Choosing and Managing Web Tools on a Budget

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Choosing and Managing Web Tools on a Budget

• Karen L. Murphy
• Tina J. Harvell
• Tim J. ODonnell
• Presentation at the Sixth Annual Distance
  Education Conference - 1/13/99-1/15/99

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Agenda

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Case Study
• 3. Web Tools
• 4. Management of Web Tools
• 5. Recommendations

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The World Wide Web

• increasingly powerful source in education
• faculty urged to integrate technology into classes

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The World Wide Web

• increasingly powerful source in education
• faculty urged to integrate technology into classes

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Criteria for selection

• What Web tools, either singly or in combination,
  are appropriate for teaching the required content
  in a Web-based class?
• What methods are best for providing students with
  training on the Web tools?

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Criteria for selection (contd.)

• How can we use the Web as the sole source of
  interaction and communication within a course?
• How can we implement the use of Web tools on a
  shoestring budget?

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Case Study The ACTIONS Model

• proposed by Bates (1995)
• provides methodology for decision makers to reach
  conclusions about selecting and using technology
  for distance education settings

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ACTIONS

• Access
• Cost
• Teaching functions
• Interactivity, user-friendliness, and control
• Organizational issues
• Novelty
• Speed

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Access

• Students must be able to retrieve and use
  applications materials
• Case study
• Location
• Use no peripherals
• Access from anywhere
• Flexibility
• Stable multi-platform applications
• External issues

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Costs (1)

• Free or inexpensive applications
• Simple applications
• Case study
• Low fixed costs - costs for producing the
  materials
• Low variable costs - costs associated with
  delivering materials to increasing student numbers

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Costs (2)

• Case study
• Low fixed costs - costs for producing the
  materials
• Low variable costs - costs associated with
  delivering materials to increasing student numbers

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Teaching and Learning

• 1. What kinds of learning need to be developed?
• 2. What instructional strategies will be employed
  to enable the learning needed?
• 3. What are the unique educational
  characteristics of each technology, and how well
  do these match the learning and teaching
  requirements?

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Instructional Procedures (1)

• Case study - Students were required to--
• 1. use Web-based tools
• 2. train others on Web-based tools
• 3. plan and implement an instructional
  application of the tool
• 4. administer the tool
• 5. publish information about the tool
• 6. evaluate the lesson and the tool

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Instructional Procedures (2)

• Case study - Students were required to--
• 1. use Web-based tools
• 2. train others on Web-based tools
• 3. plan and implement an instructional
  application of the tool
• 4. administer the tool
• 5. publish information about the tool
• 6. evaluate the lesson and the tool

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Interaction, User-friendliness, Control

• Two-way interactive communication--
• a critical feature of the educational process.
• User-friendliness--
• encompasses the ability of students to use each
  tool easily
• encourages discovery of the additional
  capabilities of the tool
• Control--
• allows students to organize their learning in a
  more flexible manner (pacing and timing)

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Interaction
Teacher
Students
Technology
Content
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Organizational Issues

• Administrative requirements often result in
  barriers
• resistance to change
• reliance on existing technologies
• Case study
• Office of Distance Education
• Telecommunications grant Team consisted of
  instructor, graduate assistant, and
  telecommunications specialist

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Novelty

• New, innovative technologies may--
• encourage funding agencies to invest
• stimulate change and development in institutions
• Case study
• IDLEs were introduced nationwide
• Texas AM -- syllabi, enrichment activities on Web

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Speed

• Factors
• acquire educational materials quickly
• maintain educational material over time
• Case study
• Instructor practiced with tools in summer
• Students worked with tools 3 weeks each
• Students used tools in subsequent semester

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Web Tools

• WWWBoard
• Easy Web Group Enabler (EWGIE)
• Multi-user Domain, Object-Oriented (MOO)
• Basic Support for Cooperative Work (BSCW)

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WWWBoard World Wide Web Board

• A Web discussion board allows students to engage
  in asynchronous (not real-time) discussions that
  are threaded and thus easily organized.
• very simple to use
• simple to install
• short learning curve
• can be read at leisure

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EWGIE Easy Web Group Interaction Enabler

• A chat room allows students to engage in
  synchronous (real time) chats with others and to
  use its whiteboard capabilities.
• true Java application
• easily customized
• allows for private and public chats

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MOO Multi-user Domain, Object-Oriented

• A Multi-user Domain, Object-Oriented (MOO), a
  type of MUD on the Web, provides students with
  the opportunity to engage in synchronous (real
  time) chats with others in both private and more
  public virtual reality environments.
• interestingly fun
• requires programming
• steep learning curve

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BSCW Basic Support for Cooperative Work

• A shared work space enables students to write and
  edit collaborative documents as well as share
  graphics with others asynchronously.
• difficult to set up
• steep learning curve
• very powerful
• true Web-based collaboration tool

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Management of Web Tools (1)

• Telecommunications Specialist responsibilities--
• Research and selection of Web tools
• Server hardware and software setup
• Hardware and software administration
• Support of students and the instructor

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Management of Web Tools (2)

• Telecommunications Specialist responsibilities--
• Research and selection of Web tools
• Server hardware and software setup
• Hardware and software administration
• Support of students and the instructor

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Management of Web Tools (3)

• Telecommunications Specialist responsibilities--
• Research and selection of Web tools
• Server hardware and software setup
• Hardware and software administration
• Support of students and the instructor

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Management of Web Tools (4)

• Telecommunications Specialist responsibilities--
• Research and selection of Web tools
• Server hardware and software setup
• Hardware and software administration
• Support of students and the instructor

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Management of Web Tools (5)

• Telecommunications Specialist responsibilities--
• Research and selection of Web tools
• Server hardware and software setup
• Hardware and software administration
• Support of students and the instructor

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Recommendations - ACTIONS

• Access - Choose technology based upon access by
  all students.
• Cost - Attempt to use tools that are free or
  inexpensive (if extra money is available, use it
  for other purposes).

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Recommendations (contd.)

• Teaching functions - Select the most efficient
  and effective applications
• efficient in terms of time, cost, and effort
• effective in terms of the outcomes meeting the
  learning objectives

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Recommendations (contd.)

• Specific teaching functions--
• Begin training using the most simple tools and
  build up to the more complex ones (e.g., 1.
  WWWBoard, 2. EWGIE, 3. BSCW)
• Teach only one tool at a time
• Develop an in-depth technical training program
  incorporating hands-on practice with the tools
  and taking place as a pre-class orientation
• Have experienced users help with the training
  program
• Give the students a chance to play with the tools
  in a game-like activity instead of using the
  tools immediately for content purposes at the
  beginning of the semester

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Recommendations (contd.)

• Interactivity, user-friendliness, and control -
  Provide for tools that offer all types of
  interactivity, ease of use, and control by the
  student
• Organizational issues - Obtain and maintain
  administrative support for distance education
  projects

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Recommendations (contd.)

• Novelty - Choose tools that excite the student
  and encourage investment in distance education
• Speed - Choose technology that offers easy and
  quick access to course materials and can be used
  several semesters, thereby minimizing the cost of
  reworking each time

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Reference

• Bates, A. W. (1995). Technology, open learning
  and distance education. London NY Routledge.

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URL

• EDTC 664 Management of Instructional
  Telecommunications Systems
• http//disted.tamu.edu/student/index664.htm