student learning (Sofia; Zhou, Simpson, and Domizi), although Google Drive might be one of many Web 2.0 tools considered (Brodahl, Hadjerrouit, and Hansen).The efforts of Wenyi Zhou, Elizabeth Simpson, and Denisse Pinette Domizi focused on the effectiveness of a Google Docs collaborative assignment completed outside class for an introductory psychology course Yet, despite the promise afforded by Google Docs to facilitate collaboration and eliminate some of the difficulties of face-to-face collaborative models, the study finds “[t]here was no significant effect of using Google Docs on students’ learning, as measured by students’ assignment grades” (365) However, the authors point out that assignment grades might not accurately reflect learning experiences Noting how new literacies have changed collaboration in terms of both ethical and technological considerations, Peter Kittle and Troy Hicks offer suggestions for activities including the opportunity for synchronous group writing offered by Google Docs (530) Unfortunately, Kittle and Hicks not offer an assessment of Google Docs’ effectiveness In contrast, Google Documents have been shown to promote student engagement in a limited study (George, Dreibelbis, and Aumiller) Daniel R George, Tomi D Dreibelbis, and Betsy Aumiller describe how Google Docs and SurveyMonkey were used to allow 154 first-year medical college students in a lecture-based course to provide real-time responses and questions to the lecturer during the course (518) According to the authors, “Both technologies generated U s i n g G o o g l e D r i v e t o P r e p a r e S t u d e n t s f o r Wo r k p l a c e W r i t i n g h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 67   67 8/25/14 4:12 PM student-driven content for the lecturer to address and prompted online conversations among students during lectures Because the Google Doc enabled students to post anonymously, questions were often directly challenging to lecturers” (518) More work in this area is needed, and I hope to design an assessment that provides a qualitative evaluation of the impact of Google Drive.As one article notes, “little is known about the difference in students’ performance with and without Google Docs” (Zhou, Simpson, and Domizi 360) Preparing Students for Workplace Writing I introduce Google Drive to my students on our first day of class By virtue of having a university account, students have access to Google Drive I also explain that students can use a personal Gmail account and have access to similar features I demonstrate that Google Drive provides storage space that can be accessed as long as the student can connect to the Internet Within Google Drive, students can create folders and document types similar to what can be created through software-based applications I ask that students “create” a folder and “share” this folder with me Essentially, students provide me with access to the folder and its contents by linking the folder with my email account Several options for shared access exist Students can allow me, or any individual, or any group, access “to view,” “to comment,” or “to edit,” or any combination of the three settings For the purposes of our course, “to edit” makes the most sense, because that allows me complete access to their folder For seated classes, I show the students how to create folders in class Some students already know how to this, but for many, this is their first time For online classes, I provide a walk-through as well as step-by-step directions Although most students can easily follow these instructions, some students struggle, so it is important that the instructor confirm that all students have shared the folder and used the correct permissions setting Because I believe that my students will be employed by workplaces that increasingly use cloud-based technology (or whatever follows when the cloud dissipates), I want them to become comfortable working in cloud environments as students Many of my students are unfamiliar with the concept of a cloud environment even if they recognize its features I still have students who carry all of their files on a USB drive, which can be easily lost or damaged I also have students who use desktop or laptop computers with hard drives Some students own computers they’ve purchased used, and it is not uncommon for a student to tell me that his or her laptop’s hard drive “died” or is infected with viruses that prevent the student from accessing her or his work Cloud-based workplaces are increasingly common Professionals continue to call for adoption of cloud environments for many reasons, including as a way to mitigate the loss of productivity from a major disruption, such as a natural event or even a terrorist attack (Murray and Mirghani 20) Although different in terms of scale and scope, the impact of lost USB drives, failed hard drives, and virus- 68  TETYC September 2014 h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 68 8/25/14 4:12 PM infected laptops on my students resembles the impact of works affected by “a major disruption”—a loss of productivity Cloud computing represents a response to a changing workforce, as the case study described by Tom Chefalas et al illustrates; these authors note that 50 percent of IBM’s workforce has been with the company five years or less, which “means there [must] be a quick and efficient way to provision employees, and to quickly de-provision, as well” (2) Provision here means to provide (and withdraw) resources quickly and efficiently from employees, whether that means granting access to sensitive documents and proprietary data or some other company resource Workers expect to “work any place, anytime, anywhere” (Chefalas et al 2) My experiences as a university professor dramatize this fact To prepare this article, I used Google Drive and worked in my university office during the day, on three separate computers at home in the evenings and on weekends, and on my laptop at multiple