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A "funny" thing happened on the way to the forum
... Foremost, investigations focus almost exclusively on discussion as it occurs within the online environment (Angeli et al., 2003;Bean & Stevens, 2002;Ben-Peretz & Kupferberg, 2007;Edens & Gallini, 2000;Ferdig & Roehler, 2003Kaplan et al., 2007;Nicholson & Bond, 2003;Paulus & Roberts, 2006;Ryan & Scott, 2008;Singer & Zeni, 2004;Wade & Fauske, 2004;Wade et al., 2008;Wheeler et al., 2005;Whipp, 2003;Wickstrom, 2003). ...
... The most common digital forum investigated is the asynchronous (i.e., not occurring concurrently or in "real" time) electronic discussion board (e.g., WebCT and Blackboard) (Angeli et al., 2003;Bean & Stevens, 2002;Ben-Peretz & Kupferberg, 2007;Edens & Gallini, 2000;Ferdig & Roehler, 2003Nicholson & Bond, 2003;Paulus & Roberts, 2006;Ryan & Scott, 2008;Wade & Fauske, 2004;Wade et al., 2008;Wickstrom, 2003). A few studies examine discussion via email list servs (Kaplan et al., 2007;Singer & Zeni, 2004;Whipp, 2003) and one explores teacher collaboration in an online problem-based learning module (Wheeler et al., 2005). ...
... Online course discussion has the potential to reveal insights about the needs, processes and concerns of preservice teachers in ways previously unavailable to teacher educators. In the literature examined here, the focus of preservice teachers' communication fell into one of two categories: 1) student generated discussion about field experiences (Angeli et al., 2003;Bean & Stevens, 2002;Ben-Peretz & Kupferberg, 2007;Edens & Gallini, 2000;Fedig & Roehler, 2003Kaplan et al., 2007;Nicholson & Bond, 2003;Singer & Zeni, 2004;Whipp, 2003) and 2) discussion via case study prompts (real or hypothetical) posed by professors (Paulus & Roberts, 2006;Ryan & Scott, 2008;Wade & Fauske, 2004;Wade et al., 2008;Wheeler et al., 2005;Whipp, 2003;Wickstrom, 2003). Course content included Educational Psychology (Angeli et al., 2003;Paulus & Roberts, 2006), reading assessment (Wickstrom, 2003), teaching practicum (Ben-Peretz & Kupferberg, 2007;Edens & Gallini, 2000;Whipp, 2003), secondary literacy teacher education (Wade & Fauske, 2004;Wade et al, 2008), and various teaching methods courses (Bean & Stevens, 2002;Ferdig & Roehler, 2003Kaplan et al., 2007;Nicholson & Bond, 2003;Ryan & Scott, 2008;Singer & Zeni, 2004). ...
... The context in w hich online discussion takes place has been looked at from several perspectives: quality of initial question in a thread (Berge & Muilenburg, 2000; Hara et. al., 1998; Savage, 1998; Wickstrom, 2003), role of the educator/teacher (Berge & Muilenburg, 2000; Blignaut & Trollip, 2003; Burstall, 2000; Figallo, 1998; Hara et. al., 1998; Knowlton & Knowlton, 2001; Li, 2003; Love, 2002; Mazzolini & Maddison, 2003; Moller, 1998; Wickstrom, 2003), navigational structure (Burstall, 2000; Hammond, 2000; Hara et. ...
... al., 1998; Savage, 1998; Wickstrom, 2003), role of the educator/teacher (Berge & Muilenburg, 2000; Blignaut & Trollip, 2003; Burstall, 2000; Figallo, 1998; Hara et. al., 1998; Knowlton & Knowlton, 2001; Li, 2003; Love, 2002; Mazzolini & Maddison, 2003; Moller, 1998; Wickstrom, 2003), navigational structure (Burstall, 2000; Hammond, 2000; Hara et. al., 1998; Knowlton & Know lton, 2001; Son, 2002; Wickstrom, 2003), and location of learning (e.g., Hara et. ...
... al., 1998; Knowlton & Knowlton, 2001; Li, 2003; Love, 2002; Mazzolini & Maddison, 2003; Moller, 1998; Wickstrom, 2003), navigational structure (Burstall, 2000; Hammond, 2000; Hara et. al., 1998; Knowlton & Know lton, 2001; Son, 2002; Wickstrom, 2003), and location of learning (e.g., Hara et. al., 1998; Love, 2002; Schrum & Hong, 2002). ...
