Pam's Journal
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Friday, September 15, 2006
Blogging in the Classroom
Reflection
Reflecting on how to encourage student self expression through the use of a blog in my classroom is as simple as scrolling down and reviewing the discussions and comments from a previous class. We used it much like we would the discussion forum in Blackboard; however, we found that we were much more open and free with expression in the blogging venue. This of course was a graduate course and all correspondents used "Netiquette". I believe that Netiquette and appropriateness would have to be taught to some students, but then we are teachers, so it stands to reason that that is what we would do. The main negative consequence of incorporating publicly available web space in the classroom is that it puts the student at risk. Since even the slightest chance of putting a child in danger is unacceptable, I believe all classroom blogs should be password protected and all postings and comments monitored by the teacher, if not pre-approved. A computer and internet safety course or workshop should be a prerequisite for any computer use by a student. A signed contract with the student on the proper use of the computer and internet is not a bad idea.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Time Again
According to Anita Reach, “Most people who have taken online courses will tell you that it is more ‘labor intensive’ than onground courses.” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p. 186)
“Beyond 30 or so students, you will find it difficult to operate without the assistance of a TA.” (p.202) “Each student presents a unique profile and must be responded to as an individual.” (p.237)
I decided to put all my quotes from this book in one lump sum. Although there was tons of great information in the chapters, my focus happened to be on the time issue because that is one of my biggest concerns right now. I am feeling much better about things and online courses in general as far as the time issue goes, but I am not sure how to break classes or lessons into bite-size chunks. (Now you have me doing that food thing) In an onground course, the objectives determine what must be taught and a teacher can pretty much use the textbook to outline the course with a few decisions to spend more time on this and less time on that and throw in a few activities. If simply converting the onground course to an online course does not work, how do you know how much is too much or not enough or just right with the different strategies that are used in the online course?
“Having a well-developed rubric assists the instructor with the ‘How am I doing?’ questions that often emerge in an online course. (Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p. 44) I really like having the rubrics attached to our assignments. Reading about the importance and advantages of using rubrics and having the use of them modeled for us in this class has convinced me to spend the few extra minutes to develop rubrics for the assignments I make from now on.
“The instructor needs to feel comfortable truly turning over the reigns to the learners in the learning process in order for collaboration to be successful.” (p.36) I can see how that is very true and could solve some of the time issues that concern me. It was also interesting to note that if collaboration is used in a course, then it should be used consistently throughout the course. It had not occurred to me that lectures and collaboration might not be compatible in the same course.
Speaking of collaboration I found an interesting article in eSchool News online about six schools in Europe that are planning to link their classrooms so that the students can collaborate in learning foreign language skills. “The aim of CTLI reportedly is to link up European classrooms, enabling teachers and students ‘to communicate, collaborate, and share information, resources and techniques to support teaching of the curriculum’.” http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showclips.cfm?clipid=1461
“Beyond 30 or so students, you will find it difficult to operate without the assistance of a TA.” (p.202) “Each student presents a unique profile and must be responded to as an individual.” (p.237)
I decided to put all my quotes from this book in one lump sum. Although there was tons of great information in the chapters, my focus happened to be on the time issue because that is one of my biggest concerns right now. I am feeling much better about things and online courses in general as far as the time issue goes, but I am not sure how to break classes or lessons into bite-size chunks. (Now you have me doing that food thing) In an onground course, the objectives determine what must be taught and a teacher can pretty much use the textbook to outline the course with a few decisions to spend more time on this and less time on that and throw in a few activities. If simply converting the onground course to an online course does not work, how do you know how much is too much or not enough or just right with the different strategies that are used in the online course?
“Having a well-developed rubric assists the instructor with the ‘How am I doing?’ questions that often emerge in an online course. (Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p. 44) I really like having the rubrics attached to our assignments. Reading about the importance and advantages of using rubrics and having the use of them modeled for us in this class has convinced me to spend the few extra minutes to develop rubrics for the assignments I make from now on.
“The instructor needs to feel comfortable truly turning over the reigns to the learners in the learning process in order for collaboration to be successful.” (p.36) I can see how that is very true and could solve some of the time issues that concern me. It was also interesting to note that if collaboration is used in a course, then it should be used consistently throughout the course. It had not occurred to me that lectures and collaboration might not be compatible in the same course.