locations, including a local coffee shop and at a home out of state When it comes to our students, the growth of online classes and degree programs demonstrates the application of this “any place, anytime, anywhere” concept to education Using cloud-based applications in teaching is an extension of this approach to delivering education I believe it is important that students produce their university writing in circumstances that prepare them for the challenges of the workplace Although I cannot know what their workplaces will look like exactly, I believe the days of people saving files to hard drives and emailing attachments are numbered Therefore, it is irresponsible for me to continue to insist that students prepare and submit their work in an environment and using methods that are already dated When I introduce students to the practice of using shared Google Drives, I explain that the contemporary, evolving workplace motivates this choice Although the use of Google Drive in the classroom does not prevent my students’ desktops and laptops from breaking, the preservation of their writing in a cloud provides them continued access to that work Promoting Student Responsibility Especially in first-year writing classes, a common concern that my students express is that they procrastinate when writing major assignments Scaffolding work can help students overcome this by forcing them to begin working on major projects through the writing of smaller parts However, procrastination can still be a problem Students who procrastinate are less likely to be able to revise prior to submitting their writing, which can inhibit their ability to learn from the experience of writing (Young and Fritzsche 45–46) During the term, students create their assignments as Google Documents or “Docs” within those shared folders.This allows me to “check in” on their progress in a variety of ways For example, if I ask students to complete an in-class activity, I can view their document as they are preparing it Google Docs allows me to write messages that appear as a “conversation” alongside the student’s work in real time U s i n g G o o g l e D r i v e t o P r e p a r e S t u d e n t s f o r Wo r k p l a c e W r i t i n g h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 69   69 8/25/14 4:12 PM It also allows students to ask me questions as they work, which might encourage those students less likely to ask questions in class to seek help By typing questions alongside their document as we both view it, students not need to raise their hands and call attention to their need for help Although this might feel a bit “big brother”–like, Google does show the user that I am looking at the document by displaying my avatar at the top of the screen In my first-year writing classes, I use scaffolded assignments to help students complete major writing projects Often students begin these scaffolded assignments during the class As they work on these assignments, I comment on student writing as students prepare it This is similar to commenting on a student draft, but instead of students “submitting” a draft by a fixed deadline, I just “look in” on the shared document I always tell students I will be doing this, and students not receive grades on their unfinished work Compared with my experiences prior to using Google Drive, some students seem more likely to get started on their assignments if they know they can receive feedback on their writing; I regularly receive emails from students asking me to “look” at their work prior to it being submitted Students still must complete the final paper by a deadline, but their draft work can be more fluid The sooner students start writing, the more feedback they can potentially receive Also, I have found that asking students to submit their homework as part of a shared Google Doc encourages higher completion rates For example, in my fall 2013 first-year writing course, I asked students to identify a sentence from a class reading assignment and explain how it demonstrated ethos, pathos, and/or logos The students were not merely to choose a sentence but to read what their peers wrote as well I prepared a table with each student’s name in it as well as a space where the students were to write their sentence and explanation Every student completed this assignment, and this perfect completion rate might be attributed to the fact that each student could see what his or her classmates did Students who struggled to understand how to respond to the assignment might have gotten ideas from reading their classmates’ responses, which might have promoted greater confidence in their effort Additionally, there might have been a greater sense of accountability; a student didn’t want his or her name to be the only one with a blank box next to it For other homework assignments in which the students knew that only I would review it, I received submissions from fewer than 100 percent of the students Facilitating Collaboration Collaboration is the cornerstone of many writing classes as well as many workplace writing experiences Although focusing on classroom peer review, a statement by Kip Strasma, “We want students to have rich, robust, and constructive experiences with each other’s writing” (153), describes my desire for students’ experiences with all types of writing Our recently revised first-year writing curriculum includes inquiries that appear to demand collaboration, and most of our technical communications courses 70  TETYC September 2014 h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 70 8/25/14 4:12 PM require collaborative writing projects Facilitated collaboration can be a way to make writing matter beyond the earning of a grade (Tinberg) and a way of bridging the academy-workplace divide (Blakeslee) Google Drive has changed and expanded the way we collaborate in our classroom As noted earlier, the opportunity for collaboration was one of the two reasons cited by the university in its move to Google Apps