Previous research on online discussions has focused on university students learning higher level subjects. The purpose of the current study was to examine whether online discussions could be used effectively by secondary school students attempting to learn introductory level topics. Forty-five male students, ranging in age from 13 to 15 years old, participated in two consecutive online discussions used to supplement the learning of HTML (24 days) and beginning programming (36 days) respectively. Students were able to actively understand and apply new concepts and procedures using an online discussion format. The majority of students posted clear, good quality messages that covered material which went beyond the course curriculum. Although attitudes toward using online discussions and participation rates were uneven, most students reported gaining useful information from the discussion board. More than three quarters of all discussion threads were resolved. Finally, and perhaps most important, participation in the discussion board was significantly and positively correlated with learning performance.
... 2003; Roblyer & Wiencke, 2003;Rourke & Anderson, 2002;Wickstrom, 2003); however, methodological differences in assessment make it difficult to combine the results into a cohesive base of knowledge that can guide practice and education. In addition, many studies have looked at only one or two specific aspects of online discussion in detail. ...
... It is reasonable, then, to expect that online discussion has the potential to support collaboration and concept development. A number of studies, however, have reported that true social interaction leading to cognitive development and resolution to actual problems addressed in discussion boards is rare (eg, Berge & Muilenburg, 2000;Biesenbach-Lucas, 2003;Garrison, Anderson & Archer, 2001;Hara et al , 1998;Meyer, 2003;Son, 2002;Wickstrom, 2003). Other researchers have observed significant social interaction leading to effective knowledge building (eg, Aviv et al , 2003;Fauske & Wade, 2003-04;Garrison et al , 2001;Grady, 2003;Poole, 2000;Rourke & Anderson, 2002;Schallert, Reed & D-Team, 2003). ...
... Previous research suggests that the initial question starting off a discussion board thread is germane to the quality of subsequent interaction (Aviv et al , 2003;Berge & Muilenburg, 2000;Ferdig & Roehler, 2003-04;Greenlaw & DeLoach, 2003;Hara et al , 1998;Roblyer & Wiencke, 2003;Savage, 1998;Wickstrom, 2003). Specifically, more successful questions are clear and focused (Aviv et al ;Berge & Muilenburg, 2000;Fauske & Wade, 2003-04;Greenlaw & DeLoach, 2003), provocative or interpretive (Greenlaw & DeLoach, 2003;Love, 2002), directly relevant to the course being taught (Aviv et al ;Ferdig & Roehler, 2003-04;Poole, 2000), authentic (Gold, 2001), lead students towards producing specific products (Aviv et al ;Roblyer & Wiencke, 2003) and promote higher-level thinking (Savage, 1998). ...
The use of online discussion boards has grown extensively in the past 5 years, yet some researchers argue that our understanding of how to use this tool in an effective and meaningful way is minimal at best. Part of the problem in acquiring more cohesive and useful information rests in the absence of a comprehensive, theory-driven metric to assess quality and effectiveness. Based on an extensive review of the research, the following variables were used to assess traditional discussion board use: thread, location of message within thread, author (student vs. educator), subject line clarity, time of posting, response time from previous message, number of times message was read, number of words, primary purpose, message quality, difficulty level of topic, knowledge level, processing level and use of external resources. These variables proved to be effective in assessing 12 key areas of discussion board use. It is argued that this kind of metric is essential if we wish to advance our understanding of online discussion boards for both educators and researchers.
... Second, professional educational organizations and universities are establishing online communities to provide convenient access for teacher professional development and continuing education (Colgan, Higginson, & Sinclair, 1999;Curran, 2002;Dalgarno & Colgan, 2007;Falvo, 2003;Hawkes & Good, 2000;Stephens & Hartmann, 2004). Third, these same groups are creating online communities to encourage professional collaboration and to engender self-sustaining communities for purposes of academic and emotional support for teachers (Hough, Smithey, & Evertson, 2004;Ohlund, Yu, Jannasch-Pennell, & DiGangi, 2000;Parr & Ward, 2006;Pennington, Wilkinson, & Vance, 2004;Selwyn, 2000;Wickstrom, 2003). ...
... Using a naturalistic approach, Wickstrom (2003) studied 45 undergraduate students participating in a one-semester reading assessment course taught by the author. ...
