Wing Sum Cheung

Asynchronous Online Discussion Thread Development: Examining Growth Patterns and Peer-Facilitation Techniques.

This study extends the research on asynchronous online discussion (AOD) by providing a perspective on: (1) the growth patterns of discussion threads and (2) the influence of peer- or student-facilitation techniques on thread development. Using the Pointing, Questioning, Resolving and Summarizing (PQRS) facilitation techniques framework, the threaded discussions of sevenAOD forums were carefully mapped out and each message in the postings was examined to determine the type of facilitation techniques applied. Results suggest that an online discussion thread grows either one of three patterns: a ‘short thread pattern’, an ‘extended thread pattern’ with an elongated structure or a ‘split thread pattern’ with a broad structure. Results also suggest that the use of Resolving and Summarizing facilitation techniques tends to foster early thread termination. Understanding how each PQRS studentfacilitation technique impacts thread development reinforces the need to combine the use of ‘questioning’ techniques with other facilitation techniques to enhance thread continuity. We end by discussing some possible implications and issues for future research.

Student Participation in Online Discussions: Challenges, Solutions, and Future Research

The increasingly prevalent use of online- or blended-learning in schools universities has resulted in asynchronous online discussion forum becoming an increasingly common means to facilitate dialogue between instructors and students, as well as students and students beyond the boundaries of their physical classrooms. This proposed academic book contributes to the literature on asynchronous online discussions in the following three main ways: First,it reviews previous research studies in order to identify the factors leading to limited student contribution. Limited student contribution is defined as students making few or no postings, students exhibiting surface-level thinking or students demonstrating low-level knowledge construction in online discussions.It then identifies the various empirically-based guidelines to address the factors. Second,three potential guideline dilemmas that educators may encounter: (a) use of grades, (b) use of number of posting guideline, and (c) instructor-facilitation are introduced. These are guidelines where previous empirical research shows mixed results when they are implemented. Acknowledging the dilemmas is essential for educators and researchers to make informed decisions about the discussion guidelines they are considering implementing. Third,nine exploratory case studies related to student-facilitation and audio-based discussionare reported on and examined. Using students as facilitators may be an alternative solution to educators who wish to avoid the instructor-facilitation guideline dilemma. Using audio discussion would be useful for participants with poor typing skills or those who prefer talking to typing. The proposed book is distinctive in comparison to current competitor titles because all the findings and guidelines are empirically-based. Furthermore,the nine expanded case studies provided specifically address the issue of student/peer facilitation and audio-based discussion. Student/peer facilitation and audio discussion are two areas that hitherto received comparatively lesser attention compared to instructor facilitation and text-based discussion.

Effects of computer collaborative group work on peer acceptance of a junior pupil with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

The study investigated the effects of computer collaborative group work, facilitated by an adult, on peer acceptance of a junior boy with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). It aimed to ascertain whether collaborative group work on a computer, with the facilitation of an adult, could help to raise his peer acceptance among his classmates. Data were gathered before and after computer group work sessions. Interviews and questionnaires were conducted on parents and teachers to help establish the history background data and their concerns on the boys peer acceptance. Sociometrics testing of classmates was used to determine peer acceptance among the boys immediate peer group. During the adult-facilitated computer sessions, the facilitator reinforced positive social behaviour and interactions. After the computer sessions, interviews and questionnaires were conducted again on parents, teachers and facilitator in an attempt to capture information on the childs behaviour and attitudes during the computer sessions. Sociometrics testing was also conducted again to determine if the peer acceptance among the boys immediate peer group has changed. The results indicated encouraging improvements in the raise of his peer acceptance among his classmates in general. Although this was a discrete setting, the finding is promising and this strategy may be replicated in school to support mainstream inclusion for children with ADHD.

Student facilitators’ habits of mind and their influences on higher-level knowledge construction occurrences in online discussions: a case study

Previous research studies on factors influencing student higher-level knowledge construction in asynchronous online discussions have largely focused on the instructors’ role, student learning style, and the complexity of the discussion task. This study explores the issue from a different angle – that of student facilitators’ habits of mind. Participants of the study were education major students at an Asia-Pacific university. Results suggested significant differences in the frequency of four habits of mind displayed by student facilitators between the group that had the most number of phase II–V occurrences and the group that had fewer numbers of such occurrences. This implies that student facilitators who display these habits more frequently may promote knowledge construction in online discussions.

Using Blended Learning: Evidence-Based Practices

This book discusses evidence-based practices related to the use of blended learning in both K-12 and higher education settings. Specifically,this book features evidence-based practices in relation to the following five learning goals: (a) Fostering students attitude change toward country, (b) Helping students solve ill-structured design task problems, (c) Improving students critical thinking in assessing sources of information, (d) Improving students narrative and argumentative writing abilities and (e) Enhancing students knowledge retention and understanding. To achieve this aim,the authorsdraw upontheir own research studies as well as some other relevant studies to revealthe pedagogical approaches, the specific instructional/learning activities, the technologies utilizedand the overallframeworkfor developingblended learning experiences.

