Using Google Drive for Collaborative Bias Analysis

BEFORE CLASS: 

Prior to class, I assigned a set of short online readings. During a seventy-five minute class period, we were able to address three short readings, but instructors with shorter classes might want to work with only two. As indicated above, I recommend choosing articles about the same topic (for coherence) but written from different perspectives (for contrasting in class discussion). For example, I assigned three articles about ecotourism. The first was published on an elite US-based travel magazine website, the second came from a popular Caribbean news source, and the third was part of a specific travel agency's commercial site. 

With these texts in mind, I created a Google Drive spreadsheet with three tabs, one for each article. Each was formatted the same way. For the left-hand column, I wrote each student's name, such that each student had one assigned row for each tab. On the top row, I listed different categories to consider while analyzing bias (these can vary, but I included criteria like political perspective, institutional affiliations, geographical affiliations, age, and religious perspective). I recommend freezing both the column with the students' names and the row listing the criteria, so that the students can navigate more easily. Freezing rows and/or columns will appear as an option under the "View" tab above the spreadsheet. 

blank bias spreadsheet example.png

Shortly before class, I invited all of my students to access the Google Drive. Sending the invitation in advance saved some class time. 

DURING CLASS:

At the beginning of class, we had a brief conversation about bias. We discussed the relationship between bias and credibility, what factors might impact an author's bias, etc. I made sure to introduce the criteria I had included on the spreadsheet. I also gave a quick introduction to Google Drive spreadsheets, since most of my students weren't familiar with them. 

The students were then asked to review the readings, research the authors and venues of the readings, and fill out their own rows for each of the spreadsheet's three tabs. If they could not find a piece of information or did not believe it was applicable, I asked them to mark the box with "N/A" to indicate that they had at least considered the question. As they worked, I showed one of the tabs using the overhead projector. I also circulated around the room to answer questions. While I chose to have the students create their notes individually, an instructor could also have them work in pairs, if desired or needed. 

completed bias spreadsheet example.png

After they had filled in their boxes, we looked together at each spreadsheet tab. I chose to do this part using the overhead projector, but if that option isn't available, students could also just look at their own screens. Instructors could choose from a number of discussion questions at this point. In our case, we talked about: similarities and differences among students' responses, how students obtained their information, and what they felt the most relevant criteria were in each case to determining author/source bias. They also contrasted the biases of the different sources. 

PURPOSES: 

The main goal of this activity was to ensure that students knew at least some preliminary factors to consider in thinking about bias. Because we did this activity early in the semester, it also helped with their research skills. For example, as I moved around the room, several students asked whether they could use Wikipedia as a reliable source about authors (answer: nope). The discussion portion also generated a conversation about strategies for research and information synthesis. For instance, with regard to the above screenshot: why did students get varying answers for "age," and why did others determine that the category was not relevant?

Between creating the spreadsheet and following up with class discussion, I aimed to engage both visual and auditory learners. The activity also worked well in terms of engaging quieter students, since they were all required to participate in the spreadsheet creation, and they all had time to think about their answers prior to the culminating class conversation. 

In addition, many of my students had never used Google Drive before, and none of them had ever used the spreadsheet option. They had also never worked on Google Drive in real time. Consequently, this exercise gave them experience in accessing and using Google Drive spreadsheets as active, real-time collaborators.