END OF PART
2 BLOG – FACILITATOR ROLES
ONTL
6201 SPRING 2015
BARBARA
ANDERSON 3-29-15
The second part of ONTL Facilitating Online 6201 Learning has focused on
the role of the instructor as a facilitator in online courses. Lesson 4 focused on Pedagogical
Roles. Pedagogy includes the art
(content experience, experience with a variety of teaching strategies, and
exposure to a variety of students) and science (educational theory and models
and educational research to check for their effectiveness) of teaching. It consists of your discipline specific
content and its presentation, how you encourage students to interact and engage
with the content, and how students will be evaluated based on their mastery. In online teaching, knowledge in teaching practice
and pedagogy is probably even more important than in the traditional
classroom, Since online classes are
largely student centered, course material must be well designed and ready, the
technology utilized should be appropriate and be working, and good facilitation
should enhance student learning and success.
There are two basic pedagogical models used in higher education. The traditional approach is instructor
centered whereby the instructor’s main role is to disseminate knowledge, be the
“sage on the stage,” and the students learn more passively and are less
engaged. Lecture is the main activity in
the instructor centered classroom. The
second model focuses on student centered learning which has become more widely
used recently. In this model the student
is most responsible for their own learning.
The instructor is often called the “guide on the side” and acts more as
a coach or facilitator to guide the student in their quest for learning. This classroom is much different. In the student centered model students will
do their own researching, they work in collaborative groups, and use both
asynchronous and synchronous forms of communication for promoting a strong
learning community which is the heart of the class.
I have evolved in the pedagogical model that I use in teaching. Starting out teaching high school 43 years
ago everything was instructor centered in the classroom. For part of my load I taught in a pilot
program called C.O.R.E. (content oriented reading education) whereby a math,
English, and science teacher (me) team taught a group of 60 students (in 3
teams of 20 students). Here there were
inklings of student centered learned whereby students worked individually or in
small groups in a variety of activities progressing through a model based on
mastery. Here the student was in charge
of their learning and I facilitated. I
have been teaching at the college level for 36 years. Early on again classes were instructor
led. Over the years I have evolved much
more toward the student centered classroom by utilizing more small group
activities whereby students are much more in charge of their learning. When I began teaching an online class 8 years
ago I was thrust even more into the role of a facilitator. Our Survey of Biology 1100 nonmajors course
is well suited to the student centered pedagogical model. Currently it is a stand alone read-write
learning style course with some labs and assessment. Students progress through the learning units
mastering the content with facilitation help from me. We will be revising this class over the
summer to include multimedia, better interactive labs, synchronous live
(possibly orientation, lecture, study skills, lab prep/follow-up, etc)
sessions, asynchronous discussion threads, and possibly group work. These techniques exemplify a much more
student centered learning community where I am present but act as the “guide on
the side” facilitating rather than leading the learning. In this way students are at the center of
their own learning.
A
good instructor will utilize teaching strategies that compliment the
pedagogical model in the classroom and accomplish the learning objectives for
the course. For example, in my Survey of
Biology 1100 course some of our course objectives include: understand how the scientific method and
problem solving work, understand how and why evolution is the central theme in
biology, understand the importance of science in making responsible decisions
for a citizen during their life, understand the role of genetics in the world
today, and understand the current environmental issues and their impact on
us. There are many strategies that can
be used in my online course to accomplish these objectives. To teach how to set up a controlled
experiment and solve problems I would utilize group work during lab by: preparing reading in the text or an Internet
resource, have students watch a video about the topic, and gather for a
synchronous session to talk about what must be included in a controlled
experiment. Then students could use the
group discussion board to chat to discuss how they would design and carry out
an experiment. The group would submit
one proposal tome for their experiment.
After reading their plan I could make suggestions for improvement, then
each student could run the experiment, pool the data, analyze, and submit it in
a group project. Evolution as the
central theme in biology could use experimental data, case studies, a debate,
or a video to start giving students background information. After obtaining initial background
information they might perform a lab exercise, discuss results in a discussion
thread, and possibly end with a live synchronous session about the central
importance of evolution to biology. To
help students understand the importance of science to making responsible
decisions as a citizen (consumer and voter) I believe illustration with some
examples in case studies could be utilized (Bt corn and the decline of monarch
butterflies, use of antibiotics and resistance to disease organisms, etc). A strategy for students to explore this
further might be to give them a topic like bald eagles and their status for
being endangered. Students could
research past history, then work in groups on current and future issues. They could use group discussion threads or
chat for this. Each group could make a
written report about their findings and report on the discussion thread. This could end in a live synchronous session
whereby history and current status could be summarized and the instructor could
help illustrate what might be the future path.
