Creating an Online Community of Learners

 

Heightened exposure to online courses in recent years has brought awareness to the education field about how difficult it is to create a community of learners in an online setting. In their e-text "Introduction to systematic instructional design for traditional, online, and blended environments, first edition" M. D. Roblyer (2014) discusses different techniques that can be used to create online learning communities, including instructor guidance, discussion boards, and different means of student collaboration. Instructor guidance is the most crucial part of a learning community. Without an instructor to guide discussion or collaboration, students would have a difficult time coming together as learners. It is the instructors job to create a learning environment that is receptive to their students and creates opportunities for collaboration (Roblyer, 2014, p.160-161). The instructor can do this through many means, announcement pages with instruction, the course syllabus, video lectures, and even through guided discussion on a forum. 

    Discussion forums are a way for an online community to communicate with one another. Also known as discussion boards in some cases, they are a way for students and instructors to have collaborative discussions about learning topics that are being taught in class. They can even be social, through introduction posts and opinion forums that could be posted throughout the course. Since having 25-30 students posting on one forum can be a lot to sift through, Roblyer suggests breaking these forums into small groups of 6-8 students at a time (2014, p 171-172). Having a place in an online course to discuss with other students is a great way to promote a community of inquiry and collaboration in online learning. 

Student collaboration can be difficult to implement into an online setting, but can be done in many meaningful ways that can help build a community. Roblyer suggests implementing interaction between students, as it has many social and educational benefits (2014, p.171). One example of collaboration can be through peer review. In peer review, two or more students are paired together to review each other's work, give feedback, and learn from one another. 

The method that appeals to me most has to be the discussion board. Hearing feedback about my ideas from my peers and instructors makes me feel heard and seen in an online community. Reading what my classmates think of a topic and comparing it to my own thoughts expands my worldview, and makes me want to research further into the topic. In a community of learning, it is important to have that type of collaborative discussion with your peers. Discussion boards can also become a more social aspect of the class, where you can share your current happenings with your community. Its flexibility to share personal and educational information makes it an important strategy to build connections in an online community. 

Work Cited

Roblyer, M. D. (2014). Chapter 8 Organizing Traditional, Online, and Blended Learning             Environments. In Introduction to Systematic Instructional Design for Traditional, Online, and Blended Environments, First Edition (pp. 160–178). story, Pearson+ Multi, PXE. 

Online Learning in the 21st century

 

Within this new age of online learning, educational theories old and new have developed to better adapt to the worlds usage of technology. Through new online learning theories and styles, educators are presenting information in a different format than paper books and handwritten tests. In his article “Theories and Frameworks for Online Education: Seeking an Integrated Model“ Anthony Picciano discusses how these theories of learning are being used in an online setting. Picciano explains how the community of inquiry theory, developed by Garrison, Anderson & Archer (2017, p.173)  is used in online classrooms. Community of inquiry theory is based on collaboration between student and teacher, focusing on the presence of social interaction, cognitive activity, and teacher facilitation. Through class discussion boards, videoconferences, and blogs, the community of inquiry has become a popular theory for online and blended classes (2017, p.173).

Another theory of education called connectivism has emerged since the onset of online learning. Pioneered by George Siemens, connectivism is described as a learning theory that acknowledges the vast amount of information available to this generation through internet use. Through connectivism, learning is conducted through diversified opinions, ability to recognize connections between subjects, and a desire to know more about the world. Connectivism is often used in higher level online courses where knowledge is built upon and recontextualized in different ways (Picciano, 2017, p.175).

The final theory, online collaborative learning, was developed by Linda Harasim. Her theory uses the internet to create courses that encourage collaboration and the building of knowledge (2017, p.175). The teacher of the course acts as both the facilitator of the conversation and as an active participant in learning. This theory is built from the theory of constructivism and is harder to implement in online courses because of the need for teacher guided discussion. This method is preferred for small groups where learning is shared and built upon together.

Alongside learning theories, there are different formats used in online classes. Two common formats used, synchronous and asynchronous, vary based on the amount of teacher instruction. According to Hrastinski in his article “Asynchronous and Synchronous E-Learning” (2008), synchronous learning is when an instructor directs the online, virtual class functions like a regular classroom session. In asynchronous learning, the student works on classwork given to them by an instructor and continues their work at their own pace. Students manage their own due dates and are responsible for their own learning of the material (Hrastinski, 2008).

There are many advantages and disadvantages to online learning. According to Axmedova and Kenjayeva in their article “Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Learning” (2021) the main advantage of online learning is the amount of diverse internet material educators can use to teach their students. Students are also able to view lessons from anywhere with an internet connection, making learning more accessible (Axmedova & Kenjayeva, 2021, p. 49). Some disadvantages include less social interaction with peers, and the increase of screen time, that is reported to cause health issues (2021, p.49). Online education has grown by leaps and bounds in the 21^st century, with the development of new online learning theories and strategies to help students learn at their own pace. There are many pros and cons of online learning that make this new facet of education worthy of continuous development.

 

References

Axmedova & Kenjayeva (2021) Advantages and disadvantages of online learning. Retrieved January 31, 2023, from https://geniusjournals.org/index.php/ejhss/article/view/240/209

Hrastinski, S. (2008, November 17). Asynchronous and synchronous e-learning. EDUCAUSE. Retrieved January 31, 2023, from https://er.educause.edu/articles/2008/11/asynchronous-and-synchronous-elearning

Picciano, A. G. (2017). Theories and frameworks for online education: Seeking an integrated model. Retrieved January 31, 2023, from Online Learning, 21(3), 166-190. doi: 10.24059/olj.v21i3.1225

Welcome to my blog!

Hello there! My name is Lilly, but if you prefer you can call me Ms. Harrison. This blog will showcase the things I have learned in my education technology class this semester! I am looking forward to learning more from your blogposts and sharing my findings with you all! 
Lets have a good semester,
Ms. Harrison