The way forward

So.... where to now. Technology changes are bringing the Internet and online learning into the classroom so how do we cater to the needs of those at the bottom of the learning ladder. I think the answer to that is we introduce it slowly at the first opportunity we can. Online tools such as BlackBoard can be utilised as a resource the students access for information, resources and tutorials and a teacher/lecturer can ease the students into its use as papers progress through their cycle of introduction to assessment. A typical scenario could be where students have to retrieve files from a location such as BlackBoard in the classroom under the direction of the teacher. Once there is familiarity with this process then the students could be encouraged to use revision material thats stored in a similar location but to access it outside normal class time. Any problems could then be taken to the teacher for assistance with resolving. As the students become more and more familiar with using online tools they will gain in confidence and perhaps eventually even be ready for facilitation in an online community.....

A Summary

I don’t know about others but I feel very un-facilitated! Doing this paper has been one of the strangest learning experiences I’ve ever had…. There doesn’t appear to be any concern if students are disappearing, or even if they are doing any work or taking part in discussions. Where is the usual lecturer follow-up of recalcitrant students? I think I’ve had one email asking where I was at and that’s about it.

Some of the resources have been most interesting, in particular I found the lecture given by Schwartz (can’t remember his first name) on choice to be really good – and something I had recently experienced when buying a car. Filtering the options down was the only way I could come to a decision – a process of eliminating options that didn’t meet my requirements until I came to one that did.

Other resources have been nothing more than discussions and of little real value, a get together so people can have a chat. Its easy to get into a discussion with others of a similar ilk that just meanders around. I found many of the 10 minute lectures to be like that, a little frustrating really. I was expecting to gain much more learning from the guest speakers.

The constant stream of online options to explore that were thrust at us was excessive to say the least. I think it would have been better to have had a source that listed these options with a descriptor of them that gave us an idea of what they were about so that an evaluation of their usefulness (or interest) could be made prior to exploration would be a better way of handling that. One of the key skills for any teacher is to get down to the level of the students and view the way they do so that the teaching/instruction can be targeted in a way that it reaches the students and they feel comfortable with it and learn from it. Going by the dropout rate for this paper it would appear that its not the case here.

Reading through this it all appears a little negative. On the contrary, the paper has proven to be quite interesting and a positive experience overall. I’ve had a look at various potential teaching tools online and had the chance to evaluate their usefulness (or otherwise) to me in the delivery of papers I teach. I’ve been able to come to conclusions about what makes up an online community, and develop strategies for facilitating one. I’ve also been able to assess the usefulness of creating an online community for students at the level I teach and have to conclude that it would be only at a very basic level – the skills required to partake fully would be lacking in all but a few so there would be little to gain by doing so.

Teaching vs. Facilitating

We’ve had some very interesting theories expounded on the benefits/place of one over the other in our discussions of T v B and my conclusion is that, at the level I teach at (L2-4), they are both an essential part of the teaching methods I have to use in order that the student(s) will gain the necessary knowledge to pass the paper(s).

For me teaching has to be a fluid process of engaging learners with content in which ever way best suits their needs in order that, at the end of the course, the student has gained the required knowledge to pass and perhaps a desire to take the subject(s) further.

Facilitation relies on the belief that the students will have a pool of knowledge from which the facilitator can draw out the requirements for learning at a particular time, or point the student in the direction they need to go to sources from where they can increase their knowledge base. Relying on called-in or referred ‘experts’ to fill in the gaps.

This may be fine with experienced learners but falls far short of what’s required for the inexperienced student – particularly those who are new to computers and the Internet. If I used similar strategies to some that have been put forward in the emails that have been circulating on this subject I would very soon find myself with an empty class! At the levels I teach the students require direction, structure, an easily accessible ‘expert’ they can come to for clarification/information and who keeps tabs on their learning, good resources made readily available, and to feel that they are being ‘taught’. Classroom discussions in particular soon degenerate into idle chat if they are not lead or if the ‘expert’ takes a back seat and refrains from taking part.

