Role of online discussion forums

Associate Professor Som Naidu, PhD

Director, T&L Quality Enhancement and Evaluation

Charles Sturt University, NSW, Australia

Email: snaidu@csu.edu.au

This presentation will explore...

• Role of online discussion forums in learning and teaching online;

• Communicative affordances of online discussion forums for learning and teaching; and

• Models and steps in the process for designing and orchestrating these affordances.

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Open Access & OERs

Lets begin with some questions....– Jim Taylor: http://www.campusreview.com.au/blog/analysis/oeruniversity-gains-momentum/

– Is open access to open educational resources all that is required for learning?

– Where is the teaching in this model of education, and who is responsible for it?

– Moreover, are all learners capable of learning by themselves with minimal structure and guidance?

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Conceptions of teaching

• For some, teaching is a highly structured activity.• For others, teaching is an open-ended activity with

minimal structure and guidance (minimally invasive).– Sugata Mitra's "Hole in the Wall" experiments: http://www.ted.com/speakers/sugata_mitra.html

• In fact, effective, efficient and engaging teaching (e3-teaching) is neither an open-ended and unstructured activity, nor a one-way transmission of content with the teacher doing all the hard work.

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Effective, efficient & engaging teaching

• E3 teaching (Spector & Merrill, 2008) is about a lot more than that.• It takes place when a teacher carefully choreographs the learning

experiences of students in close alignment with the expected learning outcomes for them, and with a fine balance of guidance and structure.

• Great teaching is about putting “students in an environment where they want to learn and where they can naturally discover their true passions” (see Robinson & Aronica, 2009, p. 238).– KEY QUESTION: Would it ensure that students acquire all the information they

need to pass their examinations?

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Source: Davidson, C. (2011). Now you see it: How the brain science of attention will transform the way we live, work, and learn, page 131, Viking Penguin Books: London, England.

Nine principles for e3-teaching

1. Teachers and learners are clear about the learning outcomes.

2. Learning is situated within a meaningful context and within the culture and the community in which learners live and work.

3. Learners are engaged in pursuing and solving meaningful and real-world challenges, where they have opportunities to work on a variety of problems and tasks of increasing complexity with timely and useful feedback.

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Nine principles for e3-teaching

1. The learning activities in these learning situations are clearly articulated and explicitly linked to knowledge and skills already mastered.

2. Learners, while working on learning situations, are required to think for themselves by reflecting in and upon their actions and regulating their own performance.

3. The development of understanding is promoted as a social process with learners acting upon authentic situations in groups and with dialogue, discussion and debate.

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Nine principles for e3-teaching

1. The assessment of learning outcomes is closely aligned with the learning context.

2. The assessment of learning outcomes is linked to meaningful problems and tasks, and aimed at helping students further develop their knowledge, skills and problem-solving abilities.

3. The assessment of learning outcomes is designed to develop self-regulatory and meta-cognitive skills.

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Principles into models of teaching

• Few would argue with the spirit behind these guiding principles, but many will have problems applying them in their teaching activities without operational models.

• Widely used models of learning and teaching that encapsulate these principles include:

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scenario-based learning

problem-based learning case-based reasoninggoal-based learning

adventure learning

Scenario-based learning

• Example: Scenario-based learning• SBL is about using a scenario to situate all learning and

teaching activities. • Scenarios can be real or contrived. Their value lies in their

affordances – the opportunity they present for situating and contextualizing all learning and teaching activities.

• See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IC5YeGcSCE&feature=share

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Role of online discussion forums in supporting Scenario-Based Learning

• These include:– Communication among students, and– Between teachers and the students about all aspects of

learning and teaching.

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Problem with forums...

• Lack of student participation.• Poor design -- time poor and time jealous students shun

these areas because quite often there is no need for them to be there.

“(T)he college thinks I should partner with (other learners)…I don’t think so. The sick part is that there are probably tons of bright people in these courses but they, like me, hide and keep their mouths shut because the idiots run rampant and make the most noise like monkeys with pots and pans”.

Baggaley, J. (2011). Harmonizing Global Education: from Genghis Khan to Facebook. New York: Taylor & Francis.

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Getting the horse to drink...

Case Study: Learning Scenario.....You have been hired to the job of training and development manager because of your interest and expertise in online learning education. Your senior managers, who are your colleagues, have heard that online learning can help them develop the skills of their staff by offering them training and development opportunities while they are on the job without losing valuable time on the job and without eating into the personal time or space of the employees. For the organisation, their workers receive the training that they need while productively occupied and remaining on the job. For the workers, it means upgrading their skills and competencies, remaining competitive and motivated without sacrificing their own time and space to do so. Seems like a win-win situation for both parties. Your job is to make all this happen. Analyse your organizational context and pick a skill or set of skills that need urgent attention and development. Design the appropriate learning experience for your learners and develop your online course.

 

Context analysis (25% of marks)

• Describe your learning context• Identify the learning need in the context

– Post your analysis of learning need in the discussion forum.

– Engage with the analysis of your peers.

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Learning experience design (25% of marks)

• Design the learning experience• Your approach to learning and teaching, and the

rationale for your design.– Post an outline of your design in the discussion forum.– Engage with the designs of your peers.

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Development of your online course (using WebTycho) (25 % of marks)

• Students are organised into groups.

• Every student is a recipient as well as a provider of feedback.

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Critical reflection (25% of marks)

• Post your reflections on your design experience in the discuss forum.

• Engage with the reflections of your peers.

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If we built it right they will come

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 Selected References

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• Billett, S. (2011). Integrating experiences in workplace and university settings: A conceptual perspective. In S. Billett & A. Henderson (Eds.), Promoting professional learning (pp. 21–40). Dordrecht: Springer.

• Brown, J.S., Collins, A., & Duguid, P. (1989). Situated cognition and the culture of learning. Educational Researcher, 18(1), 32 –42.

• Collins, A., Brown, J. S., & Holum, A. (1991). Cognitive apprenticeship: Making thinking visible. American Educator, 15(3), 6–11, 38–46.

• Merrill, M.D. (2002). First principles of instruction. Educational Technology Research and Development, 50(3), 43–59.

• Naidu, S. (2010). Using scenario-based learning to promote situated learning and develop professional knowledge. In E. P. Errington (Ed.), Preparing graduates for the professions using scenario-based learning, (39-49), Brisbane: Post Pressed.

• Schank, R. C. (1997). Virtual learning: A revolutionary approach to building a highly skilled workforce. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

• Spector, J.M., & Merrill, M.D. (2008). Editorial. Distance Education, 29(2), 123 –126.• The Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbuilt. (1993). Designing learning environments that

support thinking. In T. M. Duffy, J. Lowyck, & D. H. Jonassen (Eds.), Designing environments for constructivist learning (pp. 9–36). New York, NY: Springer-Verkag.