Discussion+Board+Responses

=Discussion Board Responses=

Below are my responses to this course's discussion items.

Chapter One - Chapter Two - Group One Discussion Summary One - Group One Discussion Summary Two

Chapter One
//As you read Chapter One of Theory and Practice of Online Learning, identify a point or two in the chapter that surprised you, amazed you, shocked you, or disappointed you (or some other response!)//

In reading the first chapter, the idea of connectivism jumped out at me. I was intrigued by the idea of the learning experience being shared by both the machine and the human using it. I was “weirded out” to say the least. I have been interested in the idea of artificial intelligence since watching a feature concerning AI on the Discovery Channel. One of the scientists, Dr. Ray Kurzweil, explained the interactions between human and machine and how machines would teach while the humans would have to learn a new way to learn. It is fascinating that I have come across this again with the introduction to this chapter.

In further reading, I can understand where Siemans was coming from in the development of this theory. There are major differences in the way we learn and access information on the internet and through social networking. Of particular interest is his statement that the learner has to “unlearn old information and mental models and learn current information and mental models”( p.31). This was profound for me in that I see the changes in the ways we used to learn information (dictionaries, atlases, encyclopedias) and the way we access it now (Wikipedia, online dictionaries, Google Earth).

Another statement that grabbed my attention was that the “rapid increase of information available from a variety of sources means that some information is not as important or genuine as other information. As a result, the learner must be able to identify important information from unimportant information” (p.31). I have to wholeheartedly agree with this. Websites such as Wikipedia are great places to learn information, but you have to be aware of the fact that everyday people put the information into Wikipedia, and changes can be made, regardless of factual evidence, to suit a person’s ideology, political views, or personal taste. We have all received what I like to call PSA’s concerning supposedly factual information that is erroneous. An example that comes up often is if you forward an email 100 times, Bill Gates will send you a free computer. Another example could be people changing information to make something someone said appear to be true. This happened when a politician in the recent past made an error in their speech and their supporters attempted to “change history” on Wikipedia. This serves as a reminder that it is important to use your best judgment when researching online.

There was a lot of great information in this first chapter and ideas on how to combine theories to create an active online environment were helpful. Connectivism was what jumped out at me and sparked my interest more than the rest though.

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Chapter Two
//As you read Chapter Two of Theory and Practice of Online Learning, note the author's emphasis on collaborative and independent learning modes and the challenges in designing instruction that addresses the components of those modes.What strikes you most about this chapter?//

//Here is an interesting point://

//Sufficient levels of deep and meaningful learning can be developed, as long as one of the three forms of interaction (student-teacher; student-student; student-content) is at very high levels. The other two may be offered at minimal levels or even eliminated without degrading the educational experience. (Anderson, 2002)//

//How would you define "very high levels" of interaction?//

I found this chapter to be very enlightening. Often, I have wondered about the amount of discussion board work that we do in this major. I have enjoyed answering and responding to questions, but until now, I had not noticed that we were building a collaborative community. I think it really struck me at the end of the Maymester class and in reading chapter two how much I have learned from and relied upon others in the class. I have several people that I now contact outside of classwork and I am interested in getting to know others. This connectedness is an overarching theme from many of my classes and from the readings in this course. It is this connectedness that allows online collaboration to effectively work.

The author stated that “The online learning environment is also a unique cultural context in itself.”(p. 48). I think this is very important in understanding how far reaching and important technology and online learning has become. I am learning from individuals that I would not have met except through this course. We are geographically, economically, and culturally separated; however, we come together as a unit virtually. This fact has ramifications for learning for both the students and educators. It is vitally important to quickly and effectively build community in an online environment because people may bring their own misgivings and judgments of others to the class. I particularly like the quote by Wilson (1997) that “described the characteristics of participants in online communities as having a shared sense of belonging, trust, expectation of learning, and commitment to participate in and contribute to the community.”

