Justin's+Heuristics

1. Justin Graham Perhaps the most appropriate definition for motivation comes from Ratey (2001) who suggests that the level of motivation determines how much energy and attention is assigned to a stimulus. Online learning communities seem to have endless access to a wide range of stimulus, so it is important that authentic tasks are designed based around the motivation of individuals in these communities to allow for a meaningful learning direction and relationships to grow. The development of an authentic product in this case study Luca, J (2002) allows the participant to interact with the instructional process with real goals related to the outcome of the interaction to aid the further development of (intrinsic motivation). The use of on line learning communities allows for the sharing of resources, the quest for further information and the building of ideas, these relationships need to be formed on the same basis as any relationship. Establishing inclusion (wlodkowski,p114) in the learning atmosphere allows the individual participant to feel that the input they make adds to the creation of knowledge, enhancing meaning for all participants as the information created and shared by the group includes thier own learning perspectives.
 * Build on the intrinsic motivation required for participation in e learning to foster online learning communities**

Comments welcome please... SG - Just a thought, to convert this from a motherhood (to be pc, parenthood?) statement, why not include what motivational strategies you think might work in an online learning community. I see the tag 'authentic task' thrown around so much, I'd love some hints on how to actually achieve one. And when you do, the feedback can be 'interesting' (Read my 'Coke Can Thingie' blog for an example). Thanks SG, I take authentic as being something which relates directly to the learning outcomes which is the ultimate motivation for a student undertaking most forms of curriculum. I use moodle on a daily basis as a reference point for all of my classes and my view of 'authentic' has changed the more I think about it. 1st: moodle was mainly used for an administration tool as I was sick of hearing high school kids moan about loosing work sheets- this was authentic use for me at that stage. 2nd; uploading tasks for student participation and giving specific deadlines to hand in through moodle, I saw that as authentic as the tasks related directly to the topic at hand, and used a motivational tool these students are used to in the high school environment- time. What I have now realised is that I have not built an online community by approaching things in this way, it is still a class of individuals handing in individual work. I am interested in finding a way to get my students interacting online outside of school hours, to approach assignment work collaboratively and show some development of drive to want to add to the knowledge of their fellow classmates. This is an authentic task.

15/8/10, Refining my first statement. I have looked at the statement and tried to make it more abrupt and focused, it should be a statement that commands the reader to do it. I have looked at ensuring that the statement clearly came from the case study.

The development of an authentic product in the case study Luca, J (2002) allows the participant to interact with an instructional process with real world goals in this case job specific skill development for final year students. With authenticity in mind the project team have embedded activities that include context relating to specific targeted skills, focus questions and resources from industry representatives. Perhaps the most appropriate definition for motivation relating to this heuristic statement comes from Ratey (2001) who suggests that the level of motivation determines how much energy and attention is assigned to a stimulus. Online learning environments by nature require the participant to have a level of motivation and purpose relating to successful completion often referred to as intrinsic motivation. This type of motivation is important because the traditional features of synchronous learning environments do not exist, if the participant does not want to participate, they can simple not turn off the computer. Motivational levels according to Wlodkowski (p2) are stimulated using “attention, concentration, imagination, passion”. A successfully designed online learning curriculum will need to challenge each participant to use all of these stimulants as well as peer interaction to enable effective learning and knowledge retention. Instructional design that uses tasks which promote collaboration among participants and exemplify how concepts are used in real world contexts (Woo et al 2007) will be seen as authentic by the learning community involved, in turn participants will give the activities the energy and attention required to navigate through the tasks. Interaction is the key to the success for any online learning community, to ensure significant interaction, the online component of this course (Luca 2002) compliments the three-hour face to face sessions undertaken by the student each week and student participation in the on line component requires weekly self and peer assessment reviewed by tutors and used as assessment tools. Authentic tasks rely on frameworks, scaffolds and practical application of knowledge or skills, in the use of e-learning the informational landscape is endless and the skills need to involve the interaction and manipulation of knowledge. The authenticity of the task can vary as much as the range of stimulus material so to focus this statement an example is appropriate; Relating the use of web 2.0 tools in this case wiki. Stage 5 Graphics technology students have been invited to participate in this wiki site through their interaction with the e-learning software moodle which contains many resources for the study of this course. encouraged to share and critique each others design work for an upcoming presentation. This collaborative approach to design work, allows the user to gain input. The focus of the wiki is on the group, not on the individual- (motivator) Wlodkowski (2008, p378) “especially when adults feel respected and know that what they are learning is relevant and when the instructional process increases their effectiveness” Comments?
 * Authentic tasks motivate participants of online learning communities**

