The concept of trial and error has been the most important theme that has emerged for me. I have found that it is extremely important to plan and find ways in which students can manage their peer conference, but it is necessary for me to be open to letting the students guide the conference. You never know the way the conference may progress and this uncertainty can be exciting. This is what I call the trial and error portion of the experience.
I have found that I spend a lot of time planning partnerships. I think about the students’ personalities, academic strengths and weaknesses and make an informed choice based on those criteria. Though I may think that a peer conference is going to work out the students may not have the experience that I had expected. While I have been disappointed with some conferences, I have also been pleasantly surprised to see some partnerships take on a life of their own; one that I never thought would emerge.
By doing this research, I realized that students may focus specific parts of their peer’s writing and that they take away particular aspects of their conference rather than absorbing everything that was said. For instance, one student gave her peer a really great lesson on the use of quotation marks in her feedback to her partner. We had been discussing the components of a reading log and she did mention these aspects, but along with that her partner received a great lesson on punctuation. Many students have paid attention to specific feedback such as adding detail and description, and have focused solely on improving that part of their writing.
I have also found that timing also comes in to play when talking about trial and error. I had found, through my review of the video tape of peer conferencing, that some students needed to share their feedback immediately after jotting it down and reading over the work. In the conference that I reviewed, the students read over one another's pieces one day and gave feedback the next day. I realized that they were spending valuable time reviewing the feedback they had written the day before and it took time away from the conference. On the other side of the coin, some students need to go back to the piece the next day and are able to add more on or do deeper thinking. I have found that it is important to think about the students involved, the depth of the material they are reviewing, and the amount of classtime they are able to use.
Because we are working with human beings, it is imperative that we keep in mind that we must remain open to the emergent journey of the conference. We must be patient enough to let a conference develop and flow in a way that is natural for the pair. I find that is difficult for me to let a conference flow naturally as I want to jump in and guide the conference immediately. I need to keep reminding myself that what occurs organically is sometimes more awesome than what I expect. Letting it flow naturally or choosing to interrupt the conference is something that a teacher must negotiate and this is why it is crucial for a teacher to truly know her students as learners.
I also have been keeping in mind lately that writing is a process. Each time we write, even as adults, we do some things better than others. I think about pieces that I have written in the past and when I reread them today, there are still changes that I want to make. I have been thinking that the things that the children focus on each time they write will help them to become a better writer, not a perfect one.