Twelfth International Conference on e-Learning & Innovative Pedagogies

Abstract

For several years, Year 9 and 10 students have had the opportunity to participate in state, national and international youth writing competitions – narrative, persuasive and expository. Learning Intentions include fostering student agency through providing choice in determining the focus of their investigations and writing; building a sense of connection and identity as members of a global community of learner/writers; and increasing engagement through exploring themes and topics of high relevance to themselves. It is our experience that many of the secondary students in our school are enthusiastic readers and writers themselves, but can feel disconnected from their peer group. Being involved in world-wide forums like the writing competitions can work to normalise our students’ experience of education outside the mainstream, providing them with a ‘tribe’ and a sense of belonging. We observe a high level of excitement and engagement in students who have previously engaged reluctantly in their classwork through the international NaNoWriMo project, Whitlam Institute’s What Matters Tasmania, ABC’s Heywire multimodal storytelling competition, University of New South Wales Bragg Student Prize for Science Writing. Students develop self-confidence in their ability to complete a challenging, real-life task. In this workshop, we will showcase examples of student work, as well as case studies highlighting the journey of specific students.