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*** GUIDE ***

STARTING E-LEARNING

For Colleges of Education in Zambia

Exploring the world of e-learning

January 2009

Compiled by Leonie Meijerink

Programme Adviser Distance Learning

VVOB Zambia

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. STARTING e-learning .............................................................................................................................................. - 2 -

I.1 What is e-learning? .......................................................................................................................................... - 2 -

I.2 History of e-learning ........................................................................................................................................ - 4 -

I.3 Reasons for starting e-learning ........................................................................................................................ - 5 -

I.4 E-readiness....................................................................................................................................................... - 5 -

I.5 Proposed model for Introducing ICT and e-learning in education .................................................................. - 6 -

I.6 Design of e-learning ......................................................................................................................................... - 7 -

I.7 Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................................... - 9 -

References chapter I ........................................................................................................................................... - 10 -

II. Practical examples of how to develop e-learning ............................................................................................... - 11 -

II.1 Using a digital learning environment for the first time: where do you start? .............................................. - 11 -

II.2 How to organize on-line discussions with a small group of students? ......................................................... - 12 -

II.3 How to monitor students' co-operation processes in a distance learning environment? ........................... - 16 -

II.4 How to use Wikis and weblogs in education ................................................................................................ - 18 -

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I. STARTING E-LEARNING

I.1 WHAT IS E-LEARNING?

E-learning is ‘learning supported by (internet) technology’. E-learning is a combination of

Pedagogy, Technology and Community Building. See the model below:

Figure 1 Model of e-learning

(from Delft University of Technology, presentation by Sjoer, E.and Meijerink, L, EduTec, 2003)

The model implies e-learning is not just putting a document online. There should be careful

consideration about the pedagogy used to ensure real learning takes place. Since students

have to study independently through e-learning it is important to consider how you are enabling

students to construct their own knowledge. Also it is important to have tools available that make

it possible to have social interactions between lecturers and learners, between learners and

learners and possibly between learners and experts/coaches. Finally it is important to use

appropriate technology that supports the pedagogy and community building aspects of e-

learning.

In the middle of the model, overlapping all three aspects, a ‘digital learning environment’ can be

placed. As the name suggests, digital refers to the technology, learning to the pedagogy and

environment is related to community building. In the case of Charles Lwanga we place the

digital learning environment ‘Moodle’ in the middle.

How does Moodle support e-learning using this model?

Pedagogy: a constructivist methodology is the foundation for the Moodle learning

environment (see explanation below).

Community: Moodle has social tools embedded, such as discussion forums and wikis

Moodle

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Technology: Moodle uses open source software (which means it is free to download,

and the source code can be used by developers to program according to the needs of

the users).

One of the god fathers of constructivism is John Dewey, who believes that individuals and

society cannot exist separately. To understand education is to understand the interplay between

personal interest and experience and societal values, norms and knowledge. 'Learning is a

personal event that results from sustained and meaningful engagement with ones environment’

(Bruner,1986). Duffy and Cunningham (1996: 171) refer to instructional design based on

constructivism by explaining:

‘(1) learning is an active process of constructing rather than acquiring knowledge.

(2) instruction is a process of supporting that construction rather than communicating

knowledge’ .

When we want to answer the question what e-learning is, it is important to first consider what we

think ‘learning’ is:

Learning is an active mental process of the learner

Learning is reflection with the ‘inner’ self and through communication with others

Learning is transforming information to meaningful knowledge

Thus….e-learning should have all of this!

And when we know what learning is what does this mean for teaching?

Teaching is enabling students to be active, communicate, and thus construct knowledge.

Teaching is enabling students to experience, contribute, and reflect.

Thus, in e-learning the tutor/lecturer should enable and encourage all of this!

It is important to discuss the college’s vision on learning and teaching. The next step

then is to transfer the same principles to e-learning and the role of the lecturer in

enabling e-learning.

Depending on the vision of the college, you can now start questioning what e-learning is for the

college.

Is it about supporting face-to-face methods?

Is it about having accessibility to resources?

Is it about focusing on making independent, reflective and active learning of students

possible?

Is it about providing better information through improved learning support services?

Is it about a combination of the above or something else not listed here yet?

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I.2 HISTORY OF E-LEARNING

Rubens (2007) discusses the history of e-learning and where e-learning is now in the context of

Europe. The lessons learnt he describes can be used to identify the challenges of introducing e-

learning into Zambian education. Rubens roughly divides e-learning into the following phases:

E-learning as ‘love baby’: In the beginning (1990s) there are high expectations of e-

learning. Besides increasing efficiency in the sense that students do not have to travel

so much, there are great opportunities for meeting students’ needs, for cost reduction

and possibilities to offer stronger content (e.g. using video’s). A lot of money is invested

in technology. John Chambers (CISCO) calls e-learning the ‘next big killer application of

the Internet’.

