effective facilitation in synchronous environments pt 2
TRANSCRIPT
Effective Facilitation in Synchronous Environments
Michael CoghlanNewLearning28/3/13
(Session 2 of 2)
Using the Drawing Tools
activity courtesy of LearningTimes
TODAY’S AGENDA
• Whiteboard Activities• Synch v asynch: resolving the tension• More on Designing for interactivity
USE OF WEBCAMS
• Use your webcam (or at least show a picture) briefly at the start of the session as part of the introduction
• Have students do the same if they have them , if they want to, and if bandwidth allows
• I recommend you then turn off webcams to conserve bandwidth, but it is a personal choice.
Establish ‘Modus Operandi’ (Ground Rules) for the session
• Questions/Comments: any time? Throughout session? At the end? In text chat? Via voice? Using the hands-up tool?
• How will you handle the text chat? Will you use a co-moderator?
META:
PURPOSE?
• a presentation tool?
• a collaboration/interaction tool?
HOW MIGHT YOU USE WEB CONFERENCING/VIRTUAL CLASSROOMS?
What kinds of synchronous activities can you use in virtual classrooms?
TEACHING• ‘straight lecture’• Guest lecturers• Oral presentations• Group work• One on one (eg
pronunciation)
OTHER• Office hours• Peer support• Social: student -
student
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
• Attend online conferences, seminars, workshops
• Meetings (much more cost effective than teleconferencing)
SWOT ANALYSIS
ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES?
POETRY SLAM
activity courtesy of LearningTimes
ANTICIPATED PROBLEMS?
WHITEBOARD OR
TEXT CHAT?
WHITEBOARD AS WORD CLOUD
LABELS – DRAG AND DROP
shaft
cog
tank
pulley
chain
nut
beam
SYNCHRONOUS ASYNCHRONOUS
Asynch
Synch
Oral Written
Minimalist; rapid (evolving)
COMMUNICATION AXIS
Spontaneous;dialogue
Reflective; monologue
Structured; expository
COMMUNICATION AXIS
Most classroom communications take place here
New – have been enabled by technology (only happen online)
Tension: Synch v Asynch
Terry Anderson, Toward a Theory of Online Learning:
“….the major motivation for enrollment in distance education is not physical access, but rather, temporal freedom to move through a course of studies at a pace of the student’s choice.” Participation in (synchronous events) “almost inevitably places constraints on this independence.”
“ The demands of a learning-centered context might at times force us to modify prescriptive participation in (synchronous events), even though we might have evidence that such participation will further advance knowledge creation and attention.”
RESOLVING THE TENSION BETWEEN ASYNCHRONOUS AND SYNCHRONOUS APPROACHES
• Don’t make synch sessions compulsory; use synch for those who want/need them
• Stagger the timing of synch sessions eg Monday afternoon in week 1, Thursday morning in week 2, etc
• Consider night sessions • Run the same session twice in any given week• Record and archive the sessions for viewing later• Use in conjunction with asynchronous activity (eg forums, wikis,
blogs, Facebook) • FLIPPED CLASSROOM – record short videos (15 mins or less) to
be viewed before class (may be best done using screen capure software like Camtasia, Screenr, etc)
DESIGNING FOR INTERACTION
examples of this in the 2 sessions so far?
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity
• Ask students where/who they are• ‘Fill them out’ as real people• Share some information about yourself• Don’t underestimate the value of small talk• show a map so people can mark where they
are
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity
• Use a webcam (or at least show a picture)• Have students use webcams if they have them
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity:
• Ask questions – esp open questions• Global (to the group) and individual• Encourage questions and comments• Exploit the whiteboard:
– Brainstorming– Group work– Inserting images (have students prepare some)– For fun (especially before session, during breaks)
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity:
• Ask for feedback regularly via– Voice– Text chat– Whiteboard– Poll– Emoticons
http://www.flickr.com/photos/edublogger/7566567130/
Run a Progress Check
• We could use emoticons…..• Or do a quick poll:
How is everyone feeling about the session so far?
A. SatisfiedB. Very SatisfiedC. NeutralD. Dissatisfied
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity:
• Hold group discussions
• Question: Do these examples of interactivity seem practical in your teaching situation?
GROUP WORK
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity:
• Enable all channels of communication (when appropriate)
• Encourage student to student communication – especially text chat
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity
• Exploit polling/quiz tool (short answer, multiple choice)
• New polls/quizzes can be created on the fly • Share the results• Use results as starting point for discussion
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity
• Conduct web tours• Have students lead web tours
Other Strategies to Increase Interactivity
• Share your desktop• Have students share their desktop• Let students take control of your mouse!
Skills of the Live Online Presenter
• Golden Rule: 6-8 minutes talking at a stretch maximum• Intersperse presentations with questions, polls, other speakers (from
the floor), whiteboard activity• Decide how to handle text chat – will you monitor/respond? Or ignore
it? Dip in and out of it?• Consider working with a producer/co-presenter• More at michaelcoghlan.net/fll/blog.htm#skills
FURTHER RESOURCES
See the wiki at http://synchfacilitation.wikispaces.com/
