Sense Of Community And Collaboration In Traditional And Distance Counseling Skills Classrooms:

Creating Interactivity With Web 2.0 Technologies ACES 2007 Conference

Amanda Rockinson-Szapkiw, LPC Lucinda C. West, LMHC, LMFT Old Dominion University Regent University arockins@odu.edu luciwes@regent.edu

(Model Of Interactivity In The Classroom Adapted from Palloff & Pratt, 2005)

Community

Collaboration

INTERACTIVITY Based upon discrepancies

found in the literature of what it actually does or involves, we

have defined interactivity as the action that takes place among individuals, which creates the

atmosphere for developing sense of community,

collaboration and learning.

Collaboration is a BEYOND THE BOX experience that empowers students to deepen learning potential by working together (Palloff & Pratt, 2005).

Sense of community includes the components of spirit, trust, interaction, and

learning (Rovai, 2001); it includes the dimensions of both social community

(connectedness) and learning community (learning and satisfaction) (Rovai &

Gallien, 2005; Rovai & Ponton, 2005).

Web 2.0 Technologies Where Web 1.0 technologies use push-pull methods of resourcing, Web 2.0 technologies utilize “collective intelligence.” Web 2.0 uses the Web as a “platform” and includes services offered rather than packaged software, individual and collaborative contribution and participation, transformation of data, the usage of multiple connected components, and cost effective collaboration (O’Reilly, 2005).

“The trick with higher learning at this point is catching up

with students that are already so tech-savvy it’s been part of their life always. These are very savvy people and they want to learn the way they think.” 1

In the quote above, Jennifer Reeves (Bruce, 2005) understands the importance of integrating technology into learning for this “tech-savvy” culture. It is now expected at most universities that faculty, to some degree, utilize Web 2.0 technologies. This presentation will offer an overview of the Web 2.0 technologies currently available, and will provide an example of how these technologies are being used in the Counseling Skills classroom. Definitions of community, collaboration, and interactivity are proffered as well as a definition of Web 2.0 technologies usages, benefits, and links for instruction. Suggesting faculty “let go of the control of the course and empower students to take responsibility for the learning process,” (p. 287) Palloff and Pratt ( 2005) define five steps to promote collaboration:

• Setting the stage • Creating the Environment • Modeling the process • Guiding the process • Evaluating the process

These authors will provide an example of how to incorporate collaboration and interactivity into the process within the Counseling Skills classroom. Setting the stage in a face-to-face classroom is often accomplished through ice-breaker techniques. “Who am I, where am I from, and why am I taking this class?” are questions which begin to build a sense of community. Equally important is the role of setting the stage in the online classroom. Separated by physical distance, the instructor takes an active role in promoting a sense of community. Conrad and Donaldson (2004) offer examples of ice-breaker activities (eg. Room With a View, Snowball, Truths and Lies, Bingo, Lost in Space, etc.) to enhance a sense of community in the distance classroom, which can also be used in a traditional classroom.

The Counseling Skills class is a core component of a counseling program (Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, 2001), and the microskills learned in the class are foundational to counseling (Ivey & Ivey, 2007). Utilizing a standard instructional design model, ADDIE (Dick & Carey, 2005), these authors propose a method for using Web 2.0 technologies to develop an online Counseling Skills course to address the

1 Emphasis added. Jennifer Reeves was the executive producer KOMU-TV News and assistant professor, journalism at the time of this podcasting conference.

