RSA4: Strategies for Collaborative Learning: Building eLearning and Blended Learning Communities

Strategies for Collaborative Learning: Building eLearning and Blended Learning Communities

Since the development of online learning, instructors have been searching for a way to promote collaborative learning online. It becomes a struggle to collaborate with people you have never met or spoken with face to face. “The online environment can be a lonely place” (Palloff & Pratt, 2007). Collaborating with classmates can help ease those feelings of loneliness, but only if it is done correctly. Collaboration can also help create an atmosphere of critical thinking, therefore allowing students to learn more and gain deeper understandings of content. So then the question remains, how can one promote collaboration in an online class?

Before one can begin to promote online collaboration, they must first understand how creating community relates to learning. According to Soren Kaplan, co-founder of iCohere, Inc., communities are the vehicle for which people are connected to other people’s stories, ideas, and knowledge. “Communities extend learning by creating a structure whereby people can learn from “informal” interactions” (Kaplan, 2009). With an online learning community, facilitators need to think specifically how they can create a collaborative atmosphere without pushing any students into that lonely place. It is important to create an environment of trust in which students feel safe to open up and share their thoughts and experiences. Among many others, one suggestion Kaplan has is to create a Buddy System. Students are put into pairs or groups to work together on projects or discussions. Buddies could be responsible for ensuring their partner is not feeling isolated within the course. The partner then always has someone in that class to turn to with questions or concerns.

“Initially ten students posted introductions to the group, but one disappeared immediately thereafter” (Palloff & Pratt, 2007). The authors go on to explain that this student’s absence was due to the fact that no one had commented on her introductory post. She had shared quite a bit of herself, but had the feeling that no one else really cared what she had to say. If the course had used the Buddy System idea that Soren Kaplan had proposed, this student may not have felt so alone because she would have had at least one student in the course guaranteed to comment on her posting. Both Palloff & Pratt and Kaplan focus on creating a collaborative community in order to foster learning in the online classroom.

References

Palloff, R.M., & Pratt, K. (2007). Building online learning communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Kaplan, S. (2009) Strategies for collaborative learning: Building eLearning and blended learning communities. Accessed at http://www.icohere.com/collaborativeLearning.htm on December 8, 2012.

RSA3: Key Elements of Building Online Community: Comparing Faculty
and Student Perceptions

Key Elements of Building Online Community: Comparing Faculty
and Student Perceptions

In the past decade online learning has vastly grown in popularity. However researchers are still hoping to decipher the key to what makes online learning a true success for all students. What most are discovering is that online classes are missing something that every face-to-face class has. A sense of community. “In distance education, attention needs to be paid to the developing sense of community within the group of participants in order for the learning process to be successful” (Palloff & Pratt, 2007). When community has not been established, the online forum can create a feeling of isolation for the students participating. Students need to know that there are in fact other students and a professor that have a real presence in the class. How then is this sense of community created within an online class? The process cannot just happen; it must be facilitated (Palloff & Pratt, 2007).

Pam Vesely, Lisa Bloom and John Sherlock were interested in learning more about building community in an online setting. They conducted a survey in which they asked both higher education students and their instructors about the challenges and elements necessary for an online class. What was most interesting about the study was that the instructors and students had differing thoughts regarding the most important element of online learning. “Students and instructors both agreed that instructor modeling was important in building online community. However, when analyzing the responses for the rank order question, students ranked instructor modeling as the most important factor in building community in online courses, and instructors ranked it as fourth in importance” (Vesely, Bloom & Sherlock, 2007). It is clear that students feel in order to build community within their online course, there needs to be modeling and facilitation from the instructor.

Both Palloff & Pratt and Vesely, Bloom & Sherlock seem to agree that it is of extreme importance to build community in an online course. Instructors can establish guidelines for the course and make it more likely for students to become engaged and begin the community building process (Palloff & Pratt, 2007). Because it is so easy for students to become silent or disappear in an online class, the community building process needs to begin immediately and continue throughout the length of the course.

