Week 3

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: WHAT IS THE ROLE OF DISCOURSE, COLLABORATION AND TECHNOLOGY FOR DISTRIBUTED LEARNING IN ONLINE COURSES?

           

         When you think about the people who take online courses, the majority have used computers before and believe in the process. This is the “first generation to grow up in the digital age, and that makes them a force for collaboration” (Haraism). We educated ourselves about online learning or took a risk to receive higher education. I related to Jennifer’s experience the most. Teaching full time is extremely busy. There is no way any teacher would be able to sit in a classroom for 3 hours and listen to a lecture.  Online courses give an opportunity for further learning, but without driving many miles or sitting in an area for periods of time. The “online classroom is available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Students have access to their course any time of the day or

night, from anywhere in the world” (Haraism).

         When I first started this degree, I was planning a summer trip to Scotland. My husband was working there. If I had to take the class in a regular classroom setting, I would not be able to. Online courses give us an opportunity to learn from anywhere.

         While being from a generation that had computers growing up, gave me the advantage to complete an online course. This generation of students, they live with their technology tools. iPhones are now alarm clocks, wall calendars are now a digital calendar. I can’t remember the last time I received a hand written paper invitation to a party. All of the ones I receive are digital or a facebook invite. Even a friends wedding, was created as a facebook invite. This generation, students are texting, chatting, twittering, using instagram all the time with each other.  They are already collaborating, having debates and conversations with each other.

         I’m on the yearbook committee for my school and a student asked if they could share a google drive document they had created. I was blown away. I recently learned about online docs and the cloud. This student already knew what it was and how to share with other staff members. I asked, if the student needed my email address. She had the email addresses already added into the drive. Now, while some of you might find this not surprising, I have to look back at my childhood years. I didn’t get a cell phone until I was a teenager. This generation first grade students have cell phones to “play” with, but fifth grades students use it to communicate with each other.

         To have a successful online course, it’s important to have collaboration, discourse and multiple technology tools to use. The role of the “teacher is essential to facilitating the process and providing the learners with the resources and kinds of activities that will help them to build knowledge collaboratively, using

the Internet” (Haraism). I think with an online course, there needs to be conversations, debates and freedom for the students to speak freely. The teacher should only be the mediator to keep the meetings running smoothly. Student based learning is what helps us grow the topic we are studying. It makes us think outside the box, hear other ideas and views as well to research more information on it.

         A MOOC is a “model for delivering learning content online to any person who wants to take a course, with no limit on attendance” (Marques). MOOC’s are just starting to become a new way of learning online. They are free and anyone can join and participate. A MOOC a MOOC “integrates the connectivity of social networking, the facilitation of an acknowledged expert in a field of study, and a collection of freely accessible online resources” (McCauley). With a MOOC there is collaboration, discourse and many ways to connect with classmates. One specific tool that can be used to communicate with others is twitter. People can follow each other, read about the new tools to use in online courses. Stay updated with the recent technology. It’s also a way to stay connected to others. Over “the last twenty years, technology has reorganized how we live, how we communicate, and how we learn” (Siemens). Times have changed and with online learning, we need to stay updated and present a learning environment where students can have conversations, discourse over topics learned in the course and also have many different tools to use in the course. The reading this week, mentioned wiki’s and blogging. This allows students to explain their point of view and also build off of each other’s research. Online learning can not occur without collaboration, discourse and technology. It’s a student centered environment that allows others to explore and build onto each other. 

Resources

Harasim, L. (2012). Learning theory and online technologies. New York, NY: Routledge.

McAuley A., Stewart B., Siemens, G. & Cormier, D. (2010). The MOOC Model for Digital Practice. Retrieved from:https://oerknowledgecloud.org/sites/oerknowledgecloud.org/files/MOOC_Final_0.pdf on January 29, 2015.

Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved fromhttp://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm on January 28, 2015.

Marques, J. (2013, June 7). What is a Massive Open Online Course Anyway? MN R Attempts a Definition. Retrieved January 29, 2015, from http://moocnewsandreviews.com/what-is-a-massive-open-online-course-anyway-attempting-definition/