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One Individual
Can Make a Difference
A Nation is Born (Early American History from the 1774 - 1817)
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American History Research Center
An Example and Discussion:
On Line Inclusion into a Classroom Setting
(8th Grade)
Investigation: New dimensions for a classroom teacher to investigate that
could extend the classroom outside the walls of the "real" time educational
setting.
Possibility: Attach on line courses to the classroom teacher's web site that
are based upon the framework
and curriculum requested by the state and district.
Implementation: Suggested that creation of on line site be done at a district
or state level due to the already
packed daily schedule with which classroom teachers are now dealing.
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Introduction:
Today many universities public educational systems in the United States and around
the world already have an online educational sites. (http://www.gnacademy.org ) On
line digital high school sites are also being developed. With the advent of this
virtual, digital educational world comes some serious questions. What are the key
elements necessary for success of an online course? What are the opportunities and
challenges ( the strengths and weaknesses) of this virtual environment? What educational
theories and strategies could be implemented as the basis for successful delivery
of such a class? How does the online teacher assess the students'progress and results?
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Key Elements of an Online Course
Clarity: The
participants are clear about the final result, goal of the class. This final course
objective is clearly present
within all components of the online virtual classroom. Each "chunk' of the course
is clearly defined with relevant teacher
"lecture", resource links and response areas for participant discussion.
Participants know what information, skills and
abilities they should be able to discuss and demonstrate upon completion of the specific
course section. The participants
have a syllabus that is clearly broken into sections (chunks) with clear statements
of expectations of actions required and
information to be assessed. The participants have a clear understanding of the texts
and informational sources they will be
required to use. The participants have a clear understanding of the assessment tools
and the assessment process that will
be present during the course. They will have continual access to their “grades” as
the course develops. The participants
have a direct line to assistance if find they are in trouble for some reason. The
participants have had a learning opportunity (direct assignment) to use the web site
and the course software prior to the official class starting date. Put simply, one
has to be able to get to the building, open the door, find a seat and know where
the teacher is before being able to do a class in synchronous time. Same online,
just different.
Creating the Group Culture: The participants
have an introduction to the instructor. Included within this introduction could/should
be a section focusing upon the “philosophy” of the delivery of the content. What
does the instructor see as important and enriching for the participants during the
process? Who is the instructor? Are links available to view pieces written by the
instruct? This information is included within the welcome letter as well as within
a section of the online course. The participants have a section to post their own
biographies in the beginning (asynchronous) andan E-mail list which allows for personal
communication outside of the formal class site. (asynchronous) There is a conference
room (kind of like a chat room but designed with a friendly interface) for discussion.
( synchronous) There is a studio in which visual as well as audio can be transmitted
for a conference. ( synchronous )
Appropriate Learning Strategies for Interaction, Involvement: As Steven Stall states, " Instruction must be
planned with a clear vision. It is critical that students interact with the instructional
content and that activities be developed
to promote and support open-ended, self- directed learning. Content should never
be delivered for memorization, but
instead for use as a tool in planned and sequenced activities." Dr. Stall also
quotes (Vella,1995), "A preliminary step to
creating a community of learners is establishing the foundation for a respectful,
accepting and caring environment. " Greg
Kearsley and Ben Shneiderman's Engagement Theory appears to be a very effective online
educational philosophy. They
feel that this theory incorporates the constructivist approaches" because "
it emphasizes collaboration among peers and a
community of learners, " and because,"...the Engagement Theory focuses
on experiential and self-directed learning..."
Class discussion will be a basic piece for class interaction and involvement of the
participants. To keep focused and
connected to the class syllabus, the discussions should be separated from each other
within the virtual classroom, but
always available for review by the participants. Discussions need to be threaded
in some way so that responses to each
other’s comments are clearly aligned and organized.
To encourage interaction and involvement in the process, participants will be requested
to find links that have not been
posted that are relevant to the course and post them. Participants will also be requested
to do miniprojects as a part of the
course process. It will be a requirement that they do these with at least one other
class participant. The number of
miniprojects will depend upon the time period that the class will be given. Participants
will be requested to do a final
“project” of their own which will demonstrate the acquisition and ability to use
the material that the course covered.