Another issue that I see is that people often become someone else when in a virtual environments. Things you may never say or express in person are shared when online because of a sense of anonymity. It is crucial to attach an identity, character, and worthiness to each individual in a class in order to avoid issues of alienation and cultural misunderstandings.

One sentence that stood out to me in a negative way was “Ethnographic studies of the Net (Jonassen & Carr, 2000) illustrate how the lack of “placedness” and the complications of anonymity attenuate different components of community when located in virtual space.” I do not have an issue with this statement, but I do have an issue in how it was stated. It took me a good ten minutes to figure out what this one sentence meant, which means that if I were an average student studying this chapter, I would have completely ignored it. As we as educators, curriculum designers, and internet users create learning environments for youth and adults, we need to be mindful of our use of language. Someone who has been studying in academia for years would not have a problem understanding the statement above. A student, your average adult, someone studying online for the first time, individuals for whom English is a second language, etc. would have a difficult time understanding or assimilating the knowledge in that statement. Everything I have learned in this class and others has directed me towards “keeping it simple”. I know a certain level of language is necessary in studies, but heavy handed jargon is not always necessary.

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Group One Discussion Summary One
Tu, C-H and Corry, M. (2003). Building active online interaction via a collaborative learning community. //Computers in the Schools,20//(3)51-59.

Interactive, engaging, meaningful experiences should be the goal of all online courses. In order to achieve this, theoretical constructs have been developed to guide the formation of instruction for students. The three main constructs–interactivity, social context, and technologies - were discussed at length by the authors. It was discovered that the three constructs are intertwined on a basic level, and that the absence of one often affected the others. The authors outlined several means by which instructors could address the constructs in order to produce an online collaborative community.

For our group discussion, we were tasked with responding to the following prompts that were generated from the reading. There was a very lively debate concerning the idea of collaborative learning being artistic verses mechanical. The early responses were led by Tiffany, who responded that, “Frankly, based on the definitions, the statement does not make sense in relation to learning. … I’ll say that regardless of format, learning is grounded in human desire to learn and share knowledge.” She further elaborated that, “Humans can act artistic or mechanical, depending on circumstances.”
 * Collaborative learning is artistic rather than a mechanical process" Do you agree?
 * The authors believe that "a sense of community is necessary to implement online collaborative learning" How would you attempt to create a sense of community? Have you experience this in your studies thus far?

Stephanie further added that, “I framed it as a question and asked myself, "is there an art to creating and participating in collaborative learning activities?" I'm still not 100% sure of the correct answer. I think regardless of whether it is called artistic or mechanical, it is important to realize that there are many things both instructors and learners can do to make it a meaningful and successful process/activity. “

Reggie agreed saying, “I do think that we have to ride a fine line of being artistic and mechanical. Through my experiences, I have to be artistic in carving out time for family, work, school, and personal activities. At the same time, I have had to regimented or mechanical in my drive to keep my priorities in order.”

Dawn made a rebuttal stating that, “I agree primarily because of the statement that followed this quote, which stated that collaborative learning is ‘a personal philosophy and not just a classroom technique.’ I think it too often is ineffective because it seems to be included arbitrarily as though it is part of a ‘recipe’ for conducting online learning.”

Jennifer contributed to Dawn’s statement saying, “In order to work, collaborative learning has to be dynamic and fluid. Every person brings a different skills set, values, and ideas to the table in a collaborative environment. With so much change and flux, mechanical is by far the worst adjective to describe collaborative learning.” As the debate raged, the group soon came to a consensus that artistic could be a good word to describe collaborative learning, but that the effort needs to be made by all involved in the group in order for collaboration to occur and for it to be anywhere near fluid and not be formulaic.

Our next prompt triggered many memories of previous classes, as well as a few strongly worded ideas on the need for instructors and students to be motivated in creating groups with care.

