E moderation resource pack

E-moderation Resource Pack

Heather McKayKatie WoodClaire Hart

Topic A: Starting off- creating a good social environment online

http://www.flickr.com/photos/linpadgham/2444719115/sizes/m/in/

photostream/

Topic A – Socialising in online courses

Socialising in online courses is important for the following reasons;

creates a sense of group - important in helping to reduce dropout rates , which can be higher in distance education, where students can feel a sense of isolation more acutely than in F2F education

feeling part of a group can contribute to higher levels of satisfaction with the learning experience

relationships between participants are likely to help in learning and exchange of information

creates learner independence - students can ask each other rather than rely on the tutor

maintains motivation by making online learning more interactive and fun can help familiarise new students with the VLE and aid technical skills

through non threatening tasks e.g. sending mails, getting to know each other activities - these activities can provide scaffolding /build confidence in participants use of new technology

students can become aware of ‘netiquette’ through interaction with peers feeling a valued member of the group increase benevolence and the

desire to help others in the group succeed

Topic A- Getting to know you

Getting to know you activities

Tip for successful getting to know you activities:start with activities which don’t require much technical skill

Examples of getting to know you activities:

Posting ‘my top 5’ of a particular category Each participant asks a question to all the others by e mail and posts the

results to a forum for comment Each participant has a designated participant to email and introduce

themselves to Online version of ‘find someone who’ then post results to forum Each participant posts a ‘sticky note’ with something surprising about

themselves - this could also take the form of a sticky note version of ‘2 truths and 1 lie’

Other uses of sticky notes - stick a picture / quote etc up to represent yourself

Pretty much any getting to know you / socialising task that works in the classroom can be done online either via e mail or the whiteboard facility in Blackboard.

Topic A – small group activities

Small group activities

Tips for successful small group activities:- give participants roles- ensure there is a goal or outcome- build interdependence into the task- include deadlines

Examples of small group activities jigsaw tasks - each group member collects, collates and posts

a summary of collected information - together the parts form a complete resource for participants

group chats - group meets in text / audio / video chat to make a decision / plan something / answer a specific question

collaborative project individuals work together on an online project to produce a slideshow / video / audio product

Topic A- Group discussion

Facilitating group discussion

- Examples of group discussion formats: Discussion boards Blogs Sticky - post it walls Non-course-related chat area Course-related chat areas, providing the

opportunity to respond to posted articles, comments + questions

Video posts and responses

Topic A- Other tips

Other tips for online socialising tasks and tools:

- Provide for a range of learning styles by including visual, audio, etc., in tasks- Begin with things that require less technical knowledge and build up- Use a variety of online resources so as to make it interesting and fun - e.g. drawings, jokes etc.- Consider pairs / teams / buddy system to create strong sense of group / support system

Topic A- The role of the tutor

Pre Course Set up needs analysis - establish

students’ individual goals, interests, needs, background, computer literacy

Share personal & professional information with course participants


Early stages

Deal with access issues - contacting by e-mail or phone non-responding students

Set tasks that explore the virtual environment to increase comfort level

Allocate time for socializing activities so participants get to know each other

Give clear introductions to the tools for social interaction and set tasks using these tools that involve genuine information exchange. Provide lots of scaffolding for the activities and clear task instructions This should include ice breaker tasks and tasks for exploring and establishing group goals and ground rules for online interaction. Assign partners/groups. Start with simple tasks.

Clearly communicate the educational purpose/value of peer interaction/socialising in the course - socialization goal.

Establish forums for individuals with common interests to link up Give opportunities for students to reflect on their on line socialising


In synchronous or asynchronous discussions:

Be present Model respect for all participants and their contributions Provide positive, encouraging, detailed feedback Follow up on messages with questions to encourage participants to

continue contributing Make sure everyone has an opportunity to contribute. Defuse problems & when necessary counsel individuals. This may

include: dealing with flaming by contacting the individuals responsible

privately regulating social chat by using visual prompts, and/or personal e-

mail, Encouraging pair/group interaction by providing technical

support,explaining the rationale behind pair/group tasks, revisiting goals,

helping students inhibited by working in the foreign language by responding speedily to their messages, offering to pre-screen messages, considering use of other media

Topic A – The role of the tutor

Middle & Later StagesModerators continue the good work of stage 1 but move towards letting the students take more control

Continue to provide and be present in the forums/ chats etc. and to monitor, encourage, challenge, resolve difficulties, suggest resources & motivate when necessary .

Continue to set up pair/ group/whole class tasks but move towards those that involve more complex processing and interactions.

Have students self assess their contributions to class climate

Final stageHelp the group to celebrate their accomplishments, to share what they have learned from each other and to say goodbye

Topic B: Working online- Tutor skills for handling online chats, discussions, content

http://www.freestuff.co.za/business-tools/typingweb-free-online-typing-tutor/

Topic B: Encouraging online participation/ motivation

Introduction

The issues of participation and motivation are intrinsically linked. Participation is key to online learning: students learn by sharing with others, paying attention to what others have to say and responding to it. It can, however, prove difficult for learners to motivate themselves while they are learning online, usually as a result of the absence of face-to-face contact and possible feelings of isolation which may arise. An important element of the online teacher´s role is, therefore, to motivate their learners and encourage them to participate as much as they can in the course. The question is though: how should the teacher go about this? All participants are clearly different: they come from different cultures, they interact socially in different ways, they have different expectations, they are more or less familiar with virtual learning environment. An awareness and understanding that such differences exist is a good starting point.


