What Is a Dialogue Journal?
A dialogue journal is a written conversation in which a student and teacher communicate regularly (daily, weekly, etc., depending on the educational setting) over a semester, school year, or course. Students write as much as they choose and the teacher writes back regularly, responding to students’ questions and comments, introducing new topics, or asking questions. The teacher is a participant in an ongoing, written conversation with the student, rather than an evaluator who corrects or comments on the student’s writing. The first documented use of dialogue journals was with sixth grade students, both native and nonnative English speakers, in California (Peyton & Staton, 1993). They are now being used in a range of educational settings!with children and adults, with both native and nonnative English speakers, and in teacher and volunteer training programs. The following example, excerpted with permission from the dialogue journal entries of teacher Leslee Reed and Claudia, a sixth gra
