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Computer II ITEC 106 Distance Education: Facilitating student communication. EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN UNIVERSITY Faculty of Education Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technology Teacher Education. Overview. Aim:
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Computer II ITEC 106Distance Education:Facilitating student communication EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN UNIVERSITY Faculty of Education Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technology Teacher Education
Overview • Aim: • to demonstrate effective communication with and between distant students • Objectives: • introduce some communication methods for distance education students • demonstrate use of an electronic bulletin board for discussion and assessment • Learning outcome: • understand stages of development in e-moderated discussion • use an electronic bulletin board for class discussion
Communication tools • Asynchronous: • Telephone - individual • Email – individual or group • Print – group • Web page - group • Electronic Bulletin Boards or Computer Moderated Conferencing - group • Synchronous: • Chat rooms - all participants log on at once
Overcoming isolation • Distance education students often feel very isolated • Overcoming this isolation is a big challenge • Good access to a tutor is essential • It is most helpful if students can communicate with each other, building their own learning community
Chat rooms • can be difficult to organise across time zones • discussion can lack depth (limited by keyboard skills) • it takes skill by the moderator to plan the session and control the discussion • large groups can be broken up into smaller groups and sent to other rooms for short sub-discussions • ask them to return and report to the whole group at a particular time • The chat session can be captured & posted to a BB for those who can’t attend
Social chat • Students can also use chat rooms to meet others at pre-arranged times without their tutor for • Friendly “café” chat sessions • Informal study groups • Requires some leadership by individuals who want to start a study group
Electronic Bulletin Boards • E-moderator (tutor) and individuals contribute at their convenience • Allows more reflective contribution than chat rooms • Contributions are preserved • Boards may be multipurpose: social and study; OR • Special boards can be set up for particular tasks or discussion groups • The e-moderator can set deadlines for tasks
Stage 1: access & motivation • Learning about the benefits of computer moderated discussion boards • Learning about the course requirements • Setting up and configuring software • Navigating to the BB • Be prepared to provide help or to direct participants to a help desk
Stage 2: social introductions • Overcoming shyness and making introductions • Some enjoy being ‘faceless’ • Others will ‘lurk’ for a while before they have the courage to contribute • Introducing netiquette • Make sure participants understand the need to protect their own privacy and respect others’ privacy
Rules for discussion groups • Be courteous: participate responsibly • Participate actively • Write clearly • Build ideas on what others say • Question the opinions of others • Actively read and question the text • Be credible: back up your statements • Stick to the subject (Based on Shoop, 1999)
Stage 3: information exchange • Learning to use the information resources supplied • Learning to search & use the Internet • Sharing information • Helping others with solutions to problems • Information overload may become a problem • Silence is OK, but be alert for dropouts
Stages 4 & 5: knowledge construction & development • Students interact and respond much more participatively • Students take responsibility for their own learning • Introduce new discussion threads • Suggest alternative approaches • Support each other • E-moderator becomes a participant, not a tutor
Evaluation • Provide opportunities for • students to reflect on their own learning and contribution • feedback on the learning experience • evaluation of your performance as e-moderator • Reflect and revise your e-moderating strategies
References Salmon, Gilly. (2000). E-moderating: the key to teaching and learning online. London: Kogan Page. ISBN 0 7494 3110 5http://oubs.open.ac.uk/e-moderating/ Palloff, Rena M. and Pratt, Keith. (2001). Lessons from the cyberspace classroom: the realities of online teaching. San Francisco: Jossey Bass. ISBN 0 7879 5519 1
References and Resources Berge, Z. and Collins, M.Resources for moderators and facilitators onlinehttp://www.emoderators.com/moderators.shtml Handbook for Instructors on the use of electronic class discussions http://www.osu.edu/education/ftad/Publications/elecdisc/pages/home.htm Shoop, Linda. (2000). Developing interactive competence with student centered discussion. [Draft Manual] http://home.kiski.net/~dwright/scd/guid.html