The purpose of this study was to analyze data related to rural teachers' use of online communities. Rural teachers are often isolated in their practice and sometimes have difficulty connecting with other teachers with their same assignments or needs due to their professional setting. As Internet availability increases and online communities proliferate, teachers have more opportunity than ever to seek personal and professional support in virtual relationships when face-to-face ones are not easily available. In small schools such as the ones included in this study, teachers can become burned out as they perform the difficult task of teaching with few colleagues in their department or grade level to turn to for support. One interview subject said that she and the only other person with the same teaching assignment don't always have time to communicate and often have to use their lunch period to do so. Another said that she feels very isolated because there are only three of them with the same grade level assignment. The most telling comment came from one high school teacher, "I am the foreign language department." In spite of these expressed feelings of isolation, this study's results do not support widespread use of online communities by these particular rural teachers to help fill their personal and professional needs. The only online communication technology widely used was email. At a minimum, every subject in this study had access to a high-speed Internet connection, functional technology, administrative support, and training. With this type of support already in place, further study is needed to discover what would increase awareness and use of online communities by this group of teachers. Additionally, similar studies in different rural school settings might show different results. Comparisons of study findings between rural schools in different geographic locations would be revealing. Such comparative studies could help inform administrators and online community developers who wish to better meet the needs of rural teachers.
... However, other researchers have stated that online discussions, which contain substantive social interactions that can lead to cognitive development are rare [18,[20][21][22]. In fact, some researchers believe that online discussions are shallow in content [23]. ...
... Creating interaction in online learning 213 Vygotsky (1978) pointed out that conceptual learning was a collaborative effort that required supportive dialogue, so it is reasonable to assume that online discussion has the potential to enhance both collaboration and concept development. However, some researchers take the view that true social interaction leading to cognitive growth in an online context is rare (Son, 2002;Meyer, 2003;Wickstrom, 2003), whereas others (Poole, 2000;Grady, 2003;Schallert et al., 2003) demonstrate that significant social interaction leading to effective knowledge construction does take place in online discussion forums. As Kay (2006) points out, a resolution to this debate lies in both the user acceptance of the medium and the amount of structure used to guide the online discussion board. ...
This paper uses the case-study method to examine detailed data related to student and tutor usage of an asynchronous discussion board as an interactive communication forum during a first-semester associate degree course in applied psychology at the City University of Hong Kong. The paper identifies ‘what works' in relation to discussion board use, demonstrating how students might gradually create an online community of their own, but only if prompted in a timely and appropriate way by the course structure. It also identifies three distinct phases in online interaction and suggests these might, to some extent, be mediated by assessment tasks.
... Most distance learning offerings resemble traditional classroom courses (Coates & Humpeys, 2003;Levine & Sun, 2002, Navaro, 2000. When interaction does take place, it is usually in the form of online discussion, however, a number of studies have reported that true social interaction leading to cognitive development is rare (e.g., Berge and Muilenburg, 2000;Bisenbach-Lucas, 2003;Garrison, Anderson, and Archer, 2001;Hara, Bonk and Angeli, 1998;Meyer, 2003;Wickstrom, 2003). ...
In the past 10 years, a considerable amount of money and effort has been directed toward distance education, with growth estimated as high as 30%-40% annually (Harper, Chen, & Yen, 2004; Hurst, 2001; Newman, 2003). The popularity of distance learning appears to be founded on personal control over instruction (Burgess & Russell, 2003, Pierrakeas, 2003), the variety of multimedia formats available to students (Hayes & Jamrozik, 2001), and customized support (Harper et al., 2004). However, the success of distance education is anything but a foregone conclusion. Multiple obstacles have impeded acceptance including reluctance to use technology (Harper et al., 2004), time required to develop course resources (Harper et al., 2004; Hayes & Jamrozik, 2001) and to support students (Levine & Sun, 2002), lack of technology skills (Berge & Smith, 2000), and cost (Burgess & Russell, 2003; Levine & Sun, 2002). In addition the promise of interactivity and constructive learning in distance learning has not been realized. Most distance learning offerings resemble traditional classroom courses (Coates & Humpeys, 2003; Levine & Sun, 2002, Navaro, 2000). When interaction does take place, it is usually in the form of online discussion, however, a number of studies have reported that true social interaction leading to cognitive development is rare (e.g., Berge and Muilenburg, 2000; Bisenbach-Lucas, 2003; Garrison, Anderson, and Archer, 2001; Hara, Bonk and Angeli, 1998; Meyer, 2003; Wickstrom, 2003).