Around the millennium the first criticism starts to arise: Costs of offering a quality ICT

infrastructure are a lot higher and more complex than expected. The quality of modules

produced is far from sufficient. Also students complain about the lack of social

interaction.

E-learning 2.0 (Downes, 2005): As a respond to complaints about lack of social contacts,

the demand for ‘blended learning’ increases. Blended learning is introduced to find the

right balance in teaching: between the use of distance and face-to-face teaching,

structured and unstructured teaching, individual and group learning, and teacher- and

self-directed learning. (Verkroost, e.o., 2008). Also the term ‘digital didactics’ starts to

arise. Digital didactics is about finding the right didactical methods that suit online and

blended learning. Finally institutions are starting to look for ways of reducing costs

through standardization of materials. This needs a high level of instructional design and

effective management of resources. Through experiencing e-learning over the last decennia, Rubens concludes that e-learning has

become:

More flexible; increased attention is given to students’ needs and learning styles and how

learning should be organized (so that there is flexibility on the time and pace of studying).

More personal; learning routes are more adjusted to the demands of the individual. The

student is able to adapt the design and sequence based on what they already know and what

they want to learn. Personalisation does not mean that learning is an individual process, it is still

very social. A personal learning environment implies that students use whatever resources,

tools and techniques that they find suitable to develop their competencies. An example of this is

the use of the online portfolio, in which students are encouraged to reflect on their learning and

develop their own personal development plans. Through the portfolio they can provide evidence

about their competency.

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More social; interaction and communication between other students, lecturers and experts is

essential. ICT can play a role in this, for example by asking students to work together online, or

to be part of online discussions about emerging and challenging topics.

So…how flexible, personal and social does the college aspire to be?

I.3 REASONS FOR STARTING E-LEARNING

There are quite a number of reasons you may have for deciding to start e-learning. It is

important that when you develop e-learning you keep your initial reasons in mind.

Find out which reasons are most important for the college:

Because it will reduce costs of face to face courses and will bring in more income.

Because it allows us to enrol more students through which we help to meet the

Millennium Development Goals and Education for All targets. Especially more women

will be able to study.

Because it responds to the demands of the upcoming online generation of students.

Because it follows the guidelines that were given by the Ministry of Education.

Because it allows learners to study independently which fits to our vision on learning.

Because it will make it easier to update and review our materials.

Because it gives access to a greater range of resources.

I.4 E-READINESS

When your vision on e-learning and your reasons for starting e-learning are clear, the next

major question to ask is: Is CLCE e-ready?

Cultural readiness: Is there a culture of wanting to change and innovate education,

supported by enough staff members? Is there a willingness to invest time and energy?

And is it clear how e-learning would fit the culture of your specific college, so it can be

aligned with your mission statement? Also the pedagogical readiness is related to the

cultural readiness: how ready are students and lecturers to teach students how to learn

independently with limited control? Does this fit the culture at school?

Technical readiness: Depending on for how many people you will start to develop e-

learning, is there accessibility to computers and to the Internet? Have the people that will

be using e-learning been trained into touch typing and browsing the Internet?

Pedagogical readiness: E-learning is about being able to let go of wanting to control

students. Is the college ready to teach students how to learn as independent and self

responsible learners. Have you thought of how to train students to do this?

Logistical readiness: Is admin staff trained in how to organize e-learning? Which

procedures will be used to collect fees and who will be responsible? Is there clear

leadership and is there a clear plan of action? Will the extra work be embedded in the

job descriptions and work planning of staff?

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Organisational readiness: Are there standardized procedures for quality assurance of

the materials, for monitoring of students, for assessment of assignments and for student

support services?

I.5 PROPOSED MODEL FOR INTRODUCING ICT AND E-LEARNING IN EDUCATION

At CLCE some first discussions between de distance education committee, Africonnect and VVOB on how to implement e-learning gradually have started. Please find a model below that explains the thinking so far.

Figure based on meeting Distance Education Committee, Africonnect and VVOB December 2008

The foundation of the figure is based on experimental learning; the idea is that all staff start gaining IT skills in a ‘fun’ way and a smaller e-learning pilot team of motivated staff start experimenting with some e-learning methods in their teaching.

On a more strategic level CLCE will need to start thinking of an organizational model to help identify responsibilities to introduce ICT and e-learning in education. See below an example of a model used at Delft University of Technology when they first introduced a digital learning environment in their education (except that they used Blackboard as platform).

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Please discuss how this model could be adapted to be suitable as organizational model for CLCE.

I.6 DESIGN OF E-LEARNING

‘It is a real page-turner…usually describes an exciting, dynamic, ‘who-done-it’ novel that keeps

you engaged from the first moment right up to the last page. However much of e-learning page

turning has been exactly the opposite…The key questions in the minds of these learners and in

the minds of their learning leaders are: Is this learning? And: Is all content delivered online, e-

learning? In finding answers to these questions, understanding the learner’s motivation is a key.‘

(from: Dam, van N., (2007), p.41)

According to van Dam (p.43) ‘e-learning design excellence requires a deliberate, explicit choice

of the right method for the level of learning desired’.