References

Palloff, R.M., & Pratt, K. (2007). Building online learning communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Vesely, P., Bloom, L. & Sherlock, J. (2007). Key elements of building online community: comparing faculty and student perceptions. Accessed at http://jolt.merlot.org/vol3no3/vesely.htm on November 23, 2012.

 

RSA2: A Theoretical Framework for Data-Driven Decision Making

A Theoretical Framework for Data-Driven Decision Making

Gaining an improvement in results is the very reason that many school districts are taking part in the PLC process. (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, Many, 2010)  Many teachers do not understand that the key to student improvement is not a magical textbook, but by making data driven decisions. By using common formative assessments, teachers are able to gain information regarding student learning. They can then process that information and make knowledgeable decisions. One of the biggest obstacles schools face is the fact that they are data rich, but information poor (Waterman, 1987).

Teachers need professional development in making data driven decisions. There is far

too much information with which teachers must deal, but the data is not easily
translatable into information and actionable knowledge. (Mandinach, Honey, Light, 2006). The online article “A Theoretical Framework for Data-Driven Decision Making” helps guide teachers in making these ever important evaluations of student learning. The article presents a framework that enables, supports, and facilitates decision making by various stakeholders. The article also discusses using technology-based tools when making decisions. Technology can help PLCs become more timely and effective.

The online resource relates to the topic of the module because both discuss creating an environment that focuses on results. Both also agree that teachers seem to have plenty of information, but they do not have the tools necessary for turning that information into something meaningful. Finally, both the module and article agree that leadership makes a major difference in the success of schools. If there is strong leadership, teachers are more likely to use data to make decisions.  A principal who is data-driven or technically savvy can exert substantial influence on the staff (Mandinach, Honey, Light, 2006).

References

DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., Many, T. (2010). Learning By Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

Mandinach, E, Honey, M, Light, D. (2006). A Theoretical Framework for Data-Driven Decision Making. Accessed at http://www.cct.edc.org/admin/publications/speeches/DataFrame_AERA06.pdf  on November 8^th, 2012.

Waterman, R. (1987). The Renewal Factor: How the Best Get and Keep the Competitive Edge.                New York: Bantam Books.

 

RSA1: Getting the Most Out of Common Assessments

Getting the Most Out of Common Assessments

A focus on learning is the core that drives every professional learning community. Schools need to have tight expectations that all teachers will work collaboratively with colleagues when clarifying the following questions: What is it that we want our students to learn? How will we know when each student has learned it? (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, Many, 2010) Teachers must also work together to create a guaranteed and viable curriculum. This gives students access to the same essential learning regardless of who is teaching the class and can be taught in the time allotted (Marzano, 2003).

One tool that can help teachers provide a guaranteed and viable curriculum is the common assessment. This tool helps educators to answer the question of whether or not students have learned what we have intended them to learn. The online article “Getting the Most Out of Common Assessments” discusses the challenges that one school faced even though common assessments were in use. The school discovered that there was a major disconnect in what happened to the assessments after completion. “When we discussed this question, we found great differences from team to team, with some teams digging deeply into their common assessment data and other teams doing almost nothing with the information.” (Mattos, 2009). All teachers should have common practices regarding what happens to the information after students complete an assessment.

This online article relates to the module because both discuss the importance of creating a focus on learning.  Both articles emphasize that common formative assessments can provide teachers with extremely valuable information. According to DuFour, Dufour Eaker and Many, summative assessments are much like autopsy data. There is nothing students can do at this point to learn the information. However, formative assessments can guide teachers in their instruction and help students to identify which standards of learning need more practice. The online tool supports the notion that common formative assessments are a very powerful tool in a teacher’s arsenal.

 

References

DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., Many, T. (2010). Learning By Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

Marzano, R. J. (2003). What Works in Schools: Translating Research into Action. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Mattos, M. (2009). Getting the Most out of Common Assessments. Accessed at   http://www.allthingsplc.info/wordpress/?p=92 on October 31, 2012.

Welcome

Hello all,
Welcome to my EDT 6030 blog. Here I will post resources and information to accompany my class: Using Technology to Build Learning Communities.