challenges of teaching counseling skills at a distance. The analysis, design, and development of the course will be discussed. Analyzing learners’ needs and content needs through research, these authors defined the learners’ needs and the goal of the class. The aim of an online counseling skills class is learner acquisition of basic clinical skills and the development of a theoretical orientation of counseling. The design and content of the class was developed through discussion with educators and the usage of a storyboard. The class content is divided into eight modules. The course content includes attending behaviours, active listening skills, observing and reflecting feeling, observation skills, the use of questions, empathy, change strategies, affirming strengths, exploration skills, immediacy, confrontation, goal setting, conducting an initial interview, skill integration, and theoretical orientation development. In order to pass the class, learners must (a) meet all basic criteria for an effective clinical interview by achieving a satisfactory on a Basic Skills Competency Scale evaluation developed for the course, and (b) be able to articulate their own theoretical counseling orientation. The content management system, a simulation, a conferencing system, podcasting, and weblogs are used to facilitate learning and assist the learners in accomplishing the goals of the course. Learners enrolled in the Counseling Skills course are provided with the URL to the course site that is located on the university supported course management system; learners are provided with a course login and password that are required for entry to the course. Counselor educators use a content management system (CMS) to store the content of the course. Learners frequently visit the content management system to read course announcements; download course documents such as the syllabus, podcast, vodcasts, powerpoint slide shows, and handouts; and participate in class module (14 days) discussions. The counselor educator provides weekly Module Folders (eg. Road Map folder, Course Assignment folder, a Class material folder, and an Enrichment Material folder). The CMS provides a location for course content and provides an organizational element to the course. Additional Web 2.0 technologies facilitate learner learning. A simulation, Second Life, provides both asynchronous and synchronous immersion virtual experiences for the learners. On a weekly basis, a synchronous virtual class is conducted to facilitate the development of micro-counseling skills. The counselor educator’s and the learners’ avatars meet in a virtual classroom. The counselor educator provides brief instruction on a specific counseling skill. The counselor educator models the skill and the learners’ role play skills in dyads for the other learners and the educator to observe and critique. This virtual classroom allows learners to solely focus upon one micro-skill at a time without the distraction of trying to combine multiple micro-skills. Individual learners may visit Second Life to engage in additional features in the virtual classroom. In the virtual counseling classroom building, counseling labs are available for learners to synchronously practice skills in dyads or triads. Learning kiosks display interactive counseling skills quizzes, PowerPoints, and Flash-based educator-created presentations of course material, educator-produced podcasts and vodcasts, and counseling skill videos. As technology advances within Second Life, learners may be able to interact with pre-programmed avatars that provide feedback on their counseling skills.

Conferencing software, that utilizes additional technology such as a web cam, allows learners to meet in collaborative small groups in a synchronous format. On a weekly basis, learners meet in small group triads to practice the integration of their learned micro-counseling skills. On selected weeks the counselor educator provides live supervision. A counseling session is simulated as each learner plays the role of counselor, counselee, and observer; the session is recorded by the counselor. While sessions may involve personal sharing, the purpose of these sessions is to learn counseling skills and techniques and not personal counseling. After synchronous meetings, learners will individually self-review their own recordings. The learner will transcribe a seven to ten minute verbatim from the tape. The verbatims and recordings will be sent to the educator for review and feedback, and small group blogs will be used to reflect upon the simulated experience. Blogs enable learners to document and reflect upon their learning. They promote a sense of community (Wenger et al., 2002). Learners are placed in small community blogs based on their triads for the conferencing system simulation; they are encouraged to create their own class blogs and use an aggregator to suscribe to the small community class blog and each others blogs. Learners are encouraged to frequently visit the community blog. On a weekly basis, learners are required to post a reflection on their experience as a counselor and discuss more accurate counselor responses than those given on the verbatim. Each Web 2.0 tool enhances the learners’ online learning experiences. Conferencing software adds the element of synchronous collaboration. Second Life provides immersion. The use of Blogs facilitates meta cognition and the sense of community among the learners. The CMS provides content and organization. The interaction between these components creates an immersive learning experience for learners that could potentially foster a greater sense of community and facilitate the effective learning of skills needed for counseling.

Additional Technology: TechSmith SnagIt - http://www.techsmith.com/snagit.asp A screen capture program. Select anything (an image, an article, a Web page, and more ) on your commuter screen and capture it. Use for media rich presentations. Camtasia Studio - http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.asp A screen recorder program combined with a video editor. Create training, demonstrations, presentations, etc.. you are only limited by your imagination. Connect with your students by including screen recordings, audio, voice narration, PowerPoint, Picture-in-Picture and webcam video. Edit and enhance your video with callouts, titles, credits, zooming, panning, quizzes and additional audio tracks. Adobe Captivate - http://www.adobe.com/products/captivate/ Automatically records onscreen actions. Easily add mouse movements text captions to create an interactive demonstration . Adobe® Captivate™ 2 software enables the creation of interactive quizzes, presentations, and tutorials. PowerPoint A tutorial on getting more out of your PowerPoint presentations: http://www.actden.com/pp/ PowerPoint narration: http://www.its2.uidaho.edu/cti/tutorials/audio/powerpoint_narration.htm Additional programs that can be used to enrich and enhance your PowerPoint: http://www.articulate.com/products/presenter.php, http://www.spresent.com, http://www.impatica.com/evaluation/ , http://www.adobe.com/products/ovation/

Podcasting/Vodcasting Software & Services

The following services are used for videoconferencing between computers (video/audio), computers and regular telephones (audio only), and for recording conversations to be converted into a podcast form for online delivery.

