Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Post-Industrial Distance Education

So I have no where else to put my notes and thoughts from one of the articles I read today so I wanted to put them up here.

Mass communication/production and independent learning VS Post-industrial approach to distance education (personalized and collaborative)

Computer mediated communication
• Asynchronous text based application
• Computer conferencing
> Collaborative
> Not replicate classroom convention


Synchronous and asynchronous discussions on computer. Synchronous is more available but he says that as more people join a computer mediated synchronous discussion it can become complex, confusing and misguided.

“There is little understanding of when real-time interaction, mediated through communications technology, is most useful to enhance learning.”

Computer conferencing is a post-industrial technology
Written word goes hand in hand with higher thinking. Computer conferencing often involves writing so could be a potentially powerful technology.
Some argue that higher order thinking is seldom possible without writing.
The challenge: interpersonal dynamics and social climate

Collaboration is more than simply exchanging information or passing on instructions. Collaborative learning necessitates critical discourse for the purpose of going beyond information exchange. Meaningful collaborative learning ‘creates “added value” and new understandings amongst the members of each group’.

That is, it is the constructive development of connected ideas and coherent knowledge-structures through group communication.

Computer conference is doomed to failure without an active moderator.
Computer conferencing is dependent upon three main moderating functions. 1) contextualizing, 2) monitoring, and 3) meta-communication.

Contextualizing: provides general organization or communication model and focus.
Writing by nature takes out contextualization, one option to overcome it is meet face to face initially

Monitoring: recognizing and prompting individual contributions.

Meta-communication: addresses agenda, relevance, overload and weaving in connections, identify themes and summarize the discussion.

If I were ever teaching a distance ed course. I think for the first few days I would have the students read through a few key things, including parts of the syllabus and then for the first day of class, instead of having class, you have a ten minute video conference meeting with each student so they can ask questions and you can set up some of the class and establish a connection so that you can have “contextualized” distance interactions for the rest of the semester. In fact I think I would try and do this more than once during the semester. The other thing I might entertain is a phone conference with all the students in the second week so that they could get to know each other along with a post on a blog or access to each other's facebook (or whatever else will achieve the objective)so they can get to know each other better.


Ideological biases and implications of computer conferencing: clash between industrial and post-industrial education due to changes in technology and goals.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Summary of Methods

If I had to summarize what methods were used in my articles I would say:

1) Heavy on the qualitative data.
2) Very little quantitative data that mostly comes form Likert scale type questions.
3) Most studies used methods such as interviews, questionnaires, surveys, and analysis of student work and discussions.
4) Most of them mentioned the description research method. I don't know all the implications or ins and outs of that method but it seems to consist of the above three things.
5) Data and information was analyzed to find trends and commonalities from which conclusions were made.

Methods

Chaney, B. H., Eddy, J. M., Dorman, S. M., Glessner, L., Green, B. L., & Lara-Alecio, R. (2007). Development of an Instrument to Assess Student Opinions of the Quality of Distance Education Courses. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3), 145-164.
Development of tool and testing based on the Standards for Educational
and Psychological Testing and Dillman’s 4 stages of pre-testing.
Stage 1: Professional review of survey and statistical analysis of survey items
Stage 2: Test survey for reations on 10 distance ed. students
Stage 3: Pilot study and construct validity evaluation
Stage 4: Outside review by 3 people


Conrad, D. L. (2008). From Community to Community of Practice: Exploring the Connection of Online Learners to Informal Learning in the Workplace. American Journal of Distance Education, 22(1), 3-23.
• Based on qualitative research methods
o Interviews
o Questionnaire
• Likert-type scales
• Rating questions


Flowers, J., & Cotton, S. E. (2007). Impacts of Student Categorization of Their Online Discussion Contributions. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(2), 93-104.
• Qualitative Analysis
• Students given discussion review (“Reflective Activity Form”) where they counted their week 1 total number of messages, social messages, and off-topic messages. They also rated their messages and classified quality as high, fair, or poor.
• Wk 4, students engaged in a post-treatment discussion on a new topic.
• A questionnaire was administered in Week 5.


Gaytan, J., & McEwen, B. C. (2007). Effective Online Instructional and Assessment Strategies. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3), 117-132.
• Descriptive research method.
• Goal: to investigate the perceptions held by students and faculty regarding online instructional and assessment techniques.
• Data collected using a questionnaire survey instrument (Gay, Mills, and Airasian 2006) administered to faculty and students.
• Likert scale type questions.


