Following what was asked by Prof. Morten in Unit 4-Activ 2, we produced these two small videos to explain how we did the video about "Transparency in Cooperative Learning". It's the first of a small group (read the posts with the same tittle as this entry), all related to the master Elearning Pedagogy, developed in http://www.univ-ab.pt/.
I hope these nice avatars help you to understand how we solve the problems with our modest capacity and achieved the learning goals. They're not, each one, giving their own opinion. The aim is rather showing the steps that we took in group.
I decided to create different entries to talk about several activities developed throughout this semester to facilitate your viewing. But if you prefer to read the text, please let me know.
Mostrar mensagens com a etiqueta PPEL09. Mostrar todas as mensagens
Mostrar mensagens com a etiqueta PPEL09. Mostrar todas as mensagens
2010/02/21
Final report: improving the learning object
Following what was asked by Prof. Morten in Unit 4-Activ 2, we produced these three small videos to explain our difficulties in doing the newspaper "Teaching Online Techniques" (LO of Unit2 Activ2).
To avoid being too obvious, we decided to show a little creativity this time. Instead of writing a text, we have here the help of several nice avatars to explain our second work in this master semester about the interesting issue Teaching Online Techniques (http://www.univ-ab.pt/ ).
Altough you see here three different tellers as representatives of the group, the clarification should be understood as only one (text divided into shares). This means that nobody is giving his own opinion. The aim is rather showing the steps that were taken in group.
If you prefer to read the full text, please let me know. I'll be pleased to send you by email.
To avoid being too obvious, we decided to show a little creativity this time. Instead of writing a text, we have here the help of several nice avatars to explain our second work in this master semester about the interesting issue Teaching Online Techniques (http://www.univ-ab.pt/ ).
Altough you see here three different tellers as representatives of the group, the clarification should be understood as only one (text divided into shares). This means that nobody is giving his own opinion. The aim is rather showing the steps that were taken in group.
If you prefer to read the full text, please let me know. I'll be pleased to send you by email.
Final report: improving the learning object
Following what was asked by Prof. Morten in Unit 4-Activ 2, we produced these three small videos to explain our difficulties in doing the video "Online Education: transparency and visibility" (LO of Unit3 Activ2).
As we did together more than one learning object, we decided to be a little ambitious on this last one (see video cited above). Maybe being better prepared to understand the new theories about online education, we could create a more complete video. Our main thought was to show how the analyzed theory could be tested, and we believe that this video was able to demonstrate it.
This video doesn't present any theory this time, because you can find elsewhere in this blog some annotated bibliography about interesting concepts studied in the course Elearning Pedagogy (http://www.univ-ab.pt/). Anyway, this video is a complement to those important papers.
Now about the following avatars...
Altough you see here three different tellers as representatives of the group, the clarification should be understood as only one (text divided into shares). This means that nobody is giving his own opinion. The aim is rather showing the steps that were taken in group.
If you prefer to read the full text, please let me know. I'll be pleased to send you by email.
As we did together more than one learning object, we decided to be a little ambitious on this last one (see video cited above). Maybe being better prepared to understand the new theories about online education, we could create a more complete video. Our main thought was to show how the analyzed theory could be tested, and we believe that this video was able to demonstrate it.
This video doesn't present any theory this time, because you can find elsewhere in this blog some annotated bibliography about interesting concepts studied in the course Elearning Pedagogy (http://www.univ-ab.pt/). Anyway, this video is a complement to those important papers.
Now about the following avatars...
Altough you see here three different tellers as representatives of the group, the clarification should be understood as only one (text divided into shares). This means that nobody is giving his own opinion. The aim is rather showing the steps that were taken in group.
If you prefer to read the full text, please let me know. I'll be pleased to send you by email.
2010/01/25
Review of annotated bibliography
I’d like to comment the annotated bibliography that Mónica Filipa posted on her blog.
We may find there several interesting entries about transparency in Cooperative Online Education, including learning objects. This reveals that the author had done an extensive research and was concerned to explain thoroughly this theory, showing how the researchers are dealing with the problems and how they overcame them. The papers suggested are a serious contribution to understand the theory's principal concepts, because they often present illustrative study cases.
Most of the time, Mónica shows a critical spirit, developing her own interpretation about the material and resources she had read, trying to show us the most important aspects (cooperation, visibility, transparency in online education) and how/where they should be improved. (See here an example).
The posts are well organized (sometimes, the sentences have a different color), with the main ideas gathered in a logical way, i.e., we learn what are the problems studied and the solutions defended. The citations are efficiently contextualized with the text. The author’s name and paper’s title are graphically identified, whose online access is permitted through the link.
However, the habitual references aren't visible and the author forgot to indicate when she had retrieved the materials.
As a suggestion, I think it would be easier to the viewer if the posts had different titles. Since Mónica had decided to create several posts, I believe the blog would benefit, for example, from the specialized research done on Internet by interested users.
We may find there several interesting entries about transparency in Cooperative Online Education, including learning objects. This reveals that the author had done an extensive research and was concerned to explain thoroughly this theory, showing how the researchers are dealing with the problems and how they overcame them. The papers suggested are a serious contribution to understand the theory's principal concepts, because they often present illustrative study cases.
Most of the time, Mónica shows a critical spirit, developing her own interpretation about the material and resources she had read, trying to show us the most important aspects (cooperation, visibility, transparency in online education) and how/where they should be improved. (See here an example).