... low-level thinking (Fung, 2004;sing & Khine, 2006) that mainly consisted of reproduction of information (eilon & Kliachko, 2004;sing & Khine, 2006) and sharing or comparing anecdotes (hew & cheung, 2003a, 2003bPawan, Paulus, Yalcin, & chang, 2003;sing & Khine, 2006) were observed. This surface level knowledge was often unquestioned by peers and even provocative topics resulted in little debate, argumentation, or critical discourse (Orrill, 2002;Pawan et al., 2003;sing & Khine, 2006;Wickstrom, 2003). concerns about high rates of socio-cultural, community building conversation such as "how are you?" or other kinds of small talk, over task-oriented interactions -targeted dialogue related to assigned work or discussion questions -were noted throughout. ...
... Some researchers use technology as a fulcrum to push reform. Sometimes merely adding online discussion to a face-to-face class is enough to redefine authority and voice (Merryfield, 2006), change classroom practices relating to honoring diverse cultural perspectives (Maher and Jacob, 2006), or change classroom discourse patterns (Wickstrom, 2003). ...
... Pedagogically, I hoped that the discussion board would provide another space in which students would deliberate. I believed this form of computer mediated communication would enhance critical thinking skills for students (Fauske & Wade, 2004;Im & Okhwa, 2004) and might remove some of the obstacles for discourse and reflectivity (Wickstrom, 2003;Markel, 2001). Additionally, as a pedagogical tool, I hoped that the discussion board would provide a space for marginalized voices to be heard as well as "disrupt discursive norms" (Fauske & Wade, 2004, p. 148). ...
This study explores how dimensions of reflexive thinking in a social foundations pedagogy facilitates an understanding of student and teacher talk and text in a social foundations classroom. Even though pedagogy is defined as both thinking and acting, discussions about teacher pedagogy in teacher education have often focused on the behavior or actions of teachers in the classroom. This study focuses on the thinking aspect of pedagogy and seeks to portray thinking in pedagogy as a way in which theoretic meaning can be derived from students' talk and text in the classroom. In the study, I draw on Garman's (1998) levels of reflection and weave the concept of reflexivity through the reflective process and call this reflexive thinking. I use this framework to explore the problematics of teaching social foundations in order to come to theoretic understandings of students' talk and text. This study attempts to reframe the notion of pedagogy to include reflexive thinking as a pedagogic act. This interpretive study draws on student and teacher dialogues as well as teacher journal texts from a social foundations course. Five fictive vignettes are crafted from these texts which demonstrate reflexive thinking in pedagogy. Each vignette explores a problematic encountered while teaching social foundations in order to derive theoretic meanings. This study attempts to demonstrate how reflexive thinking in pedagogy is a pedagogic act which can prepare one for future action in the classroom.
... This finding is consistent with Yang's (2009) study that EFL teachers thought of blog technology as a useful tool for reflecting and interacting with each other in terms of promoting critical reflection. More specifically, as maintained by several researchers of teacher education, a discussion forum can give teachers access to others' pedagogical ideas associated with technology (Ruan & Beach, 2005), "expansive feedback" (Ostorga & Yanes, 2007), and "professional dialogue" that can facilitate teachers' reflections (Wickstrom, 2003). In the present study, the discussion forum offered the participating teachers chances to view each other's reflection entries, so this tool seemed to help them overcome the problem of having no ideas for reflection. ...
The integration of computer technology into teaching practice has been advocated in EFL classrooms in Taiwan; however, many EFL teachers have not fully embraced the computer as a teaching aid. This problem suggests that they might have failed to perceive the relevance of the computer to their teaching. Thus, they should be provided with opportunities to develop their awareness of the possibilities of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in foreign language education. To seek a way to address this problem, reflective practice was employed in the present study to develop the participating teachers' reflective thinking about CALL. Four in-service English teachers were involved in a 12-week reflection-based CALL workshop, in which they were encouraged to reflect on CALL practices via a discussion forum. All of their responses were evaluated for the level of their reflectivity. It was found that the four teachers' reflectivity dynamically varied between the medium level and the high level. To an extent, they demonstrated a potential for critical reflection. The tendency towards higher-order learning might be attributed to the increased interaction among the teachers, the peers, and the professor-communal learning facilitated by the discussion forum. This study suggests that technology-mediated reflective practice perhaps can increase EFL teachers' awareness of ways to apply CALL to EFL classes, possibly changing their prior beliefs about CALL.
... However, as in other online courses with large number of students (e.g. [12]) the facilitators endured deficiency of time to provide responses to each student in their courses. As a solution, the UCSC and the others who encountered the similar issues were interested in introducing more and more student directed discussions providing students more opportunities to interact with each other and find solutions to course related problems by themselves [13], [14] ...
