Monday, 27 October 2008
Online activities for action learning sets
We've been setting up some online spaces to support action learning sets for groups of businesspeople. These groups have some face to face meetings and the online space is to support these. In such cases we don't need strictly defined e-tivities. Action learning is defined by the participants themselves. The online activity is clearly simply to continue discussion. For an e-moderator the job is to facilitate this continuing discussion in a hands-off kind of way. There is no need to set a topic, although it might be useful to summarise and reframe any topics that have come out in the face to face action learning sets just as a reminder to participants about what they may decide to continue the discussions about here.
Action Learning Sets are very similar to Communities of Practice in that the topics come from the participants and the e-moderator's job is to facilitate (not lead) discussion - the ideal e-moderator in this context is virtually invisible, enabling from the sidelines, dealing with technical problems and access, providing information about the system, sending out emails reminding people to take part. People will also need to be assured of confidentiality.
The subject matter expert (live workshop facilitator) may or may not be part of the online discussion - but they will be better able to facilitate future workshops if they have at least popped in to read the discussions or had some kind of report back to them. (If a report of the online discussions is required to feedback to the next live workshop, for example, then the e-moderator's job will be to facilitate the choice of someone from the group do that if necessary, advise on time-scales etc.)Labels: action learning, communities, e-moderating, elearning, emoderator, online action learning sets, online communities
posted by Helen Whitehead 1:31 PM
Monday, 13 October 2008
E-moderating really saves time for online teachers
A new e-moderating course for practising teachers and tutors in FE starts today and another (for academic staff in HE) is into its second week starting tomorrow. In both cases it is about experiencing e-learning as a student as well as developing practical skills for online teachers. I am always stunned and sometimes humbled by the many different and valuable perspectives and relevant skills that participants bring to the course.
The idea that the teacher is the only person who knows anything about the subject - in this case online tutoring - because they are teaching the course is so inaccurate. Its my job to facilitate discovery, sharing, learning - and, yes, to contribute facts where appropriate about learning technologies or the techniques of e-moderation.
Meanwhile my own writing course (Season of Inspiration) is into its second week - we have had a blistering week with a talented group of students - and it is so encouraging when the framework I teach others to use can be proved to be so effective in my own courses.
Well designed e-tivities in a careful course design facilitate the forming of a supportive group and provide students with a clear framework to develop their work. And for the tutors it means that with routine questions forestalled (or answered for one another by the students themselves) we don't waste time and can concentrate our e-moderating interventions on facilitating a supportive community to develop collaborative learning to everyone's benefit.
Labels: e-moderating, e-moderation, e-tivities, online course, online tutors, season of inspiration, time management, writing courses
posted by Helen Whitehead 9:59 AM
Wednesday, 23 July 2008
The importance of tutor / e-moderator presence
For an elearning course led by a tutor to be effective, the tutor presence is one of the most important elements. Showing good e-moderating practice the tutor must:The immediacy of the online environment leads students to expect an instant response. It's a good idea as an online tutor or e-moderator to set expectations at the beginning of a course - e.g., that you will normally respond within 24 hours, or whatever interval is relevant to your course.
- login regularly
- model good online behaviour
- be seen to be present
- post encouraging messages for students
- respond to student queries as quickly as possible
- always sign postings and use people's names
- respond to emails but try to keep learning points within the forum
One of the most useful tools for the teacher is a subscription, such as that offered by Moodle, so that you know whenever a student has posted to your forums (and with Moodle, the content they have posted). This enables you to plan your visits to the course space. If everything is quiet, for example students are working on their own projects or are between e-tivities, then visits do not have to be as often.
Comments from students emphasise the point of tutor presence and encouragement being vital, and appreciated, especially in the early stages of developing the group.
Typical student comments include:Encouraging responses don't have to be long and complicated. The simple can work well. Here are some examples from my courses (which would all be signed with my name):
- "Tutor support has been pretty immediate and I have found that very encouraging."
- "The comments from the tutor have been helpful and encouraging and have prompted reflection."
- "[The tutor] has been really prompt and supportive in replying."
- "Well done, Martin and Louise - keep going. Thank you for your thoughtful postings."
- "We'll be looking at this issue of XXXXX in Week 3
Thank you for bringing up the subject."