The online learning continuum below indicates some possible applications of e-learning

methods that can best support each level of skill mastery. It is based upon the retention rate of

learners, for example if you only read people remember less than when you ask learners to DO.

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(Figure taken from: Dam, van N., (2007)).

‘As you move along the continuum from e-reading to e-learning it is important to note that the

degree of investment in instructional design increases the further out you move.’ So it is always

worth considering the blend: online simulations of teaching in a classroom would be costly and

unnecessary. The best way to retain knowledge is still by teaching practice. So when you are

starting to use online methods they should always be linked to face-to-face methods. It is

important when designing e-learning activities that the activities are related to these higher level

methods to help people ‘remember what they have learned’. Just putting written text online is

not enough; it needs to be accompanied with other methods.

How will you blend the online and face-to-face methods at CLCE?

If students are at a distance most of the time, it is not always possible to use face-to-face

methods, so there is need to learn to be creative: which other methods could you use that help

with the retention of what is learned by students? Online learning is one of these extra options.

In Zambia the number of computers available to students and level of computer literacy is not

yet sufficient for huge e-learning programmes. However, it is important to start experimenting

with these methods, to start gaining computer skills, so that we are ready when computers and

internet connections will be spread more widely.

When starting to think of experimenting e-learning there are two streams that you can

experiment with: formal learning and/or informal learning. The learning capability framework

helps to understand the difference.

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(Figure taken from: Dam, van N., (2007)).

In Open and Distance Learning, a great part of the actual learning takes place through on the

job learning. Besides the teaching practice there is a variety of methods to choose from, which

can either be formal or informal learning. In the case of formal learning, you will expect students

to deliver, and you have identified criteria to assess their performances. For formal learning you

need to have specific learning objectives and it will include instructional design approaches.

Informal learning does not require specific instructional learning design. It is also referred to as

self-directed learning. It is usually more intrinsic to the students, they use these methods

because they feel they need to learn more about a specific topic, and they decide themselves

when and how they will learn this.

The college will need to decide if and how you wish to start experimenting with formal and/or

informal e-learning. Formal learning has the advantage of being structured and clear, whereas

informal learning usually attracts mostly the motivated participants that have a keen interest and

can be the ‘early adopters’. When starting e-learning it is recommended not to force it upon

people, it is better to start building some good practices that can motivate the more hesitant

amongst us. As we all know…real learning only takes place when you are motivated to learn.

I.7 CONCLUSIONS

The question posed in this chapter is if Colleges of Education in Zambia are ready to learn from

the lessons as described in this chapter. But a more important question is, whether it is possible

to translate the lessons learnt into the Zambian context. There is a need to discuss at your

College of Education:

What is ‘learning’ at CLCE and what does that mean for what e-learning is about?

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Which of these lessons learnt from the experiences of other countries are relevant to the

Zambian culture and style of teaching and which are not? How flexible, social and

personal will e-learning be at your college? Which implications does your view have on

the way in which you decide to design e-learning?

Why is the College planning to implement e-learning?

Is the College e-ready?

Which organizational model do you intend to use for introducing ICT and e-learning in

education at CLCE?

How will you combine online and face-to-face methods?

Are you starting to experiment e-learning within formal learning or informal learning?

In other words, there is a need for the Colleges of Education who are exploring the world of e-

learning to start by developing a vision on and model for introducing open and distance learning,

with special attention to the reasons why the college is starting e-learning.

In the next chapters you will find some very practical articles in which the use of different tools

and methods for e-learning are explained. The articles are written for lecturers and in most

cases explain:

- Objectives of the tool, method

- When to use it

- How to make it work

- Suggestions for usage

- Conditions and specifications of technology

- References

The following topics are addressed: use a digital learning environment for the first time, how to use discussion fora, how to monitor students’ cooperation processes, how to use wikis and weblogs, and how to design an `online course. Of course there is a lot more to be said and learned about these topics, but hopefully it will give you a bit of a taster to the possibilities and scope of e-learning.

REFERENCES CHAPTER I

Dam, van N., (2007), 25 best practices in Learning and Talent Development, Lulu publishers, p.41

Rubens W. ,E-learning 2.0, taken from: presentation at e-learning conference, Apeldoorn, 2007

Rubens, W. (2004) Weblogs in het hoger onderwijs (http://elearning.surf.nl/e-learning/artikelen/2326) (in

Dutch).

Downes, S. (2004) Educational Blogging (http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0450.pdf).

Verkroost,. MJ, Meijerink, L., Lintsen, H. and Veen, W. (2008), Finding a balance in dimensions of e-

learning, published in the International Journal on E-Learning, vol.7, no.3.