Speaking of collaboration I found an interesting article in eSchool News online about six schools in Europe that are planning to link their classrooms so that the students can collaborate in learning foreign language skills. “The aim of CTLI reportedly is to link up European classrooms, enabling teachers and students ‘to communicate, collaborate, and share information, resources and techniques to support teaching of the curriculum’.” http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showclips.cfm?clipid=1461
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Week 8
Before I start my official blog, I would like to comment on an “aha” moment that occurred for me last week. When Dr. Dawley slacked up on the homework because she read between the lines or sensed that we were maxed out, it made me realize that if I become an online teacher, I will need to develop that “sense” or skill as well. It seems like it could be a difficult task.
There was lots of material to comment on this week from the textbooks. The question posed by the authors “How comfortable do I feel letting go of control and allowing learners to take charge of the process?” (Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p.20) was an interesting thought to me. There has to be better terminology instead of “letting go of control”. I say that because I think that one fear is a huge stopper for teachers. Maybe if they could think of it as restructuring or changing the format, the use of group activities and collaboration would not be so frightening. One point that stood out for me was the statement, “You need not participate in group activities, but your supervision will encourage participation by all group members and ensure that an individual’s contributions to the group are recognized.” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p.113) In one of my other classes, a group was obviously getting aggravated with each other. It was a learning experience for me to see how the instructor stepped in and gently, but professionally handled the situation. It turned out fine. Something else that I have noticed in all of my classes is that students respond more if the instructor is involved in the discussion in some way. It is interesting to read in the text the situations that occur actually occur in class. I have more than once looked back to make sure my instructors were not the authors of the textbooks.
I am very interested in the role playing and simulation aspects of online teaching. I am hesitant to delve into those approaches right now, but I intend to attack them vigorously as soon as I complete my studies.
After reading the next two chapters, I found myself with more questions than answers. If you know the answers, please share it with me. Briefly, the statement “it’s a good idea to send the webmaster an email explaining what you are doing” in reference to linking a multimedia element from your web page. (p.160) I had to look in the glossary to make sure I knew what a webmaster was and I still did not understand why it is a good idea. How do you find the webmaster?
It doesn’t seem to matter how many times I read and reread copyright law. It is always somewhat confusing to me. The expression “legal ownership of material you create is a very gray area at most institutions” (p.172) makes me think gray could be synonymous with confusing. I did not read this, but I have heard that if you write something at the institution on their time, then that gives them the rights to the work. After reading this chapter, I am led to believe that an agreement on ownership should be established before the work is done.
The Web site that caught my interest this week was http://www.metamath.com/multiple/multiple_choice_questions.html
which offers a survey to determine your preferred learning style.
There was lots of material to comment on this week from the textbooks. The question posed by the authors “How comfortable do I feel letting go of control and allowing learners to take charge of the process?” (Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p.20) was an interesting thought to me. There has to be better terminology instead of “letting go of control”. I say that because I think that one fear is a huge stopper for teachers. Maybe if they could think of it as restructuring or changing the format, the use of group activities and collaboration would not be so frightening. One point that stood out for me was the statement, “You need not participate in group activities, but your supervision will encourage participation by all group members and ensure that an individual’s contributions to the group are recognized.” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p.113) In one of my other classes, a group was obviously getting aggravated with each other. It was a learning experience for me to see how the instructor stepped in and gently, but professionally handled the situation. It turned out fine. Something else that I have noticed in all of my classes is that students respond more if the instructor is involved in the discussion in some way. It is interesting to read in the text the situations that occur actually occur in class. I have more than once looked back to make sure my instructors were not the authors of the textbooks.
I am very interested in the role playing and simulation aspects of online teaching. I am hesitant to delve into those approaches right now, but I intend to attack them vigorously as soon as I complete my studies.
After reading the next two chapters, I found myself with more questions than answers. If you know the answers, please share it with me. Briefly, the statement “it’s a good idea to send the webmaster an email explaining what you are doing” in reference to linking a multimedia element from your web page. (p.160) I had to look in the glossary to make sure I knew what a webmaster was and I still did not understand why it is a good idea. How do you find the webmaster?
It doesn’t seem to matter how many times I read and reread copyright law. It is always somewhat confusing to me. The expression “legal ownership of material you create is a very gray area at most institutions” (p.172) makes me think gray could be synonymous with confusing. I did not read this, but I have heard that if you write something at the institution on their time, then that gives them the rights to the work. After reading this chapter, I am led to believe that an agreement on ownership should be established before the work is done.
The Web site that caught my interest this week was http://www.metamath.com/multiple/multiple_choice_questions.html
which offers a survey to determine your preferred learning style.