- "That's a very interesting point you made, Karen. What would it look like in practice do you think? Does anyone else have any further ideas?"
Labels: e-learning, e-moderating, elearning, online tutoring
posted by Helen Whitehead 10:06 AM
Monday, 7 July 2008
Monday's Moodle tip: icebreaker e-tivities
One of the steps to facilitating deeper learning is to get your group of learners to "gel". Icebreakers and group work can help to get students working together and supporting each others' learning. This needs to happen in the online environment as much as in the classroom and is one of the key skills of e-moderating.
Although it certainly helps to build the group online if the students know one another from face-to-face classes, the socialisation has to happen again in each new learning space. This means it can happen in the classroom, then again in Moodle (or other VLE), and if you use something separate again like an external wiki, blogs or social networking space, the group needs to go through the group-forming stages yet again in there - it can't be avoided.
Online-only and distance learners can build a group just as well as learners on a blended programme if properly guided by the e-moderator and taken through a stepped programme designed to gradually increase interaction and collaboration.
I run online writing courses (Season of Inspiration) with learners in several different countries. My co-tutor in Australia and I didn't meet face to face for the first time until 5 years after we started working together! However we design our activities so that in the first week students familiarise themselves both with the technology (Moodle), the online environment for learning, and the group that they are part of.
Icebreakers that facilitate this kind of familiarisation and socialisation are key and should include introductions that reveal a little about each student without requiring them to reveal too much of themselves. Some examples of appropriate e-tivities include:
- If you were an animal what animal would you be and why?
- Tell us about one of your favourite websites that is typical of one of your interests.
- What can you see out of your window?
- What items do you have on your desk?
- If you were a TV or film character which one would you be and why?
Labels: e-moderating, e-tivities, icebreakers, Moodle, online learning
posted by Helen Whitehead 8:59 AM
Thursday, 5 June 2008
Read the question!
My son is in the middle of GCSEs and I've been giving him the best piece of advice I know for success in exams - read the question!
It sounds basic, but it is surprising how easy it is, especially in a stressful situation such as an exam, to miss the obvious, to answer the question you wanted to answer or that you thought was being asked. Taking some time to really read and ponder on the question before starting to answer is an excellent tactic - and then halfway through, and at the end, reading through what you've written to see if it really answers the question.
It is a tip worth bearing in mind in many aspects of life, not just exams. In my workshops and courses supporting University and college lecturers in developing elearning, I emphasise again and again how important it is to be absolutely clear and explicit about the task the students should be doing, how they should do it and when they should do it. However, even my own students don't always read the questions I so carefully frame - they often leap in and give their opinion - even if it's not what was asked for!
To some extent, it doesn't worry me - especially with adults, who are in charge of their own learning. Sometimes it can be frustrating, yes, when you've carefully framed a question for discussion and the students go off and discuss something else entirely - but if that discussion furthers their learning, then it's perfectly valid. Yes, it's more work for me to reframe the questions that follow, or to moderate the discussion in a way that brings in my original learning points (because they can't just be abandoned), but that's my job as a tutor.
In the Best Practice Models community discussion on online communities yesterday, we were discussing whether a community of practice can be used for learning, and I made the point that a community of learners is something I aspire to, but that ultimately learning is planned and guided within that community. A community of practice is much more member-led, and the learning is more informal - though obviously it can still be facilitated, one example being that very discussion yesterday in a community of practice that was focused on communities of practice... I'll probably come back to the differences between learning communities and communities of practice in a later post.
There are deep challenges for the tutor in turning the learning over to the learner, but it's wonderful when it all comes together. One encouraging example for me was yesterday when one of my students on our How to Blog course posted exactly the material I had ready for that day's posting. And she hadn't even SEEN the question yet! A learner taking control of learning in a very real way. Wonderful.Labels: ACL, adult learning, BestPracticeModels080604, blogging, e-learning, e-moderating, elearning, emoderating, exams, How to Blog course, informal learning
posted by Helen Whitehead 9:40 AM
Friday, 23 May 2008
Places available on eModerating and Online Tutoring course (online)
5 weeks - online - in MoodleStarts 4th June 2008
contact helen@reachfurther.com
I am running an eModerating and Online Tutoring course in partnership with Park Lane College in Leeds. This is an introductory course for those starting to or planning to teach online in HE, FE or even in schools. The format - 5 weeks online in Moodle - is based on successful courses I have run in the past with local, national and international participants and builds on my work with Professor Gilly Salmon at Leicester University. I'm delighted to be able to offer the course to teachers and tutors inside and outside the college as I know that a mix of participants from different institutions will, as in my previous courses, form a lively and mutually supportive community.