Ground rules

In order for participation and motivation to be as high as possible, the teacher should set out some ground rules for participation just before or at the start of the course, so that the learners know exactly what is expected of them and also what they should expect from their teacher. While establishing these ground rules, the teacher can also see what the learners´ expectations are and address any potential issues which may arise from discrepancies between these expectations and the actual nature of the course before they can start to have a negative effect on a learner´s motivation and participation.


Once the course is under way, how the teacher responds to the learners in the virtual learning environment becomes very important. Here are some things that the teacher can do to maximize motivation and, therefore, participation:

1. Respond promptly to learners´ contributions -> the learner receives instant feedback on their work and feels that their work is valued and appreciated.2. Respond positively to learners´ contributions -> thank the learners for their contributions, use positive adjectives to describe them, say what you liked about the contribution, use exclamation marks and symbols to compensate for the fact that the learner can´t make eye contact with you or see you smiling. 3. Show empathy -> this is especially important if learners are experiencing any kind of difficulty or struggling with the coursework for any reason. 4. If you notice that learners are not participating as much as you expect them to, contact them personally and discuss the benefits of interaction on the platform for learners with positivity and empathy. Seek to find out the reasons for the participants lack of participation and address them, where possible. Unfortunately, in some cases, changing to another course may be the only option.


If motivation is to be sustained over a longer period of time, however, the teacher should ensure that:

1. The ground rules established at the start are maintained.

2. Student ideas and preferences are incorporated into tasks to create a sense of ownership.

3. Provide learners with variety in terms of content, resoures, task type, tools, roles, group work combinations.

4. Learning goals are established and learners are regularly given the opportunity to assess or be assessed on their progress towards achieving them.

Topic B: Handling synchronous and asynchronous work online

Synchronous work

This is where the teacher and learner are interacting with each other in real-time or “live” and usually takes the form of a textual chat in a chat room on a platform such as Moodle or a combination of textual chat and talking through audio and video on a platform such as Blackboard or Adobe Connect. This kind of interaction gives structure to online courses and helps learners feel more connected with both their teacher and the other participants. Ideas can be exchanged, questions can be asked and answered, materials can be shared and learners can spontaneously respond to them. For the teacher, one of the most challenging aspects of asynchronous online work is the difficulty involved in assessing it.


Synchronous workSeven things that a good online tutor should be able to do while interacting with learners in chats:

1. Have quick reactions, so they can respond to what the learners are entering in the chat box.

2. Create a warm environment for the learners and react positively to them while they are in it.

3. Give the learners lots of feedback on what they are saying and direct questions to them to encourage them to continue contributing.

4. Ensure that everyone is participating and no one feels left out.

5. Provide lots of scaffolding for the activities and give clear instructions for the tasks assigned (this is of course especially important when learners are new to chat).

6. Maintain a conversational tone and use humour, where appropriate.

7. Use exclamation marks and smileys as additional tools to respond to learners.


Asynchronous work

This is where learners are free to interact with their teacher and other participants at any time. This type of interaction normally takes place through forums. The teacher sets up a forum and invites learners to contribute to it, usually by providing their response to a task which has been set. The advantage of using forums is that they provide a great deal of flexibility for learners: they can participate anytime and anywhere they choose. Synchronous work usually contributes the majority of learners´ interaction with other learners during the course. Learners´ contributions to the asynchronous work can just as difficult to assess as their contributions to synchronous work are.

Topic B: Rationale for course design

decisions Use Synchronous Activities Use Asynchronous Activities

When•You need to get a message across to everyone•Tutor wants to provide direct guidance to students•You are discussing less complex issues•You require an immediate response or resolution•You want students to see &/or hear each other•You want students to get to know each other•You, or a group of students, are in the planning stage of a task•Students can be available at the same time

　

•You need time to compose your message•You want students to explore a complex issue in depth

•Students need time to construct their responses •Students cannot be available at the same time

Note: Both valuable - symbiotic relationship- need for variety

Topic B: Rationale for course design decisions

Use Synchronous Activities Use Asynchronous Activities

Why•　 Energizes　participants•　　　　Students　likely　to　be　more　motivated　because　a　quick　response　is　required•　　　　If　used　on　a　regular　basis,　helps　to　establish　pace　of　programm•　　　　Provides　useful　practise　in　speaking/　listening　skills　(video/　audio　conferencing)•　　　　Or　reading/　writing　skills　(text　chat)

• Allows students to proceed at own pace• Gives increased opportunity for particpation for quieter students• Produces more considered, in-depth responses• Provides useful practice in reading/ writing skills• Provides backbone of the course• Easily able to add more forums to meet students´ need.

Sources: Clive Shepherd The Real Time Online TutorStephan Hrastinski Asynchronous & Synchronous E Learning

Education

E moderation resource pack