Jones, J. G. (2008). Issues and Concerns of Directors of Postsecondary Distance Learning Programs Regarding Online Methods and Technologies. American Journal of Distance Education, 22(1), 46-56.
• Qualitative Data
• Online questionnaire consisting of twenty items that contained both demographic information and items that examined technology utilization for the distributed/distance learning programs.
• Average of 4-7 interviews of 45 minutes each were carried out with the 27 directors who finished the study.
• Interviews were based on 5 set questions which were after being initially asked were then discussed in more detail.
• Patterns and themes from coded data were derived from a method developed by Glaser and Strauss


Keeler, C. G., & Horney, M. (2007). Online Course Designs: Are Special Needs Being Met? American Journal of Distance Education, 21(2), 61-75.
Descriptive method including statistics.
(1) identifying design elements
applicable to special-needs populations:
• Paired elements cited by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (2000), early versions of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (World Wide Web Consortium 2006), other legal documents, guidelines for internet accessibility, and research literature with elements in the Instrument of Instructional Design Elements of High School Online Courses (IODE)
(2) reporting the frequencies
of those elements in contemporary practice.
• Frequency statistics were derived from a study performed in 2003 (Keeler 2003a) of a random sample of twenty-two online high school courses, sixty-six lessons, and 183 assessments from five online high schools. rural and disadvantaged schools, and others focus on servicing students


Moisey, S. D., Ally, M., & Spencer, B. (2006). Factors Affecting the Development and Use of Learning Objects. American Journal of Distance Education, 20(3), 143-161.
• Students designed and used learning objects. Challenges and other information was gathered via an online conference discussion and an essay written at the end of the semester. Researchers analyzed this data using manual and open coding techniques to identify common themes among individual postings, in the case of the conference postings and excerpted paragraphs, for the essays.


O"Leary, P. F., & Quinlan Jr., T. J. (2007). Learner–Instructor Telephone Interaction: Effects on Satisfaction and Achievement of Online Students. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3), 133-143.
• Satisfaction of phone call was measured using the expectancy disconfirmation paradigm via a questionnaire based on disconfirmation principles and the service quality (SERVQUAL) methodology.


Offir, B., Bezalel, R., & Barth, I. (2007). Introverts, Extroverts, and Achievement in a Distance Learning Environment. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(1), 3-19.
• Mixed method research approach (qualitative and quantitative)
• Students without significant differences provided data from different colleges via questionnaires and in-depth interviews.
• These questions related to factors that characterize learning via the videoconference medium


Seo, K. K. (2007). Utilizing Peer Moderating in Online Discussions: Addressing the Controversy between Teacher Moderation and Nonmoderation. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(1), 21-36.
• Comparison study between moderated and non-moderated discussion groups.
• Groups of students were required to participate in online discussions for four weeks. They were asked to post at least one message per week.
• Eight students volunteered to serve as trained moderators. Each moderator was randomly assigned to a group.
• Spontaneous moderating was avoided by monitoring the discussions.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Making Sense of The Transactional Distance Theory

This week I attempted to truly strive to understand what the transactional theory is all about. I don't know that I have succeeded but here is a summary.

Goal of transactional distance is to define the distance education field in pedagogical terms.
The first thing the theory states is that distance education has its own identity! The character of the identity is the "meat" of the theory and consists of 3 main components:
1) Structure of the teaching-learning program (defines rigidity and flexibility and thus the ability to respond to individual learner's needs and preferences)
2) Dialog (rather than interaction due to positive connotation): communication between teacher and learner (determined by course structure since it exists within that structure
3) Autonomy of learners (role of learner=self-management)
Transaction=interplay of different components therefore in DE it is the interplay of teachers and learners in environments that have special characteristic of their being spatially separate form one another.

Amount of dialog and structure defines learner autonomy and determines the transactional distance. The equation looks like this Structure/Dialog=Transactional Distance. So if structure is high and therefore dialogue low then the transactional distance is high and vice versa.
And to add in autonomy if the transactional distance is lower than learners can get by with less autonomy and the converse is true. Higher transactional distance = learner need to exercise higher autonomy.

