The course objectives for Facilitating eLearning Communities are the following - they are on Blackboard in the Introduction.
I feel as though my previous posts have successfully addressed all but the second of these objectives so I will spend some time further articulating my thoughts on objective two although careful readers of my Blog and Wiki will have seen some of this material before. (My new writing in bold, italics).
You could also look at my two Wiki's (accessible from this Blog) and my Blackboard courses for evidence of online course.
By the end of this course you will be able to:
• Discuss the characteristics of an online community and the implications of learning and teaching online.
• Articulate the skills required for maintaining a successful online community.
a) Good facilitation. – The most critical skills is the ability to be able to facilitate. This should include the following elements.
1. Make sure that course objectives and expectation are explicit at the front end of the course
Let students/ participants
• When you are available and what time frame you will respond to enquiries or posts - my personal guidelines are response within 24hrs to posts or enquiries within the working week Mon – Friday 9.00 – 5.00
• Etiquette rules – use guidelines that are agreed upon at the beginning of the course. Rules for lurkers and non-participants within the first four weeks of the course then more flexible working arrangements.
• Information on technology challenges – a help desk contact 24hrs
• Clear guidelines about exits and entrances to the course
2. Those first four weeks
The four weeks at the beginning of the course and times around assignments and formal work are important. The facilitator has a role of being directive and assumes the role more of the teacher at these times. At other times a more relaxed facilitation style that is appropriate to the group can be relied on.
• Establish a group forum be it a discussion board, a Blog, or an email list but something that is used by everyone.
• Avoid using too much technology, too fast. Stick to two forms of course communication that are reliable and that everyone can utilise.
3. Warm up exercises and establishing a community
I am not all that convinced that this is something that can be done successfully. It is my personal belief that a sense of community develops over time and with our community, I have found that this has only really developed at the end of the course. I don’t feel any real sense of knowing anyone else on the course other than those I have met accidentally face-to-face
Suggestions: The use of Blogs has been helpful and is a good way of sharing something other than course work.
The ability to ‘think outside the square’ has led to me saying more about myself and my thoughts than describing what music or books I like or what my hobbies are. In fact, I feel that those last exercises have branded me in a way that is not me at all. They only partly explain who Graeme Dixon is.
4. Be consistent yourself as the facilitator
Develop a course Schedule: I spend about 5 hours each week on this course and I consider that to be about right. I try and schedule my time around the Monday exercise and I check my Google Reader every morning
I try to write at least one Blog post a week.
I would encourage participants to do the same.
As a facilitator, I would expect that I would do about three times that amount of monitoring and writing and further time arranging sessions
Keep Discussion in the Forum: If much communication with participants takes place with individuals through email, others won't be aware of those conversations. Whenever possible/appropriate, encourage individuals to share thoughts, comments, and questions that are directed toward you with the whole group -- that way you will be more visible and everyone will benefit from your response. Model the level of engagement that you want course participants to demonstrate.
5. Optimize Your Messages
Keep Messages Concise: Long messages (and messages that have long paragraphs) are overwhelming for many online readers -- so are messages with more than one topic. Try to keep messages short. If you want to say/ask several things, consider breaking the message up into more than one post.
6. Keeping discussion going
The following list outlines and illustrates the range of actions that I would take as a facilitator:
• Summarize
• Moderate – Keep threads going but if the group needs to re-focus be pro-active in initiating
• Guide
• Prompt
• Troubleshoot – Technical aspects such as overlong Video or Slides that are not appearing need to be sorted early in the course so that they don’t constitute a frustration that drives members away.
• Mediate
• Problem Solve
Assessment
I would also build into the course some specific assessments to pick up when participants are falling behind or getting out of their depth. I personally use Start/Stop/Continue at about the 33% stage of a course and a 50% Terms assessment.
• Evaluate online communication and collaboration tools in given learning situations.
• Plan and implement online discussions for specific online communities.
• Critically evaluate an online discussion in the context of sound educational principles.
References
Collison, George, with Bonnie Elbaum, Sarah Haavind, and Robert Tinker
(2000) Facilitating Online Learning: Effective Strategies for Moderators, Madison, WI: Atwood Publishing.
Palloff, Rena and Keith Pratt
(1999) Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace: Effective Strategies for the Online Classroom, San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass.
White, Ken, with Bob Weight et al
(2000) The Online Teaching Guide: A Handbook of Attitudes, Strategies, and Techniques for the Virtual Classroom, Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
Social, Cognitive and Situative F Frameworks: http://teachvu.vu.msu.edu/public/designers/social_interactions/index.php retrieved Novemebr 12, 2007
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