Friday, March 03, 2006
Pre-evaluated Sites and Syllabi
I find the statement, “Because of the enormous growth of the Internet, open-ended research is becoming increasingly frustrating and difficult” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p. 59) to be extremely true; not only in the classes I take, but even more so in the classes I teach. While I feel I have developed a fairly good system of using advanced search and keywords, I still appreciate the sense of direction that an instructor’s pre-evaluated site gives me. I found the list of sites at the following resource in the book very well mapped out and useful:
http://carbon.cudenver.edu/~mryder/itc/idmodels.html
Another way of gaining a sense of direction is through the course syllabus. I was amazed at the amount and extent of information that should be included in the syllabus, but I can clearly see how a well laid out syllabus is a map of the course. Chapter 4 emphasizes, “In an online environment, redundancy is often better than elegant succinctness.” (p.76) That statement answered a question I had in my mind about having menu items listed in several places for easy access plus the importance of having directions and items found in the syllabus in other locations in the course for ease of use. It had seemed redundant and now I know it should be.
http://carbon.cudenver.edu/~mryder/itc/idmodels.html
Another way of gaining a sense of direction is through the course syllabus. I was amazed at the amount and extent of information that should be included in the syllabus, but I can clearly see how a well laid out syllabus is a map of the course. Chapter 4 emphasizes, “In an online environment, redundancy is often better than elegant succinctness.” (p.76) That statement answered a question I had in my mind about having menu items listed in several places for easy access plus the importance of having directions and items found in the syllabus in other locations in the course for ease of use. It had seemed redundant and now I know it should be.
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
How Much Time Do We Have?
A couple of key points stuck in my mind this week after reading one of the five articles written in regards to a study done by the University of Wisconsin. It did not surprise me to read “Redesigning a traditional course into a hybrid takes time.” It did surprise me that six months was the recommended time to complete a project. I do not doubt that it takes that much time-- I think that more than explains a lot of the resistance to the conversion, especially at the K-12 level. Wow. Especially for the perfectionist who has to have it all done right and has a hard time putting it together in bits and pieces, which I think most K-12 teachers will have to do. I don't see high school teachers having that kind of time--I don't feel like I do. I think college professors are given a lot more leeway with this, but I cannot speak from experience on that.
Another point that I found interesting was advice to keep it simple by doing things like making multiple short video clips as opposed to one long lecture.
http://www.uwsa.edu/ttt/articles/garnham2.htm
Even though they do not go into detail on answering the question, Ko & Rossen point out that instructors question this issue of working more. They answered with their belief that using the Web effectively does not require working “twice as long for the same pay.” (pp. 240-241) Notice they did not say it would not take more hours. Since time is a precious commodity to me, I may not be too open minded on this one issue and I am struggling to find solutions.
Aycock,A., Garnham, C., & Kaleta, R. (2002, March 20). Lessons Learned from the Hybrid Course Project. Teaching with Technology Today, 8, Number 6. Retrieved February 21, 2006, from http://www.uwsa.edu/ttt/articles/garnham2.htm
Another point that I found interesting was advice to keep it simple by doing things like making multiple short video clips as opposed to one long lecture.
http://www.uwsa.edu/ttt/articles/garnham2.htm
Even though they do not go into detail on answering the question, Ko & Rossen point out that instructors question this issue of working more. They answered with their belief that using the Web effectively does not require working “twice as long for the same pay.” (pp. 240-241) Notice they did not say it would not take more hours. Since time is a precious commodity to me, I may not be too open minded on this one issue and I am struggling to find solutions.
Aycock,A., Garnham, C., & Kaleta, R. (2002, March 20). Lessons Learned from the Hybrid Course Project. Teaching with Technology Today, 8, Number 6. Retrieved February 21, 2006, from http://www.uwsa.edu/ttt/articles/garnham2.htm
Friday, February 17, 2006
To Chat or Not To Chat
Chat for Online Students
It is hard for me to remember that this class focuses on teaching “adult” online students. I keep putting the things I learn in context with the situation I am in, which involves teaching in an alternative middle and high school. One suggestion for creating collaboration online is to use “Asynchronous discussion of the reading and discussion questions.” (Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p.10) My question is why synchronous discussion or “chat” is not listed as one of the methods for creating collaboration.
Another view is “synchronous tools like chat rooms and whiteboards are particularly appropriate for your class if you have students living in the same time zone.” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p. 89) It seems to me that using chat too much would come too close to a “real” classroom and take away some of the appeal of taking “virtual” classes. I do like knowing that I can chat with the instructor in her virtual office during hours if I need to. Something about that gives me a feeling of security even though I have not taken advantage of it. According to Ko & Rossen, using chat this way can “lighten your advisory load, or at least make it less onerous,” from the instructor’s view. (p.254) Sounds good to me.