Additional examples for citizen knowledge of biology could be
included. For the role of genetics
students could read and watch videos for background, engage actively in
experiments, and work genetics problems to learn the basics. Once this basic information was obtained a
live session could be included to discuss modern genetic technology and
issues. Students could answer thought
provoking questions in an asynchronous discussion thread and/or do small group
work on a genetic disease, or the benefits/detriments of one of the modern
genetic techniques. Last students could
learn about and evaluate current environmental issues such as human population,
deforestation, climate change, ozone hole, acid rain, and biodiversity by
reading text/searching for Internet resources, search for current newsfeeds, or
a website, doing experiments, using group work, looking at and evaluating case
studies, having a speaker come for a synchronous session, and have students
participate in thought provoking questions on an asynchronous discussion
thread. Any of these topics can be
assisted by text technology that helps the learner evaluate and test their
knowledge which is generally automatically graded and is entered into the
Blackboard gradebook. Essential for all
of these strategies to accomplish objectives is that communication to make a
strong learning community should be at the heart of the class, a predictable
schedule should be maintained , and feedback should be prompt and regular to
allow for a student’s forward progress.
Activities should help students be active and engaged in their learning.
I will illustrate how I could produce instructional material to create
my vision of my pedagogical role in my online classroom for three specific
examples. Since my pedagogical role is
to be a facilitator in a student centered classroom, communication and group
work need to be central in my course design.
The first example concerns itself with climate change. Now I have students watch the video Inconvenient Truth and answer guide
questions as they watch. Their current
assignment requires them to answer questions about the evidence for global
warming and to discuss the significance of the video title. To make this more student centered I could
have groups of students research current climate change data on the Internet
and participate in a group discussion thread about climate change, ending in
producing a group paper to be shared with the class. Then a synchronous session could be used to
discuss the sometimes different points of view on climate change. A second example includes a lab done now in
the traditional classroom that is basic enough so that students could do this
at home for the online class. Students
could prepare for this lab on thermal pollution by working in groups. After reading or watching a video student
groups could discuss a strategy for planning the open-ended lab in a
synchronous session including me. Any
adjustments in procedure could be addressed in the live session. Once approved students in the group could run
the experiment and then in group discussion present and pool their data and
collaborate with a simple lab report. A
summary of the group experiment could be presented on the discussion thread
whereby all groups could see the different hypotheses, procedures, and results
from the experiment to see how controlled experiments are done correctly, but
often in different ways. A third example is a new one that I would
like to try in the online classroom on behavior of bald eagles. Relatively new are video cams with visual and
audio (24 X 7!) capabilities that are placed to watch bald eagles and their
courtship, nesting, parental, juvenile behavior, etc. This is a view on the world of nature that
was not available to me as a college student.
This module could start with some background reading from Internet
articles, they could watch a bald eagle documentary about the Decorah, Iowa
nest. Today 2 of the 3 eggs have
hatched, there are today over 100,000 followers to this nest, at least 7000
live viewers today at any given time, and close to 320,000,000 live views since
the original camera was installed in fall 2010!
I think that students can get really eggcited
and engaged by watching nature at its best!
By all students watching and discussing what happens also could be used
to build a strong learning community in the class. The eagles are active on the nest from
October à July so it can be used any term of
the school year. I would have a live
synchronous session about how to observe behavior, how to quantify it, and
general things that they might expect to see with this eagle family. I would have students watch independently and
post to a special discussion thread for bald eagle behavior. Students could write an independent
thread/paper or group thread/paper about what they saw, how it is connected to
environmental issues and evolution, and the importance of the large community
having exposure to watching nature with bald eagles as the example. As an end to the project I might try to have
an eagle expert do a live synchronous session to capstone this project (either
Bob Anderson from Raptor Resource Project who manages this nest or Thomas
Dunstan an eagle expert for Western Illinois University who was my instructor).
Social media does have a place in the online classroom. I knew about Twitter but had never used it
before this class/unit. So now I have
both a Twitter site and yesterday I tweeted for the first time! Most of the sites or individuals that I am
following (23 sites now) are concerned with biology, science education,
conservation, prairies, or of course bald eagles! I could use Twitter to notify students for
assignment due dates, announcements, or when synchronous sessions would
occur. I could refer students to follow
a site for example on climate change or prairie conservation. I think a very good use of Twitter for my
students would be during “eagle watching season.” I could give updates on current behavior in
the nest or let students know when to watch NOW because a significant event
like an egg hatching is happening now and they need to watch.