The three components also help us understand the "interactive" pieces of distance learning:

Interaction: There are 3 types, learner to content, to instructor or to other learner(s)
Organize courses/learning to have all three types of interaction. One common pitfall is using only one medium of communication and therefore there is a focus on one interaction. Design for all three.


So as of this week I have learned about the industrial theory, the transactional theory and the teaching-learning conversation theory. All of which in my mind define different aspects of the distance education field. As far as the macro/micro-ness of these theories Moore sees it this way:

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Teaching/Learning Conversations

Is God the ultimate distance education course designer?

He seems to be invested in some of the principles:
* Personal relations
* Study pleasure (scripture stories, doctrines, the need to pick and piece together parts to get the whole picture)
* Empathy (atonement, having "descended below all things" the instructor can have a relationship of understanding of feelings of learners)
* "Feelings of empathy and belonging promote students' motivation to learn and influence the learning favorably." Holmberg, 70

* Prescriptive Components for Good Distance Education
* Promotes and guides argument and dialogue (have to have a structure in text) (example present a question and provide the point and counterpoint-opposition in all things)
* Reflection in writing or recording (prayer)
* Clear, colloquial language-use pronouns and talk informally (instructor to learner put down on text; moderate information density) plenty of this in the scriptures
* Explicit advice (commandments)
* Personal involvement with study matter (This is MY work and MY glory-I think he is pretty personally involved)
* Dialogue, but NOT IDLE CHATTER (Wherefore, I the Lord ask you this question—unto what were ye aordained?)
* Problem-oriented (Lost manuscript, Nephi vs Laman and Lemuel, David and Goliath, Ammon and scattered sheep, Peter walking on water and then losing it, etc)

The above was an interesting thought process to go through but as I come to the end I think, perhaps, there is just so much stuff in the spiritual realm that you could find examples of hundreds of different educational principles being applied???

The Resolution of the Peters/Holmberg Fued? Doubt it.

Perhaps in discussing distance education theories in a distance education class we have the tendency to try to see the distance education application. The Holmberg discussion made me wonder, "How many of the proven f2f learning principles can be applied to distance education? Does a different set of principles rule the distance learning world?"

Holmberg said,
"I assume that if a course consistently represents a communication process that is felt to have the character of a conversation, then the students will be more motivated and more successful than if it has an impersonal textbook character."

This "conversational style" is a major component of the teaching-learning conversations theory. In distance education the materials/interaction(text, phone, internet, assignments and comments) should be designed to create a conversational character and environment.

The Mitchell/Peters argument. The argument against the above is that this is just a principle of good education and/or it does not apply to all contexts and subjects where a strict objectivity is needed, further he states, that rather than a conversation, "intellectual pleasure" can come form picking apart a dense, seemingly inaccessible text.

Who is right? My answer is yes! Here is how I see the merging of these two ideas.

1) Holmberg is talking about distance education, though the principle he is supporting is an important part of effective education in general. Perhaps, he is assuming that the "conversational style" that occurs so readily and naturally in the f2f settings needs to be prescribed in distance courses because it is so hard to get at in the distance learning world whereas it is a natural by-product of most other educational settings.

So if conversational things are built into everything in a course then you will get the same benefits of the learning by collaboration, counseling, and talking, as you would in a f2f setting. Can everything in a course be 100% conversational? I don't think Holmberg thinks so but it is lacking in the distance education so you need to put as much in there as possible to help students deal with the complicated academic components (which in Holmberg's world would be very few). The "conversational style" helps make up for not having your peers and teachers there to discuss things in understandable terms and explain them. While those things that Peters feel are necessary (like objectivity and dense content) in the academic world will exist because you general can't avoid them, even if your goal is to make things conversational, when you are presenting content for most subjects.

So is this a distance learning theory? I would say yes and no. No because it is just a part of good education but yes because it is a specific application of a good educational principle in an educational setting where it is not often seen or easily achieved.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Article Contexts

Chaney, B. H., Eddy, J. M., Dorman, S. M., Glessner, L., Green, B. L., & Lara-Alecio, R. (2007). Development of an Instrument to Assess Student Opinions of the Quality of Distance Education Courses. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3), 145-164.
• Survey review by panel consisting of nine professionals
• Interview of 10 students in or were in a health distance education class
• 601 university students enrolled in a distance education course(s) (Spring 2006)