Assessment: Assessment will be evaluated
by the following standards which are relevant to both onground and online
course situations. Although the classroom itself may have transformed into cyberspace,
the standards of excellence may
still stand in both online and onground 'arenas'. Clarity , accuracy, relevance,
depth and breadth, logic , new information that is provided, solid understanding
as demonstrated by thoughtful responses and/or questions and critical analysis.
The assessment of a participant's demonstration of the above standards within the
context of a course is a basis for
teacher evaluation. The assessment of the design of the course will also be evaluated
using the same standards as listed
above. Assessment of the course will be used as reflection and a basis for future
alterations to improve the course and the
teacher's style within the online classroom. Assessment will be continual. Credit
will be given for each "chunk" of the curriculum delivered. Credit will
be given for involvement within each of the course's components throughout the course.
Credit for involvement is given when participant has completed the readings, posted
some new relevant sources, and engaged in the class discussions in a continual manner
. "In a continual manner" is defined as returned to the discussion area
frequently and reviewed for responses to a previous posting as well as new classmate
responses to the
topic in focus. Assessment will be weighted. The participants responses ( in the
form of authentic forms of assessment ) to the team project as well as the personal
project, will be worth more than half of the final total grade evaluation.
Successful demonstration of the ability and knowledge presented in the course is
the course's final mission.
In response to the question of academic honesty, Dr. Nancy Levenburg believes that
while focusing upon
the authentic forms of assessment (writing assignments, classroom discussions, etc.
), the use of "triangulation of data" to compare students' performance
can assist the teacher as authentication tool of the honesty of the participant.
She also points out that some institutions require online students to take tests
at regional testing centers. In this
specific design, participants will be assessed by their work posted within the virtual
classroom. Triangulation of
data and the use of the assessment standards would be sufficient to ascertain a student
final evaluation for this
course.
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Contrast: (onground to online teaching and learning)
Participants need to have certain technical tools at their disposal to be enrolled
in an online class. There is a minimum
standard for computers as well as software browsers that must be available to engage
in online classes. Participants and
teachers also need to have technical understanding. How does one load any plug-in
necessary to run some of the
components of the virtual classroom? How does one use the components of the virtual
classroom itself? Onground
instruction does not require either ownership of a fast, big computer or ability
to manage sophisticated software as
necessities for enrolling or teaching a course. Online courses are not tied to geography.
They are not connected
to any specific time zone. On ground teaching access has some specific time and place
requirements. Participants
onground first encounter their fellow classmates outward appearance, and may never
hear all their fellow classmates
thoughts and ideas. Participants online first encounter their fellow classmates inward
thoughts and ideas and may never
see their fellow classmates outward appearance.
Sharing of sources is a new age reality. To encourage interaction and involvement
in the process, participants will be
requested to find links that have not been posted that are relevant to the course
and post them. Prior to online,
sharing of sources by a whole class has not been requested as an activity. In onground
classes, the teacher
has been the major parent of sources.
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Opportunities and Challenges: ( The Strengths and Weaknesses of an Online Course)
There are many opportunities available to online participants.The ability to access
this class at any time is a big
opportunity. Twenty-four hour access is a big plus. This round the clock access allows
for working people to still be
involved in education which until now has only been available within traditional
institutions at traditional times. The
opportunity to read and respond to what other classmates have said is another new
feature. The opening of the
communications amongst the class is revolutionary. No where in real time situations
does this much “in class”
communication occur. Even when a class is broken into groups in a traditional setting,
the groups never really hear the
depth and content of another group's interactions. The opportunity to tap into resources
that are updated and available
through the net without leaving one's home is transformational.
With the advent of online educational delivery comes new challenges. There are the
institutional challenges.
How does this course fit with the institution that is sponsoring its delivery? McCormack
and Jones (p. 31) say to use the
standards already present in the host institutional structure. When setting up an
online class, “...to avoid complications...
use the policies, procedures and support available within the institution”.
