EDU337 Collaboration in the Virtual Classroom

Stephanie Parlee, MAT, MSCE

Week Overview

Introduction: Child Driven Education

Reading Chapter 1: Building Virtual Teams Chapter 2: Leadership

Discussion MIT World

Assignment Webquest & Evaluation

Sugata Mitra

Sugata Mitra: The child-driven education

Sugata Mitra looks at “places on Earth… where, for various reasons, good schools cannot be built and good teachers cannot or do not want to go…”

Do we take for granted the instructional and learning opportunities presented to use here in the United States? How could we empower our learners to be more self directed? Would there be a benefit to this?

Week 1 Learning Outcomes

Not stated but equally important – getting to know

one another.

Identify instructional

design theories and approaches.

Classify e-learning experiences as educational or

training.

Aligning Course Objectives & the Week’s activities.

Getting to know one another

Read my intro – Meet Your Instructor

Post your introduction in the discussion

thread on Day 1

Respond to at least 3 of your

peer’s introductions.

Identify instructional

design theories and approaches.

Reading Part 1 & Chapter 5

Discussion – Theory Based Approaches

Week 1 Quiz

Classify e-learning experiences as educational or

training. 

Reading Chapter 5

Tutorial vs. Educational

Week 1 Quiz

Discussion Requirements Week 1

We have two discussion threads this week.   The first is an Introduction Thread.  Unlike most of our Discussion Threads, this post is due on Day 1 and requires 2 posts to your classmates' bios by Day 7.  Please note the collaborative aim of this introduction. As a learner in the classroom, how did the lack of instruction make you feel about the assignment? How do you feel when you explore materials outside of class without specific instruction?

The remaining thread requires one initial post by Day 3 and two response posts by Day 7 for a total of 6 posts this week.

The more that you interact with your peers and me in the discussion, the better you will understand the materials for the week.  Work to move beyond the basics to explore the material in a meaningful way.  I will participate in the discussion posing questions and insight to help in this endeavor. 

Depth of Discussion PostsThis is our first week in the classroom.  I know that it can take some time to get used to my policies and requirements.  Be sure to review the Faculty Expectations tab prior to posting to ensure that you earn credit for your posts this week.  I place a heavy emphasis on in depth discussions in our classroom.  Initial posts should address each element of the discussion thread.  Asking yourself "how" and "why" can help build college level details into your responses.

If you have any questions about posting in the classroom or building a substantive post, please let me know.  I am happy to help.  

Discussion Grading and Feedback

I am a firm believer in setting clear expectations and then upholding those expectations in providing feedback. In our course, I will use the college provided rubric to assess the scores in our discussions. The criteria required for each element are detailed in our classroom. Here is a copy for our discussion rubric:

How is the Rubric Used? Posts are evaluated according to the rubric criteria. I begin by looking at the

Distinguished category to assess whether your post meets that level of performance in that category. Then I move to Proficient, etc. until I have reached that level that you meet or exceed all stated requirements. Looking at Participation, to meet the Distinguished level the following criteria must be

met: Student responds with thorough and constructive analysis to the required number of peers, relating the response to relevant course concepts. Student may pose pertinent follow-up thoughts or questions about the topic, and demonstrates respect for the diverse opinions of fellow learners.

Also looking at Participation, if you respond to fewer than the required number of posts, it is automatically Below Expectations for this element, regardless of the strength of the post made.

The exact score earned is calculated by the rubric based on the performance level demonstrated. This generally leads to numbers that are not round or even (e.g. 2.72).

The wording of the rubric is standardized. Not every comment made in the rubric feedback may apply to your post, but your post did not satisfy the requirements for the next level up. For this reason, you may find it more helpful to refer back to the rubric and examine the next level of performance. This can help you to pinpoint where and how you can improve future work.

I will include a personal note with your discussion feedback to highlight the positive areas of your work, as well as to discuss areas for improvement.

Webquest & Evaluation

It is important to note the future relevance of this Week 1 Assignment.

“In Week Five of this course, you will select one of these sites to host your final project. It is strongly recommended that you include at least two of the following sites: Ning, PBWorks, and/or Googlesites…” in your research and evaluation this week.

Here is an example of a rubric that you could use to examine the 10 sites you select out of the 20 alternatives listed. What factors are most important to you as you plan and design your online collaborative learning environment?

Additional Resources

As you work through the collaborative learning and social media websites this week, you may be examining some familiar territory in a new light.

This article by Martha Snyder connects much of this week’s material directly to online learning communities for adults. Snyder examines design theories with this particular learner group in mind.

As you read her research, think about your own intended audience as an instructional designer.  Does your intended audience affect which websites you would use for online collaboration? Does your intended audience affect how you would approach online study groups? Why or why not? 

Instructional Design and Adult Online Learning Communities

Collaboration is the Key

No matter what websites you choose to explore this week, first and foremost, let’s focus on creative a collaborative working environment for the next 5 weeks. I am excited to work with you as we explore this material. I am here to support you and your peers in this journey. Please do not hesitate to ask questions or express concerns. I am happy to help!

Warm regards,

Stephanie