Session 4 (Friday, June 9, 3:30 pm - 4:15 pm)
Presentation 4a: Distributed Learning In The Workplace: Testing LMS For Affective
Outcomes
Presenters: Dr. Marti Cleveland-Innes (martic@athabascau.ca), & Dr. Mohamed Ally
(mohameda@athabascau.ca), Athabasca University
Summary:
We know that the education enterprise consumes massive amounts of public and
private money in the Western world, and has a mandate to support the continuous
reconstruction of the socioeconomic system in which it exists. Westernized education
systems are designed to enhance the competitiveness of nations and the self-fulfillment
of citizens (Egan, 1997), and have a requirement of universality – that is, everyone must
participate in a sanctioned, accredited education program, for a least some portion of
one’s formative years.
Central to the implementation of education programs is the engagement of
participants with the knowledge, skills, and socially accepted behaviors commonly
shared by general members of the society in which the system exists. From this common
knowledge base and accepted forms of human action, other social forms emerge and are
continually reconstructed; for example, participation in community activities, workplace
behavior, and family structures.
Structure related to human social behavior falls under the domain of affective
outcomes in education. While student cognitive development is an essential outcome of
schooling, it is argued that interpretations of quality and effectiveness in education that
do not include affective outcomes are inadequate as measures of desirable schooling
outcomes (Leonard, Bourke, & Schofield, 2001).
In less formal learning settings, affective outcomes such as attitudes, values,
motivation, discipline, and thinking and communication skills are effectively learned
through a process called socialization. The socialization process occurs when agents of
socialization (parents, teachers, peers, significant others, mass media) provide models,
examples, suggestions, and context for appropriate social development (Shaffir &
Turowetz, 1983). Evidence of socially appropriate attitudes is observed and measured in
current public education curriculum, but not taught. Instead, affective outcomes are
expected to occur through informal learning; the school-based socialization process.
This type of development is supported through informal social interaction, defined as
mutual or reciprocal action with “others” in a social environment.
What mechanisms, then, will foster affective outcomes in education that occurs
in virtual space, or online, where there is less opportunity for informal engagement?
Previous studies suggest that teaching and learning with technology has a small,
positive, non-significant (p > .05) effect on students' affective outcomes when compared
to traditional instruction (Waxman, Lin, & Michko, 2003). Moving facilitation strategies
generally to online learning environments requires careful translation of key
requirements; this careful translation is problematic for affective outcomes, previously
absent from teaching plans or course objectives.
Considering the requirement for interpersonal dialogue as part of required
learning activities for affective outcomes, interaction opportunities are paramount. The
most notable distinction between types of interaction in online environments is that of
synchronous (at the same time, in real time) vs. asynchronous (separately, at different
times) engagement with other participants in the online learning activity.
Differences between synchronous and asynchronous interaction have to do with
the time available for response. Synchronous interaction of any kind requires high
engagement with faster processing and response time. Conversely, “the use of
asynchronous learning requires planning, structure” (Garrison, 2002, p. 10), both
requiring additional time and thought. The properties of engagement, reflection, and
time invested all lead to learning outcomes, suggesting that asynchronous environments
may foster more salient affective learning outcomes.
In our exploration, we discovered two critical realities that solidified our decision
to study affective outcomes in online learning.
1) There is a shortage of soft skills in the Canadian workplace (McLeod 2000).
2) Clark (2005), studying the same shortage in the UK, identified that there is little
evidence of the wherewithal and effectiveness of online education in the
generation of affective outcomes.
The rather lackadaisical approach to fostering affective outcomes in public
education has contributed to a major skills shortage in the workplace. Human Resource
and Skill Development Canada identified, for example, that employees in call
centre/help desk environments must be able to handle not only the technological aspects
of their job, but a variety of customer queries, in an appropriate manner, using good
“soft skills” (MacLeod, 2000). Soft skills include: self-awareness, analytical thinking,
leadership skills, team-building skills, flexibility, the ability to communicate effectively,
creativity, problem-solving skills, listening skills, diplomacy, and change-readiness.
Training in these content areas spans the cognitive and affective learning domains.
The study employed a two-group, quasi-experimental design, with variation of
the treatment variable, type of online interaction. A course in customer service, with
multiple required affective outcomes, acted as the education intervention. Two
platforms were chosen, based on researcher familiarity and peer reviewed validation of
characteristics in the platforms. Participant outcomes were measured with a pre/post
self-administered skill evaluation and a content-based examination.
Results of two pilot studies suggest that, under the conditions of asynchronous,
text-based interaction (WebCT), participants realize greater affective learning gains than
those engaged in synchronous, primarily audio interaction (Elluminate Live).
* * * *
Presentation 4b: Improving K-12 Mathematics On-line Teaching with Lesson Study
Presenter: Krista Poscente (krista.poscente@telus.net), MDE, doctoral student,
University of Calgary
Summary:
The purpose of this paper is to propose on-line Lesson Study for providing
professional development (PD) opportunities for rural K-12 mathematics teachers. In
rural Canada, there is an increasing demand for teachers to teach mathematics on-line
(via the Internet). However, there are very few professional development opportunities
for rural teachers. As well, rural students tend to under-perform in mathematics
compared to their urban counterparts. To best meet the learning needs of rural students,
an on-line professional development for K-12 mathematics teachers will need to provide
teachers with new understandings of both teaching on-line and teaching mathematics.
