Transcript Part 2 : Researchers 4.Online learning : It is all about dialogue

Part 2 : Researchers
4.Online learning : It is all about dialogue,
involvement, support and control –
according to the research
Marion Coomey & John Stephenson
Ryerson Polytechnic University,Canada and Middlesex University,UK
Reference:
Stephenson, J. (2001). Teaching & learning online: Pedagogies for
new technologies.
John Stephenson (Ed.). London :Kogan Page.
Reporter:張謙楣
Report Date:2003/12/22
About this report
• This report is based on a systematic review
of small-scale research reports, case
studies and review of practice.It includes
100 research reports between 1998 to 2000.
• The authors were seeking advice on good
practice and any indication of new
approaches to teaching and learning being
engendered by online learning.
Review of outcomes─4 common features:
Dialogue,Involvement, Support, Control (DISC)
• Dialogue
– Forms of dialogue in online courses: e-mail, bulletin
boards, ’real time’ chat, asynchronous chat, group
discussion and debate.
– 教學者或課程設計者不能假定：學習者在被告知要參
與活動後，會投入線上小組討論、線上辯論或回答問
題(Bonk, Angeli and Hara, 1998; Funaro,1999; Mason, 1998)。
– Frameworks for dialogue: A responsive moderator
with a list of clearly defined questions guides the
dialogue and keeps the chat on topic (Beaudin,
1999; Bonk, 1999).
4 common features: (cont.)
• Involvement
– Involvement includes responses in structured task,
active engagement with material, student
collaborations, student direction, flow and
motivation.
– Flow: A state of total absorption by the students
online learning activities.It is associated with
challenge, clear feedback, learner control and
concentration (Chan & Repman,1999).
– The need for structuring learner involvement into
the system is illustrated by Wilson and Whitelock
(1998).
4 common features: (cont.)
• Support
– Support includes periodic face-to-face contact,
online tutorial supervision, peer support, advice
from experts, feedback on performance, support
service and software tool.
– The effective procedures for instructor/tutor/peer
feedback are the most important features of a
successful online course.
– When the course structure allows students to
develop strong working groups,they then perceive
the course to be ‘congenial’ and see themselves as
a community.
4 common features: (cont.)
• Control
– Control refers to the extent to which learners
have control of key learning activities and the
extent to which the learner is encouraged to
exercise that control.
– Control can cover responses to exercises, pace
and timing, choice of content, management of
learning activities, learning goals and outcomes,
overall direction and assessment of
performance.
Variation Upon the Message
• Learning is teacher controlled or
learner led.
• Learning activity is tightly specified or
open-ended.
Paradigm grid for online learning
• Control & task specification → 4 paradigms
• These four paradigms can be illustrated as a grid.
next
The north-west quadrant (NW)
( Teacher determined,task specific )
• Dialogue:
– Teacher defines/controls online dialogue and interaction.
– The focus of dialogue is usually task-oriented problem solving.
• Involvement:
– Little or no scope for learner to influence content.
• Support:
– From the teacher via e-mail, phone calls or face-to-face meeting.
• Control:
– Learner control is confined to responses to tasks.
– The teacher controls reading materials, contents and deadlines.
• Teacher role: Instructor
Advice for
the north-west quadrant
• Provide easy access to technical support
(Alexander, 1999; Bonk & Cummings, 1998).
• Structured hypertext that clearly directs students to
desired goals results in more efficient use of time
and clearer interpretation of task (Dee-Lucas, 1999).
• Refer to online discussion during ‘real’ class time
(Funaro, 1999).
• Make online participation a requirement (Funaro,
1999).
Back to grid
The north-east quadrant (NE)
( Learner determined,task specific )
• Dialogue:
Scope is confined to the task,but the system and protocols
support student-managed dialogue with other peers and experts.
• Involvement:
Task-focused self-managed groups.
• Support:
– Tutors provide advices on the nature of the tasks and goals.
– Students provides feedback to each other.
• Control:
Conduct of task is up to the learner.
• Teacher role: Coach
Advice for
the north-east quadrant
• Keep groups small (Alexander, 1999).
• Assign students roles clearly and explicitly (Barros et al, 1998).
• Groups with appointed leaders (Oliver & Omari, in press).
• Provide training in how to use social behaviors online (Hackman &
Walker, 1995; Marjanovic, 1999). (SW,SE)
• Develop strategies that enhance two-way interaction (Bonk,Angeli
& Hara,1998).
• Make it a requirement students respond to others’ contributions
(Gregor & Cuskelly, 1994).
• Motivation increases when students realize that their work will be
displayed (Bonk and Dennen, 1999).
• Course structure allows students to always know what they are
doing and what needs to do next (Sumner & Taylor, 1998).
Back to grid
The south-west quadrant (SW)
( Teacher determined open-ended
strategic learning activities )
• Dialogue:
A combination of dialogue styles found in the NW sector during the instructorled segment of the course and in the SE sector during the learner-managed
segment of the course.
• Involvement:
The student learns rules/concepts/theories from online texts and possibly
traditional lectures.There are also locations for students to write and place
their ‘discoveries’.
• Support: (online or face-to-face)
– Traditional feedback in the first phase of the course (NW)
– Instructor acts as facilitator, offering suggestions but not answers during
the ‘discovery’ phase of the course. (SE)
• Control:
Learners manage their own unstructured discovery activities within given
parameters.
• Teacher role: Guide
Advice for
the south-west quadrant
• Structure the learning environment to promote cooperation within groups (Ewing, 1999).
• Provide model ways to work online in groups
(Funaro, 1999).
• Create labels to allow students to structure dialogue
(Sloffer et al, 1999).
• Keep dialogue on topic through carefully designed
questions,guidelines (Beaudin, 1999).
• Categorize messages,summarize threads of
discussion (Advaryu et al, 1999).
• Provide steps in the problem-solving process
(Oliver & Omari, in press).
Back to grid
The south-east quadrant (SE)
( Learner-managed,open-ended activities )
• Dialogue:
Self or collaboratively (peer-group) directed.
• Involvement:
Total involvement in the learning activity.
• Support:
– Contacts with supervisor initiated and monitored by the learner,
facilitated by the system.
– Feedback is sought from a variety of sources and experts.
• Control:
Learners determine the goals and outcomes and monitors
progress.
• Teacher role: Facilitator
Advice for
the south-east quadrant
• The role of the tutor,and level of tutor participation,
should be clearly defined (Lewis & Vizcarro, 1998).
• Embed prompts (Henderson et al, 1998)
• Provide synchronous events (Mason, 1998)
• Develop criteria for students to assess each others’
work (McConnell, 1995)
• ‘Free for all’ open discussion don’t usually work
(Mason, 1998).
• Provide guidelines and designed questions (Beaudin,
1999)
• Structure to make team collaborate (Marjanovic, 1999)
Back to grid
Implication of the study
• Horses for course
The grid could de a useful means of helping
researchers to communicate their findings for the
benefit of developments elsewhere.
• Transition strategies
– NW → SE
– Ex: Students who used to clear instructions and
narrowly defined tasks will need considerable
help with online learning in any sectors other
than NW sector.
Migration to learner-managed learning
• The four paradigms is comparable to that
found in non ICT-based learning context.
Ex: NW ─ traditional didactic teaching or formal training
SE ─ open-ended learner-managed mode
• Online learning facilitates a migration from
traditional didactic modes to more learnermanaged learning modes.
• Learner control will emerge as the dominant
characteristic of ‘every time, every place for
everybody’ learning (Doherty, 1998).