Online learning communities provide an arena where both the
student and the facilitator have equal access and relevance in discussions and
activities; it also provides an atmosphere where peers can interact with one
another on a level that is usually not possible in a face-to-face setting,
simultaneously providing added comfort openly communicating with others that
are facing the same obstacles.
Some of the essential elements of online community building
People
*Method-
The way people interact, communicate & connect with each other
*Social
presence: establishing online identity)
Purpose- Why these people are brought together
(the class)
Process- The way that the course is delivered
When attempting to build a productive online community, one must
make sure that the rules of engagement (Frequency, expectations, rules &
regulations) are reasonable and appropriate for each particular audience, lest
you risk alienating parts of your community and even driving people away. You
also want to make sure that there shared responsibility between all parties
(students and facilitators) in maintaining and improving communications and
learning within the community.
In order to sustain an online learning community it is important
to design a good orientation, reach out to drifters, peer support, community
comfort, account for life outside the course, start technologically simple and
build, provide ice breakers and relationship-building activities.
All of the aforementioned
factors related to community building serve to strengthen the online
instruction portion of a course. No matter how well constructed a course is,
having an active community that feel comfortable communicating with and
assisting others goes a long way in creating a strong and healthy online
learning environment. While the source video for this post did not provide an abundance of new information, it did introduce the concept of proper course introductions. Aside from proper over all course design, I am now aware of the importance of not front-loading online courses with too much information or too many tasks; this may intimidate and ultimately led to the departure of participants that are not as prepared for the online environment as others are.
Hi Christopher
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog!
I agree when you say, “when attempting to build a productive online community, one must make sure that the rules of engagement are reasonable and appropriate for each particular audience, lest you risk alienating parts of your community and even driving people away” and I agree with you that this can be easily achieved by providing an orientation that allows students to be familiar with the technology used in class, the school’s course management system, and the methods of communication that will be used in the class. I really enjoyed Walden’s new student orientation. I think without it, I would definitely have been lost during my program. It is so important to guide students to be successful and provide enough information to ensure all possible questions are being addressed not just for new students but also for the ones that are more experienced. The video program by Dr. Pratt and Palloff speak about the importance of providing a new student orientation (Video) in addition to seek out students when they lose track and feel as part of the group.
Works Cited
Video. (n.d.). "Online Learning Communities" (approximate length: 44 minutes). Dr. Rena Palloff and Dr. Keith Pratt define "Online Learning Communities" and highlight the benefits of creating a learning community for facilitators of online learning experiences.