- Reflecting on Online Learning:
Its all about dialogue, involvement, support and control-according to the research
Stephenson, J.
For online learning to happen, 4 aspects of online learning have been identified as key- DISC. These are:
1. Dialogue
2. Involvement
3. Support
4. Control
In addition lessons must be well structured, well designed, with feedback so that the learner can have appropriate amount of control over the learning.
Dialogue:
This can be done through:
· Discussions
· Debates
· Chats- synchronous and asynchronous
· Bulletin boards
· Email
It is important for this to work, it needs to be worked into the structure of the course. It cannot happen just like that.
I would like to watch out for this in my regular face to face classes, too. How do I build in dialogue in class- with questions in between my lecture, structured discussion like when thinking of uses for a ‘tea-object’, in-class critiquing (which I should study further and reflect on since I use it so much and it seems to keep popping up as crucial) In online learning critiquing is key- I tried it in the blog I floated during ‘corporat identity’ where students posted their work- symbols and logos in the blog and students sent in their comments. The student could give his/her response to the peer comment that came in.
It was available for everyone to see.
Involvement
‘Structured tasks’, ‘active engagement with the material’, groupwork, show of work, shows the students’ involvement. Need to watch out that it is not too time consuming and keeps the student motivated and participating.
In the wiki task answering ‘what I see from my window’ kept us involved. Seeing the pictures in the wiki coming from each other and giving us a peek into each others worlds was interesting and kept us participating, asynchronously. That exercise showed group involvement.
In face to face teaching how do I guage involvement? Structured group work and the outcome of that does it, again questions, this time from the students during class shows me involvement.
On the blog I posted, responses of people putting up work and comments coming in showed me involvement. Mails and counter emails on plagiarism in college showed involvement. When the emails became nasty and an open fight, social derision expressed in the emails stopped the mails and the ‘involvement’ was shamed into stopping. That was a lesson. We were wondering how to stop the baseless accusations of plagiarism and the automatic publicity and attacking of reputation that it lead to.
Support
Online this can take many forms:
· Peer support
· Comments from the teachers in the form of
o Comments posted in a chat
§ Opinions
§ Further references
§ Structure for responses
§ Encouragement
o Comments posted against work in the form of emails
o Skype conversations
o Video conferencing (technology is essential)
o Facebook
What did not happen was face to face. This is automatic in non-online teaching- in a classroom.
Basically this is feedback. special attention. In online courses, building a community is important for this flow of support to happen ‘automatically.’ In online learning, a lot of time needs to be given to supporting your peers. This has not happened very successfully in the chat room in NOW. I have been there numerous times to see if there is anyone for a chat- but there has not been. I wondered for a long time what the ‘Orange Tree’ was and wished I could meet people there myself, only to learn it was a place located physically on the NTU campus.
DISC happens to different degrees, in different ways in online learning and teaching.
Specified tasks
Learner managed
Teacher controlled
Open-ended strategic
1. Teacher determined, task specific
e.g. Chem-on-wheels
And all the CD-Roms I have been involved in.
2. Learner determined, task specific
e.g. The pbwiki task,
Plan an event using Blogs,
Project management –creating a product and selling it.
3. Teacher determined, open ended strategic learning activity
e.g. A simulation where people have different roles and use any online means for communication, in typography, copy a magazine page layout and recreate it. Discuss the experience online using a blog, chat forum. Now post something you have created yourself. A completely new layout. Place it in the blog page and invite peer comments. Respond to the comments
4. Learner controls direction of learning, Personal goals and learner goals present. e.g. Our last assignment of identifying a case study of online learning,
Any research paper on studying mentoring in the academy.
1.Specified Tasks, Teacher controlled:
CD-Roms:
I spent a few years in my career making CD-Rom in various subjects- IT related training, Soft skills training and teaching science to children. The most interactive of these was Chem-on-Wheels which was a virtual chemistry lab. Students could clock into the CD-Rom to do all the chemistry experiments that were in the syllabus for the last two years in school. The students followed the laid down steps and watched chemical interactions happen in a test tube, with heat, and various chemistry equipment. The learner, by following each step on screen, initiated the running of animation or movies. It was as if the student was stimulating chemistry experiments.
Dialogue: The online dialogue and interactions were pre-specified. The tasks were laid down and described and the student ‘followed’ these on the screen through clicks and drags.
Involvement: The learner could not influence any content which was specified at each step. There was no web access- the learner could access various information navigating through the CD-Rom. The default positions were different lab tables with jars of chemicals and various equipment ‘lined up on a counter (images).’
