Creating a Sense of Community: Online Student Unions, Chats, Discussion Boards

1. Creating a Sense of Community: Online Student Unions, Chats, Discussion Boards Presenter: Landon K. Pirius Director of Enrollment Services/Registrar Inver Hills Community College Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

2. The Presenter Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

3. Questions from Last Week • What do you do to promote a sense of community both online and on-campus? • Do your students feel a connection to your institution and to others at your institution? • Other burning questions from last week. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

4. Introduction • Developed from multiple perspectives • UofM student • Former online university employee • MnOnline Peer Reviewer • MSU, Mankato Distance Learning Taskforce Member • Proponent of technology • Not institution specific Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

5. Presentation Layout • Broad discussion of community building • Includes web links • Includes: • Bringing the campus to the student • Innovate tools to promote community • Accessibility • Commonly asked questions Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

6. Understanding Your Students • Institutions must understand who their students are in order to provide appropriate services. • Digital Native vs. Digital Immigrants • Traditional vs. Non-Traditional Students • Generations X, Y, and Z vs. Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

7. Digital Native vs. Digital Immigrant • Use of computers, the Internet, and advanced technology • According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project (2005), “The number of teenagers using the internet has grown 24% in the past four years and 87% of those between the ages of 12 and 17 are online. Compared to four years ago, teens’ use of the internet has intensified and broadened as they log on more often and do more things when they are online.  Among other things, there has been significant growth over the past four years in the number of teens who play games on the internet, get news, shop online, and get health information.” Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

8. Traditional vs. Non-Traditional • Traditional students (18-24) are becoming non-traditional • Non-traditional students can be defined as: • Over 25 • Mid-career • Ethnically diverse • Having families • Possessing less free time • More non-traditional students are seeking an education that fits their needs and their schedules versus having to adapt to the institution’s needs or schedules Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

9. Generations X, Y, and soon Z • Email is essential form of communication • Internet is about choice: it is what they want, when they want it • Interaction is essential • Need attractive, hip, and well-designed websites • http://www.google.com/ • http://www.yahoo.com/ • How will we handle a generation taught by computers and artificial intelligence? Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

10. The New Environment • The student population is more mixed now than ever before. • Digital natives mix with digital immigrants • Generations X and Y mingle with baby boomers and their parents • Traditional students coexist with non-traditional students • What does this mean for institutions? Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

11. What Does this Mean for You? • A single approach to administering services is no longer viable or appropriate • Increased demand for accessible services. • Increasing competition from other institutions, particularly online institutions. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

12. Keep in Mind • Always keep the student in mind • Our obligation. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

13. Question Break #1 • I will take 5 minutes to answer questions at this point. I will have breaks throughout the presentation and at the end of the presentation. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

14. Do You Fit In? • What would make you feel comfortable? • Personal contact? • Physical presence? • Auditory cues? • Body language? • Verbal discussion? • None of this is present in a virtual, text-based environment!! Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

15. Creating a Sense of Community (SoC) Introduction • According to WCET, it is essential that “The institution recognizes that a sense of community is important to the success of many students, and that an ongoing, long-term relationship is beneficial to both student and institution.” • Schools spend thousands or millions a year: on-campus • Schools spend little to nothing: online • Invest in online community=success in recruitment and retention • No investment in online community=failure and loss of students to competitors Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

16. Do We Need an Online SoC? • In short, yes. • In the academic year, 2000-2001, over 3 million students at 2- and 4-year institutions participated in online courses.  48% of these students studied at 2-year public institutions; 31% studied at 4-year public institutions; and 19% studied at 4-year private institutions. • The lines of distinction are blurring because both online AND on-campus students are online. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

17. SoC Basic Concepts • Minimize isolation=increased retention and satisfaction • Formal learning is not the only way students learn. • Interactions • Informal and non-formal • Face-to-face and online differences • In a face-to-face environment, there are many opportunities to connect. • In a face-to-face environment, there is sight (body language), sound (words), touch, and taste. • In an online environment, there is no physical connection (yet); everything is virtual. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

18. Getting Started: Bring the Campus to the Students • Provide informational materials and newsletters online • Provide all on-campus services online • Pictures and biographies of faculty and staff • Student government/online elections • Email as the official means of communication Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

19. Getting Started: Bring the Campus to the Students Cont. • Chat rooms, weblogs (blogs), and discussion boards • http://www.ctl.mnscu.edu/iteach/interactive/index.html • Commencement • Web casts • Sporting events • Presentations • Speakers • Clubs and support groups Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

20. Innovative Strategies • Online student unions • “Facebook” • Portfolios • Portals • Virtual world Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

21. Online Student Unions • Student run, administrator oversight • Best examples are in the UK • Include: • Discussion boards, chat rooms, and blogs • Online elections • Event news • Pictures • Items for sale (including textbooks) • Weather, news, sports • Entertainment (bars, clubs, etc) Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

