what they write publicly usually gets read and responded to immediately. Not only the teacher but also peers become involved in what has been written. It is advantageous, therefore, to have not only .individual student scribes use the board but also groups of students working simultaneously while the rest of the students write at their desks. in this way,all members of the class are challenged by the same questions. students writing at the board often comment spontaneously on each other's content and each other's use of language. Furthermore, students writing at the board often invite peers' comments because their work is on display and their need to know is great. as they compare their work with that of their peers, their critical faculties are heightened.they learn from their peers' successes and mistakes. making comparisons, alterations, and corrections helps students become more aware of what revision means. They collaborate and compete. And they become teachers.
some advantages of having groups of students write publicly at the board are as follows:
- a different atmosphere is created. A group writing at the board is a public group within the whole class, and the students interact not only with those in their group but with the whole class. In contrast, when students collaborate in small groups at their desks, usually little or on interaction takes place between groups.
- No single student can become disengaged and "disappear" without the teacher's notice, as can students in groups at their desks.
- A student can't monopolize the discourse because written discourse can't dominate "air time" the way oral discourse can.
- Spontaneous collaboration at the board is a voluntary process in which student can participate or leave at will, unlike the process that occurs when student are grouped at their desks for the specific purpose of editing each other's work or discussing content.
- the teacher's monitoring ability increases. A reacher can "sit in" only on one small group at a time. But, when the board is used, the teacher can observe what is taking place at the board and circulate among students working at their desks, acting as a resource to both groups.
in addition, board work allows us to easily observe students in the act of writing and see how they think in their new language. we see their false starts, their hesitation, and the errors they make but discover for themselves. theses observations often lead us to a better understanding of the type of errors they make repeatedly, and of whether or not they doubt the accuracy of their usage. Furthermore, it give us the opportunity, if we choose, to address difficulties as they arise-to assist by suggesting the word or grammar structure the student seems to be searching for, or to make corrections as problem occur. this immediacy can be very exciting for teacher and rewarding for the students who are intensely aware of their needs at that moment and appreciate having those needs met.
public writing allows us to emphasize the process rather than the product. By it's very nature, board writing is ephemeral and errors are easily erased. Students seem not to become as possessive and sensitive to criticism of their board writing as they do of "finished" writing or of writing that is committed to paper that they can hold in their hands.
Furthermore, some students have more confidence in their writing than in their oral discourse and find it easier to participate in written form. Some students dislike asking for help or lack the verbal competence to express their problems and welcome the fact that teacher or other student can see their problem and offer help when they need it.