... This study fills a void in the literature by focusing upon a college mathematics course, the needs of elementary teachers, and the connections between course content and ODB use. Studies in other academic disciplines have shown that ODBs can encourage students to reflect upon and develop deeper understandings of course material, collaborate with peers, strengthen communication skills, and improve academic performance (Hofstad, 2003;Wickstrom, 2003). These studies have documented positive student experiences and have provided course-specific ODB implementation strategies. ...
This study relies on a previous survey that I conducted with 120 seventh-graders two years ago. A questionnaire presented for solution five ratio problems based on the same mathematical framework: working out a fourth proportional in combining the same type of data. But each problem referred to a different physico-empirical context (e.g. mixture and enlargement). For a
... Whether the institution has selected a proprietary or an opensource package, there are certain common features that faculty may or may not use for their courses. One of these is the discussion board (DB), 1 which has been found to be useful for instruction in both science and nonscience classes [1][2][3][4]. I have been actively using such a DB for the past six years and have had to learn how to apply this tool by a process of much trial and error. ...
The discussion board feature that is included with most course management software packages is a potentially valuable tool to augment instructor-student interactions in science lecture courses and increase student motivation. However, many teachers seem to have been frustrated that students do not readily make use of this feature when it is added to the course resources. The author has been using a discussion board in undergraduate biochemistry lecture courses for six years and has learned to use it to evolve a system that students use and that seems to increase interaction with students while requiring less time than traditional face-to-face meetings outside of the lecture. The aspects that the author emphasizes for efficient discussion board use are timing, creating a safe virtual environment for the students, “seeding” with simulated questions, setting boundaries, and being self-conscious about the attitude that the instructor projects to the students.
... Specifically the time spent teaching online is made up of one-on-one email, phone conversations, discussion groups, chatroom questions and answers, and help in my office. This communication has been found to be one of the most time consuming parts of teaching an online course (Lazarus 2003, Wickstrom 2003). This time could be reduced by limiting students' interaction but it may have a negative impact on the quality of the course (Offir et al. 2003, Savenye et al. 2001, Flowers 2001). ...
The success of distance courses has prompted universities nationwide to increase the number of courses offered online. As the number of these courses has increased, the challenges involved in developing and offering them have become more apparent. One particular difficulty when teaching in an online format is that it can be more time-consuming than teaching in a traditional in-class format. This case study investigates this issue through the use of a detailed comparison of the time required to prepare and teach a traditional course, and that required for the same course presented in an online format. The additional time required by the online format is found to result largely from increased student contact and individualized instruction and not from the use of technology per se.
... We decided that grading the content would restrict the freedom of postings and change the medium from student-oriented discussion to instructor-oriented assignment. In the words of one instructor, her initial choice to grade web postings in her preservice teacher discussion forum turned out to be "counterproductive to reflectivity" (Wickstrom, 2003). There was no requirement concerning the length of a posted message; however, the instructor advised the students to keep postings brief to save other people time in reading. ...
The World Wide Web has made possible an entirely new form of communication in the classroom: asynchronous, public, non-sequential, and selective (Windschitl, 1998). However, it is unclear how discussion webs can contribute to educational processes. Our research investigates the role of instructional interactive webs in promoting among preservice teachers an "academic community of learners," defined as an academic community that grounds inquiries and dilemmas emerging in their practice in an academic discourse based on considering alternatives and providing argumentation and evidence for their claims (Wells, Chang, & Maher, 1990). Based on this definition of a community of learners and concerns raised by fellow instructors, we created categories and analyzed one class discussion web, coding a total of 1,124 web entries of undergraduate students and their instructor to examine references they used, topics, genres, and relationships with other messages. Our findings suggest that students' web postings were mostly very sophisticated in that students were able to integrate outside references with new and enriching discussion topics, thereby providing viewpoints alternative to and sometimes critical of those expressed by the instructor and other students. These findings suggest that instructional interactive webs can be a useful tool for promoting and building an academic community of learners.
... Creating interaction in online learning 213 Vygotsky (1978) pointed out that conceptual learning was a collaborative effort that required supportive dialogue, so it is reasonable to assume that online discussion has the potential to enhance both collaboration and concept development. However, some researchers take the view that true social interaction leading to cognitive growth in an online context is rare (Son, 2002;Meyer, 2003;Wickstrom, 2003), whereas others (Poole, 2000;Grady, 2003;Schallert et al., 2003) demonstrate that significant social interaction leading to effective knowledge construction does take place in online discussion forums. As Kay (2006) points out, a resolution to this debate lies in both the user acceptance of the medium and the amount of structure used to guide the online discussion board. ...