Conrad, D. L. (2008). From Community to Community of Practice: Exploring the Connection of Online Learners to Informal Learning in the Workplace. American Journal of Distance Education, 22(1), 3-23.
• 10 (7 male, 3 female) full-time employed adult online learners in postsecondary distance learning programs across Canada in the middle of their class
• 6 workplace colleagues of the students
• Initial questionnaire with 10 students, phone interview with 7 of the participants, questionnaire for the 6 work colleagues


Flowers, J., & Cotton, S. E. (2007). Impacts of Student Categorization of Their Online Discussion Contributions. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(2), 93-104.
• 20 US university students participating in a five week online course within a noncohort master’s program in Career and Technical Education.
• Esed Blackboard (mainly the asynchronous threaded discussion)
• All forums were one week in duration
• During Week 3, students were asked to fill out a discussion review
(“Reflective Activity Form”)


Gaytan, J., & McEwen, B. C. (2007). Effective Online Instructional and Assessment Strategies. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3), 117-132.
• The population included 85
university faculty and 1,963 university students, with response rates of 34% (29 of 85) for faculty and 17% (332 of 1963) for students
• Online surveys, administered through the Blackboard and WebCT course management systems, were used to gather data


Keeler, C. G., & Horney, M. (2007). Online Course Designs: Are Special Needs Being Met? American Journal of Distance Education, 21(2), 61-75.
• Secondary-level online course students in classes using a “virtual classroom model”
• Special needs (physical and cognitive, no emotional) students
• Twenty-two sample courses were chosen from varying schools (with different accreditation bodies)
• The courses included at least four from each major
subject area (English, mathematics, science, social studies, and “other”)
and about four from each of the 5 online high schools


Kelsey, K. D. (2008). A Review of: Teaching and Learning With Virtual Teams. American Journal of Distance Education, 22(1), 63-65.
• 4 sections of a book were reviewed
• First two sections each had 4 chapters last two each had two chapters
• Mostly empirical data from various authors were cited and explained


Moisey, S. D., Ally, M., & Spencer, B. (2006). Factors Affecting the Development and Use of Learning Objects. American Journal of Distance Education, 20(3), 143-161.
• The study involved twenty-seven graduate students enrolled in the Masters
of Distance Education (MDE) program at Athabasca University
• All were senior-level students, having completed at least four previous courses in the program
• Spanned a little over a two-month period


O"Leary, P. F., & Quinlan Jr., T. J. (2007). Learner–Instructor Telephone Interaction: Effects on Satisfaction and Achievement of Online Students. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3), 133-143.
• Questionnaire was administered to selected students in the Iowa Community College Online Consortium at the beginning and end of the spring 2005 semester
• Students surveyed in the first two weeks and again at the end of the semester
• Sixteen instructors, representing five colleges, volunteered to participate in the study, they had a total of 348 students registered, 229 participated
• 66 students received a phone call the others were part of the control group; the rest did not end up participating


Offir, B., Bezalel, R., & Barth, I. (2007). Introverts, Extroverts, and Achievement in a Distance Learning Environment. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(1), 3-19.
• Seventy-seven Israeli students participated in the study, 34 women and 43 men, who studied at least one DL course via videoconferencing.
• Data was collected from all but fifty-one of the students were interviewed
• The students were from a university geographically farther than 100 miles from the lecturer


Seo, K. K. (2007). Utilizing Peer Moderating in Online Discussions: Addressing the Controversy between Teacher Moderation and Nonmoderation. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(1), 21-36.
• 174 undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory chemistry course at a Western university.
• First-year students (49%), second-year students (36%), and upper-level undergraduates (15%). Approximately 61% of the participants were in the 18–20 age range and 33% were in the 21–23 age range.
• Approximately 58% of the students were female.
• 166 participants divided in half and then into groups of 10-11 students

Monday, January 12, 2009

Scroll down to see the table with my articles please--still trying to figure out how to post a table in blogger?

Researchers Ponder the Yonder

Articles from The American Journal of Distance Education









style='margin-left:.45in;border-collapse:collapse;border:none;mso-border-alt:
solid black .5pt;mso-border-themecolor:text1;mso-yfti-tbllook:1184;mso-padding-alt:
0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt'>













































Article



Questions



Chaney lang=ES-CL style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-ansi-language:ES-CL'>, B. H., Eddy, J. M., Dorman,
S. M., Glessner, L., Green, B.
L.,
& Lara-Alecio, R. (2007).
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Development of
an Instrument to Assess Student Opinions of the Quality of Distance Education
Courses. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3),
145-164.