This paper will provide a brief background about Lesson Study, and describe a model of
effective learning environments for teaching and learning mathematics on-line.
Background
Rural schools face considerable challenges in providing quality education. While
rural schools have many of the same needs as urban schools, they are faced with many
different obstacles, including small student populations, teacher retention problems,
limited budgets, lesser mathematical achievement (McManus, 2002; Williams, 2005),
and lack of opportunities for professional development. In small isolated rural schools,
students often do not have access to subject-matter experts, especially in mathematics
and science. On-line education, a subset of distance education, has the potential to
alleviate some of the obstacles rural schools face.
Developing ICT infrastructures, like the SuperNet in Alberta, will provide (have
provided) high speed broadband to rural schools. With this infrastructure, rural schools
will have the opportunity to provide their students access to e-learning courses. As the
need for on-line courses increases, more teachers will need training to teach mathematics
on-line. Effective training should improve student learning and achievement.
For more than a decade, researchers have studied mathematical achievement and
teaching practices around the world. The TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics
and Science Study) study has compared student achievement and teaching methods of
mathematics and science in countries on every continent (Gonzales et al., 1999, 2003;
Owen, 1997; Peak, 1996, 1997; Takahira, Gonzales, Frase, & Salganik, 1998). The TIMSS
video studies revealed that in countries with high achievement, like China and Japan,
teaching methods emphasize abstract mathematics concepts and problem solving. In
countries with lesser achievement, like the United States, the teaching emphasis is about
mathematical procedure.
Lesson Study
Building on the TIMSS study, Stigler & Heibert (1999) studied teaching methods
and professional development in the United States and Japan. For more than 50 years,
the United States government has written documents that mandate a teaching emphasis
on mathematical problem solving and abstract concepts. However, with teachers
working in isolation with little collaborative professional development, teaching practice
in the United States has changed very little in the past 50 years. In Japan, a teacher
initiated form of professional development has been identified as instrumental in
supporting change in educational practice and innovation (Lewis & Tsuchida, 1998). In
Lesson Study, Japanese teachers meet regularly to collaboratively plan, implement, and
evaluate lessons. Stigler & Heibert have called for Lesson Study to be implemented in
the United States, to systematically reform teaching practice and improve student
understandings of mathematics.
Recognizing similarities between Canada and the United Stated, the Galileo
Educational Network has adapted a version of Lesson Study to provide professional
development opportunities for K-12 mathematics teachers. Teachers meet face-to-face
on a monthly basis with math and math education experts. Together they work to solve
difficult math problems, and learn how to implement these problems in their
classrooms. Teachers’ improved understanding of mathematics improves classroom
practice. In turn, as students learn to solve challenging problems, their mathematical
achievement increases (Friesen, 2005). After implementing mathematical problems and
concepts in their classes, they return to the next Lesson Study to discuss successes and
disappointments. The learning environment created in the Galileo’s Lesson Study is
compatible with the on-line learning environment.
Effective Learning Environments
The Galileo’s Lesson Study conforms with the model of effective learning
environments, as developed in How People Learn (Donovan & Bransford, 2005). This
same model has been recognized by Anderson (2004), as meeting the pedagogic goals of
the on-line learning environment. Effective teaching and learning environments require
four characteristics: learner-centered, knowledge-centered, assessment-centered, and
community-centered. The Venn diagram in Figure 1 illustrates the interaction of these
characteristics.
Figure 1: Effective Learning Environments (Donovan & Bransford, 2005, p. 13)
The learner-centred lens encourages attention to preconceptions, and begins
instruction with what students already know. In mathematics, learners will have
misconceptions and prior knowledge that they will bring to the classroom. Similarly, in
the on-line environment learners will have prior understandings and misconceptions
about distance learning. For instance, learners familiar with correspondence might
consider on-line learning as a replication. The skilled on-line mathematics teacher will
need to be able to identify and work with learners’ prior knowledge.
The knowledge-centred lens focuses on the core knowledge that is to be taught and
why it is taught: the core subject knowledge. The Internet provides expanded resources
for students to research to gain knowledge. In the knowledge-centred environment, the
teacher needs to help tailor the resources to the foster the development of knowledge in
the discipline being taught.
The assessment-centred lens emphasizes the need to provide frequent feedback, to
make student thinking and learning visible to guide instruction. This lens provides
challenges for the on-line teacher. On-line teachers need to exploit the opportunities on-
line communication technologies can provide for students to receive feedback and
support from their peers, as well the teacher.
The learner-centered, knowledge centred and assessment-centred lenses reside within
the community-centred lens. The community-centred lens encourages a dialog of
questioning, respect, and risk taking (Donovan & Bransford, 2005). The development of
an on-line community requires a shared sense of trust, belonging, participation, and
contribution. The on-line teacher will need to choose suitable technologies to foster an
effective learning community. An effective on-line Lesson Study environment has
powerful potential to inform and change the teaching practice of mathematics.
In summary, there is a void in on-line professional development programs for
teaching mathematics, especially in rural areas. An on-line Lesson Study program could
bring teachers together to collaborate. Collectively, teachers would gain new
understandings of mathematics and new understanding of teaching mathematics online. Creating an effective learning environment will require developing a community
that focuses on the learner, the core subject knowledge, and frequent recurrent
assessment. These new understandings will benefit the development of mathematical
knowledge for rural K-12 students.
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