Task 4.2 The Key to Learner Support is the Community
The Key to Learner Support is the Community
28 April 2012
Written by Lorraine Taylor – wlaj@orcon.net.nz
11052568 – Massey University
The way we learn has changed drastically as knowledge is no longer stored and shoved but is moving and accessible. It has not been an easy transformation as someone who learned and then stored knowledge for future use to one that continually tries to find ways to tap into the vast knowledge that exists in learning communities. These communities are being born, they are finding ways to operate, some are ineffective, others reach out to a wider audience but all attempt to harness the knowledge flow that is so accessible in our world today.
Morgan and McKenzie(2003) accurately described how difficult it is to provide learner support in today’s world. The research examined how a lecturer was supporting students in an online context. Cleary (1999) recognizes that early adopters of new methodologies act as trail blazers for their less experimental colleagues. Morgan and Mckenzie (2003) articulated real problems with supporting learning in an online context. This allowed me to reflect critically by weaving my experiences in a F2F classroom with current research regarding the development of community in online contexts.
As a classroom teacher I have had the most success when a community of learners is created, a cohesive group that relies on each other and learns from each other. Morgan and McKenzie (2003) attempted to become the focus of the support by spending copious amounts of time developing personal dialogue with each student. In that end, their measure of success was in polling student’s views to determine if they felt a connection with the instructor. This is in contradiction to how I would determine success as a classroom teacher. Success for me has been determined by allowing the students to become independent learners and to seek support from their peers. It requires me to fade to the background but to continually probe groups of learners to reach beyond their current understanding. Morgan and McKenzie made the mistake of doing what many teachers attempt to do, trying to provide individual support only to in the end feel frustration exemplified in their statement that “online learning facilitators can only give so much to students” (2003, p. 11). According to Stacey (2002), learning revolves around learners conversations about what they are learning pointing to the importance of developing a collaborative community of learners. Facilitation is the essence of creating a positive online learning community and needs to be an integral part of the learning design (McCoombs, 2005).
As an active online student for the past year and a half, I can attest to the enormous benefits of being part of an online learning community strategically facilitated by instructors. Courses I took in education where highly interactive and prompted by the instructor to develop connections and to seek assistance from the community. More personal interaction occurred with these instructors. Alternatively, a Project Management course with 120 students was equally beneficial. The professor developed an online presence of being available but pushing students to seek help from the community. In time, the student forum became frequented more but was not visited by the Professor. It was monitored and general issues of concern were dealt with accordingly. Student groups consisting of ten members each were challenged with completing collaborative tasks for a small percentage of their grade. I attribute the success of our group to members willingly and expertly being socially present amongst the smaller community.
I have challenged the idea put forward by Morgan and McKenzie in that social presence within a community of learners invested in learning collaboratively is far more beneficial than one-on-one connections between an instructor and a student. Moore (1993) describes transactional distance as the psychological and communication space between learners and instructors. It requires that the instructor develops a structure, a learning design, and equally important the learners display engagement with fellow learners and with content. Kehrwald (2008) defines social presence as a critical element in supporting online communication in regards to interpersonal interaction, collaboration and the development of online communities. Time is better spent in developing the community of learners as this gives them skills to move on to other learning communities through continued life-long learning and workplace situations.
References
Cleary, K. (1999). A pilgrim's progress: How the 'late majoriy' walk the high wire of teachnology-based innovation. Paper presented at the HERDSA Annual International Conference Melbourne.
Kehrwald, B. A. (2008). Understanding social presence in text-based online learning environments. Disatance Education, 29(1), 86-106.
McCoombs, B. L., & Vakili, D. (2005). A learner-centered framework for e-learning. Teachers College Record (107), 1582-1600.
Moore, M. (1993). Theory of transactional distance. In D. Keegan (Ed.), Theoretical principles of distance education (pp. 22-38). London and New York: Routledge.
Morgan, C. K., & McKenzie, A. D. (2003). Is enough too much? The dilemma for online distance learner supporters. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 4.