Lesson 5 was on the social role in class for building a
learning community. Online students
should not have to learn completely alone in isolation. Online learners should get to know each
other, share, interact, and collaborate so that there is a sense of
community. The instructor needs to
facilitate throughout the course to help provide and maintain interactions to
promote a strong learning community and avoid isolation. When students find
support and a sense of belonging to a group, learning can be much deeper and
richer, students will achieve more with help from others, and as a result will
be more persistent and finish the course.
Because they feel like valued members of the community, their success
rates will be greater. Developing a
strong learning community in an online course is central to the success of the
students.
My Survey of Biology 1100 course has not had the student-student
interaction required to build a strong online learning community. My interaction with students is present in
the course. Communication needs to take
on a much bigger role in this course. We
will be revising this course soon.
Healey (2005) suggests that communication between classmates” builds
bridges and highways.” So that they can progress on their educational
journey. Student-student communication
can be improved here by adding asynchronous discussion threads and live synchronous
sessions to get acquainted, provide a course orientation, prepare for lab, have
a study session, have a speaker, have an icebreaker, etc. In addition students could work in small
groups/partners for pre and post lab work, studying, or for group
projects. Any and all of these methods
will enhance student-student communication, and therefore build a stronger
learning community which will benefit students and their learning.
The first week of class is especially critical for making students feel
welcome, comfortable, and valued members of a learning community. Student-student interaction should be at the
heart of the class. A good way to get
students who take the course (especially in the spring) eggcited the first week of class is by introducing bald eagle
behavior by watching the Decorah web cam.
Later this ongoing work can be related to behavior, evolution, and
environmental issues. Earlier in this
blog I described how watching the eagles could be incorporated into the
communication part of the coursework.
Prior to starting this I would use an icebreaker during our first
synchronous live session for students to get acquainted, feel comfortable, and
begin to build that all important community.
An icebreaker should have a purpose (connect it to activity), vary as to
your audience, and be connected to the goal (Varvel, 2002). You could use the favorite animal game
(Anonymous, ND). Each person could
introduce themselves. THINKING about
their favorite animal they could give 2-3 words that describe it. Other classmates could try to guess what it
was. The originator could then tell
what their animal was and why it was their favorite. Each student in the class could have a
turn. By introducing yourself and giving
your favorite animal you have let the others begin to know you. The communication would build comfort,
safety, and the start of a learning community in the classroom. Once all class members were done I would then
turn the attention to bald eagles as my favorite animal and begin the web cam
view and tell the story of this amazing eagle family.
Once you have begun to establish a learning community in your classroom
you must work hard to sustain it. Your
students should feel connected and safe in this learning environment. There are many methods that I could utilize
regularly to continue to build the strength of the learning community by
continuing frequent student-student and student-instructor interactions. I could schedule regular live synchronous
sessions for lab prep/followup, a speaker, and discussion of a difficult or
controversial topic. Asynchronous
discussion threads should occur weekly where students are required to make an
original post and each student must be involved in responding to a specific
number of other student posts. Group
work should occur during the term for study purposes and/or group
projects. I could establish two other
threads on the discussion board to enhance student-student communication. One thread could be used as a “social lounge”
and the other could be used for students to pose questions to be answered
(either by another student or by the instructor).
Another social media tool that could be used in the online classroom is
Facebook. I would be very careful about
privacy and get some help in setting up a separate Facebook account for my
current online class. Once that is done
Facebook could be used in a number of ways in my nonmajors online biology
class. I could have students follow
science related newsfeeds or poll the class about a discussion or a
controversial topic (Anonymous, 2009) involving the whole class. Communication could be improved by creating
groups for a variety of purposes, sending messages, or making
announcements. Students will find the
ability to make flashcards pertinent to classwork, form study groups, or get
help with homework. The instructor can
make a calendar to organize assignments or make a quiz to check student
preparedness. I think that I would need
to be careful and just pic a few of these to use so that students (and I) are
not overwhelmed and know what to expect.
Lesson 6 was about the managerial role for the facilitator
before the class starts. This
could be described as “setting the stage” because when the class is prepared
properly and ready to go on the first day of class – everything for the
students and the instructor run more smoothly and have better outcomes.
