Posts for Module 4

I have posted to Heather Rogers' and Vida Martin's blog posts for this week.

Engaging Learners with New Strategies and Tools



There are several ways to bring the technological tools learners are using outside the classroom into the educational process in order to build content knowledge, engage in communication with peers and instructors, and work on authentic, collaborative, problem-based tasks in the online environment. To build content knowledge, the instructor must provide written materials, such as text books and articles. These resources support the skills that are being taught. Web resources are tools which enhance the knowledge building content. Project-based learning provides students with a more meaningful learning experience. Document sharing is another resource tool that provides students with more resources and information to enhance their learning experience.

There are many technological tools that can be used to engage communication with peers and instructors. Skype is a form of communication that allows you to visually communicate with another person. Emails provide written communication between just one or several people. Texting is a quick and easy form of communication. The use of the cell phone/telephone is the standard way of communicating.

Wikis are one tool that allows students to work on authentic, collaborative, problem-based tasks. Members of a learning community can provide feedback to other team members. Blogs are also another technological tool that can be incorporated into the online environment. Discussion boards allow peers and instructor to share their thoughts and ideas. Learning communities gives peers to do small group assignments in the online environment similar to the traditional face to face environment.

The use of technological tools helps to engage learners in an online environment. A lot of the tools are currently being used by the learners on a daily basis so incorporating them into the learning environment will further enhance their learning experience by building on their content knowledge and engaging in communication with their peers and instructor.

Anderson, T. (Ed.). (2008). The theory and practice of online learning (2nd ed.). Edmonton, AB: Athabasca University Press.

Durrington, V. A., Berryhill, A., & Swafford, J. (2006). Strategies for enhancing student interactivity in an online environment. College Teaching, 54(1), 190-193.

Siemens, G. (2008, January). Learning and knowing in networks: Changing roles for educators and designers. ITForum.

Post for Module 3

I have posted comments to the following blogs: Heather Rogers (http://waldeneducationaltechnology.blogspot.com/2011_10_01_archive.html) and Martha Thibodeau (http://mrsthibodeau.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/assessing-collaboration-module-three-post/#comment-19)

Assessing Collaborative Efforts

According to Palloff and Pratt (2005), “evaluation of students in an online course can be challenging” (pg. 41). “Students need a road map not only to guide the activity, but also to know how that activity will be assessed and evaluated” (pg. 42). Dr. Siemens (2008) describes several models for assessment in a collaborative environment. One model is students assess their peers using some form of a rating scale. This will take away some of the assessment responsibility from the instructor. Another model is students receive feedback from online communities. Learning community members give other members direct feedback. This allows open communication among the members which increases collaboration and a stronger sense of community. Educators assess based on student contributions. The instructor can monitor/check the student’s participation by using a contribution log. Lastly, educators assess based on metrics from learning management systems. The instructor can see how many times the student log on, the hours spent online, the hours spent on group-related activities and the number of posts that they contributed.

Dr. Siemens make mention that in a collaborative learning environment, not all assessments should be evaluated by marks or grades. Students enter these courses at various levels of skills and knowledge. Instructors need to take into account the degree of the student’s growth. Look where the student began and where they finished and measure their growth of learning. The assessments need to be based on authentic contexts. Students are engaged in actual tasks and activities. According to Siemens, “assessment is a teaching-based activity that provides an opportunity to give feedback and evaluate ourselves as educators”.

Swan (2004) states students should be encouraged to share their beliefs and experiences during online discussions. Also, it is important to establish the importance of online discussions in order to make the learning experience effective. Members must gain each other’s trust in order for them to network and collaborate in a learning community for an online course. According to Palloff and Pratt (2007), the role of the instructor plays is an educational facilitator, cheerleader, and guide by “motivating students to go deeper and further with the material” (pg. 111). If a student continues to be reluctant and lack participation, then the instructor needs to take the lack of participation into consideration when he/she is assessing the student. Using a rubric allows the student’s performance to be graded. “Rubrics provide students with a concrete way of evaluating their own performance as well as the performance of the members of their team” (Palloff &Pratt, 2005, pg. 44).

Laureate Education, Inc. (2008). Assessment of collaborative learning. Baltimore: Author.

Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2007). Building online learning communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2005). Collaborating online: Learning together in community. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Swan, K. (2004). Relationship between interactions and learning in online environments. The Sloan Consortium.

Plagiarism Storyboard

Here is my storyboard for my video project. Please provide me some feedback.

Narration: …. Introduce the topic Plagiarism and the speaker. Music: ….. Title Slide: Motion:	Plagiarism and Its Effects in Distance Education Presenter   Dr. Thomas Simerson
Narration: ….Introduce the location Georgia World Congress Center in downtown Atlanta, Georgia   November 18-20, 2011 Music: ….. Title Slide: Motion:
Narration: ….Introduce topic and share the definition of plagiarism from Encyclopedia Britannica (2011) Music: ….. Title Slide: What is Plagiarism? Motion:	What is Plagiarism? plagiarism,  the act of taking the writings of another person and passing them off as one’s own. The fraudulence is closely related to forgery and piracy—practices generally in violation of copyright laws. plagiarism. (2011). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/462640/plagiarism
Narration: …. Plagiarism  according to Walden University Writing Center Staff Music: ….. Title Slide: Motion:	You plagiarize even when you do credit the author but use his exact words without indicating with quotation marks or block indentation. You also plagiarize when you use words so close to those in your source, that if your work were placed next to the source, it would be obvious that you could not have written what you did without the source.
Narration:…. Share the main  reasons for plagiarism Music: ….. Title Slide: Motion:	Common Reasons for Plagiarizing —  Not knowing how to correctly cite information —  Procrastination —  Willingly plagiarize in order to complete an assignment on time.
Narration: …. Share the effects of plagiarism Music: ….. Title Slide: Motion:	The Effects of Plagiarism —  Jeopardize the institutes integrity —  Accreditation concerns
Narration:…. Share how to prevent plagiarism Music: ….. Title Slide: Motion:	Preventing Plagiarism —  Assign narrowly focused topics, rather than broad, general ones. —  Begin researching and collecting information about your topic early in order to avoid procrastination. —  Complete a rough draft early and look for patterns of plagiarism and correct before submitting the final project. —  Use your own words and ideas. —  Cite any information you obtained from other resources.