Stacey, E. (2002). Learning links online: Establishing constructivist and collaborative learning environments. Paper presented at the Untangling the Web: Establishing Learning Links, Melbourne. http://dro.deakin.edu.au/eserv/DU:30004665/stacey-learninglinksonline-2002.pdf
Task 4.2 The Importance of Being an e-Learning Champion
The Importance of Being an e-Learning Champion
5 May 2012
Written by Lorraine Taylor – wlaj@orcon.net.nz
11052568 – Massey University
Technology potentially can have a detrimental effect on human communication. It is important to humanize the experiences of combining technology with social activity (Kehrwald, 2008) to support the development of collaborative learning communities. In order to humanize the experiences it is necessary to understand the real and practical issues that face colleagues so that gaps can be bridged. For example, Morgan and McKenzie (2003) accurately described their situation as forerunners into the new frontier of online learning. An e-Learning champion seeks to understand these real and practical issues in order to bridge the gap between the desire and the execution of e-Learning.
A pedagogical framework for engaging in e-learning is essential. Promoting e-learning for it’s own sake is not adequate. Inclusion of e-learning practice should focus on improving the student experience by incorporating e-learning effectively into teaching (Sharpe, Benfield, & Francis, 2006). A fellow peer wrote that it is ‘e-Learning’ not ‘electronic-L’ signifying the emphasis on the learning not on the mode of transfer. Learning about new technologies is important but the most crucial factor is that online teachers need opportunities where they can explore ways to transform existing pedagogies (Baran, Correia, & Thompson, 2011) to online and blended learning environments. E-learning champions assist others with technological pedagogical knowledge - TPK (Harris, Mishra, & Koehler, 2009) which is an understanding of how teaching and learning change when particular technologies are used. Harris et. al (2009) extends this interaction by including content in the mix. Technological, pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) that ensures pedagogical techniques are applied to the specific teaching of content in different subject areas depending on learner’s needs and available technologies.
The success of e-Learning in education or workplace settings firstly depends on the will and commitment of the leadership of an organization. This includes the necessary technical and financial support to ensure effective implementation of e-learning programs. Secondly, success depends on e-learning champions that support and promote the effective use of e-learning into content settings involving a variety of learner types. Numerous discussions throughout the course of this paper have centered on how to apply new innovations in technology with current practice. Pleasantly, through the seminars, opportunities were given to experiment with some of these new technologies. This promoted a learner-centered approach to inquiry and exploration (Gunawardena & Zittle, 1995). Through this exploration learner-learner interaction and learner-instructor interaction, (Moore, 1989) and learner-interface interaction occurred (Gunawardena & Zittle, 1995). I learned a lot about technology, pedagogy and social online presence by actively participating in learning discussions and activities. I learnt alongside e-Learning champions who promoted and supported effective pedagogical uses of technology within F2F, blended and online environments.
References
Baran, E., Correia, A. P., & Thompson, A. (2011). Transforming online teaching practice: critical analysis of the literature on the roles and competencies of online teachers. Distance Education, 32(3), 421-439. doi: 10.1080/01587919.2011.610293
Gunawardena, C. N., & Zittle, R. (1995). An examination of teaching and learning processes in distance education and implications for designing instruction. In M. F. Beaudoin (Ed.), Distance Education Symposium 3: Instruction (Vol. 12, pp. 51-63). State College, PA: American Center for the Study of Distance Education.
Harris, J., Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. (2009). Teachers' technological pedagogical content knowledge and learning activity types: Curriculum-based technology integration reframed. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 41(4), 393-416.
Kehrwald, B. A. (2008). Understanding social presence in text-based online learning environments. Disatance Education, 29(1), 86-106.
Moore, M. G. (1989). Editorial: Three types of interaction. The American Journal of Distance Education 3(2), 1-6.
Morgan, C. K., & McKenzie, A. D. (2003). Is enough too much? The dilemma for online distance learner supporters. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 4.
Sharpe, R., Benfield, G., & Francis, R. (2006). Implementing a university e-learning strategy: levers fro change within academic schools. Research in Learning Technology, 14(2), 135-151.