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II. PRACTICAL EXAMPLES OF HOW TO DEVELOP E-LEARNING

For the e-learning pilot team that will consist of CLCE staff that is motivated to experiment with

e-learning, please find below some very practical applications of developing e-learning. They

may give you some ideas for setting up some experiments.

II.1 USING A DIGITAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT FOR THE FIRST TIME: WHERE DO YOU

START?

Objective Help is offered to lecturers who want to use a digital learning environment as a support for their education for the first time.

When to use? When lecturers want to use a digital learning environment to shape their education for the first time.

How do you make this work?

1. Decide in advance how much time you want to spend on the design. Experience shows that designing a digital learning environment takes more time than planned. Some institutions offer more time or other means of support for IT-adjustments to courses.

2. Look at several courses in other digital learning environments to get an idea of the possibilities.

3. Choose the aim you want to reach by the use of a digital learning environment. Do not choose too many options at the same time (also check step 1).

Examples are: -Quickly inform students about organizational things (announcements/news reports, sending emails to students, etcetera). -Improve logistics processes (such as certain dates for students to hand in their products, administration of what has already been handed in and what has not). -Have students communicate with each other, for example, about a weekly statement. -Have students give feedback on each other’s products. For example, through a discussion forum. -Have students work together on products (for example, by using file exchange). -Create links to relevant websites in the digital learning environment. -Use the digital learning environment to receives students’ products and give feedback on them. -Make PowerPoint presentations available to students.

4. Check whether there are any useful ideas and tips on http://epedagogy.risbo.org 5. Have a look at how colleagues have realised these aims. Ask a colleague how much time a design and execution of it takes, and how many students there are. Also find out how much time students need to spend on using the digital learning environment. Tips:

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It is preferable to start with a small group of students. Limit the emails between you and your students. Make agreements with the students on asking questions about the course, for example via the discussion forum, not by email. In this way, every student has access to your answer.

Usage: - Make agreements with the students on the use of the digital learning environment during

the first class. Put those agreements also in the digital learning environment. - Visit the digital learning environment regularly (for example, 15 minutes every day) and

check whether students need more information or whether the discussion needs a boost.

Tips: - Have students notice that you pay visits to the site regularly, for example, by

announcements, reactions to questions in the discussion list, etcetera. - A FAQ (list of Frequently Asked Questions) is a very useful first tool in a digital learning

environment.

Conditions and specifications - You need to have some knowledge about and skills of the use of a digital learning

environment (for example, by taking a base course)

- It is obviously necessary to have a course environment in the digital learning

environment. Students need to have access to the course and the lecturer needs to be

able to adjust the digital course.

Developed by: Verheij,G.J, Deinum, J.F., (2004) taken from http://epedagogy.risbo.org

II.2 HOW TO ORGANIZE ON-LINE DISCUSSIONS WITH A SMALL GROUP OF STUDENTS?

This instrument gives the lecturer ideas and tips in setting up and formulating on-line discussions for subjects that have only a few students.

A practical example About 30 students take the subject ‘The City’ at the Faculty of History and Arts, Erasmus University, Rotterdam. This subject requires students to discuss electronically topics such as 'Urban Socialism', 'Immigration and Integration', and 'Urbanisation of the Netherlands'. The discussions work well: many students not only give their own opinion on the topic in question, but they respond to their fellow students’ opinions, too. In this way, students think actively about the required reading; they also learn how to articulate and substantiate their standpoint.

Objective To give the lecturer ideas and tips in setting up and formulating an on-line discussion assignment.

When to use? When you want to increase the degree of inter-activity for a specific subject. When you want to encourage students into actively processing the required reading. When you want students to assimilate skills in forming opinions and reasoning.

How do you make this work?

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1. Establish the objective of the discussion The chance for students to assimilate skills in reasoning and forming opinions is one example of a discussion’s objective. Another objective could be for students to gain understanding of a certain subject by reflecting on the interpretation provided by their fellow students, and then giving their own interpretation. 2. Formulate a statement for discussion A good statement:

fits in with the students’ interest and/or current subjects; is in keeping with the language level of the students; is about a topic that is well demarcated; tries to convince students, change their opinion or urge them into action; addresses a problem which has no simple solution, or puts forward a question to which

there is no absolute answer; presents a sweeping opinion that students can strongly disagree with.