The posts are well organized (sometimes, the sentences have a different color), with the main ideas gathered in a logical way, i.e., we learn what are the problems studied and the solutions defended. The citations are efficiently contextualized with the text. The author’s name and paper’s title are graphically identified, whose online access is permitted through the link.
However, the habitual references aren't visible and the author forgot to indicate when she had retrieved the materials.
As a suggestion, I think it would be easier to the viewer if the posts had different titles. Since Mónica had decided to create several posts, I believe the blog would benefit, for example, from the specialized research done on Internet by interested users.
2010/01/22
Online education: transparency and visibility
Together with two learning partners of a master's degree that I'm attending, I created this video that focuses on how transparency thought support some learning activities on the credit unit PPEL, because we believe that our course has great potentialities within cooperative learning theory. We hope that this idea is clear on the video.
Unfortunately, I'm not able to guarantee a video with a good image, by posting it on Youtube. Although the sound is perfect, it seems that some visual quality is at risk there...
Everybody cited on the video kindly allowed us to use their personal data.
Well, enjoy it and feel free to comment.
Unfortunately, I'm not able to guarantee a video with a good image, by posting it on Youtube. Although the sound is perfect, it seems that some visual quality is at risk there...
Everybody cited on the video kindly allowed us to use their personal data.
Well, enjoy it and feel free to comment.
2010/01/12
Teaching as transparent learning
George Siemens discusses on his blog (retrieved January 9, 2010) some questions about transparency in online education. This thought is interesting: "When someone decides to share their thoughts and ideas in a transparent manner, they become a teacher to those who are observing." We might conclude that the members of a learning community learn better when each one knows the other's important aspects, besides producing and sharing information.
Because the value of transparent learning became more apparent to him, he encouraged his students to profit of networks, such as blogging, discussions in Moodle, language translations, cohorts in Second Life. As the course facilitators, the teachers were active in sharing their ideas and views, but they "were only two nodes in multi-node network".
Some important thoughts in this post are:
The real value of the course was in fostering connections between learners and concepts.
The varying cognitive architecture of those who are new to a subject and those with significant experience provides support to the value of peer-to-peer learning.
A student who has just started blogging can likely relate better to someone who is still only considering blogging. Or a student who has just mastered key math, physics, or philosophical concepts is better able to relate to students who are still grappling with the concepts.
My argument is this: when we make our learning transparent, we become teachers. Even if we are new to a field and don’t have the confidence to dialogue with experts, we can still provide important learning opportunities to others.
Transparency in expressing our understanding, our frustrations, and our insights helps others who are at a similar stage. Yes, we’ll participate in the broader discussions held by experts in time, but lurking is no excuse to deny others (who are also new to the field) our progressive insights.
Transparency in Cooperative Online Education
Christian Dalsgaard and Morten Flate Paulsen, in the paper "Transparency in Cooperative Online Education", (22 pages) (retrieved January 9, 2010) try to answer to the question: What is the potential of social networking within cooperative online education?
Since the abstract explains their purpose better than I, here it is:
“The purpose of this article is to discuss the following question: Social networking does not necessarily involve communication, dialogue, or collaboration. Instead, the authors argue that transparency is a unique feature of social networking services. Transparency gives students insight into each other’s actions. Cooperative learning seeks to develop virtual learning environments that allow students to have optimal individual freedom within online learning communities. This article demonstrates how cooperative learning can be supported by transparency. To illustrate this with current examples, the article presents NKI Distance Education’s surveys and experiences with cooperative learning. The article discusses by which means social networking and transparency may be utilized within cooperative online education. In conclusion, the article argues that the pedagogical potential of social networking lies within transparency and the ability to create awareness among students”.
The authors argue that transparency is important to online education, as a prerequisite for distance students to work cooperatively. They believe that transparency enables students to be visible to each other as potential partners and resources.
I’d like to focus my comment on the relation between transparency and cooperative learning. The pedagogical potential of transparency lies within developing social networks in which students’ activities are visible (whose privacy is assured) to other students. We learn that “cooperative learning and a socio-cultural approach provide a strong motive for support of transparency between students”. Maybe with the condition that all students on distance education should contribute to the learning community, either with high quality contributions or with low quality contributions, be visible as potential partners and resources for others. That’s the challenge.
The use of social software (blogs, wikis, social networking sites, RSS and social bookmarking) by the learning community is discussed also in the paper, not only to understand how users produce, share and refine information of mutual interest, but how it could be used to strengthen affinity between students. For example, if a personal tool like del.icio.us is available to others, this way it supports transparency and become social, because students can connect to and subscribe to the personal tools of other students. Thus, social networking is a pedagogical cooperative supplement within a virtual learning community.
***MY SAY***
I agree that creating awareness among students is a good pedagogical thought, because on online education is important that students be motivated to work together with someone that they will hardly meet face-to-face ever. Arguing in favor that transparency might support cooperative learning between students, that it has a pedagogical potential within a virtual learning community is a great contribution to debate the challenges of online education.