Many items must be prepared and/or edited prior to the start of
class. Again when this is done properly
it generally results in a positive learning experience for the student and
greater efficiency and less stress for the instructor. Experience in teaching an online course for
the past 8 years has given me the knowledge of important things that need to be
set up before the class starts. Trying
to edit and facilitate at the same time after the class starts is very
stressful. Setting the stage properly
before the class starts is critical to success for everyone.
When I begin to prepare my online class for the upcoming term the first
thing that I do is to copy the course from an existing shell so that I can
begin editing. Everything must be
edited/updated as needed (due dates and gradebook for sure), assessments (alter
questions and change due dates), and ALL hyperlinks must be checked to see if
they are functioning. Many items must be
ready to go by midnight of the day that class opens . A welcome for students should be the first
thing that they see current to that term.
This could be part of a home page or the announcements. You don’t have much control over the LMS, but
if there have been updates you need to be aware of any new changes and how they
might effect the facilitation of your class.
A syllabus and orientation are often used to give the most important
course information. The syllabus often
gives more stable class information such as:
course title and number, course description, objectives, required texts
and materials, instructor contact information, grading and feedback
information, academic honesty policies, etc.
A second useful document would be for orientation that would include
more flexible information that might change more often. The course orientation might include: due dates for assignments and quizzes, extra
credit opportunities, policies for late work, incomplete and withdrawal
policies, communication within the class to include policies for synchronous,
asynchronous discussion and email, links to the general online course
orientation, links to the library and Blackboard support, how and where to ask
questions, writing style and citation expectations, etc. A general contract of expectations for the
course should be available and completed and submitted by each student. Students should have a place to check for
commonly asked course questions (FAQ’s) and be able to ask questions that might
be common to other class members (question thread on the discussion
board). A calendar for that particular
term is a must so that students have a clear idea of what assignments are and
when they are due so that they can pace their studying. It is very important that students have a
clear idea of how to navigate the course.
By looking at the Home Page a student should know what to do first to
get started in navigating the course path.
My Survey of Biology 1100 online course has most of these components
ready the first day of class but they are organized very differently than the
GSU plan. As we revise this course I
think that we should make changes to be closer to your model. I have not used a home page but that is
probably a good way to showcase the course and provide a clearer navigation
path. Currently I use a long complex
syllabus and not one document that I would call an orientation at this
point. The items that you would consider
for the orientation are at this point scattered in the syllabus, a course
handbook file, a “course at a gland” file (outline with topics and text
chapters), an overview for each of five units at the start of each individual
unit, and ten course messages on the Discussion Board. This needs to be simplified into a syllabus,
calendar, and orientation. I do not use
a separate calendar at this time but have a list of due dates in the syllabus
and one of the course messages. This is
the way the course was written and organized.
I think that this organization and “muddy navigation” must be pretty
confusing for students.
So far we really have not incorporated much student-student
communication in the course. Again, this
is the way the course was written, and until now we have not been given the
opportunity to change it. At this point
there are only two real asynchronous threads:
one for student questions and one for student introductions the first
week. We need to make asynchronous discussion
an integral frequent component of this course.
We now have no synchronous component to this class and that also needs
to be incorporated. So generally I have
things ready the first day like a syllabus, course information, course
messages, links to resources, instructor contact information, updated due
dates, working hyperlinks, etc. We need
to move toward much clearer navigation, a clearer way to give information on a
syllabus and/or orientation, and include both asynchronous and synchronous communication
in the course.
I was unfamiliar with social media that could be used to create and
share online teaching resources. Social
bookmarking allows students, faculty, or students and faculty to share
resources such as articles and websites.
Delicious and DIIGO were the two products suggested for social
bookmarking. I opted to use DIIGO. I got a free account started but it took me
quite awhile to figure out how to actually use it. Now that I am familiar with it I think it is
a beneficial method to highlight articles and resources for study purposes,
save articles to build your own library for later use, or to share with
classmates when a good resource is found.
You can highlight passages and add comments on sticky notes. Both of these techniques would help students
to learn how to study and organize their resources for later use. They could also share and compare their notes
in a study group and learn to be better notetakers. Work on a social bookmarking site like DIIGO
could be done individually or as part of a group project.