Skype. http://www.skype.com.

Gabcast. http://www.gabcast.com.

Audacity. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/.

Switchpod is a podcast hosting service which offers “unmetered bandwidth, the fastest speeds, the most detailed statistics and the best promotional opportunities. When you create an account at Switchpod, you get your own folder hosted on our servers to manage your podcasts - http://www.switchpod.com

Universities are negotiating contracts with iTunes to provide podcasting services for their faculty and students www.apple.com/itunesu.

Usages: • Imagine you post a mini-lecture or excerpt from the class discussion after an evening class, and

your ESL student downloads it to his MP3 player the next morning. He then listens to the lecture while he is getting dressed, driving to work, or exercising on the treadmill, practicing his English and reviewing notes.

• Reinforcing important lecture points, and is helpful for the auditory learner.

• The visually impaired or dyslexic student who cannot take class notes.

• Other possible usages of podcasts and vodcasts include syllabus reviews, recording textbooks in whole chapters, sharing study sessions for comps, communicating course announcements, recording interviews of guest speakers or pioneers in the field, expanding traditional assignments (students include voice recordings and sound effects or submit a recorded presentation), delivering course content, presenting case studies in dramatic form, quiz reviews, etc.

Benefits: • Portability • Relatively easy to produce • Audio podcasts are downloaded by

students more frequently than Powerpoint with audio or video with audio (University of Michigan, 2005).

Links http://www.adelaide.edu.au/clpd/online/learningmodules/podlearning/player.html Podagogy. http://www.podagogy.com; Education Podcast Network. http://www.epnweb.org

Introduction to Podcasting http://digitalmedia.oreilly.com/pub/a/oreilly/digitalmedia/2005/07/20/WhatIsPodcasting.html

Podcasts and Vodcasts Definitions

“The process of capturing an audio event, song, speech, or mix of sounds and then posting that digital sound object to a Web site or a blog” (Meng, 2005, p. 1).

The name “podcast” started as a combination of Apple’s “iPod” and “broadcasting,” although one need not own an iPod; any MP3 player or computer will do.

Vodcasting (“Video-On-Demand”) is in essence the same as podcasting, only with the addition of video in the digital object. “Syndication feeds” allow podcasts and vodcasts to be automatically downloaded and then played back on portable devises and/or computers.

Simulations and Virtual Worlds Definitions

“Teaching and learning methods in which participants are directly involved in making decisions and learning from the outcomes of these. Their active, student centred nature means that they are memorable and highly motivating. They enable the exploration of the complex nature of the real world and interdisciplinary, interacting subjects as well as the more basic need of understanding, doing and skills practice” (Society for the Advancement of Games and Simulations in Education and Training, SAGSET, 2002).

Distinct from video games in that they “replicate real-life situations” (Conrad & Donaldson, 2004, p. 93).

The goal is “instruction through active involvement” (p. 94) utilizing role-playing, providing perspective that is not possible within the current learning environment.

Usages: • Second Life - Universities are utilizing one of the fastest growing three-dimentional virtual

worlds where users are known as “residents” vs. players. With the use of a customized avatar residents make purchases with the use of “Linden Dollars.” They can buy land (server space), own homes, develop property, conduct business, participate in social activities, take classes, dissect a frog, practice architecture, and attend counseling sessions to name a few (Hof, 2006). Entire university campuses (i.e Ohio State University, Duke and others) are recreated in the virtual world of Second Life.