Since the abstract explains their purpose better than I, here it is:
“The purpose of this article is to discuss the following question: Social networking does not necessarily involve communication, dialogue, or collaboration. Instead, the authors argue that transparency is a unique feature of social networking services. Transparency gives students insight into each other’s actions. Cooperative learning seeks to develop virtual learning environments that allow students to have optimal individual freedom within online learning communities. This article demonstrates how cooperative learning can be supported by transparency. To illustrate this with current examples, the article presents NKI Distance Education’s surveys and experiences with cooperative learning. The article discusses by which means social networking and transparency may be utilized within cooperative online education. In conclusion, the article argues that the pedagogical potential of social networking lies within transparency and the ability to create awareness among students”.
The authors argue that transparency is important to online education, as a prerequisite for distance students to work cooperatively. They believe that transparency enables students to be visible to each other as potential partners and resources.
I’d like to focus my comment on the relation between transparency and cooperative learning. The pedagogical potential of transparency lies within developing social networks in which students’ activities are visible (whose privacy is assured) to other students. We learn that “cooperative learning and a socio-cultural approach provide a strong motive for support of transparency between students”. Maybe with the condition that all students on distance education should contribute to the learning community, either with high quality contributions or with low quality contributions, be visible as potential partners and resources for others. That’s the challenge.
The use of social software (blogs, wikis, social networking sites, RSS and social bookmarking) by the learning community is discussed also in the paper, not only to understand how users produce, share and refine information of mutual interest, but how it could be used to strengthen affinity between students. For example, if a personal tool like del.icio.us is available to others, this way it supports transparency and become social, because students can connect to and subscribe to the personal tools of other students. Thus, social networking is a pedagogical cooperative supplement within a virtual learning community.
***MY SAY***
I agree that creating awareness among students is a good pedagogical thought, because on online education is important that students be motivated to work together with someone that they will hardly meet face-to-face ever. Arguing in favor that transparency might support cooperative learning between students, that it has a pedagogical potential within a virtual learning community is a great contribution to debate the challenges of online education.
2010/01/11
Supporting transparency between students
Christian Dalsgaard, in his papers Supporting Transparency between Students (4 pages) and Social Networking Sites: Transparency in Online Education (6 pages), (retrieved January 8, 2010) is interested in showing how social software/web 2.0 has a role in the relations between students: "the basis of this case was to empower students by providing them with tools for individual use and social interaction". We may know these tools (weblogs, social bookmarks, socail networking) and that students have no difficulty to use them to contact their colleagues and friends. But how far do students know each other while using these social tools in collaborative working? The author explores this question (increasing of transparency between students) through the results of a case study in a university course.
Dalsgaard says that transparency "implies that the doings of students and teachers are made visible within a learning environment." He's main concern is not to understand how students collaborate to achieve the activities within the LMS. Instead, the author wishes to prove that these sharing and communication in this environment might not mean that students create a personal relation. For example, in discussion forums, does one need to see other's personal profile? However, if the students communicate through social software, that may be different... As thinks Dalsgaard, "communication within social networks is a matter of transparency", even social networking do not necessary involve communication, dialogue or collaboration similar to discussion forums (send messages or documents). In a site of that kind, for example, Facebook or Myspace, there is a personal page with a profile, wich the owner develops and modifies. The second paper mentioned above argues that a central characteristic of these social networking sites is "a combination of personalization and socialization." In opposition to a discussion forum, where you are "visible" only when you post a message, there are the personal page - the owner can chose the look and content of the page - that can be viewed or the activities that can be followed by others, this means that all the actions are transparent. On the other hand, communicate and sharing is possible in those sites because people uptade their profiles, add pictures or texts which their "friends" follow and comment. Their pedagogical potential is that student's own work interact with his personal page. As the author clarifies, a profile page is not personal in the sense that it is private; it can be made public."
So, education might profit if students in a course are aware not only of each other's work, activities and thoughts, but also be each other's resources. This is possible when transparency exists between students: if my colleague is visible to me, I may be more confident to see how we may help each other to improve our learning.
Some author's conclusions are:
a) It's possible to make students visible through their writings and questions (colaborative working, discussion forums, weblogs, social bookmarking).
b) Weblogs encourage empowerment, because they are open to individual or personal writing of students.
c) From the point of view of transparency, the problem with the employment of social bookmarking in this case study was that they were not read very much by other students.
d) Although the weblogs supported tansparency, they did not fully support the collaborative work of the students.
e) The personal page provides a basis and a starting point for social networking. On the other hand, the starting point for social interaction in discussion forums is the forum itself.
***MY SAY***
Online educators and education institutions might, in my opinion, profit from these study cases, because the author discussed important questions related to the sucess of the online students learning. The way how these interact while developping activities may depend on the awareness of each others' thoughts and opinions. So, I believe that the educational use of digital media should support the transparency between students. Thus, the discussion forum, for example, created within the LMS may not be sufficient. The personal nature of weblogs and social networkings showed that they are an useful educational ressource too. Another important issue is that the information and resources to be shared are developed by the students and made available to others, with a positive control by themselves over their activities.
2009/12/16
Teacher workload
Hello all!
After reading the interesting paper “Effective Workload Management Strategies for the Online Environment” of Dr. Lawrence Ragan (Director of the Faculty Development World Campus, Penn State University (http://www.personal.psu.edu/lcr1), I decided to ask him the following question:
It’s important in an online course that students study at their own pace, but how can an online teacher manage his time when there are many students in an online class? For example, when the teacher set up a discussion forum and all students should participate, or when many of them become frustrated with the course’s difficulties, what can the teacher do not to delay other teaching responsibilities?