This paper uses the case‐study method to examine detailed data related to student and tutor usage of an asynchronous discussion board as an interactive communication forum during a first‐semester associate degree course in applied psychology at the City University of Hong Kong. The paper identifies ‘what works’ in relation to discussion board use, demonstrating how students might gradually create an online community of their own, but only if prompted in a timely and appropriate way by the course structure. It also identifies three distinct phases in online interaction and suggests these might, to some extent, be mediated by assessment tasks.
... 19,20 Many instructors employ online discussion boards as a platform for their students to engage in class activities. 21 Although still lacking real-time interaction, online discussion could have its advantages over its in-classroom counterpart. For example, students who are afraid of public speaking have a chance to participate in the discussion, and students have more time to organize their thoughts before they post them online. ...
In this article we introduce blogs, including their brief history, their current status, and motivations for blogging. We describe how we created a course blog in one online Health information management (HIM) baccalaureate course. We describe three pedagogical purposes (online discussion, digital drop box, and class project management tool) of the course blog. We report the results of our after-class survey on using the blog as a learning tool. Survey results illustrated that 55 percent of the students agree that the blog can be a tool for facilitating learning, 50 percent agree it can be used as a tool for student activities, 60 percent agree it can serve as a medium for reflective thinking and writing, and 60 percent want to see its application in other courses.
... 11,12 To overcome this barrier, many instructors employ an online discussion board as a platform for their students to engage in class activities. 13 Students who are afraid of public speaking will have a chance to participate in the discussion, and students will have more time to organize their thoughts before they post them online. Wiki tools may help students to publish online without sophisticated knowledge of Web programming. ...
We report a case study using a wiki tool, Confluence, including a brief history, current status, and motivations for using Confluence. We describe how we created two spaces on Confluence for two consecutive classes, 2006 and 2007, in a health information management baccalaureate online course, Record Documentation Systems. The 2006 class contained 12 groups consisting of 52 students. The 2007 class contained six groups consisting of 30 students. We describe how two collaborative pages for each of the groups are created and used by the groups for the group project. Survey results illustrated that 44 percent of the students in 2006 and 50 percent in 2007 agree Confluence is a tool for facilitating learning; 58 percent in 2006 and 50 percent in 2007 agree it is a tool for student activities; 52 percent in 2006 and 36 percent in 2007 agree it is a medium for reflective group interaction; and 38 percent in 2006 and 36 percent in 2007 want to see its application in other courses.
Inquiry-based learning and peer-teaching are two teaching and learning approaches best applicable in higher educational contexts. Considering benefits of each approach in learning, a study was conducted to determine how to design peer-teaching activities to promote inquiry-based learning. Data were collected from a group of instructional designers, a sample group of students in an online learning environment prepared for a distance learning programme and from the learning management system of the online learning environment. The findings of the study were used to improve sets of design principles that were followed to design the peer-teaching activity. In addition, sets of design guidelines were also prepared for easy application of the design principles.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide pre-service and practicing teachers a constructivist lens for viewing how they use technology, specifically online discussion boards, in their classrooms. The chapter introduces the idea that online discussion boards present a unique opportunity for constructivist teachers in particular and then provides several specific and practical strategies for ways to use discussion boards in the classroom. Each of these strategies connects to the roots of constructivist beliefs. In particular, this chapter highlights the role that writing can play when using this technology.
New and emerging technologies have transformed the classroom (Mishra & Koehler, 2006) and continue to do so, and it has been reported that teachers and teacher educators now work in ever evolving environments (Elliott, 2009). Research indicates that varied forms of CMC can be implemented to foster collaborative and social learning (Arnold & Ducate, 2006), and the formation of communities of practice (CoPs) (Arnold et al., 2005). Therefore, this paper investigates the implementation of online and face-to-face (F2F) communication in an English Language Teaching (ELT) teacher education programme, with the aim of illuminating the potential such modes have for sharing and collaborating, for providing a space for situated learning and open communication. Results are analysed using a corpus-based methodology, drawing on three aspects of community membership, namely a joint enterprise, mutual engagement and a shared repertoire (Wenger, 1998). This paper closes with a discussion of the implications of such data for Language Teacher Education (LTE) in a technologically-oriented world.
The term parawork describes spaces and activities that function alongside-yet also outside-of traditional workplaces. Parawork spaces are not regulated by the workplace, but they are available for work-related activities. In parawork environments, it can be desirable to overlap the personal, social, and professional. Participating with others in parawork activities may not "get work done," yet these interactions may facilitate professional identity formation, association with workplace and professional culture, and readiness to accomplish workplace tasks and professional goals. This chapter defines parawork, focusing on parawork enabled by online communication technologies. The author reviews literature that supports and informs understanding of online parawork. Through case study of one woman's participation in an e-mail discussion list for teacher interns, the practical realities and possibilities of online parawork are considered. The chapter closes with conclusions about conditions necessary for effective online parawork, as well as implications for future research.