2. Justin Graham Teaching is a social event, each participant, student or teacher has a place in the classroom environment, but the online classroom lacks the face-to-face interaction that makes these traditional learning spaces effective. With the increasing popularity of online courses all participants combat physical distance by interacting in the virtual classroom, many students while looking for knowledge acquisition are also in need of the support and affirmation that comes from a group of peers. Online environments according to this paper (Fakhraie and Hewitt) have not been successful in sustaining strong social presence and so participants miss out on the networking aspect as relationships are turned off as quickly as the course ends, with the majority of students never engaging in any dialogue with students or staff involved in their learning community again. A missed opportunity to continue professional dialogue with colleagues and peers, this could be due to the fact that many courses with online delivery odes use different e learning platforms as the basis for communication, and almost always require the individual to be an enrolled (paying) student. Hewitt suggests the removal of traditional face-to-face elements of sociability need to be compensated for with alternate methods. Classrooms, like any social gathering rely on many non-verbal forms of communication with others body language and facial expressions all help to establish relationships with others (Du Vall 2007 p25) these aspects of social interaction do not exist in online environements. With this in mind many tools have emerged to encourage sociability within virtual worlds, social networking websites are serving an obvious need within society this is evident through the numbers of registered users some 500 million facebook users are actively communicating with each other every day (facebook press room). Social presence is the key to nurturing online classroom relationships, participatants need to be assured that input they make into the virtual community is willingly received and valued by other members (Du vall), this social presence can be divided into two types, peer and instructor (moon-heing). The individual may feel isolated due to the nature of online learning, but the definition of these two support sources is the key to giving the learner the feeling of presence and worth tat is imperative to a successful online learning community. It is a known problem that textual based messaging can not convey feeling, but moving further toward a digital world text messaging using mobile phone technology is used by the majority of people to send and receive information, instant gratification to receive or send. Like any community all participants have a responsibility to each other to ensure the longevity and quality of the relationship, some strategies that are important for the instructional designer to consider when creating an online learning environment is to encourage relationships by u sing tools that encourage the transactional model of communication enabling communication to remain continuous, dynamic circular and complex. Use asynchronous chat beyond the simple introduction forum to continue dialogue between learners, this can help a feeling of connectedness, teleconferencing may also aid this by adding a name to a face. Encouraging participants to upload photos to user profiles and running regular synchronous chat sessions to allow for the spontaneity and humour that often develops from an individuals character during dialogue. The learner also has a responsibility to the relationship, understand the digital community and get a feeling of connectedness by contributing and commenting. Committing the time and working at relationships. Take the time to interact on social forums, upload photos, enjoy informal conversation Instructors monitor forums and make comments regarding posts to raise the level of trust amongst the participants. Assume that relationships will not simply exist because the technology allows them to. Encourage participants to develop a community of inquiry that can be used at the wider level after the completion of the course.
 * //Online classroom relationships must be nurtured to give participants a feeling of presence and worth//**

Shirley 13/8: sounds good - suggestion - refine heuristic to make clear what you mean by "nurtured" and "worth" eg: //Online learning environments need to be nurtured with an online presence so that students see worth and value in their online interactions (or something like that...)// //Thanks Shirley, I imagine that relating aspects of my experience will also help justify my statement, do you have any tips to help guide me when relaying experiences-//
 * Your comments.**