Although it's in Moodle, the skills taught are generic and not VLE-specific. Moodle is very easy to use :) £295 plus VAT
More information at http://reachfurther.com/?page_id=82
Contact me for more details helen@reachfurther.com
Labels: courses, e-facilitation, e-moderating, emoderating, Moodle, online learning, online tutor, online tutoring, VLE
posted by Helen Whitehead 2:18 PM
Monday, 12 May 2008
Technology stewardship
A post from 2006 in Learning Alliances defines the concept of "technology stewardship"
"Technology stewards are people with enough experience of the workings of a community to understand its technology needs, and enough experience with technology to take leadership in addressing those needs. Stewardship typically includes selecting and configuring technology, as well as supporting its use in the practice of the community."
I guess that's certainly what I am - a technology steward - but if the phraseology hasn't caught on in the time since Dec 2006, then it obviously doesn't mean as much to the IT and community-using population in general. Neither has "e-moderator" caught on outside the UK, although it's a very similar role - while the e-moderator doesn't necessarily select and configure the technology, many do have this function and expertise, and I suspect they are of more use to a community if they do.Labels: communities of practice, e-facilitation, e-moderating, emoderating, online communities, online community, technology-stewardship
posted by Helen Whitehead 10:28 AM
Monday, 21 April 2008
Analysing communities for the key participants
There are all sorts of reasons why one wants to analyse an online community - finding out who are the busiest and most informative posters is one possible requirement. I just spotted an old article from New Scientist (well, July 2007) that describes how researchers at Cornell University, New York, and Microsoft Research in Washington State have developed a way to analyse postings and the relationships between them to find out who are the movers and shakers in a community. Of course as they studied Usenet groups, it isn't exactly cutting edge research, but it reminds me that there are many methods for analysing interactions, and i really should bring more of them together in a blog post some day.
Research as far back as usenet analyses let alone more recently has shown that the activities of certain influential people are key to the success or otherwise of a community. Anyone who has lost a community due to a strong individual or group stifling or driving off others, knows it can work both ways. Any community manager worth their salt will have developed ways to deal with such people.Labels: communities of practice, e-moderating, e-moderation, emoderating, online communities, online community
posted by Helen Whitehead 5:18 PM
Friday, 16 November 2007
Do you use Salmon's 5-stage model or E-tivities framework?
Do you use e-learning or learning technologies such as discussion forums etc. in teaching?
Have you used or adapted Salmon's 5-stage model or e-tivities framework in your teaching? Or have you used it at any time in the past few years?Gilly Salmon's 5-stage model and e-tivities framework have been used successfully to support learning in a variety of contexts, courses, disciplines, types and levels of education from schools to Masters to continuing professional development.
References
I am doing some research to find out how they have been applied in learning and teaching across the world in the last ten years. We know that teachers have used them in a variety of different ways, adapting and developing the models to suit their own purposes. As part of the background to a new book, we would like to find out about the models in practice. The general results of this research will be made available to all practitioners.
If you have any good examples of using the 5-stage model or e-tivities,
please would you take my survey?
http://www2.le.ac.uk/.../smeltsurvey
E-moderating: The Key to Teaching and Learning Online
Gilly Salmon, (2004) Routledge Falmer
ISBN: 0415335442
lifelong learning, m-learning, mobile learning, online courses, online learning, online tutoring, technology, universities, wiki-tivities, wikitivities
E-tivities: The Key to Active Online Learning
Gilly Salmon, (2002) Routledge Falmer,
ISBN: 0749431105Labels: collaborative working, e-facilitation, e-learning, e-learning tools, e-moderating, education, elearning, learning and teaching, learning design, learning technologies
posted by Helen Whitehead 12:48 PM
Saturday, 4 August 2007
E-books on online community
Useful resources, especially for beginners
Otis Online Tutoring e-Book
NCSL's e-learning facilitation toolkit and 70,000 heads are better than oneLabels: e-learning, e-moderating, e-moderation, e-moderator, ebook, elearning, emoderating, online communities, online community, online learning, online tutor, online tutoring
posted by Helen Whitehead 5:53 PM
Tuesday, 17 July 2007
Motivating online students
Keller's ARCS model of motivation
Attention
Relevance
Confidence
Satisfaction
How can I offer all these elements in an online course?