A major challenge is to acquire the necessary level of technological abilities. Training
“smart” online participants so
they can use the new virtual, digital sites is most important. How does the instructor
assist the students in
acquiring the understanding of the software that holds the class components? One
answer to this challenge
could be to provide a preactivity sheet with accompanying pretest that demonstrates
the participant's understanding
of the educational site and its use. This pretest would be posted as part of the
initial activities for the course. Another
avenue of assistance is the availability of the instructor and Teacher's Assistant
to respond to Emails sent by
the participants when they have structural questions. Inotherwords, provide assistance
within the process itself.
Technically there is the challenge of having a modem/line connection that is solid
for both the student users and the
instructor. Frequently, the connections are delivered and managed by personnel and
entities outside of the
course's structure. Consequently, participants are at effect. Participants may need
to load new plugins to make
use of the institution's virtual educational site. The teacher may need to develop
a personal relationship with the
webmasters of this site for quick alterations which the teacher may deem as necessary
for the improvement of the
course's delivery. The designing and maintaining a communication process that serves
both teacher and student
and can work within the limitations of the software being provided by the educational
institution is the major technical
challenge.
The challenge of the teacher is to create a course that is exciting, alive and effective.
Formative evaluation can be used to
revise instruction as the course is being developed and implemented. Teachers can
evaluate the course's
results on continual basis using the assessment standards. How is the discussion
room going? Are reflections
to the assigned readings present? Is there any new information being presented? Are
students discovering
new links to add as resources for the entire class? Are the projects produced demonstrating
the abilities and
knowledge that reflect the stated mission of the course? What responses are given
by the class participants when asked
to reflect on the quality of the course as well as the structural pieces provided
to deliver it? Observation
and listening can assist a teacher to continue to build and design a course that
is exciting, alive and effective.
The challenge of holding the standards and ethics presently in place within the onground
delivery and be able to
duplicate these ethics and standards is another hurdle. There are many discussions
as to the verification and
authentication of a student's response within the virtual classroom. How does the
teacher know that the work arriving
online is actually the work of the enrolled student? With so much information available
on the net, how does a teacher
recognize plagiarism?
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Summary:
" Distance learning modes and technologies have the potential to drastically
change the teaching and learning
paradigm. "(Nancy M. Levenburg and Howard T. Major In Distance Learning: Implications
for Higher Education in the
21st Century ) This "new age" virtual, digital delivery system can
provide the necessary elements to successfully teach
students online as seriously as students who are taught in onground delivery. A teacher
needs to design the course
with sound pedagogical procedures. An online course can provide a rich, successful
learning environment for participants.
The developing online class software provides components that will build an online
environment that supports.
the necessary interaction and engagement for students and teachers for this successful
learning experience.
The net provides research sources that are rich and interesting and that continue
to multiply at geometric proportions.
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Works Cited:
Vella, J. (1995); Training through dialogue: Promoting effective learning and change
with adults. San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass.
Distance Education at a Glance: Engineering Outreach, College of Engineering, Idaho
University (www.uidaho.edu/evo/dist1.html)
Stahl, Steven; Changing Old Ideas to New Times: Learning Principles of Kurt Lewin
Applied to Distance Education. (http://horizon.unc.edu/TS/commentary/1999-03.asp)
Greg Kearsley & Ben Shneiderman, Engagement Theory: A framework for technology-based
teaching and learning (http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm )
Peter Kollock, Design Principles for Online Communities,
(http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/soc/faculty/kollock/papers/design.htm )
Gulani, Bijan. Personal Interview. 26 Jan. 2000
Evans, Robert; The Human Side of School Change. San Francisco, CA; Jossey Bass.
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One Individual Can Make a Difference
A Nation is Born (Early American History from the 1774 - 1817)
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Course Content Description
This course will examine the moments from just before the creation and signing of
the Declaration of Independence until the Presidency of James Monroe. During this
forty-three years a colony declared its independence, won its independence, created
a system of government, designed a system of economics to support this government
and became a member of the world’s nations.
This beginning relied heavily on individuals bringing their strengths and talents
together. There are some individuals who were so important to the process that had
they not been present, the process - the nation emerging as a unit, might not ever
have occurred.
Over the next five weeks, we will examine the major actions and discover who contributed
their energy and talents to support the successful outcomes that did occur in the
end.
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