Jennifer wrote that, “I have had several different experiences in becoming a ‘member’ of an online learning community. I tended to do better when the instructor used introductory activities and attitude surveys to designate groups. It also worked well when the students were asked to express their views on a topic and have others comment on it.” Tiffany commented on this saying, “…like most things in life when something is good, it is very, very good. I imagine those are the times when (whether I realize it or not) that I am experiencing a sense of community.” Stephanie also concurred saying, “I tend to gravitate towards previous group members in each new course I take in this program. I think the more we can work with various classmates, the greater our sense of community will be.”

In her own thread, Tiffany stated, “I think it should go without saying that without some sense of belonging (obligation), collaboration fails. Frankly, we can try to insert ourselves into the community (collaborative group), but unless each member is committed to success, we are doomed to fail (at least on some level). It is very easy in an online environment to cry “email”, “computer”, or “ technical” issues as an excuse to check out of the community and not really participate.”

To give us a different perspective, Dawn introduced us to a // Time // magazine article concerning the upside of being an introvert. In it, the authors stated that introverted people often choose not to engage. Dawn added that, “Without question, collaboration online adds to the experience of ‘school’ and brings to the virtual experience the opportunity to gain meaningful insights and even develop real friendships. What I am against is the idea that in and of itself, collaborative learning seems to be regarded as sacrosanct.”

This got our group hopping as usual, and we came to the conclusion that it is imperative to form solid functioning groups through active participation, but that groups should be used when necessary, not just for the sake of having a group.

This is a small sample (really) of a very lively three days of discussion that brought about collaboration through new ideas, insights, a large dose of humor, and cooperative learning.

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=Group One Discussion Summary Two=

//"In-Your-Pocket" and "On-The-Fly:" Meeting the Needs of Today's New Generation of Online Learners with Mobile Learning Technology//- TPOL Chapter 8

Discussion Participants: Reginald, China, Jennifer Greene, Stephanie Hicklin, Tiffany Hoefer, Dawn Sudduth

Stephanie Hicklin led our discussion by highlighting some cogent points from the chapter, and then asking us to think about and comment on the following questions:


 * What strategies can educators use to help meet the needs of this new generation of learners and keep themselves from becoming "technically obsolete?"; and
 * What do you think Dede means by "physical plant, technical infrastructure, and professional development?" Why are investments in these areas important for recruiting and effectively teaching top students?

Dawn Sudduth started our lively and interesting discussion by bringing to the forefront how important it is to make a concerted effort to stay abreast of emerging technology and not to be afraid to reach out the younger (or even youngest) generation for insight. A number of us commiserated on how fast technology changes and the challenges associated with that speed. As the talk of technology progressed, Dawn and Stephanie discussed the opportunities available via Twitter and other social networking. It became clear that while many of us appreciate the opportunities that are “out there” that we have not fully embraced all of those opportunities.

Tiffany discussed the importance of engaging IT staff before you actually need their help. Stephanie, Dawn and Reginald all agreed that this was a smart route to go, as building relationships helps keep us in the loop (and pull us back in the loop a little quicker when our hard drive crashes). Tiffany expressed concern about the term “physical plant” and that she did not understand how it applied to distance education. Reginald reminded us that distance education and online learning still require some type of physical location, and that a physical plant is probably just that, a physical plant.

Reginald used a very thought provoking analogy. He compared students and teachers to police officers and criminals. Just as the criminals always seem to be one step ahead of law enforcement, Reginald spoke to the fact that students always seem to be one step ahead of instructors technologically speaking. This analogy started a lively discussion in which we all commented on what a thought provoking comparison he presented to us and while we all discussed our favorite part of the comparison, we essentially all agreed that his analogy was quite on point.

Jennifer helped bring home the true impact that obsolete technology can have on a student and how that impact affects student enrollments and attrition. Jennifer completed her undergraduate at a school that she really enjoyed, but she had to change her major because the technology in that program was obsolete. In doing so, she gave up a scholarship and a major that she cared about. Talk about bringing the point home!

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