Carolann’s ETEC565 Journey

Communication Tools

For my LMS design, I have chosen the following communication tools

  1. A dedicated backchannel blog through Cover it Live
  2. Discussion forums
  3. Chat room

The backchannel was chosen to provide synchronous communication around a topic. I chose to use CoverItLive because it has these features which are important to my context of a community learning model.

  • Free
  • No advertisements
  • Allows moderated discussion
  • Ability to embed on a website
  • Chat is saved to a blog
  • Users can self register
  • No passwords are required
  • Multiple rooms/backchannels allowed
  • Private and Secure

I chose this communication model for several reasons.

Using a video demonstration (one-way broadcast) coupled with a back channel (synchronous) gives users more options.

I believe it is important to model uses for new technologies and provide users with ideas for how it could be used in their own context.

Some form of synchronous communication was needed to begin to build community and to provide support in the form of discourse with peers. A more formal experience to start should help to establish connections between students, and will also provide instant feedback from peers using an active learning model. CoverItLive has a very simple intuitive interface it is an easy tool to use, and should not be overwhelming to those new to the use of synchronous communication tools. It doesn’t require any software download or special equipment.

Having a back channel will let students ask questions amongst themselves in a non-threatening environment. It will be student centered cooperative community learning. Using CoverItLive will also provide a record (via blog post) of the backchannel discussion for future reference. This tool will only be useful for structured events such as this one, but should prove useful to make those community connections.

I have tested the links and the tool will work, I can also embed a viewer window within Moodle, but it seemed to slow down the page load to a crawl, so I opted for a link in a new window. I have used CoverItLive before, so I know that the page is loading properly and it is working as it should be. The link will go live on the date specified. (June 29th)

Some limitations to Cover it Live are that it is not live video.  However, this could also be seen as a positive because it means that users will not encounter as many issues with bandwidth.

I have also added discussion forums to my site. They will provide asynchronous communication, which is much more flexible and less time consuming for the moderator. It will also allow students the ability to find resources to share and will provide a lasting record. It will also support the collaborative, community learning model.

I have seeded two discussions to start, one Icebreaker activity to start the community building process, and one discussion topic that lays the ground rules for discussion on the site, which are listed below.

  1. Please use civil language, and be tolerant of other opinions. Treat this discussion as a place where we can learn from each other, not force opinions on each other.
  2. Use this space to inspire and inform. Address comments to the author, change the headings to reflect what you are commenting on (rather than leaving them re: blah blah blah)
  3. Please do not use this discussion forum to promote any commercial activities.
  4. Provide references when relevant, if you are discussing a news item or website, please provide the name of the publication as well as the link.
  5. Please keep the discussion focused on the topic, or start a new topic if your comments don’t fit.

Discussion forums will not give the same kind of real-time connection and community that live chat or the backchannel will but will provide a structure for discussion that might appeal to a different type of learner. The discussions will allow students to post Information, Questions and Answers, Cool links, or just add something to the Coffee Shop discussion about the events of the day.

I have also added a Chat room to the site to encourage live discussion and help to build community once the students have become more familiar with each other through more structured communication forms such as those discussed above.

References:

Anderson, T. (2004). Teaching in an online learning context. Theory and practice of online learning, 273-294.

Bates, A. W., & Poole, G. (2003). Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Chickering, A.W. & Ehrmann, S.C. (1996).  Implementing the Seven Principles: Technology as Lever. American Association for Higher Education Bulletin, 49(2), 3-6.