This chapter describes a case study which examines detailed data related to student and tutor usage of an asynchronous discussion board as an interactive communication forum during a first semester associate degree course in applied psychology, and identifies 'what works' in relation to discussion board use. The case demonstrates how students gradually create an online community, but only if they are prompted in a timely and appropriate way by the course and assessment structure. Three distinct phases in online interaction are identified, and the case suggests these might be largely mediated by assessment tasks.
Online discussion has become one of the most effective teaching tools in recent years in terms of its power to promote students' critical thinking skills in educational contexts. This chapter aims at presenting an overview of recently conducted research studies on critical thinking and online discussions, explaining online discussion as a pedagogical vehicle for maximizing language learning and teaching, identifying problems related to online discussions, as well as some suggested solutions, describing application activities that promote critical thinking skills, illustrating how language teachers and learners can use meta-communication in creating successful online discussions, and stressing the importance of the teacher's role in designing an effective online discussion environment for students.
As computer usage continues to grow exponentially, the desire of users to use electronic publications (e-publications) has also increased tremendously. This has led to the publication of materials in electronic form as e-publications on both CD-ROMs and web. The electronic book (e-book) is one of the several forms of e-publications and its popularity has been growing steadily for the past decade. This bibliography provides all references of the published literature on e-books and related technologies in one source so that it will save time for others in conducting literature searches and reviewing the developments. The information included in this bibliography is collected systematically from all the published sources in the world such as journal articles, conference papers, conference proceedings, books, reports and PhD theses on e-books until the last quarter of 2011. Mainly, it covers e-books, e-books publishing, the impact of e-books on different types of users, e-book publishing techniques and trends, e-book user interfaces and other technologies related to e-publications. This bibliography will be useful to all researchers conducting research in any areas related to e-books and e-book publishing.
The use of computer-mediated communication has been shown to be effective in reducing teacher isolation and supportive of substantial collaboration between teachers. In particular, online discussion forums may provide numerous opportunities for instructors within the same department to better coordinate their efforts and the flexibility in doing so at anytime and from anywhere with an Internet connection. This paper seeks to provide a rationale for the use of online discussion forums to foster departmental communication and collaboration and examines the output and perceived effectiveness of one such forum used by a faculty composed of limited-contract, English language instructors at a large, private university in Japan over the course of one academic year.
This paper reports on a case study in which six engineering teachers in a Masters program of machine engineering worked with a critical friend from a university based centre of teaching and learning in order to develop their scholarship of teaching. The research question that framed the study became: ‘what do engineering teachers learn, in terms of developing a scholarship of teaching, from working and reflecting together with a critical friend?’ The results give insights into how the collaboration with the critical friend and with each other caused the engineering teachers to (re)think their values, beliefs and professional practice as teachers. As this study illustrates, uncovering the knowledge behind an action, framing and reframing problems of practice and formulating ideas for future actions can ultimately guide teachers in refining their practice and, in so doing, develop their scholarship of teaching.
Inquiry-based learning and peer-teaching are two teaching and learning approaches best applicable in higher educational contexts. Considering benefits of each approach in learning, a study was conducted to determine how to design peer-teaching activities to promote inquiry-based learning. Data were collected from a group of instructional designers, a sample group of students in an online learning environment prepared for a distance learning programme and from the learning management system of the online learning environment. The findings of the study were used to improve sets of design principles that were followed to design the peer-teaching activity. In addition, sets of design guidelines were also prepared for easy application of the design principles.
Two teachers participating in an online study group provided the foci for in- depth case studies. Transcripts of conversations they had with colleagues about issues related to reform-oriented pedagogy were analyzed from both acquisition and participation perspectives on learning. Both teachers exhibited mainly marginal changes to their pedagogical reasoning structures and were generally resistant to adopting ideas posed during online debates. At the same time, the text-based environment provided a setting for both participants to structure their emerging thoughts about changes to their existing pedagogical reasoning structures. It also served as a forum for them to identify gaps in their personal knowledge and to obtain further professional development to address them. The methodology and theoretical perspective employed in the report provide a foundation for further research on teachers' learning in online environments.