3. Think about measures which will stimulate active participation in the discussion Consider which approach is necessary. Rewards can be given for satisfying pre-determined qualitative and/or quantitative criteria; penalties can be given for failure to meet the criteria. Bear in mind that this approach will cost you a lot of time, so reflect on whether the benefits outweigh the costs. Examples of rewards for active participation: exemption from certain topics; bonus points for exam and modular/final marks. Examples of penalties for non-participation: extra assignment (e.g.: summarize the discussion); a low mark (for that particular module). 4. Decide how much the students have to contribute to the discussion It is beneficial to the students if they are required not only to respond to the statement, but also to each other. In this way, you can prevent the discussion from petering out in the first week. You also force them to think more deeply about the opinions and reasoning of their fellow students, which brings them to a higher level of understanding. As the lecturer, you can let the students decide who they respond to, or you can formally organize the responses (e.g.: student 1 responds to student 2, or supporters of the statement respond to the opponents, and vice-versa, etc.). 5. Establish deadlines for posting contributions to the discussion platform Because students can only respond to contributions from their fellow students when they actually appear on the discussion platform, it is important to give tight deadlines for posting contributions. Giving a deadline also ensures that students remain involved in the topic, and that the discussion stays active during the period set by the lecturer. An example for deadlines, using periods of one week, follows:

At the beginning of the week the lecturer posts a statement onto the discussion platform; Every student has to respond to the statement within five days; Then, within the next five days, every student responds to the contribution of two other

students; Finally, every student responds within three days to the two replies that he has received

to his first contribution.

6. Decide how and to which extent you intervene in the discussion Before the start of the discussion it is advisable to think about whether you are also going to contribute to the discussion (relevant / content-related intervention), and/or intervene from an

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organizational point of view (i.e.: intervene to moderate the process), and how often you are going to do that (daily, weekly, monthly...). It is important that students are informed about your decision. If you do not participate in the discussion without letting the students know from the beginning, then the students will think that the discussion is not important, and this can demotivate them from actively participating in the discussion. 7. Formulate criteria for rewards/penalties Examples of qualitative assessment criteria:

contributions must focus on the initial statement; contributions must be clear and unambiguous; contributions must be underpinned by at least 2 pieces of evidence; contributions should provoke a response; contributions should reveal that relevant literature has been read by referring, for

example, to an article.

Examples of quantitative assessment criteria: the group must post a minimum of 3 contributions each academic week; the group must respond to the contributions of 2 other groups each week; during the trimester students must post at least 10 contributions to the discussion forum.

8. Decide how you are going to award rewards/penalties Assessing on the basis of qualitative criteria:

Screen the discussion contributions to the extent that the assessment criteria are being satisfied.

Give each contribution that, broadly speaking, satisfies the criteria a plus point; give those that do not a minus point.

Add together the number of plus points which each student has earned for the various contributions posted.

Determine how many points students may receive as a reward. Students with fewer points have delivered low-quality contributions to the discussion.

Therefore, they either do not deserve a reward or they should receive a penalty. Make sure that all students have been able to access computers and have learned about the basics of using a discussion forum and touch typing, because it would not be fair to give penalties if they have not had these opportunities.

Tip: instead of assessing each contribution individually, screen and assess all contributions at the same time, and then award a plus or a minus point.

Assessing on the basis of quantitative criteria: Add together the individual contributions which the students have posted. Reward students who have posted satisfactory contributions, and give a penalty to those

who have not.

9. Formulate the description of the assignment When you formulate the description of the assignment bear in mind the following questions: Relevance

what is the objective of the discussion assignment? what are the rewards/penalties for active participation/non-participation in the

discussion? are you also going to participate in the discussion and if so, in what way and how often?

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Content which relevant (qualitative) criteria should the contributions satisfy? what should the maximum length of the contributions be? (text that is more than ¾ the

length of a monitor’s screen is too long and unpleasant to read) which literature can be referred to for providing evidence?

Assessment how many contributions should each student post to the discussion forum? how are you going to decide who should receive rewards/penalties?

Instructions for posting contributions to the discussion forum when should the various contributions be posted? (deadlines) in which discussion forum should the discussion take place? how can students create a new message? A discussion forum remains orderly when the

student creates a message by clicking on the reply button. In this way, the contribution comes immediately after the message that it refers to (tree structure).

which name should be given to the contribution (i.e.: the topic of the message)? Consistent use of a suitable name (e.g.: "agree", "disagree") makes the nature of the reply clear.

Tips To ensure that different points of view are covered in the discussion, you can give

different roles to students. Such roles may, for example, include the role of the proponent and the role of the opponent respectively, the role of the critic, or the role of a certain stereotype (e.g. an idealist, a rationalist).

For discussions that have more than 10 students, is it advisable to divide the students into groups of 4. Arrange a consultation place for each group so that they can discuss whether they mainly agree or disagree with the statement/contribution of their fellow students, and why. Their subsequent opinion is then posted onto the discussion platform as a group opinion (as opposed to an individual opinion). This reduces the number of contributions in the forum, so that it remains well-organized. Another possibility is to divide students into groups of 10. These groups can then have their own discussion forum about the same or different statements.