Support: The learner got support through feedback which appeared as a result of actions like clicking on different parts of the screen and dragging e.g. Clicking on a visual of a bottle of chemical and dragging it to a test tube across the screen. When done correctly the learner received positive feedback else negative feedback. This was pre-recorded feedback in the form of audio and text.
Control: Learner control was confined to specific tasks performed through clicks and drags on screen. There was a pre-determined sequence of actions to complete the experiment correctly. The content was laid out in the CD-Rom. There was no scope for new content.
In some CD-Roms the learner could maintain a diary on his/her computer.
Teacher role: None. All instruction was built into the CD-Rom.
2.Specified Tasks, Learner managed:
PB Wiki
We were divided into groups of 4. We had to together put together a wiki which informed the group and the rest of the class about ‘the view from each of our windows.’ All the learners were geographically removed from each other and did not know each other at all. Through the process of wiki creation we got to know each other a little better, the view from each of our windows, how we interpreted this theme, the kind of stories we came up with helped us know each other a little better.
Dialogue:The teacher set out the basic rules in the assignment and the responsibility for carrying out the task lay was the students. The students used various means of communication- email, facebook, chat room, discussion option provided in the wiki itself and even phone.
Involvement: The group had to manage itself. It was selected by the teachers but moderated by the students themselves. The learner had the freedom to interpret the theme to his/her ‘own aspirations and circumstances.’
Support: The tutor basically encouraged the groups and was timekeeper. Peer support was built in – just the fact that we could see each other’s pages was a sort of learning support and push.
Control: How the task is done was completely the responsibility of the learner. There was access to anything on the web and out of it to complete the task and make it as interesting as possible. There was ‘use of resources outside the programme and wide discretion over activities, content and learning outcomes.’
Teacher role: Encourager, time keeper.
Watch out for:
Keeping small groups.
Support each other through email, etc.
Understand social behaviour.
Motivation is built in when work is seen by all and appreciated.
The students had to work out how to create a wiki, identify content, post it, comment on it, improve it, etc.
3. Teacher Determined, Open-ended, strategic:
Typography exercise
The students were asked by the teacher to identify an article in a magazine and recreate it match size and look with the original. Discuss learning online in a blog or chat forum. The second part of the exercise is to redesign the layout giving reasons for each part.
Dialogue: The first part is concentrated to achieve the learnings the tutor identifies.
The second part involves student control and self learnings.
Involvement: The assignment would start with the learner learning about different type specifications and look and feel. The students can be encouraged to go online and understand what influences layout design and typography. The second part would allow the learner to apply new knowledge.
Support: There could be many ways to provide support- through peer feedback given online or offline. There would be no help extended during the application part of the assignment.
Control: The learner controls what he/she learns about layout design. The learners can manage own learning and discoveries during the execution of the assignment.
Teacher role: Guide
4. Learner Directed, Open-ended strategic:
Mentoring paper,
Final case-study
Dialogue: The learning is completely learner lead- the identification of topic for research. There is a choice of discussion groups on the web. Possibility of using web tools and techniques to communicate and maintain dialogue in the activity.
Involvement: Because the topic of research is learner motivated, student involvement is also high. “ Learners relate the learning to their own personal, vocational and academic needs.”
Support: The learner can reach out to the teacher for help, feedback, etc. over email, etc. The teacher can be “ in the background, offering advice on procedures and resources. The structure and design of the online learning facilities provide a framework of support within which the learner has considerable discretion.”
Control: “ The learner determines the goals and outcomes and monitors progress.”
Teacher role: Facilitator
What is the meaning and duties of the teacher as an instructor, coach, guide and facilitator?
Teacher as Instructor: Source of information. E.g. lecturer
Teacher as Coach: “Your role shifts from one of control of what and how students learn to one of mediation of student learning. This coaching role requires teachers to be as engaged in learning as their students and to develop a sense of flow in our teaching beliefs, actions, and decisions.
In PBL, coaching is a process of goal setting, modeling, guiding, facilitating, monitoring, and providing feedback to students to support their active and self-directed thinking and learning.
Teachers accomplish these goals by encouraging as much active learning as possible and by finding ways to make students’ thinking visible.”
Teacher as facilitator: “Engages in negotiation, stimulates and monitors discussion and project work but does not control.”
Teacher as guide: “Helps students to construct their own meaning by modeling, mediating, explaining when needed, redirecting focus, providing options”
Teacher as co-learner or co-investigator: “Teacher considers self as learner; willing to take risks to explore areas outside his or her expertise; collaborates with other teachers and practicing professionals.”
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