The discussion this week focused on a couple of really important issues for online teachers. Issues of not only what type of technology are appropriate for asynchronous and synchronous communication, but also how those technologies can be used to foster student collaboration and what type of strategies and management policies might need to be developed so that they are used effectively by students. It seems to me that these tools, and subsequent management styles and policies, can be broken down into three categories: information delivery, student participation in social creation of knowledge, and collaborative group work. I think Anna's Weebly website did a nice job of outlining both a range of asynchronous and synchronous tools as well as some strategies for facilitating discussion and feedback. Discussion on the tools was OK, but after a year of similar type discussions I think some questions with specific scenarios to cause us to examine situations and defend a position might have been a little bit more stimulating. Personal experience and instructor preference and teaching style are certainly factors in choosing communication tools, but I think one always has to keep in mind the type of content being delivered and the end goal of the course. For example, more discussion is needed in a literature course vs. a math course. OR perhaps discussion with a different type of emphasis. Might have been interesting to see that discussion spin off in that direction.
I found the second thread on discussion boards very interesting, and also the toughest one for me personally. I'm not entirely sold on the whole concept. It just seems to take so much more time composing thoughts and typing out messages than speaking in a classroom discussion. Lots of added work for the instructor as well. At any rate, examining the purpose of the discussion board, how to encourage participation, and how to manage (including assess participation) is certainly a very important topic. Due to the lack of immediacy in the online environment, the discussion board is the pulse of the learning community. And I admit, it does afford the opportunity to research information and cite sources, etc. that would be difficult to do in fast paced f2f class discussion. So, there is the potential to examine issues in greater depth. Now that I think of it, I guess having a record of particularly good or "rich" threads that share lots of resources can be a real benefit as well.
Jury is still out on the role of the instructor in online discussions. I know that many subscribe to the "guide on the side" and research supports that role as well, but perhaps it's just my style of direct instruction that makes me want to be more in control and "direct traffic" so to speak. I'm sure that would be quickly tempered with a large class, however, as the little experience I've had in the last semester and this summer has proven how much effort goes into playing the role of the gardener planting, cultivating, and pruning discussion threads. Discussion boards can also be overwhelming for the student, so I think a very clear discussion policy is needed to outline how much participation is required and of what quality and how students will be assessed on their participation on the board. At first, I was really feeling overwhelmed with all the discussion questions plus activities in this class. Especially when groups decided to each do separate activities or discussions. However, I noticed the further the class went, either due to the fact everyone was starting to feel overwhelmed or through reading and researching how to facilitate discussions, more groups started to introduce choice and specific directions for how to participate in their activity. That was very helpful.
I'm glad that Chris brought up the issue of group work and collaboration. Group work is certainly a point of contention among all students. Like a disturbance in the force, you can almost hear the whole class emit a groan at reading a syllabus full of collaborative activities. Yes, I still groan. BUT in the last year I've learned some good strategies for dealing with group work assignments. I do think they are necessary for two reasons 1) good form of assessment to have students create a unique product, especially for courses that require mastery of conceptual knowledge 2) the real world requires group communication skills and the ability to find compromise and create group consensus to create real world product. I was fortunate to experience the team contract in one of my first courses in the ITEC program. Not only do I think it's a good tool, but it really brings to light the importance of structure and group decision making process for how the project will be handled. Now when I start a group project, I use the team agreement as a framework to help my group make some important decisions on communication and responsibility at the very beginning of the process. A little bit of contention in the beginning is much better than disfunction at the deadline.
I liked the spirit of Josh's collaborative activity, and I think that type of activity can be very useful for students. Not only for creating a list of resources, but also for creating a glossary of terms or any other type of resources that draw on strengths of either collective knowledge or group production. Unfortunately, doesn't look like many people posted resources. I found one or two new ones, but many were tried and true technologies.
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