Usage Choose a group of students that can touch type, or give them some three months to

learn how to touch type. For example by making sure they are given time to work on the computer and allow them to do some touch-typing games by themselves. Before starting the discussion forum lessons, test if they have sufficient skills to at least read and post messages in a forum. Students can learn by themselves, but it may be useful to have a few skilled lecturers or other students available for helping them.

Open a forum in Moodle and create a message to put forward your statement. Make sure the students know how they can read the contributions from their fellow

students and how they can post their own contributions, by providing instructions or a demonstration before the start of the discussion in your lesson.

Post the description of the assignment in a logical place within the digital learning environment and let students know, via an announcement or e-mail, where they can find the assignment and when the (first) deadline is.

Ensure that feedback on the contributions remains relevant by, for example, coming back to the discussions during lectures.

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Moderate the discussion. Close the discussion once the last deadline has been reached.

Conditions and specifications An online discussion platform must be set up in advance

o If you wish to do it within a space you have created for your ‘course’ that is structured through a ‘topics format’, you can use the ‘forum’ option under ‘add activities’ in Moodle under the relevant topic.

o You can also set up a course based on the ‘social format’. You can check with the Moodle administrator of your Moodle environment how to do this.

References Draaijer, S. (2001), Activerend gebruik van discussielijsten in hoger onderwijs: Leestekst

voor cursussen ICT in onderwijs van het ICT Onderwijscentrum van de Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam: Vrije Universiteit (in Dutch)

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Center for Instructional Technology, (2001), Guidelines for discussion forum assignments.

Elicit Modules, (2002), Using computer mediated conferencing (CMC): Readings [online: http://www.elicit.scotcit.ac.uk/modules/cmc1/readings.htm].

Berge, Z.L. (1995), Facilitating Computer Conferencing: Recommendations From the Field, Educational Technology, 35(1), 22-30. Also available online. URL: http://www.emoderators.com/moderators/teach_online.html.

Developed by: Wieland, A., (2006) taken from: http://epedagogy.risbo.org

II.3 HOW TO MONITOR STUDENTS' CO-OPERATION PROCESSES IN A DISTANCE LEARNING

ENVIRONMENT?

Description: This instrument describes how to monitor co-operation processes of students working as a group or team in a distance learning environment and how students can be given insight into their these processes by having each group reflect on the group learning process.

Objective To enable lecturers to develop and use assignments and instruments for group assignments in such a way that they can monitor the cooperation processes within groups of students in a digital learning environment.

When to use? For each subject where students work in groups in a digital learning environment and where, in addition to producing an end product, reflection on the group processes are required as well.

How do you make this work? 1. Draw up a questionnaire which students can use to assess the cooperation process in

their team. 2. Make the questionnaire available online, for example by using the survey options of the

digital learning environment.

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Tips 1. A survey of software for web surveys can be found on

http://directory.google.com/Top/Computers/Software/Marketing/Surveys/. 2. Make sure that students fill in their names on the questionnaires. This will make it easier

for team members to ask each other to clarify their opinions. If the survey option in the digital learning environment is used, check whether it is possible to monitor the results of each individual student. In Moodle, for example, the results of a survey can be made available when using the quiz tool. You will need to learn how to use it or ask an expert to do this for you.

Usage 1. At the start of the course, have each team make agreements about the group work

through email, discussion platform or chat. Examples of relevant issues include: o The results of the group assignment (what is the objective of assignment, what

do you want to achieve collectively?). o Project agreements, for example:

Which activities should be carried out and when? Who is responsible for which tasks? The way in which communication will take place (email, chat, discussion

platform), the frequency of communication (daily, weekly, etc.) and the exact times (if synchronous communication is used)

How will the agreements made and the decisions taken during the process be documented (e.g. by assigning this task to one or more members of the group)

Where will the work documents be filed (discussion platform, virtual work space)?

o Planning o Group code of conduct, for example:

Decisions are not taken until each of the participants has given their opinion.

Only constructive feedback will be given (students criticize each others' work instead of each other and provide, where possible, suggestions for improvement).

If participants do not observe their agreements, they will be called to account for this.

2. Require the team to submit the agreements in a fixed location of the digital learning environment (for example in a discussion platform).

3. If necessary, the lecturer will provide feedback with respect to the agreements and planning. This will include checking how realistic the planning is.

4. Require students to make minutes of meetings/consultations they have with their teams and require them to submit these minutes in a fixed location of the digital learning environment (for example the discussion platform).

5. Lecturers should stay informed about the progress of the cooperation process by reading the minutes. If necessary, feedback should be provided.

6. Ask students, at fixed intervals (for example halfway through the course), to reflect on the cooperation process by having each individual student fill out the questionnaire / survey.

7. Collect the responses that the members of each group have provided and make them available to the group (for example through the discussion platform).

8. On the basis of the answers to the questionnaire, ask each group to identify bottlenecks in the cooperation process and, subsequently, to make new agreements through which

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the bottlenecks may be solved. This discussion can take place on the discussion platform.

