Putting words in my mouth

Plagiarism is a serious issue in today’s educational realm. With the ease of access to information, the vast amount of resources and the expensive ability to manipulate information or statements that are available, there is a need by educators to be diligent in helping students maintain academic integrity (Jocoy & DiBiase, 2006). With a massive increase and ease of access to information and detection methods, due diligence is needed on both the educator and the student to make sure that proper acknowledgement is supplied for ideas, works and knowledge that is gained from these insights.

How can the design of assessments help prevent academic dishonesty?

Using proper assessments that increase the motivation for individual thought and research is a great way to get used to how students write and also their thought processes. Using discussion forums is also another great way to glean an insight into the writing styles, verbiage and thought process used by students in an online environment. Students, especially older students, have specific patterns, styles and ways of thinking that are prevalent in conversation and that translates into their writing. By using discussion forums, these patterns can give a good insight into the way that the learners will present information and write when the time comes.

What plagiarism detection software is available to online instructors?

In today’s modern classrooms, using tools such as turnitin.com and EVE (Essay Verification Engine) or Google search engines among others (Jocoy & DiBiase, 2006) can offer an immediate insight as to ideas, paraphrasing, or what’s known as copy-and-paste plagiarism (Jocoy & DiBiase, 2006). Using these tools and the insight gained form knowing your students and their nuances; plagiarism can be addressed and cut off at the pass. 

What additional considerations for online teaching should be made to help detect or prevent cheating and plagiarism?

Proper education on the rules of the fair use act, and academic integrity as well as proper methods, when and how to cite works or ideas is crucial to the success of avoiding and combating this issue. Another aspect is understanding the students backgrounds adds another layer to preventing this action. As stated by Jocoy and DiBiase, many students are “under pressure to get good grades” as some are “being reimbursed for the cost of the course based solely under that condition” (Jocoy & DiBiase, 2006, pg 6). This added pressure my entice many students to partake in dubious actions, but enforcing the need for proper writing citations and acknowledgements and offering proper education on how to write and cite correctly, would potentially alleviate the stress and anxiety that accompanies writing properly researched papers.

What facilitation strategies do you propose to use as a current or future online instructor?

The best strategies I can foresee for online education or distance learning would be the continued education and encouragement of the learners to promote proper writing strategies and integrity. As well using tools such as turnitin, Google (or search engines over all) as well as EVE , could add a layer of protection for the educator on deciphering what is plagiarized and what is not. Over all nothing will every replace knowing your students, their abilities and their methods of expressions. Students who have an interest in learning will change as they continue in their educational goals to present the best them that they can, which would include changing their writing style and methodology, and stretching themselves into new realms to better their ability for expression. This is the way of a true student. As stated in the Hagakure “no matter what it is, there is nothing that cannot be done. If one manifests the determination, they can move heaven and earth as they please” (Tsunetomo, 2002)

Jocoy, C., & DiBiase, D. (2006). Plagiarism by adult learners online: A case study in detection and remediation. International review of research in open and distance learning, 7(1), 1-15. doi: ISSN-1492-3831

Tsunetomo, Y. (2002). Hagakure: The book of the samurai. Boston, MA: Shanbhala Publications

Impact of Technology and Multimedia

•    What impact does technology and multimedia have on online learning environments?

   

    Technology has a huge impact on education and learning environments. One of the largest impacts that are more recent is the advent of eBooks. Using electronic devices for dissemination of the information has moved from static text on pages, to interactive links to multimedia and in some cases actual multimedia in reading itself. One prominent example is that of anatomy or biology books. Through he use of digital media, the authors are able to make 3d models and interactive examples of the human body at work, geological phenomena at work and also break down body parts and other elements to give the reader a more concrete example of actions or environments that were never before possible Having this form of interaction, assists the users in understanding and drawing connections to the information that is being presented aiding in better knowledge transfer and better retention of the information presented.

•    What are the most important considerations an online instructor should make before implementing technology?

    What needs to be considered before the introduction of new technologies, or certain technologies is the applicability of the technology to the curriculum, the comfort level of the instructor with the technology and the comfort level of the learners with technologies. Not all students are digitally adept, and in some cases, some teachers are still learning about common technologies that are present in the world. The idea behind the use of and integration of new or current technological aspects for education is to know the community that you are teaching too (Boettcher & Conrad, 2010). Using tools like twitter, texting, or instant messenger could put some people off, as they are not exposed to them. So gauging your students and their comfort level is crucial when you are dealing with distance learning.

•    What implications do usability and accessibility of technology tools have for online teaching?

    Usability and accessibility can affect how the students interact, how often and how they communicate using the tools available.  Using twitter, as an example, may be a good way for shot concise immediate communications, but not everybody uses twitter and those that are new to it, like me, find following people very noisy. Using instant message is good if there is a controlled forum and it is used to interact with students for an immediate need. Using some of these also allows users to be more mobile, and are more likely to incorporate more interaction due to the fact that many of these are web 2.0 technologies and allow uses to be on the go when responding or interacting.

•    What technology tools are most appealing to you for online teaching as you move forward in your career in instructional design?

    I think that, in my case, using eBooks and interactive / collaborative methods such as wikis or Google docs will allow for better interaction team building and introductions to new technologies that are on the rise.  Being able to interact with the students, get their thoughts and perspectives, and keeping them engaged is crucial when dealing with distance learners. As has been pointed out many times, distant learners can feel isolated and alone. As though they are soldering on through the experience by themselves. Allowing for more interaction, easier interaction and faster responses alleviates a lot of stress that students often feel and allows for a more complete educational experience.

