The Electronic Learning Community

     The electronic learning community is a major part of today’s society.  It plays an important role in education.  Many individuals are choosing the electronic learning community over the face-to-face classroom settings.  Wordiq (2010) stated, “E-learning most often means an approach to facilitate and enhance learning by means of personal computers” (E-learning-Definition, para. 1).

     In a physical setting, professors and the students are able to participate in many different forms communication during the courses (Crawford, Smith, & Smith, 2008).  Crawford, Smith, and Smith stated their definition of online education as, “Engaged entirely online, learners in web-based learning environments lack the traditional support structure inherent within a face-to-face environment” (p. 136).  In my opinion the students in a physical setting are able to solicit more assistance from their professors throughout the class.  However, on the other hand the students are more responsible for learning material on their own in an online course.  

     Bender (2003) explained that learners enjoy being able to feel apart of something.  Bender stated, “When they attend a class on campus, they become familiar both with the room in which the class is held and with the regularity of attendance of the inhabitants in that room” (p. 3).  Bender continued to explain that due to this the learners may feel more led to want to learn.  Online courses can not compare to face-to-face courses in this aspect because the students are not all in one physical setting.

     When taking classes online, the learner will need to learn how to fully express themselves through written language.  This is especially important when sending and receiving messages to your instructors or classmates, because you do not want anything you may have written to be taken out of context.  The online learner will therefore, have to take the extra time to sit down and think about everything that they plan to send before sending it.  When taking courses in a physical setting and communicating with others, often times your facial expression shows a lot.  It may show your instructor (a) whether you  understand or not, (b) agree or disagree, or (c) whether you are listening.

     Tiene (2000) explained the difference between being in a physical educational setting and having discussions versus having discussion through online educational settings.   Having discussion via online may at times be a little difficult than having them in a physical setting because you may have to deal with technology issues (Tiene, 2000).  Due to the fact that learners need to have time to review the material before discussing it, it may take a little longer having online discussion versus physical settings (Tiene, 2000).  A learner may have a harder time trying to express themselves in written form online rather than verbally (Tiene, 2000). 

     Wang and Woo (2007) explained that a lot of learners preferred online discussions because of the flexibility it allows.  Wang and Woo stated the following finding from their study, “Responses in face-to-face discussions are more prompt than in online discussions.  A commonly reported drawback of online discussions is that participants can hardly get immediate feedback from others because not all participate at the same time” (p. 282).  Wang and Woo also found that learners felt like it was uncomplicated to communicate in discussions through physical educational settings.

     There are two major forms of communication through online courses that helps make online learning different from face-to-face, synchronous and asynchronous.  Both synchronous and asynchronous offer individuals an opportunity to communicate with one another.  With this communication individuals are able to better work together and plan out certain tasks.  Marjanovic (1999) stated that synchronous technology communication helps, “Enable same-time, same-place or same-time, any place collaboration providing immediacy, faster planning, problem solving, scheduling and decision making processes” (p. 131).  Examples of synchronous technology communication are (a) Skype, (b) group chats, or (c) web-cam video conferences.   Marjanovic explained that asynchronous technology communication helps, “Enable any-time, any-place collaboration providing freedom of time (learners participate when and if they choose), opportunities to research and backup assertions, more  time for reflection, more time to phrase the intervention” (p. 131).  Examples of asynchronous technology communication are (a) e-mail, (b) blogs, or (c) discussion boards.

     One advantage to synchronous model is the fact that it gives learners a similar feeling as if they were taking face-to-face courses, because they are still able to meet as a whole class and interact with one another.  Another advantage is when a learner is enrolled in a course that is synchronous, the learner does not really have a chance to procrastinate with the reading assignments, because the learners have to be prepared for the next class chat (whether it is weekly or bi-weekly).  PBworks (2007) provided some advantages for using synchronous communication, “You can get immediate response; instant feedback fosters communications; there seems to be a more emotional bonding effect between people when there is a possibility to communicate in real time, spontaneity” (Synchronous Communication, para. 3). 

     Pullen and Snow (2007) discussed the following advantages of utilizing asynchronous communication: (a) a schedule does not have to be made to meet for class instruction, (b) professors are not really needed for this model type, (c) this model allows self pace studying, (d) mentors can easily contact learners via e-mail, (e) courses can be very interactive through WebCT or by using the Blackboard (if available through the school), and (f) mentors can also offer addition material for reading purposes or videos for the learners through the WebCT or Blackboard. 

     Instructor’s roles in facilitating courses that are taught completely online are a little different from the instructor’s role in teaching courses in a physical setting.  Some instructors may have a difficult time trying to continue to keep their learners actively engaged in an online course.  Making sure your learners are actively engaged in an online course can be very vital to how successful the learner will be during the duration of his/her program.  McKeachie in Bender (2003) stated what it means to be a facilitator, “Enhances student learning by encouraging active participation in discussion and by helping the student to see education as meaningful and relevant” (p. 11).  McKeachie in Bender continued to explain that an instructor should make sure they do not have a patronizing attitude, they should however try to be considerate of how the learner feel and the learner’s thoughts.  McKeachie in Bender then pointed out that the instructor should (a) communicate with their learners as often as needed, (b) should explain in great detail what is considered satisfactory in the course, (c) should be willing to go the extra mile for their learners (for example, providing recommendation letters), and (d) be enthusiastic about the material that they are teaching.  Bender stated, “The online teacher should be attentive to each student in the class, in an attempt to bring out the best in each of them” (p. 12).

     Dixson (2010) explained that different forms of communications is very beneficial and is related to how a learner is engaged in the course.  Learners have a higher engagement when communication occurs mainly between the learner to learner and professor to learner communication.  Dixson explained that the professors are responsible for ensuring that they continue to use lively learning, include significant and numerous ways for everyone involved in the online course to communicate with one another. 

     Instructors are the individuals that set the tone of the course; this tone can be a good tone or a bad tone.  An instructor’s tone can show through how much they are present in the course and through their feedback.  If the instructor enjoy their job, then they will be more likely to help the learners have a meaningful and rich learning experience.  Gayton and McEwen (2007) recommended that instructors should have an energetic interaction throughout the courses.  Also, by the instructors setting a positive tone, the learners will not be afraid to communicate with them, if they ever have any questions. 

     Instructors should also try to make sure the learners have a rich and meaningful experience.  Gayton and McEwen (2007) found that using and implementing (a) interactive and organized learning environment, (b) assigning group assignments,  and (c) providing feedback regularly help in providing the learners with a rich and meaningful experience.  Dixson (2010)  stated, “Discussion forums about the concepts, labs and group projects, research papers, and current events assignments”  can all help improve the learner’s experience (p. 5).   Dixson explained that instructors should focus on creating joint activities and making sure there are plenty of opportunities for dialogues.   Graham, Cagiltay, Lim, Craner, and Duffy (2001) provided the following good practice: “Encourages student-faculty contact, encourages cooperation among students, good practice encourages active learning, gives prompt feedback, emphasizes time on task, communicates high expectations, and respects diverse talents and ways of learning” (para. 1-7, principle).

     In conclusion, the electronic learning community can be very challenging for both the learners and the instructors.  There are also many benefits for the learners as well as for the instructors in the electronic learning community.  However, through constant communication the electronic learning community can run very smoothly and be highly successful.      

 

References

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Tiene, D. (2000). Online discussions: A survey of advantages and disadvantages compared to

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Wordiq. (2010). E-learning-Definition. Retrieved from http://www.wordiq.com/definition/E-

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