a) Elluminate
- Why I chose it
Elluminate links up well in my LMS. I have placed a link within the LMS to the external server as well I have created a “how to login to Elluminate” video to assist student logins. It is probably the best synchronous tool on the market. In a class such as science 10 where there is a lot of problem solving, there must also be a lot guidance from the instructor. Anderson (2008) also notes that teacher presence is crucial in formal education.
- What this tool brings to the educational experience
Elluminate is synchronous software that runs on java. As long as a computer has java and a set of minimum requirements, it will be fully capable of running elluminate. Moreover, it has video conferencing, live chat, voice chat, and a whiteboard to facilitate learning. Microsoft powerpoint slides may be uploaded to the whiteboard (Elluminate, 2009). Students may also be polled in a number of ways. The moderator may poll students by having them choose between a red x or a green circle. This may be changed to having students select letters for multiple choice responses. Elluminate collects the data from polling and displays it in the form of graphs after polling has been completed. Moreover, all sessions may be recorded and viewed later. Moderators may also take control of other students’ applications to guide them to specific sites or files. Furthermore, an instructor may wish to divide students into smaller rooms. If the class is large or the instructor simply wants students to work in smaller groups, it is possible to break the class up. Students with a descent internet connection will be able to fully use Elluminate. Lastly, it is easy to use. Students do not need to spend a lot of time to become proficient in it (Bates and Poole, 2003).
- What are its limitations
The fact that this software runs on java also creates limitations for the software. Java must be downloaded and installed. The Elluminate jnlp file must be downloaded from an external server each time. Usually this is not a problem, but if the internet connection is slow or the computer’s processing ability is low this can greatly affect the way in which Elluminate functions. Moreover, as Elluminate’s functions such as video-streaming use a large proportion of processing power, slower computers will be at a disadvantage. Another disadvantage of Elluminate may also be considered its advantage in that users must be present at the same time to use it.
- Does it work? If it is in your LMS site we will test it; if not, it should be linked there and you need to describe how you tested it
Elluminate works well within Moodle. I have used Elluminate extensively in other LMSs and I had no problems linking it within Moodle. For the student that has never used it before, I have created a short screen-cast that will allow them to access Elluminate easily and efficiently. It would be perfect if it could be accessed with a click of a button within the LMS. As Anderson (2008) writes, this kind of communication technology is modeled “pedagogically and structurally on the campus classroom.”
b) Discussion Forum
- Why I chose it
The discussion forum allows for a increased social, teaching, and cognitive presence which in turn opens up the possibility for greater discourse (Anderson, 2008). Good courses need the right balance between synchronous and asynchronous interactions and it is up to the designer of the course to get this balance correct. Since I already have an synchronous learning device I thought that an asynchronous learning tool such as a discussion forum would allow for more flexibility within the course.
- What this tool brings to the educational experience
Firstly this tool brings social affordances to the educational experience. By getting students to introduce themselves in the beginning fosters a “sense of trust” with the online community (Anderson, 2008). Students and the teacher can post their introductions here and ‘meet’ classmates. Discussions also allow students to ponder their responses before responding. Moreover, a discussion can be a good change of pace for a course. For example, for one unit of my course I will be covering chemistry which will include balancing equations, writing chemical formulas and names, and radiation equations. Using the discussion forum to ask a question such as how our understanding of atoms helps to explain why mass is neither created nor destroyed during a chemical reaction helps students to make connections between concepts. This all tends to organize course materials for students (Perkins and Pfaffman, 2006). Finally, the forums allow students to subscribe to posts. Subscription to forums keeps students in tune with what is happening within the LMS as information is constantly being sent to their external email accounts. There are many cognitive as well as many social affordances that this tool provides.
- What are its limitations
The discussion forum has a number of limitations. Firstly, it cannot directly be linked to the grades. If you wanted to give grades for the discussion, you would have to go into the grades separately and input it indirectly instead of the easier way of inputting the grades directly from the forum page. The forum page does not allow you to see how many responses you have to messages that you posted. You have to go through all the messages and look for the ones that you posted which can be time consuming. All and all the limitations are low for the discussion forum. It provides a safe area for studentsto communicate.
- Does it work? If it is in your LMS site we will test it; if not, it should be linked there and you need to describe how you tested it
After creating an icebreaker and an activity with discussion forums, I would say that it works. It is quick and simple to use (grading the posts would be the only drawback). The discussion forum helps to set the climate for the whole course. It is important for students to construct ideas in their minds through discussion with others.
Reflection Regarding Selecting and Implementing Elluminate and a Discussion Forum
I have used Elluminate often in the past, but I have not experienced implementing it into moodle so I was interested to see how it would work. It was easier than expected, but not having the ability to create a webpage in dreamweaver and then upload that file to moodle hindered the process. To create the instructions in the moodle wysiwyg page editor was different, but I think that I can get used to it. Selecting Elluminate was easy as it offers the most capabilities out of all the synchronous online tools. Selecting a discussion forum was also quite simple to set-up and using the moodle forums at moodle.org gave me a better idea of its capabilities. Both processes were not difficult nor complicated and I look forward to extending my skills further in the future.
References
Anderson, T. (2008). Teaching in an Online Learning Context. In: Anderson, T. & Elloumi, F. Theory and Practice of Online Learning. Athabasca University. Accessed online 3 March 2009 http://www.aupress.ca/books/120146/ebook/14_Anderson_2008_Anderson-DeliveryQualitySupport.pdf
Bates, A.W. & Poole, G. (2003). Chapter 4: a Framework for Selecting and Using Technology. In Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education: Foundations for Success. (pp. 77-105). San Francisco: Jossey Bass Publishers.
Elluminate. Retrieved June 15, 2009 from: http://www.elluminate.com/support/docs/8.0/Elluminate_Live_V8_Methods_of_Loading_PowerPoint_Presentations.pdf
Perkins, M., Pfaffman, J. (2006). Using a Course Management System to Improve Classroom Communication. Science Teacher, 73(7), 33-37.
Categories:
Adam Rattray