This article describes what happened when adult learners in a literacy education class participated in online book discussions. Forty students, enrolled in a graduate literacy class, talked about the book Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor in an asynchronous online discussion. Findings included a higher level of satisfaction with online discussions than with face-to-face discussions during class. Students' comments about the experience clearly suggest that the electronic discussions provided things that could not be made available in class, such as varying amounts of time individual students had for reflecting and responding and affording students opportunities to participate in ongoing discussion. Students reported that the online discussions provided them with “think time” and that this time for reflecting and responding improved the quality of their discussions. They also reported that the asynchronous format allowed them to complete their thoughts without interruption. In addition, students noted that quieter classmates participated more fully online than during class. However, students also reported that prior face-to-face discussions were crucial for the success of the electronic experience in terms of building rapport, comfort level, and their willingness to take intellectual risks.
This article is based on a project in which a teacher educator, acting as a critical friend, worked with six engineering teachers in a Masters program in Machine Engineering in order to stimulate their reflection on their own teaching and learning as a way of developing their scholarship of teaching. The article draws particular attention to ways of expressing the learning from self-study in order to illuminate the complexities of teaching and to begin to encourage the articulation of the scholarship of teaching as a consequence of a collaborative experience. The results highlight how making teaching visible through the use of self-study offers new ways to capture the complexity of practice, which in this article is considered to be an important aspect of developing the scholarship of teaching.
This paper explores ways in which the research design of an anonymous online discussion forum on sexual orientation and schooling fostered the creation, maintenance and/or disruption of linguistic constructions of participant identity. The paper focuses on the presentation of self and the performance of sex–gender–sexuality within a research environment carefully designed as a ‘safe space’: an environment in which the body is conspicuous by its absence, and the construction and performance of identity relies on language alone. We explore the lines of power operating firstly between ourselves as researchers and the discussion participants, and secondly between the participants themselves, and consider the particular complexities involved in both creating and researching an online environment where simply to take part is to be at risk, and where the intervention or participation of the researchers may act both as a silencing mechanism and as a source of danger.
This study focuses on a group of practitioners from a school district that adopted reform-oriented curriculum materials but
later rejected them, partially due to the inclusion of alternative algorithms in the materials. Metaphors implicit in a conversation
among the group were analysed to illuminate their perspectives on instructional issues surrounding alternative algorithms.
Several possible sources of resistance to folding alternative algorithms into instruction were found, including the ideas
that: successful learning does not involve struggling with mathematics, the teacher’s role in the classroom is primarily to
present information, and that mathematics learning progresses according to a fixed sequence of levels.
As the popularity of computer mediated communication (CMC) in language teaching continues to grow, questions regarding best practices arise. Whereas a number of recent studies have examined the online discourse of language learners, few have explored the potential of online instructional conversations for language teacher education. This paper discusses CMC as a venue where language teachers in development can explore instructional conversations while they are actively guided via models, practice, and analysis to understand and make good use of the affordances of CMC (Meskill and Anthony 2007a,b). Samples from online professional development for language educators illustrate the potential of CMC in serving teacher learning. The power and diversity of CMC to support development of language educators is presented via uses in (1) modeling online instructional conversations; (2) analyzing online instructional conversations; (3) experimenting with instructional conversations in blended environments; (4) as a practicum laboratory; and in (5) promoting ongoing professional engagement.
This article, based on an interpretive study, examines what happens when a team of teaching fellows and their supervisor attempt to address what they have identified as a “pedagogical crisis” in a social foundations of education course. Student proclivities had resulted in extreme polarization regarding contested social issues. By using a pedagogical trope and electronic discussion boards to invite students to imagine what educating for a democracy might look like in the academy, encouraging yet disturbing engagements among students and teachers ensued. A repertoire of various texts were collected systematically during the semester, which allowed the authors to create a portrayal of the experience of reconceptualizing their pedagogy to reflect principles of deliberative and cultural democracy.
As many primary pre-service teachers enter teacher education courses with little science background, it is essential in teacher education courses to provide opportunities for them to learn more science independently. The purpose of this study is to investigate an online pedagogical activity that fosters the social construction of science knowledge by primary pre-service teachers working in small virtual teams. The study investigated how the pre-service teachers collaborated online in virtual teams to complete set tasks, their attitudes toward and beliefs about the effectiveness of the online learning experience, and the types and quality of the resources developed. The findings indicated that the virtual team-produced science resource materials were generally of high quality, with nearly half the number of teams engaging with Web 2.0 technologies (e.g. wikis and blogs) to construct their product. The findings indicated positive attitudes toward the collaborative learning even though beliefs about online learning were mixed.
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