for Education I can share a document with every student in the classroom and ask them to simultaneously comment on it For example, if we are reviewing a sample essay in a first-year writing course, I can provide a prompt that asks students to highlight a strength of the essay and an area to improve Every student then comments on the essay in real time and can see the work of their classmates It also helps students visualize writing as an ongoing process.They can literally see writing happen before their eyes That they are not the ones doing the typing gives it a magical quality Because students have access to this shared document, they can review it later or refer to it when creating a subsequent assignment In writing assignments, my first-year writing students are asked to draw on the contributions of their classmates This resource allows them to rely on what classmates actually wrote rather than on their memory of what might have been said Google Drive has helped improve rough draft workshops Rather than asking students to bring a copy of their rough draft for an assignment to class so that another student can read that rough draft, I ask that students “share” that document with a classmate This also prevents students from forgetting to bring a draft—although it does not prevent them from failing to complete the assignment The students can then comment directly on the draft by typing their feedback in much the same way that I provide mine I like that the students’ comments on their peers’ drafts appear in the same way that my comments appear on their submitted work I want students to recognize that peer feedback can be as valuable and useful as feedback from the instructor Often students question the value of that feedback—either by questioning their ability to provide usable feedback or by questioning the quality of a classmate’s feedback The visual connection between the two types of feedback reinforces my assertion that both are equally valuable It’s possible, of course, that students’ feedback might be more useful, insightful, and valuable to a student than my own In this effort, I echo the argument that peer response exists as “a kind of apprenticeship in which students participate alongside teachers” (Ching 314) Assisting Students’ Revision Google provides two major features essential to improving revision practices: “See revision history” and “Insert Comment.” Google saves each and every change that the user or users make to a document, which can be accessed through a menu option, “See revision history.” The Track Changes feature in Microsoft Word provides this in a limited way but does not include the moment-to-moment changes that a writer makes; instead, Micro- U s i n g G o o g l e D r i v e t o P r e p a r e S t u d e n t s f o r Wo r k p l a c e W r i t i n g h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 71   71 8/25/14 4:12 PM soft Word provides a snapshot of all the changes made with no sense of a linear chronology In many situations, I have looked at a student’s writing process and revisions and made suggestions about how that student might proceed For example, some students when revising only make editing or proofreading changes Being able to see the revision history allows me to encourage the writer to consider other types of changes and improvements I can also see how much time a student spends developing a document, and can encourage students to spend more time drafting and revising The revision history also allows a student to review his or her revision process I provide feedback using the Insert Comment function on Google Doc This feature resembles the Insert Comment feature in Microsoft Word, but there are additional benefits to Google Doc: you can “reply” to a comment, so a conversation thread can be started; you can “resolve” a comment, which causes the comment to disappear from the immediate screen, but it is still accessible in the document’s history Because I encourage students to revise submitted papers, the reply and resolve functions are essential Students can reply to comments that are unclear to them or can respond to questions I pose in the comments Many times students have engaged in conversations with me about their writing by using the reply feature I am not sure these students would have asked those same questions had they not had the option of using this feature Users have the option of receiving an email that indicates when a comment has received a reply I choose this option, so I know immediately when a student responds to a comment on his or her paper, which allows me to respond more immediately to students When revising their essays, students can resolve a comment when they have addressed that concern or question through their revision I encourage them to this, so that they can track the changes and improvements they’ve made to their writing Additionally, this allows me to see whether students have addressed my responses to their paper Although I have yet to so, I plan to incorporate a reflective writing assignment that asks students to review their revision history so that they can summarize their revision strategies and suggest new possibilities for revision tactics It would be useful to see whether students recognize patterns to their revisions and whether they can change those patterns to improve their writing Problems and Pitfalls As with any technology, problems and pitfalls exist I would be remiss if I did not describe some of them and provide some suggestions for addressing them As mentioned earlier, some students struggle with new media technologies I have students whose typing skills consist of “hunt and peck,” and who would rather handwrite a paper than submit it electronically Although many students 72  TETYC September 2014 h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 72 8/25/14 4:12 PM quickly learn how to share a folder, create a document, and use the other features of Google Drive, each semester several students