The answer of Dr. Lawrence Ragan was:
My answer comes from my training and experience of course, in instructional design. Understanding the dynamics of the online course (number of participants, type of course content, level of learners, grad vs. undergrad, etc...) all influence how we construct and design the online course. I think that the term "asynchronous learning" can be misleading.
Yes, the students can learn at their own pace but usually within a tightly controlled timeframe. For example, a 15 week 3 credit course has to be completed in that time period. Students are not free to be working on week 2 assignment during week 10. I'm not sure we always do a very good job explaining this aspect to the students. Although there are online courses that are independent learning where the student is free to progress or not at their own pace, most online courses that I see being developed and delviered are cohort-based.
To the issue of faculty time management in the online course, my answer would be the same. We must design a course that is "reasonable" for the learner AND the instructor. There are tradeoffs of course, more students may equal less student-to-faculty interactions. BUT, there are also other strategies that we can use that engage the learners that do not require additional faculty oversight.
I see these issues and challenges as the "fun" of our field. It is where we get to bring the artistry of teaching to the pragmatic constraints we deal with the operating parameters.
2009/11/30
Teaching online techniques: learning object
Here is a newspaper about online teaching techniques, in particular the use of forums and role-playing, that I've done in a group work within the curricular unit PPEL.
2009/11/28
ISSUU - You publish
What's ISSUU? Watch this video to know it.
If you want a more complete video about how to upload documents to ISSUU, just follow this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLVN4K7Nx0o.
If you want a more complete video about how to upload documents to ISSUU, just follow this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLVN4K7Nx0o.
2009/11/24
Online teacher workload - annotated bibliography
“Reducing the Online Instructor’s Workload: Tips on designing and administering online courses can save faculty valuable time while producing high-quality content”
Sheridan, Rick, in Educause Quartely, number 3, 2006, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/eqm06311.pdf (3 pages)
Many hours are dedicated to design and administrate an online course, even more when a few changes in the content or format are required later. So there’s a need to reduce faculty workload. The author is an experienced online teacher that discusses in this paper the way teacher and students might save time on online courses, by making them easy to administrate through, for example, a discussion forum or a reference section with links to health-related sites. This teacher is aware too of the advantages and disadvantages of online learning, and concludes that “a well-designed and well-managed online course could save an instructor a quarter of the time normally devoted to teaching in a traditional classroom”.
“Faculty self-study research project: examining the online workload”
Thompson Melody M. (The Pennsylvania State University) JALN Volume 8, Issue 3 — June 2004, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.educause.edu/Resources/FacultySelfStudyResearchProjec/153176 (15 pages)
This paper describes a project in which six faculty members teaching courses through the Penn State World Campus conducted studies of the comparative workload in the online environment. Results of the studies indicated that faculty workload for teaching these online courses, as measured by time on task, was comparable to or somewhat less than that for face-to-face courses.
Some conclusions are:
“Achieving the goal of high levels of interaction is often accomplished by implementing tools and strategies that impose a higher workload on faculty.”
“Workload in the online environment is a variable dependent on a number of factors, many of which are amenable to intervention by either the course designer or the faculty member.”
“A model of small faculty research studies, whether supported by an external grant or by institutional research funds, represents an effective and easily replicable approach to examining and addressing the challenges and opportunities of online teaching and learning.”
“Effective Workload Management Strategies for the Online Environment”
Ragan, Lawrence C.; Terheggen, Sara L., (The Pennsylvania State University World Campus)
April 15, 2003, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/pdf/fac/workload_strat.pdf (44 pages)
The workload management strategies discussed in this paper related to the success of an online teaching program are based in four categories: Authoring Strategies, Teaching Strategies, Course Improvement and Revision Strategies, and Institutional Strategies. The aim is to collect and catalog a variety of feedback from experienced online educators in how they reduce the amount of time and energy in the online environment, so online teachers can benefit from this expertise.
Some of the most effective strategies for reducing faculty workload online teaching are, for example, clarifying and enhancing students’ technical skills before registration, providing a detailed syllabus, defining the operating parameters of the course, creating feedback rubrics, establishing a routine.
Much time and energy are required to design, develop, and deliver online course instruction and many educational institutions are now establishing systems and services to support student and faculty use of electronic communications. The adoption of online technologies may resolve issues surrounding the perception of unmanageable workloads, and consequently improve the educational process. The authors believe that “careful application of the strategies above to the needs of online educators can significantly enhance the success of the online education program a work in progress”.
********************************************************************
MY SAY
It seems that online education can be expected to grow over the next decade or so as more and more universities offer it for more and more classes. There is no doubt that it enjoys a degree of novelty and excitement and provides a different experience for many participants. The above studies measure the amount of time instructors and students dedicate to courses, and raise important issues for development and delivery online courses, for university administrations in introducing online classes, for the academics who may push for or be called upon to teach them, and for the students who will take them. The authors consider too how technology can be expected to continue to develop and new problems will continue to arise.
Just like the physical classroom, there is considerable time involved in grading, updating web pages and responding to students. Even updating may be easy, there is some time involved in the set-up of online classes. We learned that these classes meet for a specified amount of time in the online environment, and students are given a wide variety of group and individual work to complete outside of class. A key problem in facilitating a successful online course is the highly time-consuming nature of the administrative and pedagogical tasks involved.
