Online Learning Communities Case study of an eTwinning Learning Event for Teachers' Continuous Professional Development September 2011 BERA conference, London Brian Holmes, Lancaster University & European Commission Dr. Julie-Ann Sime, Lancaster University with the support of Tiina Sarisalmi, Municipality of Orivesi, Finland Anne Gilleran, European Schoolnet, Belgium
Presentation on Online Learning Communities delivered at the BERA conference in September 2011
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Online Learning Communities Case study of an eTwinning Learning Event for
Teachers' Continuous Professional Development
September 2011BERA conference, London
Brian Holmes, Lancaster University & European CommissionDr. Julie-Ann Sime, Lancaster University
with the support of
Tiina Sarisalmi, Municipality of Orivesi, Finland Anne Gilleran, European Schoolnet, Belgium
Coding suggests critical thinking reached in later stages Garrison et al (2001)
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3. Results
Views of participantsApplying ideas in practice …
‘I was able to apply what I learned in the classroom and my pupils are very excited and they want to learn more’ (final questionnaire)
Staff room …‘most of my time was spent in the staff room, to get ideas, to get support, and to feel proud and happy when my work got commented on. i think the idea of the staff room was the best’ (final interview)
Collaboration does not always work…‘Well in the forum there is merely discussion and I understand that cooperation is a step further and collaboration even further, and I did not enjoy not being able to collaborate in my own group’ (final interview)
Facilitation and feedback from the tutor is not always a good thing …‘I think those are things that can very easily smother the flame of creative thinking and learning’ (email feedback from Tiina)
However ...
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Online Learning Communities
1. Research context
2. Methodology
3. Results
4. Conclusions
Case study of an eTwinning Learning Event for Teachers' Continuous Professional Development
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4. Conclusions
From the teachers’ perspectiveOnline learning community The online community supported teachers to develop their professional
competence The community provided an opportunity for mutual support, exchange of
experience and reflection The community was useful for as long as it supported learning
Learning by doing Teachers who applied what they were learning in their own teaching
practice were motivated, gained confidence and were more convinced
Guidance It was beneficial to reinforce facilitation at key points and to back-off as
and when peer support emerged
Social interaction Social interaction was important, it facilitated learning and engendered a
sense of community
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4. Conclusions
From an academic perspective
Community of Inquiry The CoI model was a useful framework to analyse the interrelation between
the cognitive, teaching and social aspects (Garrison et al, 2000)
Facilitation and mutual support Increased teaching presence had a positive impact on cognitive presence
Reflective practitioners Applying ideas in practice and reflection with peers reinforced competence
development (Schön, 1983; Kolb, 1984)
Social and community aspects The learning community engendered mutual support, trust and sharing
(Grossman et al, 2000; McConnell, 2006)
Social ties were important for learning, however interaction remained purposeful and the community was ephemeral (Kreijns et al, 2003; Zenios & Holmes, 2010)
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References (1 of 2)
Ala-Mutka, K. (2010) Learning in informal online networks and communities, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS), J., European Commission (ONLINE - http://ipts.jrc.ec.europa.eu/publications/pub.cfm?id=3059 - accessed 18.11.2010)
Dillenbourg, P. (2008) 'Integrating technologies into educational ecosystems'. Distance Education, 29 (2), pp.127 – 140
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T. & Archer, W. (2000) 'Critical Inquiry in a Text-Based Environment: Computer Conferencing in Higher Education'. The Internet and Higher Education, 2 (2-3), pp.87-105
Garrison, D., Anderson, T. & Archer, W. (2001) 'Critical thinking, cognitive presence, and computer conferencing in distance education'. American Journal of Distance Education, 15 (1), pp.7-23
Grossman, P., Wineburg, S. & Woolworth, S. (2000) What makes teacher community different from a gathering of teachers?, Center for the Study of Teaching and Policy, University of Washington
Kolb, D. (1984) Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ, Prentice Hall.
Koshy, V. (2010) Action research for improving educational practice, 2nd ed., London, Sage publications Ltd.
Kreijns, K., Kirschner, P. A. & Jochems, W. (2003) 'Identifying the pitfalls for social interaction in computer-supported collaborative learning environments: a review of the research'. Computers in Human Behavior, 19 (3), pp.335-353
McConnell, D. (2006) E-Learning Groups and Communities. Maidenhead, Open University Press.
O'Leary, Z. (2004) The essential guide to doing research, Sage Publications Ltd Riel, M. & Polin, L. (2004) 'Online learning communities: Common ground and critical differences in designing technical environments', in Barab, S., Kling, R. & Gray, B. (Eds.), Designing for virtual communities in the service of learning, pp.16-50, Cambridge University Press
Schön, D. (1983) The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action. London, Basic Books.
Shea, P. & Bidjerano, T. (2009) 'Community of inquiry as a theoretical framework to foster ‘‘epistemic engagement” and ‘‘cognitive presence” in online education'. Computers & Education, 52, pp.543-553
Zenios, M. & Holmes, B. (2010), 'Knowledge creation in networked learning: combined tools and affordances', Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Networked Learning 2010, Copenhagen, pp.471-479