struggle to so But this motivates me to be even more adamant about introducing our students to cloud technology and encouraging them to extend themselves beyond their comfort zone If a student cannot create and share a Google Drive folder in my first-year writing class, how can that student be expected to transition smoothly to a twenty-first-century workplace? Some students’ lack of comfort using new technologies is an even stronger reason for insisting that these technologies be used Helping our students learn how to navigate and understand new technologies is more important than teaching them how to use one technology perfectly Using Google Drive is an imperfect experience I have had students share a folder at the beginning of the term but then create a Google Document outside of their shared folder So, although these students completed the work, I cannot see it in their shared folders.Therefore, I assume they did not complete the assignment and assign a grade accordingly Sometimes this has led to panicked emails from students who not understand why they received a particular grade on an assignment As long as the work was completed on time, I accept the document and revise the grade I have had students who have shared a folder and then share each and every document they create within that folder As I explained to them at the start, as long as they shared a folder with me at the beginning, anything in that folder will be shared automatically They don’t need to take that extra step and create additional work for themselves To address this, I send an email reminding the student that any work included in a shared folder is visible to me Another problem exists not with the user but with Google Being able to print documents that include comments would be beneficial, but this is not currently a possibility This is one advantage that Microsoft Word does have over Google When a writer prints a Word document with comments, readers can see those comments on the printed page; comments on a Google Doc not appear This can be frustrating Regardless of whether a problem or pitfall exists on the user or delivery side, one of the keys when introducing students to Google Drive is patience Another key is teaching the course in a classroom where students have access to individual computers, so you can provide the students with hands-on experience using the technology and model the activities described here Obviously, students having reliable access to the Internet is important when using Google Drive, but notably Google Drive does have an offline feature that allows students to work in situations where they not have Internet access Conclusions Admittedly, some features that Google provides have been more successful in the classroom than others Although beyond the scope of this article, my experiences with Google Groups have been disappointing and have caused me to return to our U s i n g G o o g l e D r i v e t o P r e p a r e S t u d e n t s f o r Wo r k p l a c e W r i t i n g h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 73   73 8/25/14 4:12 PM Sakai-based learning management system and its “Forums.” Even when things go well, as in the case of Google Drive, there are bumps along the way, which I have briefly reviewed Still, I am encouraged by my experiences with Google Drive It feels a bit uncomfortable asserting that Google creates a more egalitarian classroom situation, but using Google Drive can so, at least in a limited way, when it comes to students’ access to technology.This can be particularly important at the open admissions, regional campus where I teach and where many students struggle financially to meet the burdens of supporting themselves as well as their families and completing their education Years ago, I tried getting my campus to allow us to install OpenOffice on our in-class computers, so that I could encourage students to use word processing and spreadsheet programs that were open access and not sold by Microsoft Unfortunately, I was unsuccessful, and for years I’ve had students explain that—despite the discount provided by the university—they cannot afford to pay for the software packages used in our classrooms.Additionally, many of my students would purchase used laptops or desktops that gave them frequent problems, such as crashed hard drives or broken monitors, which affected their ability to complete assignments Student work that was not “backed up” was lost forever when hard drives failed or viruses infected computer systems Google Drive doesn’t eliminate this concern and has its own limitations as a system dependent on Internet access, but it does represent an improvement Ultimately, how we teach and what we teach our students should evolve and be responsive to the environment I continue to seek new ways to reach my students and to prepare them to be effective participants in their communities and workplaces < Works Cited Blakeslee, Ann M “Bridging the Workplace and the Academy: Teaching Professional Genres through Classroom-Workplace Collaborations.” Technical Communication Quarterly 10.2 (2001): 169 Education Research Complete Web Brenkert, George “Google, Human Rights, and Moral Compromise.” Journal of Business Ethics 85.4 (2009): 453–78 Business Source Complete Web 22 Feb 2014 Brodahl, Cornelia, Said Hadjerrouit, and Nils Kristian Hansen “Collaborative Writing with Web 2.0 Technologies: Education Students’ Perceptions.” Journal of Information Technology Education 10 (2011): IIP73–IIP103 Web Chefalas, Tom, et al “Leveraging Cloud in the Rapidly Evolving Workplace of the Future.” 