I did my facilitation practice with Lesson 6. I was both excited to practice both
asynchronous and synchronous communication techniques, but nervous at the same
time. I felt that this was really a
positive experience allowing me to experience facilitating from the instructor
side. I appreciated the opportunity to
be present in the asynchronous threads by asking questions and redirecting the
conversation. I especially liked the facilitating
the live synchronous session. My
icebreaker and presentation went very smoothly (no technology issues for
once!). I know that technology can
sometimes cause an issue. I feel like I
have some facilitation skills but need to know much more. For example, how do you schedule the
Collaborate session or how do you use the grading tool for evaluation of the
discussion threads?
Lesson 7 concerns itself with managerial responsibilities
after the class begins and technical roles of the instructors. It is really important to understand and
utilize the tools of your LMS for effective facilitation in the course. I especially liked the analogy that Shelton
and Saltsman (2004) used to illustrate important steps in carrying out
instruction in an online course. They
suggest that the online course is much like gardening. The instructor must first design and create
materials like the gardener prepares the soil.
Second you make your course available and open it which is like planting
the seeds. Third the online instructor
facilitates the course via various forms of communication, grading and
feedback, answers questions, etc. like a gardener nurtures the growth of the
plants by fertilizing and watering.
Fourth the instructor records good and poor methods and makes changes to
the course to better it the next time that it is taught as a gardener would
harvest.
As an online instructor it is important to manage the communication in
the online classroom. Since this
communication process is critical to the success of a strong learning community
and student success, its management and facilitation is very important. Early on there should be a section of the
orientation that includes the Do’s and Don’ts of online communication for
emails, questions, etc. The policies for
asynchronous and synchronous discussion should also be outlined in the
orientation so that students know what is expected. Emails should be answered in 24-48
hours. Asynchronous discussion threads
should show your presence periodically.
Grading should be completed within one week if possible. Forward progress by students depends on this
feedback and communication.
Good class management and facilitation lend themselves to improving
student feedback. Students should be
given the information about how long they should expect graded assignments
after the due date. If you are delayed
in grading you should let students know how much longer it will take you. Assignments should be graded and returned
with comments within one week in most cases.
Timely grading and feedback helps to keep students motivated and allows
them to move forward in the course.
As part of your course management duties you need to be able to modify
course content effectively and efficiently.
Even though you think that everything is ready to go as the course
begins and that you are off the hook for editing more this is often not the
case. Using a text requires less editing
than do resources from the Internet.
These resources can become an issue at any point in time during the
course so they need to be closely monitored.
More sets of eyes are better than one.
Have students also watch and have them notify you if they see any issues
that need correction. Once issues are
identified, be prepared to go in and immediately correct the text or redo a
hyperlink. This requires that you
understand your LMS and the tools required to fix the problem. If you can’t fix it immediately notify your
students. Have IT help you with this
problem. If a website goes down be
prepared to use an alternate site.
There are some common items that instructors might need to address
during course maintenance and updates.
Normal course maintenance for me involves monitoring and answering
emails, student questions, assignment dates, hyperlinks, etc. If there is a problem with the technology I
need to communicate this to the students and give them an estimated time line
for fixing the problem. If an assignment
is added or modified I need to update the gradebook. For me the biggest item in ongoing
maintenance are the links to resources.
Again students can help to alert you to these problems so they can be
fixed quickly.
We have been introduced to three types of social media in this
unit. After evaluating the usefulness of
these at least some should be integrated into a social media plan for my online
class. I was familiar with Faebook for
personal use but not in the classroom.
Twitter and social bookmarking like DIIGO were both new to me. For me to implement all three together would
be too much at one time. I think that I
would use either Twitter of Facebook, but not both for announcements, updates,
etc. I think that the social bookmarking
has value for either individual or group work in terms of sharing sites and
improving study skills with highlighting and annotating. Instructors should utilize websites like Faculty Focus which has many articles
pertaining to improving online teaching.
This website could be bookmarked and shared with other colleagues who
teach online.
I have gained much knowledge in Lessons 4-7 for my pedagogical role, how
to build a learning community, and how to manage the online class from before
class starts and throughout the term.
Using social media might help increase communication and build that
strong learning community which enhances learning in an online class.
REFERENCES
Anonymous. 2009.
100 ways you should be using Facebook in your classroom.
http://www.onlinecollege.org/2009/10/20/100-ways-you-should-be-using-facebook-in-your-classroom/
accessed 2-23-15
Headley, S. 2005.
Five roles I play in online courses.
Innovate 2(1).
Shelton, K. and G. Saltsman. 2004.
Tips and tricks for teaching online:
How to teach like a pro.
Varvel, V. Pointers + Clickers – Icebreakers. Illinois Online Network