Improving Social Studies Students’ Critical Thinking

The ability to think critically along with an awareness of local and global issues have been identified as important competencies that could benefit students as they journey through life in the 21st century (Voogt and Roblin 2012). Social studies, as a subject discipline, could serve as a conducive environment for the development of such competencies because it not only aims to equip students with information about important social-cultural issues within and without a country but also to inculcate critical thinking ability whereby students review, analyze, and make appropriate judgments based on particular evidences or ideas presented. This chapter reports a study that examines the effect of using blended learning approaches on social studies students’ critical thinking. This study relied on objective measurements of students’ critical thinking such as their actual performance scores, rather than students’ self-report data of their critical thinking levels. It employed a one-group pre- and post-test research design to examine the impact of a Socratic question-blogcast model on grade 10 students’ ability to critically evaluate controversial social studies issues. A paired-samples t-test was conducted to determine the potential critical thinking gain using a validated rubric. There was a significant difference in critical thinking between pre-intervention (M = 2.33 SD = 1.240) and post-intervention (M = 3.19 SD = 1.388), t(26) = −3.690, p < 0.001, with an effect size of 0.67. We also reported students’ perceptions of the Socratic question-blogcast blended learning approach to provide additional qualitative insights into how the approach was particularly helpful to the students.

Designing and Implementing e-Learning Courses: A Comparative Analysis of Policy Guidelines from Nine Professional Organizations

 Abstract—Many universities around the world are utilizing or planning to utilize e-learning formats in their programs to reduce the average per-student cost. Although cost-saving is very much desired, many institutions are also concerned about the quality of their e-learning courses. This study aims to synthesize the literature about the various policy guidelines to help faculty design and implement e-learning courses. Documents from nine professional organizations were analyzed. These documents were carefully screened to identify the main themes and corresponding sub-themes. We then describe the similarities and differences among these documents. We found a large extent of agreement among the documents on 11 key areas that should be considered in order to maximize the success of an e-learning course. However, the documents were vague in providing concrete suggestions regarding areas such as how to promote student-student interaction, online discussion group size, and review of e-learning courses. We found three major disagreements among the various documents with regard to: addressing various student learning style, requirement for student online collaboration, and reward for faculty who use e-learning. Finally, we suggest several strategies that could help overcome the fuzziness related to maximizing student-student interaction, and the review of e-learning courses.

Examining students’ affective commitment toward country: a case study of a Singapore primary school

The purpose of this study was to examine students’ affective commitment toward Singapore. Affective commitment refers to the sense of attachment to the nation state. The sample was taken from 286 students in a primary school. In the first section of the paper, we described the design of a Likert-type Affective Commitment to Country questionnaire. Factor analyses (principal component analysis and confirmatory factor analysis) showed evidence of construct validity for the 10-item scale, and an overall Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient of 0.91. In the second section, we reported the statistics related to the students’ affective commitment scores. Overall, a positive affective commitment toward the country was found. Results of our t-test analyses revealed that no statistically significant difference was found between boys and girls for each of the questionnaire items. However, students who had higher academic achievement reported significantly higher scores than their lower ability counterparts with regard to six items of the questionnaire. Suggestions for future research are discussed.

Future Research Directions for Blended Learning Research: A Programmatic Construct

In this chapter, we develop a programmatic research construct for blended learning based on an earlier framework proposed by Meyen et al. (J Special Educ Technol, 17(3):37–46, 2002). The use of this programmatic research construct will not only inform researchers of future possible research related to studying learner outcomes, but also expand the scope of blended learning research to other dimensions that are hitherto not yet investigated. This research construct consists of three categories of variables—independent variables, in situ variables, and dependent variables. Independent variables include variables such as the level or type of interaction, pedagogical approach, media attributes, and human computer interface design elements. In situ variables may be considered variables that are situated in the existing blended learning environment. They may include variables such as learner attributes, instructor attributes, learning environments, nature of content, and technology infrastructure. Dependent variables are the various outcomes that a researcher may measure in an experiment. They include variables such as learner outcomes, policy implications, and economic implications. In this final chapter, we will describe each of these variables and then propose several possible research questions to illustrate how the programmatic research construct for blended learning could be utilized in practice.

Going Beyond Face-to-Face Classrooms: Examining Student Motivation to Participate in Online Discussions through a Self-Determination Theory Perspective

Current trends in education favor the use of collaborative learning environments. Social technologies such as an asynchronous online discussion board (AOD) enable students to communicate without time or place constraints. Unlike many past studies that merely focused in student posting, this study examines what motivates graduate students to log in, read and post in an online discussion board. The Self-Determination Theory (SDT) was used as a theoretical framework to investigate the various motivators. Results suggest that students’ motivation to log in, read and make a posting shifts from one that is more externally regulated to one that is more integrated regulated. In addition, the availability of time and accessibility to the internet influenced students’ motivation to log in to the AOD. Factors such as AOD design influence their motivation to read the discussion postings. Insofar as making a posting is concerned, results suggest that students’ decision to make a posting in an AOD was largely found to be identified or integration regulated.