• Interact with various cultures in their environment • Experience DSM IV-TR diagnoses (Peter Yellowlees’ Virtual Psychiatric Ward, based on

Sacramento County Mental Health Treatment Center and schizophrenic patients) • Practice counseling skills • Develop scenarios where students can analyze and make decisions in real-time format (Joekel &

McNultr, 2003). Benefits: • Simulations have been used for training in a variety of settings with success. • Cheaper for multicultural experiences • Allows you to perform “what if” scenarios without the risk of harming clients • Simulations teach persistence, creativity, appropriate help seeking, and cooperative teamwork

(Cairns, 1995). • Use of innovative technology. Links and Resources: • www.simteach.com/slccedu07proceedings.pdf - conference proceeding paper, Second Life

Education Workshop 2007, part of the Second Life Community Convention, Chicago. • www.secondlifeinsider.com • Ohio State University Second Life campus tour – www.utube.com/watch?v=aFunFrie8wA • www.secondlife.com • Aldrich, C. Simulations and the Future of Learning: An Innovative (and perhaps

revolutionary) approach to e-Learning. San Francisco: Pfeiffer, 2003.

Weblogs and Wikkis Definitions

A weblog is "a website that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer” (The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 2004).

A weblog is a "frequently modified web pages in which dated entries are listed in reverse chronological sequence" (Herring, Scheidt, Bonus, & Wright, 2004, p. 1).

A weblog is a “web-based, multimedia publishing system, that is low-cost (often free), very easy to use, customizable in terms of look and feel, content, target audience and hyperlinked to other content spread across the internet” (Cameron & Anderson, 2006, p. 2).

Weblogs are personal pages, whereas wikis are communally created. A Wiki is a web site in which any individual can add and edit information without needing

special administrative access rights.

Links The Educational Bloggers Network (http://www.ebn.weblogger.com) Edublogs (http://www.edublogs.org) Weblog-Ed (http://www.weblogg-ed.com ) Blogger (http://www.blogger.com) Usage • Weekly discussion on a specific area of

study • Personal reflections and journals • Learning and research portfolios • Post class announcements, handouts, and

reminders to learners about assignments • Peer coaching and peer review • Small group cooperative learning • Incorporating links and references can

extend learning beyond the discussion topic

Benefits • Access – anytime, anywhere (Turnbull,

2002) • Promote collaboration, knowledge

building, and reflection(Sorensen, 2004). • Decrease learners’ perceptions of

isolation (Dickey, 2004) • Foster a sense of connection and linking

(Rourke & Anderson, 2002). • Peer relationships are established on

blogs in the online environment and mimic the peer interaction that occurs in the traditional classroom.

• Increases learner self-confidence, writing ability, sense of involvement, sense of interdependence, and development of social and teamwork skills (Wang & Fang, 2005).

• Promote learner autonomy and a means of representing and expressing the self and forming identity (Cameron & Anderson, 2006)

• Encourages ownership and responsibility for learning; learners may be more thoughtful abut the content that they write due to their awareness of the large internet audience (Godwin-Jones, 2003).

Links Skype www.skype.com Google Talk www.google.com/talk/ Horizon Wimba www.wimba.com/ Elluminate http://www.elluminate.com/ Additionally, Elluminate offers a free three-seat vRoom edition. “Enjoy real-time collaboration with up to three participants using interactive features such as Two-way audio, Interactive whiteboard, Direct messaging, Application sharing, File transfer, Synchronized web tour, Live webcam, and Breakout rooms.” You can register for the free three-seat Elluminate vRoom at http://www.elluminate.com/vroom/ Usage • Interactive lectures and presentations • Collaborative projects • Presentation of real-life problems for

group problem-solving • Small group discussions • Live Supervision • Practice skills sessions

Benefits • Enables active participation

(Marjanovic, 1999). • Provides collaborative learning

environment (Marjanovic, 1999). • Allows for the exchange ideas (Page, et

al., 2003) • Builds a scholarly online community

(Page, et al., 2003) • Encourages knowledge construction,

deeper understanding of concepts, and increased skill development (Marjanovic, 1999).

• Increases the ability to feel connected to group members

• Enables participant to hear vocal tones and view nonverbal cues.

• Contains password protection, user authentication, and data encryption, conferencing software can provide robust security and administrative control (Taran, 2004).

Collaborative Synchronous Conferencing Software Definitions

Referred to as Group Support Systems or Electronic Meeting Systems Provides tools to assist with synchronous collaboration. Collaborative software enables users in remote geographical locations to share ideas

and work together using real-time chats, threaded discussion boards, shared whiteboards, file transfers, live video images, and audio chats (Taran, 2004; Rupley, 2004).

