Institution: University of Kentucky
Program: First and Second Year Writing
Administrators: Jim Ridolfo and Jake Ferrington
“We’ve done artifact-based assessment in the past, but as WPA I wanted to implement Eli Review to generate data about student writing activity across a wide number of sections. I’m then able to frame this data to new teachers in summer orientation and graduate practicum, as well as on university committees. In the graduate practicum, I also use Eli Review to model how new teacher cohorts learn and implement peer review in their own first year classrooms.”
History with Eli: Jim used Eli as a graduate student at Michigan State University, and he has used Eli with graduate students in the fall teaching practicum every year since 2016. After the practicum, Jake volunteered to pilot Eli in his classes during Fall 2017, and he now runs a mentor group for those interested in peer learning.
Challenge: Sustain pedagogical training in teaching writing for GTAs beyond the practicum
Approach: Affinity mentor groups
Purchase model: students pay online
Timeline:
- Fall 2015–Bill and Mike visit campus to host workshops.
- Fall 2016–Jim assigns Eli Review in the teaching practicum.
- Fall 2017–Jim assigns Eli Review in the teaching practicum.
- Spring 2017–Jim designates a GTA to coordinate a pilot with Melissa.
- Summer 2017–Melissa and lead GTA work together on pilot plan.
- Fall 2017–Interested GTAs and pilot coordinator join a video conference with Melissa a couple of times throughout the term. Jim reviews our beta student engagement report.
- Spring 2018–A few GTAs continue to use Eli Review, and we introduce a new price point to cover students whose 6-month purchase ran out.
- March 2017–We provide a travel grant so that Jake could attend our team’s full-day workshop at #4C18.
- Summer 2018–Melissa and Jake work together on plans for pilot.
- Fall 2018–Jim assigns Eli Review in the teaching practicum, and Bill guest lectures.
- Fall 2018–Melissa hosts a video conference to introduce Eli to those GTAs who have self-selected into Jake’s peer learning mentoring group. Everyone participates in Eli’s online professional development week. Melissa hosts a couple more video conferences over the term.
Results:
- Generate aggregate data about sections that may be exportable to Tableau or other analytic platforms
- Shape the way new teacher cohorts understand and implement peer review in their first year classrooms
- Change the program conversation around peer review in the first year writing sequence