Chat is out of the question for the students in my classroom, but I am interested in finding out how it works in virtual high school classes. Georgia includes a chat option for students who attend the virtual high school, as you can see from the following URL:
http://students.ga.desire2learn.com/gvs-orientation/index.html
I just noticed they use desire2learn.
It is hard for me to remember that this class focuses on teaching “adult” online students. I keep putting the things I learn in context with the situation I am in, which involves teaching in an alternative middle and high school. One suggestion for creating collaboration online is to use “Asynchronous discussion of the reading and discussion questions.” (Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p.10) My question is why synchronous discussion or “chat” is not listed as one of the methods for creating collaboration.
Another view is “synchronous tools like chat rooms and whiteboards are particularly appropriate for your class if you have students living in the same time zone.” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p. 89) It seems to me that using chat too much would come too close to a “real” classroom and take away some of the appeal of taking “virtual” classes. I do like knowing that I can chat with the instructor in her virtual office during hours if I need to. Something about that gives me a feeling of security even though I have not taken advantage of it. According to Ko & Rossen, using chat this way can “lighten your advisory load, or at least make it less onerous,” from the instructor’s view. (p.254) Sounds good to me.
Chat is out of the question for the students in my classroom, but I am interested in finding out how it works in virtual high school classes. Georgia includes a chat option for students who attend the virtual high school, as you can see from the following URL:
http://students.ga.desire2learn.com/gvs-orientation/index.html
I just noticed they use desire2learn.
Thursday, February 09, 2006
Small Groups and Team Building -- wk4 entry
One of my “secret” reasons for trying to bring my classroom into the 21st century with online activities is for team building purposes with my students. I was happy to see my belief substantiated in chapter one of Collaborating Online. “Given the importance of safety and trust for collaboration to happen, it is critical that time for community formation be built into the design of the class before any collaborative group work is attempted.”(Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p. 13) Even though we spent time in this class getting to know a little about each other, I had not thought about incorporating time for community building into my own lesson planning or projects.
One way this could be accomplished would be to have the students build a web page about themselves. As noted in chapter five of Teaching Online, “Besides helping to break the ice, these areas provide an important service by allowing students to refer back to identifying details about their classmates as the course progresses.” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p.97) This was helpful to me during the group selection process for this class. It was nice to look back and get a sense of who I will be working with.
Chapter 12 of Teaching Online makes a very interesting point: “Making the use of the Internet optional rather than incorporating it into the curriculum dooms it to failure.” (p. 258) Incorporating the use of the Web into the curriculum should lead to increased student interest in class and a variety of group projects that can increase learning.
According to an article in International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, small groups of 3 to 5 members lead to optimal learning. “The use of collaborative, team based learning activities in online courses can create a synergy of learning as result of the interactions associated with teamwork, that will create a greater accrual of learning, than the simple sums of individual learning efforts.”
http://www.itdl.org/Journal/Jun_04/article03.htm
One way this could be accomplished would be to have the students build a web page about themselves. As noted in chapter five of Teaching Online, “Besides helping to break the ice, these areas provide an important service by allowing students to refer back to identifying details about their classmates as the course progresses.” (Ko & Rossen, 2004, p.97) This was helpful to me during the group selection process for this class. It was nice to look back and get a sense of who I will be working with.
Chapter 12 of Teaching Online makes a very interesting point: “Making the use of the Internet optional rather than incorporating it into the curriculum dooms it to failure.” (p. 258) Incorporating the use of the Web into the curriculum should lead to increased student interest in class and a variety of group projects that can increase learning.
According to an article in International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, small groups of 3 to 5 members lead to optimal learning. “The use of collaborative, team based learning activities in online courses can create a synergy of learning as result of the interactions associated with teamwork, that will create a greater accrual of learning, than the simple sums of individual learning efforts.”
http://www.itdl.org/Journal/Jun_04/article03.htm
Sunday, January 29, 2006
Qualities of Successful Online Teachers
A teacher is a teacher is a teacher. Style varies, personalities vary, subjects vary, students vary, and so on. Anyone can be a successful teacher. A degree in education does not necessarily make a person a successful teacher. The question then of what makes a successful “online” teacher is the same as what makes a successful “onground” teacher. The main difference is that the online teacher must know how to effectively use all available technology.