22. Online Student Unions Cont. • Good online student unions • http://www.susu.org/ • http://www.upsu.net/ • http://www.uclu.org/ Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

23. Online Student Unions Cont. • Others sites to visit: • http://www.ausu.org/ • http://www.citsu.ie/ • http://www.udsu.co.uk Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

24. Question Break #2 • I will answer questions for approximately 5 minutes. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

25. Facebook • Founded in 2004 • Facebook connects people to social networks at colleges and universities • A new version was recently released for high schools • Anyone with a school email address can join • Extensive social web: • You can be friends with anyone, anywhere Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

26. Facebook Cont. • Incredibly addicting • “Yes, it has its perks. You can join groups, advertise parties and connect with people from class. But students constantly find themselves pausing in the middle of homework and refreshing their home page on Facebook just to see if they have pending group or friend confirmations, pokes or notes” • There are some potential drawbacks to Facebook • http://www.facebook.com/ Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

27. Portfolios • Student centered tools • Ties the student to the institution because it shows a history and profile of that student at your institution • Being used in higher education as well as K-12 • Information follows the student, so a student could present part or all of their K-12 portfolio as part of their college application. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

28. Portfolios Cont. • Can include: • Collection of student academic work • For storage • For sharing • For assessment • Pictures • Data files • Personal information • Links to important services and functions Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

29. Portfolios Cont. • Can be used by: • Students • Faculty • Life-long learners • Sample portfolios • https://wesep.wesleyan.edu/cgi-perl/session.cgi (student) • http://www.ags.uci.edu/~cfaustin/ (faculty) • https://portfolio.umn.edu/portfolio/index.jsp (student) Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

30. Portals • Portals can be the same or different from portfolios and unions. • A portal is a gateway. • Single password entry. • Allows students to access anything and everything once logged in. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

31. Portals Cont. • Good examples of portals • https://www.myu.umn.edu/metadot/index.pl • http://my.wisc.edu/portal/index.jsp • https://my.nottingham.ac.uk/media/uk/ac/nottingham/compass/layout/public/help_guestlogins.jsp Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

32. Portals Cont. • Other sites to visit: • https://portal.mnsu.edu/Default.aspx • http://my.gwu.edu/ Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

33. Question Break #3 • I will answer questions for approximately 5 minutes. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

34. Virtual Worlds • A virtual world is a world that exists entirely online. • The virtual avatar (user) interacts with other virtual avatars and the virtual world. • Is this the future of colleges and universities? • “Flow”-Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

35. Virtual Worlds Cont. • MMORPG’s • Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game • Virtual worlds within MMORPG’s already create a sense of community. • The most popular MMORPG (Everquest) has tens of thousands of people interacting within a virtual world at any given point. • Everquest’s virtual world (Norath) is the 77th richest country in the “real” world. The average hourly wage is $3.42 and the GDP is $135 million (equal to that of Bulgaria). Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

36. Virtual Worlds Cont. • Why do I mention MMORPG’s? • An educational MMORPG could be created in which students learn, interact, and feel part of the college/university. • Sample MMORPGs • http://secondlife.com/ • http://eqlive.station.sony.com/ • http://www.eagames.com/official/thesims/thesimsonline/us/nai/index.jsp Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

37. Are Your Services Accessible • Who is using your services? • Who is NOT using your services and why? • Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) • ADA compliant website • http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/ • http://bobby.watchfire.com/bobby/html/en/index.jsp Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

38. Questions to Ask Yourself • What strategies and practices are implemented by my institution to involve distant students as part of an academic community? • By their statements and actions, do our administrators and participating faculty members communicate a belief that a sense of academic community is important? Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

39. Questions to Ask Yourself Cont. • How are the learning needs of students enrolled in electronically offered programs identified, addressed, and linked to educational objectives and learning outcomes, particularly within the context of my institution’s definition of itself as a learning community? • Do representative students feel that they are part of a community, or that they are entirely on their own? Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

40. Resources • Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications (WCET) • http://www.wcet.info/ • http://www.wcet.info/resources/publications/guide/guide.htm • Center for Transforming Student Services • http://www.centss.org • Other web sources as listed throughout the presentation Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

41. Questions? • The remainder of the time will be spent answering questions. • Any remaining questions will be answered within a week of this presentation. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

42. Session 3: Online Orientation • November 17 • What is an online orientation? • Types of online orientations: • 4 types • Examples of all 4 types Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

43. Session 3: Online Orientation • Think about: • How do you currently orient your students? Your online students? • If you have an online orientation, how does it compare to your on-campus orientation? • Email your thoughts and any burning questions to: patricia@academicimpressions.com by Monday, November 14th. Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius

44. Presenter Information • Landon K. Pirius • lpirius@inverhills.edu Presentation is the intellectual property of Landon K. Pirius