 



Can we develop a culturally sensitive instrument to assess the quality
of distance education courses? Can this be done evaluating student attitudes,
opinions, and perceptions of distance education? What do we learn when we
test this instrument? Does it provide reliable measures?



Conrad,
D. L. (2008). From Community to Community of Practice: Exploring the
Connection of Online Learners to Informal Learning in the Workplace. American
Journal of Distance Education
, 22(1), 3-23.


 



If you participate in a learning community does that affect your
relationship to your workplace environment and colleagues?


Does a learning community of online peers contribute to community in
the workplace?


What is the most valuable exchange among colleagues? What do learners
report about participation in a learning community? Is there evidence that
this transfers over in the workplace?


 



Flowers,
J., & Cotton, S. E. (2007). Impacts of Student Categorization of Their
Online Discussion Contributions. American Journal of Distance Education,
21(2), 93-104.


 



The purpose of this study was to determine the
effects of having online graduate students engage in a self-categorization of
their individual


asynchronous discussion
contributions.


Is there an increase in discussion quantity after
self-categorization?


The hypothesis was that after self-categorization that cognitive
dialogue would increase, in number and percent, be
more complex by showing a more inference and analysis and have a higher
percentage of “deep-level processing.”


 



Gaytan style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>, J., &
McEwen, B. C. (2007). Effective Online Instructional and Assessment
Strategies. American Journal of Distance Education, 21(3),
117-132.


 



Which instructional and assessment strategies are most effective in
the online learning environment? What strategies can faculty and students use
to maintain instructional quality in the online environment? How does using a
variety of methods facilitate quality in the online environment? What is the
importance of feedback?



Keeler,
C. G., & Horney, M. (2007). Online Course Designs: Are Special Needs
Being Met? American Journal of Distance Education, 21(2),
61-75.


 



This article addresses the intersections between online education and
special education in terms of instructional design. The relevant elements of
online instructional design, which require particular attention when teaching
students with special needs, are examined. The overall finding is that
contemporary courses generally include design elements necessary to meet the
basic needs of students with disabilities. The authors recommend design
methods focusing on either universal design principles or a specified target
population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]



Kelsey,
K. D. (2008). A Review of: Teaching and Learning With Virtual Teams. American
Journal of Distance Education
, 22(1), 63-65.


 



What has been researched and what empirical data is
there on 1) e-learning in virtual teams. 2) Strategies for effective teaching
and learning in virtual teams. 3) Using international collaboration. to form
teams and 4) teams and their use of technology. style='mso-spacerun:yes'> 



Moisey style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>, S. D., Ally,
M., & Spencer, B. (2006). Factors Affecting the Development and Use of
Learning Objects. American Journal of Distance Education, 20(3),
143-161.


 



What skills and information are required to develop
and use learning objects successfully? What barriers affect developing and
using learning objects in instructional materials? What factors facilitate
the use and development of learning objects?



O"Leary lang=ES-CL style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-ansi-language:ES-CL'>, P. F., & Quinlan class=SpellE>Jr., T. J. (2007).
Learner–Instructor Telephone
Interaction: Effects on Satisfaction and Achievement of Online Students. American
Journal of Distance Education
, 21(3), 133-143.


 



How does telephone distance learning impact the
satisfaction and achievement of online students?


How will one call from the instructor in the first
two weeks of the class affect student grades? Will the grades improve if you
received a call? Are students expectations meet in online courses?



Offir style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>, B., class=SpellE>Bezalel, R., & Barth, I. (2007). Introverts,
Extroverts, and Achievement in a Distance Learning Environment. American
Journal of Distance Education
, 21(1), 3-19.


 



How does cognitive style (based on Jung’s theory)
relate to achievement levels? What can this relationship teach educators
about which students require more support in a distance learning setting?



Seo style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>, K. K.
(2007). Utilizing Peer Moderating in Online Discussions: Addressing the
Controversy between Teacher Moderation and Nonmoderation.
American Journal of Distance Education, 21(1), 21-36.


 



How does peer moderation affect meaningful
interactions in online discussions?


H1: A peer-moderated online discussion forum will
contain more posts responding to previous comments than a non-moderated forum.


H2: A peer-moderated online discussion forum will contain
more substantive responses enriching the conversation than a non-moderated
forum.




 









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