Attention: make sure the activities are engaging and interesting, perhaps even a bit controversial
Relevance: meanwhile, being completely relevant to the subject of study and the context in which they are studying - which varies depending on the student - the context of a full-time undergraduate is different from that of a work-based learner on a short professional development course.
Confidence: making absolutely clear the objectives and activities in the course so that the student knows exactly what is expected of them. Good design and navigation helps here too. It is also the job of the e-moderator to be supportive of learners.
Satisfaction: provide a certificate at the end of the course which is perceived as worthwhile. Provide positive and motivational feedback from the e-moderator. In a self-study multimedia course it might be achieved via short formative quizzes reassuring the student of their learning.Labels: ARCS model, e-moderating, e-moderator, emoderating, emoderator, motivation, online learning
posted by Helen Whitehead 1:48 PM
Sunday, 8 July 2007
Ground rules for online courses
In my e-moderating courses recently we have been discussing whether or not ground rules are necessary to manage student expectations.
I'm a great believer in groundrules: I think people like to know where they stand, and if expectations are made clear at the beginning, then it is easier to manage complaints or disagreements at a later date.
Here's an example:Students are expected to:
Students can expect tutors to:
- have the basic technical requirements to access the course (tech requirements re type of computers, operating system and software are given in advance and are as wide as is possible, but if the system doesn't work on Vista, for example, that is made clear before people sign up)
- commit themselves to doing the work required for the course within the timeframe specified
- give feedback to at least two other members of the class (...in each e-tivity - or this expectation can be made clear in each e-tivity)
- take an active part in the online discussion board at least three times per week
- participate in evaluation and feedback schemes where required
- hand in assignments on time. Late assignments will be accepted only at the discretion of the tutor and only in exceptional circumstances.
- abide by our code of conduct (see below)
Copyright statement
- log on to the discussion boards several times a week and be regularly available by email or chat
- respond to queries and posts within a stated time (usually 2 working days)
- provide course material on time
- set each assignment at least a week before its due date
- provide quality course materials which fulfil the stated aims for each course (OK so that one's a bit woolly!)
Students are expected to be aware of the restrictions of copyright and not to breach the copyright of any other student, writer of printed materials, or source on the web. All posted materials remain the copyright of the person posting. Material posted on the discussion boards must not be quoted outside the course without prior permission from the originator.
The teaching environment is private to students and writing posted within your course is available ONLY to students and tutors of that course. It does not constitute publication nor will the material be available on the web permanently.
Example Code of Conduct
This one was developed by the trAce Online Writing Centre community:trAce exists to connect writers and readers around the world in real and
virtual space. As a professional and social online community, as well as a
learning environment, for writers, readers and other artists, and in support of
its purpose, the trAce Online Writing Centre has adopted three general governing
principles:
1. Principle of Tolerance
We are people of many nationalities, ages, cultures and artistic persuasions. We ask that everyone act with respect for others and recognize that effort may be necessary to avoid misunderstandings rising out of our differences.
2. Principle of Artistic and Intellectual Freedom
We are committed to:
a) supporting artistic practice across its entire range
b) recognising such practice as a basic means of expression
c) regarding as fundamental our protection and promotion of the artistic and intellectual freedom of the artists with whom we work.
3. Principle of Responsible Behaviour
We share not only a common sector of cyberspace but also resources, which are provided through real-life support, effort and funding and which are finite. Responsible behaviour is defined as that which conforms to netiquette standards and which does not interfere in the access and use of trAce resources.The above principles were drafted by a representative group of trAce
users in May 2000 and are supported by the organisation as a whole.Labels: copyright, e-facilitation, e-moderating, online community, online courses, online tutor, online tutoring, student expectations
posted by Helen Whitehead 2:00 PM
