This issue includes details of project workshops, a UCSG workshop on Computer and Video Conference systems and a discussion about models for participation in CMC. Other issues in this series include Issue 1 and Issue 3.
The CMC in HE project is exploring the potential of using Computer-Mediated Communications to support more flexible patterns of teaching and learning.
The project is run by members of Lancaster University's CSALT* team with funding from British Telecom's University Development Awards. We are working with other departments and institutions across the Higher Education sector in the BT CMC-in-HE Project to help them establish good practice in the use of CMC to provide more flexible patterms of teaching and learning, and to widen access to HE resources to currently under-represented groups of learners.
We have been running a series of on-site, regional & national workshops to establish effctive ways of using CMC systems. We are currently preparing for several workshops in the near future. If you are interested in attending one of these events please contact the CMC in HE team. Alternatively you may be interested in a similar event for your institution. Either way, please contact us.
Contact information is given at the end of this Newsletter.
Institute of Education, University of London, 25th May 1995
This workshop is organised in collaboration with Harvey Mellar at the Institute of Education and Martin Rich of the City Business School, City University.
The workshop will include presentation of experiences at Lancaster University and discussion of the CMC in HE project. It will also include a presentation by Martin Rich, City Business School on use of the Internet.
This workshop is open primarily to people based at the Institute of Education and at City Business School. The workshop assumes prior experience of using CMC and is intended to explore more deeply the eduational implications of CMC, drawing upon participants' experiences and expertise.
University of Derby, 18 th May, 1995
Workshop to introduce the CMC in HE project and explore the potential of CMC for application in teaching at the University of Derby.
We will examine the pedagogical issues of using CMC for flexible teaching and learning support as well as exploring in a practical way at least one CMC system. The workshop will offer advice on some of the benefits that CMC might offer and include consideration of how CMC might be integrated into teaching programmes.
The workshop is free and all materials and software required for the workshop will be provided.
It is a practical hands-on workshop open to all staff at the University of Derby and requires no prior experience of CMC.
The workshop is organised in collaboration with Chris Unsworth, IT Manager, School of Art & Design, University of Derby.
University of Sussex, 28th June, 1995
Regional one-day workshop to introduce the CMC in HE project and explore the potential of CMC for flexible support of teaching and learning.
We will draw upon experience of using CMC at Lancaster University and examine the pedagogical issues of using CMC for flexible teaching and learning support. The workshop will also explore in a practical way at least one CMC system. The workshop will include consideration of how CMC might be integrated into teaching programmes and courses. We will critically assess some of the benefits that CMC can offer.
The workshop is free and all materials and software required for the workshop will be provided.
It is a practical hands-on workshop open to all interested staff at higher education institutions within travel of Brighton. The workshop requires no prior experience of CMC.
The workshop is organised in collaboration with Richard Inskip, Multimedia Teaching Centre at the University of Sussex.
More details of this workshop can be obtained by contacting the Lancaster CMC in HE team.
UCSG Workshop: Conference Systems, Lancaster University, 6-7 July 1995
The University & Colleges Software Group (UCSG) workshop on conference systems took place at Lancaster University, July 6-7th, 1995.
A number of advantages can be cited for introducing Computer-Mediated Communications (CMC) as part of a balanced pattern of educational provision.
CMC can be used in group-based discussions and learning activities. Students are given opportunities for reflection upon problems; the opportunity to share their experiences, their perspectives and confront misconceptions. CMC can promote critical rather than hostile competitive discussion.
Computer-supported team learning is a new yet cost effective way to foster the deeper processing of information which is characteristic of small, group-based activities.
Team-working skills can be promoted through the use of CMC. For example promoting the integration of subject specific skills with more generally applicable coordination and communication skills and using technology in the process.
Computer conferencing can encourage students to be active in the learning process. The medium has been found useful to encourage more assertive involvement in learning, particularly among certain classes of learners - traditionally under-represented, more apprehensive and passive learners.
It can also improve writing across the curriculum and can greatly improve editorial and logical skills.
Here we suggest some theoretical and practical models for the educational exploitation of CMC systems.
Query & Response
Much of the learning activity in higher education is centred around problems encountered by learners. As learners gain confidence, their queries are directed to other learners as well as to their tutors. Using a computer conferencing system, we can store these questions and the responses given in a permanent way. In this way, we are building a database of real concerns that learners encounter, the issues that they see as problematic. What we also gain in the computer-based environment is the reactions of others to these questions. A permanent record of differing perspectives and viewpoints.
This database of queries and responses becomes a valuable resource for learners to reflect upon, reuse and revisit. Many times the same problem will be met and learners can take action to solve their own problems, giving them confidence and control in their learning, creating a self-help network. This can give a ready solution to a student's problem and avoids the delay of waiting for (say) a tutor's response to a question.
The articulation of the query also encourages the development of writing skills and clear expression of the problem.