In order to help their students succeed in class, online teachers begin to understand that technology has improved and may contribute to handling the workload of an online class. So, organization and time management are the keys to reduce online workload.
Sheridan, Rick, in Educause Quartely, number 3, 2006, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/eqm06311.pdf (3 pages)
Many hours are dedicated to design and administrate an online course, even more when a few changes in the content or format are required later. So there’s a need to reduce faculty workload. The author is an experienced online teacher that discusses in this paper the way teacher and students might save time on online courses, by making them easy to administrate through, for example, a discussion forum or a reference section with links to health-related sites. This teacher is aware too of the advantages and disadvantages of online learning, and concludes that “a well-designed and well-managed online course could save an instructor a quarter of the time normally devoted to teaching in a traditional classroom”.
“Faculty self-study research project: examining the online workload”
Thompson Melody M. (The Pennsylvania State University) JALN Volume 8, Issue 3 — June 2004, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.educause.edu/Resources/FacultySelfStudyResearchProjec/153176 (15 pages)
This paper describes a project in which six faculty members teaching courses through the Penn State World Campus conducted studies of the comparative workload in the online environment. Results of the studies indicated that faculty workload for teaching these online courses, as measured by time on task, was comparable to or somewhat less than that for face-to-face courses.
Some conclusions are:
“Achieving the goal of high levels of interaction is often accomplished by implementing tools and strategies that impose a higher workload on faculty.”
“Workload in the online environment is a variable dependent on a number of factors, many of which are amenable to intervention by either the course designer or the faculty member.”
“A model of small faculty research studies, whether supported by an external grant or by institutional research funds, represents an effective and easily replicable approach to examining and addressing the challenges and opportunities of online teaching and learning.”
“Effective Workload Management Strategies for the Online Environment”
Ragan, Lawrence C.; Terheggen, Sara L., (The Pennsylvania State University World Campus)
April 15, 2003, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/pdf/fac/workload_strat.pdf (44 pages)
The workload management strategies discussed in this paper related to the success of an online teaching program are based in four categories: Authoring Strategies, Teaching Strategies, Course Improvement and Revision Strategies, and Institutional Strategies. The aim is to collect and catalog a variety of feedback from experienced online educators in how they reduce the amount of time and energy in the online environment, so online teachers can benefit from this expertise.
Some of the most effective strategies for reducing faculty workload online teaching are, for example, clarifying and enhancing students’ technical skills before registration, providing a detailed syllabus, defining the operating parameters of the course, creating feedback rubrics, establishing a routine.
Much time and energy are required to design, develop, and deliver online course instruction and many educational institutions are now establishing systems and services to support student and faculty use of electronic communications. The adoption of online technologies may resolve issues surrounding the perception of unmanageable workloads, and consequently improve the educational process. The authors believe that “careful application of the strategies above to the needs of online educators can significantly enhance the success of the online education program a work in progress”.
********************************************************************
MY SAY
It seems that online education can be expected to grow over the next decade or so as more and more universities offer it for more and more classes. There is no doubt that it enjoys a degree of novelty and excitement and provides a different experience for many participants. The above studies measure the amount of time instructors and students dedicate to courses, and raise important issues for development and delivery online courses, for university administrations in introducing online classes, for the academics who may push for or be called upon to teach them, and for the students who will take them. The authors consider too how technology can be expected to continue to develop and new problems will continue to arise.
Just like the physical classroom, there is considerable time involved in grading, updating web pages and responding to students. Even updating may be easy, there is some time involved in the set-up of online classes. We learned that these classes meet for a specified amount of time in the online environment, and students are given a wide variety of group and individual work to complete outside of class. A key problem in facilitating a successful online course is the highly time-consuming nature of the administrative and pedagogical tasks involved.
In order to help their students succeed in class, online teachers begin to understand that technology has improved and may contribute to handling the workload of an online class. So, organization and time management are the keys to reduce online workload.
2009/11/23
Assignments in online education - annotated bibliography
“Assessing group assignments”
In website of the Deakin University - Institute of Teaching and Learning, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.deakin.edu.au/itl/pd/tl-modules/assessment/group-assignments-assess/index.php
“Assessing group assignments poses some challenges. For students who are more familiar with being assessed as individuals, the prospect of their grades being reliant on other students can be daunting. The information provided here has been developed as part of a suite of topics relating to Group assignments. As with all assessment, it is important that there is a logical alignment of learning objectives, learning tasks and assessment criteria.”
“Integrating Online Assignments into Your Course”
In website of the University of Waterloo - Centre for Teaching Excellence, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://cte.uwaterloo.ca/teaching_resources/teaching_tips/tips_icts/integrating_online_assignments_into_courses.pdf (3 pages)
Some options and decision-making criteria for using online assignments in a course are outlined in this article with the purpose to help the teacher to integrate web 2.0 tools in a meaningful way with the rest of his course. The author defend that technology can be used to put almost any assignment online. The key is to have a clear pedagogical reason for using it.
For example, “beyond encouraging participation from reluctant students, online assignments can have a multi-modal design (i.e., graphics, text, audio, virtual hands-on activities) and, if designed appropriately, can also help students reach new learning levels or think more deeply or critically about a given concept.”
And “online assignments also allow for an archive to be created of relevant course information and discussions. This information can be used by students at a later date while studying for a test/exam, or by the instructor to create a Frequently Asked Questions page or to measure students’ understanding of key concepts.”