Enabling multiple users to connect on the screen at the same time, online conferencing has provided a convenient option for communication and connection (Page et. al., 2003).

The main challenge in this process is the expertise needed to combine different tools to design active learning activities that will achieve intended learning objectives” (Marjanovic, 1999,

p. 132).

Learners and educators need to understand the conferencing software and how it can be used to enhance the development of

counselling skills.

Educators must receive adequate training to effectively use the collaborative.

. Links opensource CMS http://www.opensourcecms.com Moodle http://moodle.org Sakai http://sakaiproject.org. Seul/Edu Educational Application Index http://richtech.ca/seul/ MIT OpenCourseWare http://ocw.mit.edu Usage • Deliver material (the course syllabi,

notes, PowerPoints slide shows, pod casts, learning units, flash activities, and assignments)

• Threaded text-based and pod-based discussions

• Assignment submission • Quiz, test, and survey • Gradebook • Keep a roster • Track participation

Benefits • Management • Organization • Anytime, Anyplace Access • Familiar Territory for many

Course Management Systems/Learning Management Systems Definitions

Blackboard, WebCT, eCollege, Angel, Prometheus, Moodle, and Sakai Course management systems (CMS), also known as learner management systems

(LMS), are computer software programs developed for the delivery of online training and course content.

A CMS is Internet-based software used by academic institutions and organizations for the organization, management, distribution of course materials, and communication with students.

When educators are not trained to use the features of the CMS effectively and efficiently, the educators may use the CMS as a dumping place for course content.

A CMS used as a dumping ground, has the potential to overwhelm and frustrate learners.

Learner exposure to content, and learner page views statistics insinuate that learning has occurred. "The underlying assumption is that if we just expose students to the content, learning will happen" (Siemans, p. 1). Siemans wrote, "The real issue is that LMS vendors are attempting to position their tools as the center-point for e-learning - removing control from the system's end-users: educators and learners" (p. 1).

Links http://webquest.sdsu.edu/LessonTemplate.html http://webquest.sdsu.edu/designpatterns/all.htm, http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuests.html http://webquest.org/index.php, http://www.instantprojects.org/webquest/technology.php?start=21, http://webquest.sdsu.edu/webquest_collections.htm Usage • Provide a framework for constructing

online lessons and modules; especially useful to faculty new to teaching in the online environment (Burchum et al., 2007).

• Research ethical issues (i.e. confidentiality, dual relationships).

• Research multicultural competence in counseling.

• Role play or become an expert in a specified area or population.

Benefits • Encourage active learning (Burchum et

al., 2007). • Emphasize time on task (Burchum et al.,

2007). • Develop cooperation among students

(Burchum et al., 2007). • Communicate high expectations

(Burchum et al.). • Requires the utilization of higher level

thinking skills (Starr, 2005). • Create collaborative learning

environments (when written effectively; Dodge, 2001).

• Positively influence academic success and quality of relationship (Fielder, 2002).

WebQuests Definitions

WebQuests, designed by Bernie Dodges and Tom March, are web-based, inquiry-oriented

lesson design that engage students in completing a doable task (Starr, 2005). WebQuest is “an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that

learners interact with comes from resources on the internet” (Dodges, 1997, p.1). WebQuests are based on a template with five components: (a) an introduction for introducing

a scenario, (b) a task to assign the task that the learner is to complete, (c) a resource to list needed or suggested resources, (d) an evaluation to provide the learner with the evaluation criteria, and (e) a conclusion for learners to provide a reflection on the activity (Dodge, 1997).

Figure Captions (Screen Shots)

Figure 1. Moodle, a free content management system, offers instructors a location to organize

their materials.

Figure 2. Blackboard, a paid content management, has a discussion thread.

Figure 3. Second Life is a virtual world.

Figure 4. In Second Life, an individual can build their own avatar.

Figure 5. Second Life is used for business and educational purposes.

Figure 6. Skype is a collaborative synchronous conferencing software that provides tools for

synchronous collaboration.

Figure 7. Horizon Wimba, a collaborative conferencing software, has tools to facilitate

interactive lectures, presentation, and small group discussion.

Figure 8. Weblogg-ed is an example of an educational blog.

Figure 9. Learners are provided with a course login and password to enter the secure Content

Management System.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3 Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 5

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

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