Alan November elevated the “Official Scribe” as one of the roles that empower student learners.

I see the role of the scribe as follows:

The official scribe plays an important role in the classroom community. Their work is essential for students who were absent from
class or need a review on a specific topic previously discussed. The official scribe also takes pressure off other students from having to
take notes, but invites them in to contribute with corrections, additional information or resources.

Several teachers at my new school are taking the leap of creating a classroom blog as their central hub for classroom communication. There are using blogger (integrated with our Google Apps for Education account) as the platform.

Their blogs are becoming a space to give students the opportunity to create the “perfect notes”to share with the classroom, parent and global community. How can we support students in documenting learning and to add value by adding extra research, resources or experiences that contribute to deepening of the topics discussed in class?

Justin Prophet, our school’s 7th Grade Science teacher has developed the following

Scribe Purpose and Description

1. To write what you learned.

2. Contribute and collaborate to make a set of class notes (textbook).  People from around the world may look at these as well!

3. Take an opportunity to learn and to practice writing useful notes supported by media (images, video and other)

   1. Sometimes we just do things in class without taking the time to think about what we learned.  When you think about what you did and what you learned from what you did, and write down what you learned, you will be much more likely to remember what you learned.

   2. Taking notes is a skill you will need for high-school and university.

4. Students that miss class can have a quick summary of what they missed.

Scribe Procedure During Class

• Start to create your post right away. Open your computer at the start of class.

• Do not do the tasks and activities.

• Take photos/video of the tasks and your classmates learning. Try to take photos that relate to the content or skills.

• If you find anything interesting related to the class, add them! Add youtube videos and images that are NOT copyrighted.

• You must choose the next class scribe.

In collaboration with Emily Vallillo, our school’s 6th Grade Humanities teacher, we are developing a rubric to support students in aiming for higher level note taking.

Download Official Scribe Rubric as pdf

Development of a Rubric

• different types of media included (images, video, audio, screenshots, etc.)
• clear and logical timeline and progression evident in notes
• reiterate what was covered in class (no added value) – word for word? /summarized?/ gaps?
• documentation of further questions to research
• added value (commentary, annotations, links to further resources)-

The Official Scribes in action:

• Mr. Prophet’s Science Blog- It’s a balloon, it’s an airplane, no it’s a water rocket
• Ms. Vallillo’s Humanities Blog- Literature Circle Discussion Preparation and Recording, Learning About the Soweto Uprising

Further blog posts & resources

• The Official Scribe: It’s All About Learning Styles & Collaboration
• Taking Notes- Summarizing Information- 2nd Grade Style
• Backchanneling-Movie Watching-Note Taking-Information Scribes
• Distributed Teaching & Learning by Darren Kuropatwa

When looking at implementing an “Official Scribe in the classroom” role, put on the lens of the SAMR model.

Substitution:

• Students use computer to type up notes.

Augmentation

• Students are printing out or emailing their notes to share with their classmates.
• Students use formatting options to organize, highlight, edit, rearrange their notes.

Modification

• Students are creating their own blog post, using a variety of technology tools and methods to create anotated screenshots, videos, images to bring in different perspectives and address various learning styles
• Students are creating collaborative notes via a Google Document, which is shared with the entire class. Everyone can contribute, add information, edit incorrect information,etc.
• Note taking is not confined to remembering and regurgitating information heard in class, but (hyper)linked to further reading of text, images, audio and video. Students are labeling/categorizing their blog post and information to make organization and information search easier. Students are solving problems of how to handle information overload and filter relevant information.

Redefinition

• Students are contributors to a collaborative blog site, alternating being the Official Scribe of day.Collaboratively they “write”their own online textbook.
• Students express their understanding through a variety of media.
• Students use the blog as a learning hub to communicate and connect beyond their classroom walls, connecting with peers and experts from around the world