“Teaching On-line: Not Just Another Teaching Assignment!”
Roger, Hiemstra: PAACE Journal of Lifelong Learning, Vol. 11, 2002, 1-9, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.coe.iup.edu/ace/PAACE%20Journal%20PDF/PDF2002/Hiemstra2002.pdf (9 pages)
“Of the various computer-based technologies, computer-mediated conversations (known hereafter as CMC) seem the most promising and most used technique for on-line teaching (Berge & Collins, 1995). CMC provides opportunities for electronic, asynchronous communication, real-time chatting, the delivery of instructional materials, and student-to-student and student-to-teacher electronic interactions. It is a format that provides considerable flexibility in the way instruction is conceived, delivered, and utilized.
What do you need to know to be successful with on-line teaching? It really is not just another teaching assignment, venue, or location. Converting a current course or developing a new one for an on-line format takes careful planning, good instructional design, and a thorough understanding of the various techniques that make it work.” (Hiemstra Roger)
“Interactive Assignments for Online Students”
Lowry, Pam (Veraldi Instructional Technology Resource Center, Lawrence Technological), retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.iiisci.org/Journal/CV$/sci/pdfs/ZE275ME.pdf (4 pages)
This paper summarizes the faculty member’s instructional strategies involved when creating student interaction assignments. The paper also summarizes the assignments, discussion board, and trends in education from the student’s perspective.
“As the course interactive assignments were being designed and developed, it was important to keep in mind my teaching styles and my student’s learning styles. I was very conscious of this because research on learning styles and how students receive and process information should be included when instructors design courses. It is also important to include experimental activities which involve the use of reflective exercises (Western 2005). While implementing assignments for the course, I tried to keep in mind auditory, tactile, and visual learners. Since an auditory learner is an independent learner, some activities included completing some independent work as well as some teaching strategies including lecturing, discussion, verbal questioning and verbal sharing.” (Pam Lowry)
Some conclusions are:
The instructor needs to reply more on nonverbal communication cues and employ active listening skills.
Instructors can pose additional questions for clarification and summarize what is said to ensure accurate information exchange.
Utilizing synchronous technology, teacher is able to understand student’s verbal response to the content, the assignments, and to respond to their needs.
Interaction between faculty and students can take place virtually.
**********************************************************************
MY SAY
A well designed assignment is an excellent teaching tool and can help students develop research skills, critical thinking skills and subjective knowledge. Assignments are more challenging to grade because of the unique way each student may interpret the instructions. Therefore, the assignments require detailed expectations and elaborate rubrics. For example, providing an optional discussion forum for students to ask questions about each assignment of teacher and classmates may provide some formative feedback and reduce confusion for students. Additionally, even those who never poste to the study hall discussions benefit from the examples, instructions, and questions posted there.
Problems associated with traditional assignment management approaches contribute significantly to assignment turnaround time while much of the process of performing assessment is mechanical, repetitious and a perfect candidate for the application of information technology. It is the combination of these factors that is driving interest in online assignment management systems by many educators and institutions throughout the world.
In website of the Deakin University - Institute of Teaching and Learning, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.deakin.edu.au/itl/pd/tl-modules/assessment/group-assignments-assess/index.php
“Assessing group assignments poses some challenges. For students who are more familiar with being assessed as individuals, the prospect of their grades being reliant on other students can be daunting. The information provided here has been developed as part of a suite of topics relating to Group assignments. As with all assessment, it is important that there is a logical alignment of learning objectives, learning tasks and assessment criteria.”
“Integrating Online Assignments into Your Course”
In website of the University of Waterloo - Centre for Teaching Excellence, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://cte.uwaterloo.ca/teaching_resources/teaching_tips/tips_icts/integrating_online_assignments_into_courses.pdf (3 pages)
Some options and decision-making criteria for using online assignments in a course are outlined in this article with the purpose to help the teacher to integrate web 2.0 tools in a meaningful way with the rest of his course. The author defend that technology can be used to put almost any assignment online. The key is to have a clear pedagogical reason for using it.
For example, “beyond encouraging participation from reluctant students, online assignments can have a multi-modal design (i.e., graphics, text, audio, virtual hands-on activities) and, if designed appropriately, can also help students reach new learning levels or think more deeply or critically about a given concept.”
And “online assignments also allow for an archive to be created of relevant course information and discussions. This information can be used by students at a later date while studying for a test/exam, or by the instructor to create a Frequently Asked Questions page or to measure students’ understanding of key concepts.”
“Teaching On-line: Not Just Another Teaching Assignment!”
Roger, Hiemstra: PAACE Journal of Lifelong Learning, Vol. 11, 2002, 1-9, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.coe.iup.edu/ace/PAACE%20Journal%20PDF/PDF2002/Hiemstra2002.pdf (9 pages)
“Of the various computer-based technologies, computer-mediated conversations (known hereafter as CMC) seem the most promising and most used technique for on-line teaching (Berge & Collins, 1995). CMC provides opportunities for electronic, asynchronous communication, real-time chatting, the delivery of instructional materials, and student-to-student and student-to-teacher electronic interactions. It is a format that provides considerable flexibility in the way instruction is conceived, delivered, and utilized.
