Creating Online Spaces to Enhance Teaching and Learning

1. Creating Online Spaces to Enhance Teaching and Learning Lin Lin, Ed. D. Assistant Professor Kent State University Nov. 9, 2006

2. Agenda • Theoretical framework of three learning spaces based on a 3-year qualitative research study: individual space, collaborative inquiry space, and expert space • Implications of the theoretical framework of three learning spaces • Applications of the theoretical framework of three learning spaces

3. The Research: How Adults Learn through Asynchronous Written Dialogue (AWD) • Purpose: To understand the learners’ experiences of using asynchronous written texts to communicate and learn in the online teaching and learning environments • Questions: • What is the nature of interactions in online communication? • What are individual learners’ responses and perceptions of asynchronous written communication?

4. Literature Review Learning Across Time and Space Dialogue & Collaborative Inquiry Technology Mediated Dialogue Expert Knowledge Constructivism Dialogue through AWC Adult Learning Study Place & Self-directed Learning

5. Discussion board posting • Survey with 15 open-ended questions • Personal Empowerment through Type (PET) • Open coding • NVivo • Themes • Independent / Individual Space • Collaborative Space • Expert Space • 92 students from seven online courses • Long-term exposure • Rich, thick descriptions • Triangula-tion • Theories Research Methodology Data Analysis Reliability Participants

6. Theoretical Framework: Three Learning Spaces Online Learning environments: Affective Responses Expert Space Collaborative Space Individual Space Communication and knowledge construction through Asynchronous Written Dialogue (AWD)

7. Theoretical Framework: Culture of Use • Formative • Expertise • Convergence and divergence of private and public spaces • Desire to offer help, provide suggestions, solutions, information; facilitate • Formation of a community of expertise through individual and group actions and interactions • Collaborative Inquiry Space • Wiki Phenomenon • Desire to reach out, question and respond, bring about multiple perspectives; disagree, challenge, and co-construct ideas • Collaborative, challenging and co-creative • Individual Space • Blog Phenomenon • Desire to think aloud, reflect, broadcast, elaborate, and seek connections • Self-controlled, expressive, uninterrupted TEXT TEXT TEXT

8. Implications: Creating Online Spaces to Facilitate Learning and Inquiries

9. Applications: Using Dialogic and Social Software to Create Online Spaces 1. Responsibility and accessibility (individual) 2. Strategies to facilitate better dialogue (collaborative) 3. Learners as co-facilitators (formative expertise)

10. Questions for Applications • How does one design and teach self-directed learning? • How does one encourage meaningful dialogues and collaborative inquiries? • How does one discover and encourage students to be experts in a learning community? How does one deal with the power issue in the learning community? • What technologies can be used to do the above?

11. Questions for Thoughts • Encouraging premise reflection • Allowing individual differences in learning through different interactions with people and technologies • Creating community and network • Encouraging the key student players in an online learning environment

12. Q & A Questions? Lin Lin Kent State University llin1@kent.edu