Socialization: A Learning Tool?

1
Socialization A Learning Tool?

• Building A Learning Community

2
Time to Acclimate
of weeks to develop a pattern of participation
and to function in a faceless interactive
environment in first online course
3
Preferred Learning Style
Preferred Learning Style
4
Outcomes

• An online learning community that is warm,
• supporting, and caring?
• An online learning community built, sustained,
  and
• expanded beyond the boundaries of the course?
• Students exhibit social behaviors that support
• their peers?
• Instructors cognizant of socialization as a vital
  factor
• in learning?

5
Community personal sense of belonging to group,
being connected with others and to ideas and
values
Learning Community requires Social Environment
And
Content-learning Process
Community of Learners
6
Research Questions

• Do online students exhibit behaviors that
  encourage and support their peers, thus enhancing
  a social climate, and ultimately enabling the
  learning community?
• What are the student perceptions of the presence
  of learning community characteristics?

7
Methodology

• Developed classification scheme for discussion
  board messages
• Analyzed discussion board
• Administered survey to determine student
  perceptions of community
• Undergrad course29 students 1144 total messages
  posted and analyzed survey
• Graduate course11 students survey only

8
Classification Scheme

• Content Units focused on subject
• Social Units may have content, but also social
  behavior
• Functional Units organizational or technical

• Instructor initiated/ student initiated
• Student/student student/group
  student/instructor
• Instructor/student instructor/group

9
Analysis Model

• Content Units
• Non-referential
• Vertical questions
• Horizontal questions
• Feedback/individual
• Feedback/group

• Social Units
• Referential
• Reflection
• Acknowledgement
• Agreement
• Apology
• Closing
• Emoticons
• Encouragement
• Humor
• Invitation
• Questions
• Salutation
• Signature
• Thanks

10
Percentage of Social Units
11
of Total Student Social Units
12
Total vs. Social Messages/Seminar
Total Messages
Social Messages
Seminar
13
Social Climate/Seminar
Social climate of social expressions divided
by total of messages generated
14
MGT 236 557 Survey
Instructor encouraged student to student
interaction
15
MGT 236 557 Survey
Many opportunities to interact with other
students in the course
16
MGT 236 557 Survey
Many opportunities to contribute actively to the
learning process
17
MGT 236 557 Survey
Instructor dominated the discussions
18
Student vs. Instructor Messages
The instructor dominated the discussions.
(Strongly agree, Agree, Somewhat disagree/agree,
Disagree, Strongly disagree, No opinion)
19
MGT 236 557 Survey
Instructor encouraged students to act friendly
with each other
20
MGT 236 557 Survey
Instructor created a relaxed and calm atmosphere
21
MGT 236 557 Survey
Instructor was attentive to students needs
22
MGT 236 557 Survey
Environment was one of justice, self-discipline,
and caring
23
MGT 236 557 Survey
Discussions provided student with sense of
belonging, of being connected to others and to
ideas and values
24
MGT 236 557 Survey
I feel my ideas and opinions were valued and
respected by my peers.
25
MGT 236 557 Survey
I feel my ideas and opinions were valued and
respected by the instructor.
26
MGT 236 557 Survey
There were peers in the course with whom I felt
especially comfortable and who I thought would
help me if I needed it.
27
MGT 236 557 Survey
There was a feeling of camaraderie in the
course.
28
MGT 236 557 Survey
There was a feeling of trust and respect among
peers.
29
Suggestions for Us

• Provide acclimation time for first-time online
  students
• Provide multimedia (audio, video, animation,
  text)
• Require students to talk with and respond to each
  other
• Provide questions and opportunities that promote
  referential and reflective responses
• Set an environment that is warm, caring, with
  justice and self-discipline
• Do not dominate discussions, but provide sense
  of presence
• Show students relationship between interactivity
  and learning
• Monitor presence of learning community

30
Questions???
31
Thank you!