9. Ask each group to submit their adjusted agreement documents in the digital learning environment and provide feedback if necessary.

Tips Following step 6 (usage), ask each group to hand in a short summary of their

cooperation process at a place in the digital learning environment that is accessible to all teams. In this summary they can describe the successful elements of the learning process and the factors that, according to them, have contributed to this success. In addition, groups may outline potential bottlenecks and solutions. Ask each team to provide feedback on the reports of another team by means of a peer review (see instrument How to let students give each other feedback by using a discussion platform), proposing alternative solutions to these bottlenecks.

After completion of the cooperation assignment students must write a group report in which they reflect on the entire collaborative learning process. Mark the cooperation process on the basis of this report and of further information (agreement forms, responses to the questionnaire, tips for future collaborative learning groups etc.).

Context

Further information on cooperation processes in digital learning environments and assessment

of group work and cooperation processes can be found on:

http://www.cshe.unimelb.edu.au/assessinglearning/03/group.html

Developed by: Wieland, A., (2006) taken from: http://epedagogy.risbo.org

II.4 HOW TO USE WIKIS AND WEBLOGS IN EDUCATION

What is social software? Wikis and weblogs are social software. Social concepts emphasize the social side of software. This kind of software has the power to make people willing to do something for each other and to achieve something together. (Poortman, Sloep 2005). What is a weblog? A weblog or blog is an online diary in the form of a website. Visitors have the possibility to react on the messages. It is also easy to introduce messages from another weblog in your own weblog. (Syndication). One or several authors update a weblog (Gorissen 2005). A weblog invites reaction, discussion and peer-review. Therefore it is a community-forming tool. What is a Wiki? Wiki is short for wikiwiki, which means fast in Hawaiian. A wiki is a collection of connected web pages, which are easy to change by all visitors. The pages form a network. Any visitor can change a wiki. The page history shows all changes to the pages. It enables easy revision of old versions. A wiki is a democratic environment and enables community forming. The following schedule shows the differences between weblogs and wiki’s.

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Web log Wiki

Messages pages

Chronological Network

Known authors Everybody is an author

Known owners Owner is ...

Reactions Change pages

New message Versions of pages

Syndication Syndication

Applications in education A great advantage of weblogs and wikis is that they are relatively easy to manage. Most of them are also free of charge, obtaining your own weblog just takes filling in an online form. Therefore they are well suited for student focused learning, as students can easily take charge of a weblog of wiki. Students often already have experience with managing a weblog. The collaborative character of these applications and the way they can easily be connected to other weblogs or wiki’s creates other learning opportunities. Weblogs in education In the article ‘ Weblogs in education’ in Onderwijsinnovatie (March 2005) the possibilities for using weblogs in education are discussed. It is important to use the strength of the weblog, which is bottom up creation of a community (as opposed to community created by the lecturer). Another element, which is important, is, that is has to make sense to use asynchronous communication. Possibilities for the use of weblogs are:

1. gathering information for a project or paper (content focused blog) 2. portfolio. The aspect of recording plays an important role. Because results will be visible

chronologically, is the diary metaphor very suitable. 3. blogs can be used excellently to record the learning process. This can be both individual

and a group’s process. 4. organizing feedback with a weblog (Kao, Langenberg 2006) 5. lecturers can also personally use blogs. For instance to prepare for a course. Others

working in a similar context can react and add. 6. schools can also use weblogs for communication with students, for instance for changes

in the schedule. This way of using weblogs is rare.

Skills (Poortman, Sloep 2005) Weblogs can play an important role when learning skills. These skills can be divided into three categories:

1. information skills. It just keeps getting easier to obtain information through the Internet. It does get more difficult however to find the right kind of information concerning reliability, relevance and actuality. Criteria of quality which apply to this information also apply to weblogs (actuality, referencing, etc.) If students use weblogs they will learn how to deal correctly with information.

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2. social skills like discussion, peer review, self-reflection, dealing with criticism, showing respect for others, thinking independently. Working with and responding to weblogs can train these. Weblogs create equal opportunities for everybody, something not always true in the classroom environment.

3. writing and reading skills. Reading, interpreting and summarising are stimulated

Points of attention A weblog basically is a personal diary where someone can vent his opinion. Others can react to this. A student is responsible for his own weblogs but it is easy to obtain feedback from the outside world. If a web log will be assessed for a grade there is always the risk that it will lose its originality and spontaneity. Students will no longer vent opinions but will write what they think the lecturer wants to read. It can also kill the intrinsic motivation of a student. Wikis in education The open character of a wiki makes it unsuitable for learning processes in which confidentiality and authenticity plays an important role. It is however very well suited for collaboration and continuation of existing discussions. For instance:

1. as a tool for collaborative knowledge building 2. as a tool for collaboration. This can be a project environment for students. But also

lecturers can work together on the classes they are teaching 3. wiki as an online dictionary like wikipedia 4. using experts using a wiki

Points of attention

Assessing wikis and weblogs both create their own dilemmas. Wikis will mainly be used for

group processes and products. This makes assessing difficult. It is possible for people to

change the content of a wiki anonymously. It is therefore not always possible to judge who has

done what. Using accounts can solve this problem.