8th International Conference & Expo on Emerging Technologies for a Smarter World (CEWIT 2011): (publisher provided full text searching file) Web 74  TETYC September 2014 h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 74 8/25/14 4:12 PM Ching, Kory Lawson “Peer Response in the Composition Classroom: An Alternative Genealogy.” Rhetoric Review 26.3 (2007): 303–19 Academic Search Complete Web 22 Feb 2014 George, Daniel R., Tomi D Dreibelbis, and Betsy Aumiller “Google Docs and Surveymonkey: Lecture-Based Active Learning Tools.” Medical Education 47.5 (2013): PsycINFO Web Google “Our History in Depth.” Google Web 22 Feb 2014 http://www.google com/about/company/history/ Hatch, David “Google’s Privacy Policies Spark Intense Criticism.” CQ Researcher 21.40 (2011): 966 MasterFILE Premier Web 22 Feb 2014 Jamsa, Kris Cloud Computing : SaaS, PaaS, IaaS,Virtualization, Business Models, Mobile, Security, and More Burlington: Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2013 OhioLINK Library Catalog Web 22 Feb 2014 Kittle, Peter, and Troy Hicks “Transforming the Group Paper with Collaborative Online Writing.” Pedagogy: Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition, and Culture 9.3 (2009): 525–38 MLA International Bibliography Web Miami University “Academic Experience.” Web Feb 2014 Miami University “GoGoogle—Miami Mail.” Web Feb 2014 Miami University “Why Google Apps?” Web Feb 2014 Murray, Art, and Mirghani Mohamed “The Virtual Workplace Is a ‘Must,’ Not a ‘Should.’” KM World 19.6 (2010): 20 Business Source Complete Web O’Reilly, Tim “What Is Web 2.0?: Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software.” Web 22 Feb 2014 http://oreilly.com/web2/ archive/what-is-web-20.html Sofia, H “Enhancing ESL Learners’ Technical English Writing Skills with Google Documents and Blogs: A Research Study.” Language in India 12.4 (2012): 449–61 Communication & Mass Media Complete Web Strasma, Kip “‘Spotlighting’: Peer-Response in Digitally Supported First-Year Writing Courses.” Teaching English in the Two-Year College 37.2 (2009): 153–60 OhioLINK Library Catalog Web 22 Feb 2014 Tinberg, Howard “Writing with Consequence: On-Line Collaboration and Desktop Publishing in a First-Year Writing Course.” TCC Online Conferences, University of Hawaii, 1999 ERIC Web Wolff, William I “Interactivity and the Invisible: What Counts as Writing in the Age of Web 2.0.” Computers and Composition 30.3 (2013): 211–25 Education Research Complete Web 22 Feb 2014 Young, Beth Rapp, and Barbara A Fritzsche “Writing Center Users Procrastinate Less: The Relationship between Individual Differences in Procrastination, U s i n g G o o g l e D r i v e t o P r e p a r e S t u d e n t s f o r Wo r k p l a c e W r i t i n g h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 75   75 8/25/14 4:12 PM Peer Feedback, and Student Writing Success.” Writing Center Journal 23.1 (2002): 45–58 MLA International Bibliography Web Zhou, Wenyi, Elizabeth Simpson, and Denise Pinette Domizi “Google Docs in an Out-of-Class Collaborative Writing Activity.” International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education 24.3 (2012): 359–75 ERIC Web Marianne Cotugno is an associate professor of English at the Middletown campus of Miami University, where she teaches first-year writing, American literature, and technical communication courses C all for P roposals : R esearch N etwork F orum M arch 18, 2015, 8:30 a m –5:00 p m T ampa , F lorida at CCCC Please join the Research Network Forum as a Work-in-Progress Presenter and/or serve as a Discussion Leader and/or as a publication Editor The Research Network Forum (RNF), founded in 1987, is a pre-convention forum at the CCCC annual convention which provides an opportunity for established researchers, new researchers, and graduate students to discuss their current projects and receive mentoring from colleagues The forum is free to CCCC convention registrants As in past years, RNF 2015 features morning plenary addresses focusing on “Risk & Reward,” the 2015 CCCC theme The RNF welcomes Work-in-Progress Presenters (WiPPs) at any stage of their research and at any position in the composition/rhetoric field (graduate student, junior faculty, tenured faculty, administrator, and/or independent scholar) During roundtable discussions,WiPPs are grouped by thematic clusters in which they discuss their current projects at both a morning and an afternoon roundtable session in 8–10 minute presentations and then benefit from the responses of other researchers Discussion Leaders (DLs) lead the thematic roundtables and mentor WiPPs; this role is key to the RNF We ask that Discussion Leaders are experienced, established researchers Serving as a Discussion Leader provides a valuable service to the composition/ rhetoric community Discussion Leaders are welcome to also participate as WiPPs Participants also include Editors of printed and online composition/rhetoric publications (journals, edited collections, and book series), who discuss publishing opportunities for completed works-in-progress in an open, roundtable format Editors are encouraged to serve as Discussion Leaders and may also participate as WiPPs To submit a proposal (Deadline: October 31, 2014), visit our website, http:// researchnetworkforum.org Please fill out a form for each of the roles in which you would like to participate—Work-in-Progress Presenter, Discussion Leader, and/or Editor.You may appear on the RNF Program in addition to having a speaking role at the CCCC convention Questions? Email Co-Chairs Risa P Gorelick and Gina M Merys: rnfchairs@gmail com 76  TETYC September 2014 h65-76-Sept14-TE.indd 76 8/25/14 4:12 PM Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner Further reproduction prohibited without permission  ... the difference in students? ?? performance with and without Google Docs” (Zhou, Simpson, and Domizi 360) Preparing Students for Workplace Writing I introduce Google Drive to my students on our... Therefore, it is irresponsible for me to continue to insist that students prepare and submit their work in an environment and using methods that are already dated When I introduce students to the... Ultimately, how we teach and what we teach our students should evolve and be responsive to the environment I continue to seek new ways to reach my students and to prepare them to be effective participants