What do you need to know to be successful with on-line teaching? It really is not just another teaching assignment, venue, or location. Converting a current course or developing a new one for an on-line format takes careful planning, good instructional design, and a thorough understanding of the various techniques that make it work.” (Hiemstra Roger)
“Interactive Assignments for Online Students”
Lowry, Pam (Veraldi Instructional Technology Resource Center, Lawrence Technological), retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.iiisci.org/Journal/CV$/sci/pdfs/ZE275ME.pdf (4 pages)
This paper summarizes the faculty member’s instructional strategies involved when creating student interaction assignments. The paper also summarizes the assignments, discussion board, and trends in education from the student’s perspective.
“As the course interactive assignments were being designed and developed, it was important to keep in mind my teaching styles and my student’s learning styles. I was very conscious of this because research on learning styles and how students receive and process information should be included when instructors design courses. It is also important to include experimental activities which involve the use of reflective exercises (Western 2005). While implementing assignments for the course, I tried to keep in mind auditory, tactile, and visual learners. Since an auditory learner is an independent learner, some activities included completing some independent work as well as some teaching strategies including lecturing, discussion, verbal questioning and verbal sharing.” (Pam Lowry)
Some conclusions are:
The instructor needs to reply more on nonverbal communication cues and employ active listening skills.
Instructors can pose additional questions for clarification and summarize what is said to ensure accurate information exchange.
Utilizing synchronous technology, teacher is able to understand student’s verbal response to the content, the assignments, and to respond to their needs.
Interaction between faculty and students can take place virtually.
**********************************************************************
MY SAY
A well designed assignment is an excellent teaching tool and can help students develop research skills, critical thinking skills and subjective knowledge. Assignments are more challenging to grade because of the unique way each student may interpret the instructions. Therefore, the assignments require detailed expectations and elaborate rubrics. For example, providing an optional discussion forum for students to ask questions about each assignment of teacher and classmates may provide some formative feedback and reduce confusion for students. Additionally, even those who never poste to the study hall discussions benefit from the examples, instructions, and questions posted there.
Problems associated with traditional assignment management approaches contribute significantly to assignment turnaround time while much of the process of performing assessment is mechanical, repetitious and a perfect candidate for the application of information technology. It is the combination of these factors that is driving interest in online assignment management systems by many educators and institutions throughout the world.
Online teaching techniques - annotated bibliography
“An Exploratory Study into the Efficacy of Learning Objects”
Farha, Nicholas W. (2009): “An Exploratory Study into the Efficacy of Learning Objects”, The Journal of Educators Online, Volume 6, Number 1, Indiana State University, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.thejeo.com/Archives/Volume6Number2/FarhaPaper.pdf (32 pages).
This research is a contribute to investigate the effectiveness of learning objects on instructional technology, by comparing learning outcomes using a learning object with outcomes using a traditional textbook-based method of instruction.
According to the author, a learning object is “a subject matter-specific learning resource or item of content, generally understood to be digital and multimedia-based, which can be reused and–in some cases–combined with other learning objects to form larger pieces of instruction”.
Some conclusions are that learning objects are compatible with the continuously growing world of web-based distance education; that the digital nature of learning objects makes them easily deliverable via the Internet, which lends itself well to the distance education paradigm; and that professional development is an important component in the successful implementation of this instructional technology.
“Student Perceptions of Technology-Based Teaching Methods”
Kline, Jennifer., Van Gundy, Karen. and Liu, Hope (2003): "Student Perceptions of Technology-Based Teaching Methods", Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Atlanta Hilton Hotel, Atlanta, GA, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p106888_index.html
Some data from undergraduate students are examined to see their perceptions of technology use in the classroom. Multivariate quantitative analyses are conducted as to consider student
perceptions about the effectiveness of instructional technology while accounting for differences in math and computer anxiety levels at the beginning and end of the course instruction period.
The present study is based on data collected in fall 2002 for a quasi-experiment conducted in
three undergraduate sociology classes at the University of New Hampshire. Two of the classes were sections of the same introductory statistics course, and the other class was a course titled "Drugs and Society."
The results obtained with this methodology were:
“Qualitative results from the open-ended responses collected thus far show that students express mixed feelings over the use of technology in the classroom. Reactions ranged from overtly negative to enthusiastically positive.”
“Respondent comments suggest that a technology disparity on campuses may occur between residential students and commuters. While residential students have ready access to the latest university systems compatible technology, commuters can be at a disadvantage.”
“Another aspect that emerged from open-ended questions was a sense of alienation that may develop from relying on technology. Some students prefer face-to-face interaction with the teacher and fellow students and, if they aren’t technologically savvy, may fall behind in the course without one-on-one explanation and instruction. Moreover, as one student noted, more introverted students who are unwilling to ask questions or participate in class discussions are enabled to rely on communicating via technology and may be less likely to develop communication skills.”
“Helpful Hints on Effective Online Teaching: Managing the Online Classroom”
In webpage of De Oracle @ UMUC, Online Learning Magazine for UMUC Faculty – Center for Support of Instruction, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://deoracle.org/online-pedagogy/classroom-management/managing-the-online-classroom.html
UMUC faculty share their best practices, strategies and techniques by presenting suggestions in its website. This time the discussions with seasoned faculty members are about the success for effective online teaching, the approaches for carrying the momentum generated at the beginning of the class throughout the duration of the semester.
The main themes are study groups strategies, effective communication, constructive feedback and managing the online classroom.