Boettcher, J. V., & Conrad, R. M. (2010). The online teaching survival guide: Simple and practical pedagogical tips. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Conrad, R. M., & Donnaldson, J. A. (2011). Engaging the online learner: Activities and resources for creative instruction . San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Wide Wide World of Wisdom:

-->

    The Internet is vast, it is expansive and it is growing exponentially everyday. Since its inception in the late 1970’s, the Internet has housed an opportunity for communication, and collaboration that is unparalleled in the history of history of the world. In our current utilization of technology, and ever expanding mobility of that technology, through the use of tools such as Web 2.0 in conjunction with tablets and smart phones, distance education is gaining more traction than ever before. With environments such as 2^nd life and online collaborative tools such as blogs, wikis and social media outlets such as twitter and Facebook, the every expanding tools used to reach each other is continually changing and becoming more integrated into our everyday lives more than ever. The importance of knowing these tools it tantamount to the success of any educator using or starting to use electronic means to reach out and educate the masses. In our particular scenario here at Walden, the need to know these tools is crucial as we are going to be the facilitators or creators of such content and environments that are utilized for disseminating information to minds raging from elementary and high school, to the university level utilizing synchronous and asynchronous environments. Knowing how these tools are used by the students is important as well so that we as facilitators and instructors understand how to reach out to students make their experiences interactive, educational and challenging all at the same time.  As the reading states “social presence, that is, getting to know each other as three-dimensional people, is the foundation of building trust and presence for teaching” (Boettcher, Conrad, 2010).  Having this presence is what allows for lower anxiety from most first time users of online education, and better utilization of tools for the programs being taught.

         
       It is also imperative that communication channels are open and available so that the learner to learner (L-L) and instructor to learner (I-L) channels are open and receptive through out the course or program the student is enrolled in. Having set schedules, goals and outcomes as well as getting feedback from the students is vital to get buy-in and investment from the students. This investment of time and cooperation, allows the students and teachers to enhance the knowledge that is gained, make relevant the content and also ingrain new knowledge with what is already learned by the students. This is an important factor so that the students see the value of the education they are involved in and to maintain that curiosity that is within all students. After all they are there to learn, as are we, and that is what drives us all.

           
     While all of this is important, using the tools for collaborative communication and education is vital to the success of any course. Putting relevant information into the content systems, having the content systems accessible and easily navigate able adds another layer of acceptance from the students to the class and also lowers the anxiety level for many students that have never taken part in a distance education environment. Though most online students are familiar with social media sites like Myspace or Facebook, the environment of a CMS or LMS may be very intimidating. Using icebreakers and getting to know you areas in the CMS allows for a user to familiarize themselves with the operations and functions of the systems. As well having postings that are not graded but more of a scavenger hunt style for content on the web, gets the user used to posting into discussion forums and how the discussion forums in the CMS work so that they can follow strings of conversations and reply and add to the learning environment, which over all is the point of the educational environment presented, to enhance learning and bring a community together for the sharing of knowledge and interaction.

Conrad, R. M., & Donnaldson, J. A. (2011). Engaging the online learner: Activities and resources for creative instruction . San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Online Communities

-->

• How do online learning communities significantly impact both student learning and satisfaction within online courses?

Learning communities impact an online educational environment by the access to the information and the overall interaction that is established through the course work. In engaging the learners in deeper discussions and deeper analysis of the material presented, the students can walk away form the courses of programs with a sense of accomplishment (Palloff & Pratt, 2012). Using tools such as multimedia, chat rooms, even video conferencing if available, will add to eh overall enhancement and sense of belonging to a community and circumvent the alienation that can precipitate from being a distance learner.

• What are the essential elements of online community building?

Essential elements for online communities can fall into five spate entities

1)    A sense of shared purpose

2)    Established boundaries of who’s a member and who is not

3)    Enforcement of rules and policies

4)    Interaction among all members in the community

5)    Respect among the members

• How can online learning communities be sustained?

Through active participation, respect, and understanding of all members of the community, the facilitator monitors and provides as safe environment for shared learning and community growth, and the individuals take personal responsibility for their actions and assist in maintaining a cohesive and positive learning experience. In taking these actions, a community can become strong and properly motivated to grow and learn together. 

(The Tech Journal, 2012)

• What is the relationship between community building and effective online instruction?

There are several benefits from participation in a successful learning community model such as increased student satisfaction, increased perception of learning, an innate sense of belonging or feeling as if they are a part of something larger than themselves and social pressure to succeed (Palloff & Pratt, 2012). On the other hand, if the online learning environment is not appropriately developed and/or the instructor/facilitator does not create a welcoming environment, the students may quickly succumb to feelings of isolation and loneliness and possibly drop the course before giving the class or themselves a chance to acclimate accordingly.

 

Palloff, R., & Pratt, K. (2012, October 28). Online Learning Communities [Video file]. Retrieved from http://https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_1971765_1%26url%3D

The Tech Journal (2012). How to manage a sustainable online community. Retrieved October 28, 2012, from http://thetechjournal.com/internet/social-community/how-to-manage-a-sustainable-online-community.xhtml