At higher levels of learning facilitation can play a much bigger part than teaching because of the knowledge base that has been put in place by lower level teachers, but not at the levels I teach.

With a subject-neutral facilitator as the sole ‘teacher’, who would create or mark assessments, develop course material, or know when a student was correct in what they were stating? The idea of using such people to teach at the lower levels lacks credibility and practicality in the real world, but I think there is a place for them in higher learning.

RSS

Discovered the joys of using an RSS reader.... Google does it again! A great way to list sites that you need to keep up to date with. One of the worst things about this paper is the sheer volume of information we have to keep up with. A reader makes it all a bit easier to handle.

Suitable tools.. or not... hmmm

I've been spending a great deal of time over the last month listening to guest speakers, reading bloggs, emails, discussions and have come to an inescapable conclusion that on line teaching will not work with the level of students I currently teach (L2 - L4) by itself, because of the learning limitations people at that level have.

I know it can and does with 'experienced' learners, but the inexperienced rely a great deal on f2f and the interaction/socialisation in a class environment for learning, which is not possible to replicate on line to the extent required. From my analysis I can see no way to make it work either, as the level of user skills can only be increased with learning. An egg and chicken scenario really, you have to have one in order that you can gain/use the other. Is there a solution? None that I can see.

The class environment where we can indulge in 'over the shoulder' instruction can not be replicated to the required level on line, nor can the instant passing on of knowledge or correction that you get in a 'normal' class situation. I've spoken to people who have done distance learning and one of the main criticisms is the lack of instant replies with questions. They find the have to go over the topic again once a query has been answered, a big waster of time for them. The other biggie for them is missing out on the usual interaction with other people.

I think that it definitely does have a place as a supplement to class learning though, kind of like a resource site or file store where students can go for information or the likes of tasks to complete or assignments/information prior to taking part in a normal class.

The development of relationships pays an enormous part in learning in a class. On line relationships tend to be rather shallow and a little false. Many people create a persona of what they'd like to be perceived as, rather than display their 'true' self and it is very difficult to 'know' someone on line - you tend to get a false view until you actually meet the person f2f.

So, to summarize, on line learning is a great method for 'experienced' learners, a very poor one for the inexperienced who will (and do) get easily discouraged and wander off to something else. The challenge is to make it work for this level of student. I know that some Learning Centres currently run on line courses for students studying at these levels so I shall make enquiries about drop off rates. My guess is that they'll be much higher than those in a normal class environment.

A bit of R&R...

We returned tonight from a weekend away skiing at one of the many excellent resorts we have in this part of the country, Cardrona. What a fantastic place.. and only 3.5 hours away from Dunedin! I'll post a photo or two later on for the North Islanders to have a look at.
We got to chat with people from many different countries while on the chairlift, Australia, England, Wales, Argentina, South Africa to name just a few. All were here either working/touring or just touring the country. All mentioned that the South Island is the best part of the country and that New Zealand is a far nicer place to be than anywhere else in the world - and without any prompting! Knockers take note...

Its so important to clear the head with outside activities when working in the area I do and I can think of no better way of doing it than on a ski-field in the superb Southern Alps. The head is clear, now all I need to do is get the aches out of the body.... :-)

First Impressions

Wow! Reading through some of the info on Blackboard and from links etc its clear we have a fair bit to assimilate in a rather short time-frame. No doubt as we progress through he course it'll become easier as we become more familiar with the topic but I can't help feeling a little swamped just now.. info overload bigtime!
I'm sure that'll go as we move on.

The live session was pretty cool.... listening to what others had to say and meeting them for the first time was great. I tend to sit back a bit at first but that will certainly change. I wonder where some of the others get the time to contribute as much as they do, the lucky people.

Added a little entertainment for blog visitors today. Don't want them getting bored...

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Thanks for paying a visit! This blog will contain personal, professional, and educational material/information about me and my experiences, as well as be a resource for online learning. It is a work in progress (naturally..) and I hope you will enjoy the experience of visiting and absorbing some of the material in it.

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