“Online Teaching and Learning: Faculty Reflections”
Paper presented by Wines, Joan (California Lutheran University), Bianchi, Julius (California Lutheran University) at the ELEVENTH INTERNATIONAL WORLD WIDE WEB CONFERENCE, retrieved on November 18, 2009, from http://www2002.org/CDROM/poster/179/
This paper is based on faculty perceptions of technology's potential for improving teaching and learning in their courses. After developing 29 online projects at CLU, the authors conducted post-project evaluations and interviews to determine faculty impressions of the projects' effects.
Some conclusions are that delivering course content online prompted teachers to improve their teaching strategies (improved teaching) and by posting online examples of students work, many students begun to self-critique their work after comparing with the samples (improved learning). Teachers can display and discuss the work in class, and students who follow the discussion are engaged because they have had to respond to the same assignment.
MY SAY:
I think that the development of learning communities online necessitates the formation of collaborative learning teams who should create online education programs that include efficient teaching and learning through computer mediated communication (CMC). To do so, quality interactive communication must be fostered and developed through the facilitator of the course – the online teacher aware of technological formats.adapted to pedagogical principles of teaching and learning.
Web 2.0 potencial learning applications
Unit 2 - Activity 1: Online teaching techniques
This slideshare shows how web 2.0 tools may have potencial learning applications on online education.
This slideshare shows how web 2.0 tools may have potencial learning applications on online education.
Classroom 2.0 Update 2apr08
View more presentations from NSW Department of Education.
Alternative Assessment Using Web-based Tools
Unit 2 - Activity 1: Online teaching techniques
To see if creating assignments in online education is enough, I propose this video (retrieved Novenber 20, 2009) where some questions are discussed, such as:
a) Are the papers and exams the best way to measure student learning for your course?
b) Are students integrating your content into their personal knowledge bases in a meaningful and useful way?
c) Do students find your assessments interesting and engaging?
Alternative Assessment Using Web-based Tools
View more presentations from sammydog.
2009/11/22
Strategies for Managing the Online Workload
One of the foremost concerns of online instructors is that teaching online requires more time than the traditional face-to-face classroom setting. The Strategies for Managing the Online Workload (SMOW) video podcast (retrieved November 20, 2009) offers a collection of short descriptions, tips, techniques, and methods developed and used by experienced online educators to manage their time more effectively in the online teaching environment.
Here’s a video introduction to the podcast by Larry Regan, Director of Instructional Design and Development, Penn State University World Campus:
Here’s a video introduction to the podcast by Larry Regan, Director of Instructional Design and Development, Penn State University World Campus:
Web 2.0 tools and distance education
Answering what is suggested in Unit 2 - Activity 1: Online teaching techniques, I propose the following:
.
Though I will present later some annotated bibliography about the adoption of Web 2.0 tools in distance education by defining theories and models which have different construct that effect the online teaching techniques, I decided first to gather several sites about educational utilization of Web 2.0 tools, from the point of importance of interaction for distance education.
.
The most common tools of Web 2.0 include blog, wiki, podcast and social network. Technology plays a key role especially for promoting interaction, delivering education and providing communication between teachers-students and students-students. Interaction in distance education is not limited to audio and video, or solely to teacher-student interactions, it must also represents the connectivity, the students’ feel with the distance teacher, aides, peers etc., otherwise without interaction students become autonomous, isolated and procrastinates and drops out (Sherry, 1996).
As a matter of fact, emerging technologies and changing pedagogies bring out the necessity for more effective two way communication, promoting interaction and collaborative working, sharing and flexible participation.
.
SITES ABOUT WEB 2.O TOOLS AND DISTANCE EDUCATION
«This site lists Web 2.0 websites and webtools have potential for use college and university teaching. »
LINK: http://web20teach.blogspot.com/
TEACH WEB 2.0
«We are a group of curious teachers who explore and brainstorm ways to integrate Web 2.0 technologies into our teaching. Some of us meet face-to-face at an independent school in St. Petersburg, Florida. The rest of us are from all over the world.»
LINK: http://teachweb2.wikispaces.com/
Top 25 Web 2.0 Apps to Improve a Student's or Professor's Productivity
«Being productive and getting things done both rely on planning and being organized. But with the hustle and bustle of courses, it's sometimes easy to forget what you have to do and when. So here are 25 Web 2.0 applications (mostly free) that should help you on your quest as a student or professor in being productive.
The idea is that these applications will in some way increase productivity and/or reduce time taken for specific tasks. Thus, some companies are more heavily represented because their products are designed for productivity.»
LINK: http://oedb.org/library/beginning-online-learning/top-25-web20-productivity-apps
Useful Web 2.0 Tools
«This powerpoint is a short collaboration of three Web 2.0 tools I think would be successful when implemented in a classroom environment.»
LINK: http://www.slideshare.net/jgarabedian11746/useful-web-20-tools
Web 2.0 and New Media Tools for Organization and Planning
«Many students with learning disabilities have difficulty with executive function – organizing, planning, keeping track of time, remembering information and keeping track of multiple tasks can all present difficulties for students with LD. Typically, individuals who struggle with executive function use a variety of strategies to help with organization and planning; students may use agenda books and calendars, to-do lists, organizers or detailed checklists for tasks and assignments. »
LINK: http://www.inclusiveschools.org/Web_%2526_New_Media_Tools
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