For learners who have difficulty getting on to campus to meet and engage with their peers, the flexibility of the CMC environment can provide valuable opportunities for interaction and peer support.
The database can also be made available to future students and be used as a teaching resource.
Electronic Seminar
The value of seminars and small-group teaching sessions are well known. Seminars support closer engagement with the subject matter that can enable the student to make personal sense and aid their deeper processing of information. Seminars provide the opportunity to clarify ambiguities, compare interpretations, offer alternative perspectives that aid the construction of logical and reasoned arguments.
Offered electronically, using computer conferencing, the seminar can transcend the boundaries of time and space, opening up opportunities to participate to people who are currently marginalised in higher education: eg. part-time learners, learners with economic or family constraints or caring responsibilities.
All learners are able to join in the discussions at times which suit them best, within agreed periods. It also means learners are given equal access to the focus of the discussion and all are equally able to contribute.
At Lancaster, we have noted the benefit to certain classes of learners from the electronic seminar. For example, we have found that learners with disability (such as hearing impairment) are not excluded from the discussion in the way that they can be in face-to-face sessions. Students whose first language is not English find the CMC environment is useful because they are given time to consider the textual communication and to consult other sources before response. The environment can also be supportive to students who lack confidence to speak in traditional seminars.
Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning
To enable collaborative learning we need to establish conditions whereby a learner can articulate, share, debate and refine their understanding of a problem, leading to an internalisation of the reworked construct of that problem (see figure below illustrating the centrepetal cycle).
CMC allows flexible ways to support and sustain collaborative problem-based learning. Students are given time to work at their own pace, time to seek out solutions to a problem, to consult other resources and with the opportunity to inspect each others interpretations of the problem. This can encourage students to critically assess viewpoints they have taken for granted, reveal misconceptions and so aid the "deeper" processing of information.
For these reasons, CMC can be instrumental in promoting active engagement in the learning process.
The flexibility that CMC offers may also open up opportunities for team-working on learning projects. The modularisation of the curriculum has strained the opportunities for traditionally structured group-based learning projects. The problems are even more difficult for those with limited access to the campus. Yet we know there are benefits to be derived from group learning projects, not least in developing communication and coordination skills. Using CMC can provide the flexibility to make group-working possible under these conditions. We can support the development of group-based skills, using technology in the process. These are valued demonstrable skills in readiness for the workplace.
Electronic Learning Circle*
Through the use of computer-mediated communications it is now possible to link learners and tutors all over the world. This opens up exciting possibilities for international collaborations and sharing of different cultural perspectives in learning activities.
We have been exploring at Lancaster the possibility of establishing an international group of students sharing global resources available on the Internet and sharing in their discussions around those materials through a computer-based conferencing system.
We call these learning links "electronic learning circles".
For an individual learner, the circle offers several dimensions of learning support:
support from local tutors and other local learners
support from international tutors and international students
support from global services and from globally-held resources
* the term is adapted from Riel, M. (1993) Global education through learning circles. In L. Harasim (Ed) Global networks: computers and international communication. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
"Hybrid" Distance Learning Programme
The ALT (Advanced Learning Technology) programme at Lancaster Universty is a hybrid course designed to give effective support to distance learners. It is based around a set of modules, introductory face-to-face residential sessions and exchange of knowledge and experience between tutors and learners using computer-mediated communications.
The ALT programme aims to support the acquisition and development of skills needed to deisgn, implement, use and evaluate IT-based learning materials. It is a modular part-time programme for professional development and our learners join the programme to update specific skills, extend their experience and to gain a qualification (MSc in Information Technology & Learning).
Each module in the programe begins with a 24 hour residential session. The residentials are important for introducing the central concerns of that module and provide an opportunity to bring in experts to present their personal views. The residentials are important too for face-to-face discussions and for the social development of the group.
The residential is followed by a 12 week period of home/work-based independent study. We provide a pack of materials for independent study, consisting of readings, some audio-visual resources and our own guide for working with these materials.
The core of the learner's activity is based around a practical assignment task. Our learners negotiate an appropriate task with the module tutor that will fit with the needs of the module, their own learning needs and those of their organisation.
Using CMC for tutorial discussion and learner interaction, the individual learner is given "full control" over the timing of their study within the 12 week period. This means they can blend their learning around their work and fit their learning to their other commitments.
Using CMC we can develop resources around our learner's queries and discussions. We can remediate and easily update our materials in the electronic discussion space. We can encourage learner collaboration and the sharing of professional concerns and expertise.
CMC in HE Advice Centre
The CMC in HE Advice Centre is an online network organised to:
The advice centre is available to all who are interested in discussing these issues and sharing their experiences. It's also a good introduction to using CMC at first hand and in a simple way.
If you would like to join and use the Advice Centre send an email message to the Lancaster team:
Mark Bryson, m.bryson@lancaster.ac.uk
If you are interested in the CMC in HE project, would like more information, have some questions to ask, or would just like to be kept informed of the progress of the project please contact:
Christine Steeples