According to Illinois Online Network, a successful online instructor is a facilitator of learning. In the article, criteria were listed for successful online facilitators. Then it continued with a list that students of the online learning experience should expect from the facilitator with one of these being that the facilitator should be online everyday (5 to 7 days).
www.ion.uillinois.edu/resources/tutorials/pedagogy/instructorProfile.asp
Copyright. Everything on this site is copyrighted. The copyrights are owned by the Illinois Online Network (ION) and the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois except in cases where the original creator retains copyright of the material. Copyrights to external links are owned and/or the responsibility of those external sites. However, you are free to view and print material from this site as long as:
1. The material is used for information only.
2. The material is used for non-commercial purposes only.
3. Copies of any material include the Illinois Online Network copyright notice.
According to Illinois Online Network, a successful online instructor is a facilitator of learning. In the article, criteria were listed for successful online facilitators. Then it continued with a list that students of the online learning experience should expect from the facilitator with one of these being that the facilitator should be online everyday (5 to 7 days).
www.ion.uillinois.edu/resources/tutorials/pedagogy/instructorProfile.asp
Copyright. Everything on this site is copyrighted. The copyrights are owned by the Illinois Online Network (ION) and the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois except in cases where the original creator retains copyright of the material. Copyrights to external links are owned and/or the responsibility of those external sites. However, you are free to view and print material from this site as long as:
1. The material is used for information only.
2. The material is used for non-commercial purposes only.
3. Copies of any material include the Illinois Online Network copyright notice.
Saturday, January 28, 2006
The Rationale Behind the Online Learning Boom
There are many reasons for the boom in online learning. Many high school and college graduates of today cannot remember when computers were not available. They take technology for granted and the concept of not having computers in the classroom is not part of their reality.
Add to that, the mandates of NCLB and the fact that the ratio of computers to students in schools has improved. Online courses tend to be easier to maneuver around one’s already busy schedule. The vast improvements in technology and the acceptance of the Internet have given online courses more credibility. The question is no longer whether the school is going to use technology in the classroom but rather what is the best way to utilize the available technology. (Tetreault, 2005)
This trend in using the internet for instruction benefits the students by improving the quality of education and the availability of information. It benefits teachers and parents by making it easier to report and monitor the progress of the child. Society is benefited by the leveling of the playing ground for the economically disadvantaged.
Tetreault, D. R. (2005, April). Administrative Technology: New Rules, New Tools, The Journal. Retreived January 28, 2006, from
http://thejournal.com/articles/17226
Add to that, the mandates of NCLB and the fact that the ratio of computers to students in schools has improved. Online courses tend to be easier to maneuver around one’s already busy schedule. The vast improvements in technology and the acceptance of the Internet have given online courses more credibility. The question is no longer whether the school is going to use technology in the classroom but rather what is the best way to utilize the available technology. (Tetreault, 2005)
This trend in using the internet for instruction benefits the students by improving the quality of education and the availability of information. It benefits teachers and parents by making it easier to report and monitor the progress of the child. Society is benefited by the leveling of the playing ground for the economically disadvantaged.
Tetreault, D. R. (2005, April). Administrative Technology: New Rules, New Tools, The Journal. Retreived January 28, 2006, from
http://thejournal.com/articles/17226
Qualities of a Successful Online Environment
As I was searching the web for qualities of a successful online learning environment, I came across a Web site created by the Committee for Online Instruction at Chico State. This committee developed a rubric that would be beneficial to anyone considering the design of an instructional Web site. The rubric is comprised of six components.
“Learner Support and Resources” covers the type of information a student should be able to easily assess from the course.
“Online Organization and Design” evaluates the aesthetics, organization, and navigability of the course and its syllabus.
The component of the rubric for “Instructional Design and Delivery” deals with the communication aspect of online teaching.
“Assessment and Evaluation of Student Learning” discerns the timeliness and effectiveness of the feedback from the student using multiple strategies.
The section on “Innovative Teaching with Technology” stretches from the use of the internet to all available technological tools emphasizing variety and creativity.
“Faculty Use of Student Feedback” includes an evaluation on the number of opportunities offered for feedback and also rates how this feedback is used.
http://www.csuchico.edu/celt/roi/index.html
“Learner Support and Resources” covers the type of information a student should be able to easily assess from the course.
“Online Organization and Design” evaluates the aesthetics, organization, and navigability of the course and its syllabus.
The component of the rubric for “Instructional Design and Delivery” deals with the communication aspect of online teaching.
“Assessment and Evaluation of Student Learning” discerns the timeliness and effectiveness of the feedback from the student using multiple strategies.
The section on “Innovative Teaching with Technology” stretches from the use of the internet to all available technological tools emphasizing variety and creativity.
“Faculty Use of Student Feedback” includes an evaluation on the number of opportunities offered for feedback and also rates how this feedback is used.
http://www.csuchico.edu/celt/roi/index.html
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