But Is It Really 'Resolved'?

This exchange makes me smile:

Maybe I'm just happy to see that Goodfellas is not a completely dead reference yet.  For sure it is teetering.  And when I mention particular names associated with the film, like Scorsese or DeNiro? Forget about it.  Nevertheless, if this 14 year old knows the movie, there must be others roaming my school's hallways who also know media created prior to 2010.

But there's more to it than just a mutual love for this 80's gangster story.

The screen capture above shows a brief conversation on Google Docs. Typically, I see Google's default "Marked as Resolved" accompanying my comments. In this case, however, the student decided to use my comment as a way to extend the conversation. See how Tommy ends his question with "one of those classic scenes?" That refers to a discussion he and I began in class. As we talked about visuals, we agreed that it would be wonderful if he could find an appropriate to clip to play. People familiar with the film understand what a challenge this can be.                                                                

So here's a pretty big benefit to having students use Google Docs: in this one brief reply, I see this student continuing to process what we had discussed earlier.  I do not mean to suggest that using Google singlehandedly makes kids more recursive thinkers.  That ability existed before Google. But this brief conversation makes Tommy's reflection visible.  If in the past I had to assume that kids internalized conversations I had with them about their writing, this exchange provides a small but telling insight into how Tommy processes and tinkers with ideas.
                                                                                                                   

I also think this reply tells me that Tommy is engaged in what he is doing.  He wants to find the perfect moment to highlight the film for his peers.  The assignment itself requires Tommy and his peers to select a piece of media they find worthwhile, but that is a "hidden gem" for their classmates.  Instead of choosing at random or going with the first clip he can find, Tommy has sifted through telling moments in the film and arrived at what he considers to be a classic scene (and he's right, of course).
                                                                                                                   

All of this leads me to wonder about "Mark as Resolved." On the surface, this phrase appears perfect: informative and succinct. In essence, it tells me, the commentator, that my suggestion or question or feedback has been acted upon. There has been "resolution".  However, after seeing this phrase standing by itself on doc after doc, my view has shifted. 

It is totally hollow.  It resolves nothing. It feels more like a statement of "dis"regard. The very choice of italics seem to add a layer of irony or sarcasm to the visualness of the phrase.  Actually, there is no indication that my thoughts even have been read.  A colleague of mine requires students to say something when they resolve her comments, even if that something is "thanks for the comments."  I like this and plan on adopting the practice.

But this leads me to a different, albeit related, topic--as we think about helping kids establish digital routines, what do they need to know to be productive collaborators? One answer: be appreciative, thoughtful and deliberate. The same qualities we want them to exhibit in their face-to-face relationships.  And this will be the topic of another blog post.