RSA#4

RSA#4

Module 7’s reading focuses on a few key topics that will create success in an online learning community.  The first chapter focuses on the promotion of collaborative learning.  In this chapter, readers learn about the importance of learning interdependence through collaboration in the online learning community.  Although this is only effective if the students participate in the collaboration, it is also the instructors responsibility to monitor collaboration and build opportunities for this to take place.  One the instructor has created collaboration opportunities, it is the students’ responsibility to become a transformative learner.  The final chapter in this module focuses on the transformative learning process.  This is something that will occur regardless of whether or not the instructor promotes it; however, chances of student success within this process can be greatly aided by the assistance of promotion on the part of the instructor. “When students are empowered to become experts at their own learning, they cannot help but he transformed people” (Palloff & Pratt, p. 202, 2007).  Essentially, a student becomes a transformative learning by taking the reigns of the highest potential of their education and advocating for him or herself.

“Social Networks and Performance in Distributed Learning Communities” discusses an experiment based on 3 hypotheses to test the correlation between social networks and student performance.  Two online learning communities were monitored and data was collected to see if the hypotheses were indeed correct.  They note that it is clear that high learning comes from collaboration and essentially, the researchers wanted to see the impact that social networks had.  Their results showed that “Social networks play an essential role in learning environments as a key channel for knowledge and sharing and as a source of social support” (Cadima, Ojeda, & Monguet, p. 296, 2012).  Their results showed a significant correlation.

I chose this article because one of the main topics was collaboration and the importance in a learning community to have collaboration.  I wanted to find an article that had specific research to support this theory.  The results have shown that this hypothesis is correct.  Although I felt confident in my own experience with social networks within a learning community, research-based data proves for a more effective argument when supporting the importance of social interaction and collaborations within a learning community. 

Cadima, R., Ojeda, J., & Monguet, J. M. (2012). Social Networks and Performance in Distributed Learning Communities. Journal Of Educational Technology & Society, 15(4), 296-304. Retrieved from http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED505959.pdf

Palloff, R. & Pratt, K.  (2007). Building Online Learning Communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom, (2nd ed.). San Franciso: Jossey-Bass. ISBN: 978-0-7879-8825-8, pages 157-204.

RSA #3

Module 5: RSA #3

Module 5 gives an in-depth introduction to an online learning community.  Palloff and Pratt give the readers a description of what an online community is composed of and how all aspects of online distance learning function.  Readers learn the roles and responsibilities of not only an online learning community facilitator, but also the participants.  As all students are different in the classroom, PalLoff and Pratt suggest that there are multiple “online” student personas as well.  Introverted students and extroverted students will come into different challenges in an online learning community, but can also flourish in different ways than as compared to face-to-face learning.  Clear planning and guidelines are a must for an online learning community in order to ensure that students feel safe and are learning.  The final chapter discusses some major issues that could arise in an online learning community and ways to cope and deal with these issues. 

The article that I chose discusses social presence’s effect on online-distance learning.  People questions and therefore did research on how social presence would effect higher-order thinking.  The article states that almost all the research found that social presence was not the redeeming factor in higher-order thinking, but in fact, independent work that gave timely instructor feedback produced the best results in the online learning classroom.  

I chose the article, “Social Presence within the Community of Inquiry Framework” because the required reading for module 5 discusses building an online personality and the importance of creating a social presence before the start of an online course.  In a sense this article states that the creation of social presence does not make or break an online learning experience.  Through my own person experience in the online learning community, I think that creating social presence in important, but for my personal preference, I agree that social presence, or lack thereof does not directly effect my level of thinking and therefore, learning.  

Annand, D. (2011). Social Presence within the Community of Inquiry Framework. International Review Of Research In Open And Distance Learning, 12(5), 40-56.

Palloff, R. & Pratt, K.  (2007). Building Online Learning Communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom, (2nd ed.). San Franciso: Jossey-Bass. ISBN: 978-0-7879-8825-8, pages 3-65.

Direct Link for Resource:  http://web.ebscohost.com.cucproxy.cuchicago.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=9542ef44-b063-4263-8249-8f793405bee3%40sessionmgr113&vid=8&hid=123