The democratic character of a wiki has both its advantages and disadvantages. It offers

chances for student focused education. Students can get full control over their learning

environment. They will learn quickly that is essential to make agreements about the

collaboration. Without these and a communal sense of responsibility anarchy will prevail.

Using the history of a wiki needs some practice. Not that is very difficult to use the history but it

is conceptually very different than for instance threads in a discussion forum. In a forum the

messages are arranged chronologically and by thread. In a wiki only the last version is visible.

Developed by: Linde, van der E., (2006) taken from: http://epedagogy.risbo.org

Some more information about Weblogs or ‘blogs’

Suppose you as a lecturer would like to stimulate students to debate on paper and to give each other feedback on argumentation skills. If you want to make students feel as the owners of their submissions, a weblog may be useful.

Weblogs are usually personal websites, where the author, student keeps his/her own diary.

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Quite often a specific topic is chosen. Messages are usually sequenced chronologically and can also be placed in your own categories. A weblog is mostly publically accessible, but can also be closed for restricted visitors. It is recommended to enable visitors of the weblog to place comments to the messages.

Weblogs can be used by lecturers to communicate to students about a course. They can make announcements and give suggestions for resources. But weblogs are especially valuable when a student writes their own blog or writes a blog together with others (Rubens, 2004). Many of the seven pillars for digital didactics can be found in a weblog (Simons, 2003).

1. Making linkages and relations. Weblogs are especially good for linking different persons to each other. A weblog can be a good medium for social interaction.

2. Creating Weblogs can be used to stimulate critical thinking and to stimulate argumentation. There are examples of weblogs where students explicitly work on their writing skills.

3. Sharing A weblog is meant to share information, knowledge and experiences with others.

4. Transparency A weblog can be used to analyse by looking at all the messages and contributions. There are no functionalities embedded in weblogs to enable this.

5. Learning to learn Weblogs can be used for giving feedback and for reflecting on your own learning. Williams and Jacobs (2004) even call weblogs and the academic discourse ‘natural allies’. A lot of promovendi use weblogs for this purpose. Also there’s examples of weblogs being used as e-portfolios.

6. Competencies are central When a weblog is used as portfolio to reflect on competencies.

7. Flexibilisation . Weblogs can be written any time any place, whenever a student feels there is something interesting to report or reflect on.

Williams en Jacobs (2002) conclude: "In short, blogs have the potential, at least, to be a truly transformational technology in that they provide students with a high level of autonomy while simultaneously providing opportunity for greater interaction with peers."

An example of a good practice using weblogs is at the University of Amsterdam. Inspired by a weblog that was used by their lecturer some students started their own weblog around their final dissertation, each of them in their own way. The blogs are about what they read, how to structure their research, the process of their work, and about the tutorials they have with their lecturers or conversations with other students that made them think. They receive comments from their lecturer and from each other. And maybe the best thing is that through their blog they get in touch with students from other places who are interested or knowledgeable in the topic, and who motivate and encourage them.

The most suitable educational applications for blogs are: own initiative, being in control, creativity in design, dialogue with other students, by writing about something you are passionate about and getting in contact with people you would have normally never met.

Crooked Timber’s Henry Farrell identifies five major uses for blogs in education. 1. Lecturers use blogs to replace the standard class Web page. Instructors post class times

and rules, assignment notifications, suggested readings, and exercises. 2. Instructors begin to link to Internet items that relate to their course. 3. Blogs are used to organize inclass discussions

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4. Some instructors are using blogs to organize class seminars and to provide summaries of readings.

5. Students may be asked to write their own blogs as part of their course grade. Taken from: Rubens (2004) and Downes (2004)

References

Gorissen, P., (2004), WikiWiki: Anarchie in het hoger onderwijs (http://elearning.surf.nl/e-

learning/artikelen/2374) (in Dutch).

P. Gorissen, (2005), Presentatie introductie weblogs en Wiki’s

(http://www.gorissen.info/Pierre/item/2005/1/1/icto-studiemiddag-onderwijs-en-ict-aan-de-uva) (in Dutch).

Zomerdijk, M. Bloggend leren: weblogs in het hoger onderwijs

(http://www.edusite.nl/edusite/specials/14099) (in Dutch).

Rubens, W., (2004), Weblogs in het hoger onderwijs (http://elearning.surf.nl/e-learning/artikelen/2326) (in

Dutch).

Downes, S., (2004), Educational Blogging (http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0450.pdf)