| Presenter: Dr. Michael O'Conner Assistant Professor of English and Academic Webmaster Millikin University, Decatur, Illinois Description: This session examines electronic communication in many of its varied forms and how these modes of communication can enhance teaching and learning in the typical classroom. Tips and tricks are provided to make sure that the faculty experience in enhancing communication focuses on working pedagogy and not technological trials and tribulations. Good communication inside and outside the classroom can often be enhanced with the tools of technology. Using these tools, faculty are often better able to communication with students and students are often better able to communicate with each other. Also, using technology, communication that once was limited almost exclusively to the walls of the classroom can now be shared with others. A sense of "audience" is greatly expanded. And good communication leads to good collaborative thinking and sharing among students. Such collaboration leads to the formation of learning communities, instead of isolated instances of learning. Asynchronus Communication and Collaboration (listservs and threaded discussions): One of the easiest and most common methods of educational collaboration is through the use of out-of-class electronic discussions. Below are ideas and tips that can help shape these types of assignments. Theory:
Asynchronus Document Sharing and Collaboration: Collaboration has become much easier recently due to telecommunications. Being able to share and edit created documents has become indispensable in collaborating in today's world.
Synchronus Communication and Collaboration: Real time collaboration is no longer as constrained by distance and location as it use to be. Some tools can bring people together at the same time no matter how far apart they are. Chat Rooms/Instant Messenging: Theory
Practice
Theory:
Blogs (or Web Logs) - the latest craze in electronic communication Theory: Practice:
Collaboration and Group Projects: Essentials in Higher Education.
The tools of technology now allow us to open up new avenues of communication and collaboration with students and between students more than ever before. Knowing best practices of collaborating through technology, such as setting up good "ground rules" of collaboration and group work with students ahead of time, along with being familiar with the major collaborative tools available to faculty, will enlarge the teaching options available to you as a well-rounded instructor. Collaboration with Technology links: Collaboration Overall:
Collaboration with Other Technologies in the Real World |
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