Using WebCT to Support a Community of Practice

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Using WebCT to Support a Community of Practice

• Geoffrey Roulet Krista Taylor
• with the assistance of
• Karen Burkett Elaine Van Melle
• Queen's University, Faculty of Education
• funded by
• e-Learning Incentive Grant Program

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Graduates are expected to integrate theoretical,
practical, and experiential knowledge in the
understanding and resolution of professional
issues.

• Mission Statement
• Queen's University, Faculty of Education

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Program PatternOn-Campus Practicum Sessions
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Program PatternOn-Campus Practicum Sessions

• reflects teaching as both an intellectual and
  practical activity
• But
• Practicum is the dominant influence for Teacher
  Candidates.
• Practicum focus is on performing well on "the
  practical".
• Teacher Candidates are school successes and are
  generally comfortable with schools as they exist.
• Reluctance to raise deep questions about teaching
  and learning.

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Sharing Reflection

• need to tell stories -
• make meaning of experience
• journaling - delayed sharing
• electronic communication - timely sharing

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CURR343B Intermediate-Senior Mathematics
Curriculum 2004-05Assignment 2Participation
in Online Practicum Discussions OR Practicum
Journal

• Teaching practice by itself does not
  automatically lead to becoming and improving as a
  professional. One needs to reflect on practice
  addressing questions such as What did the class
  accomplish?, What worked well?, What did not work
  well?, What reasons might there be for the
  outcomes?, What changes might you make in the
  lesson?, and What general teaching/learning
  principles might be drawn for the experience?.
  Working alone, a teacher can ask and answer these
  questions, but there is great value in discussing
  such issues with fellow professionals.
  Assignment 2 asks you to reflect on your
  practicum experience in one of two ways.
• Option A Participation in Online Practicum
  Discussions
• Candidates selecting this option will log into
  the course WebCT site at least twice each week
  during the Fall Practicum. On each visit you
  will i) post a note that describes a teaching
  event that you wish to explore, pose some
  questions, and give your initial answers or
  reactions, and ii) read and respond to the
  messages posted by other candidates. You may not
  relate to all the experiences and issues being
  raised, so a response to all messages is not
  required. But, you should select and join the
  discussions concerning a range of experiences and
  concerns.
• In addition to providing a forum for professional
  growth you should find that these Practicum
  conversations give class members mutual emotional
  support and also allow the sharing of practical
  teaching suggestions.
• Option B Practicum Journal
• Candidates selecting this option will keep a
  journal during their Practicum weeks. In the
  journal you will briefly describe events
  highlighting those that you wish to explore. For
  these experiences you will record your reactions
  and interpretations, the issues and questions
  raised, and what you learned. Journals will be
  submitted electronically or by mail in the week
  after the Practicum is completed (Dec 18 -24).
  Prior to submission you will have the option of
  removing any journal sections that you do not
  wish to have read.
• Due to the lack of professional interaction,
  Option B is likely to be of less value to
  candidates than Option A. All class members are
  encouraged to locate some means of accessing the
  Web and joining the Practicum Discussions.

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CURR343B Intermediate-Senior Mathematics
Curriculum 2004-05Assignment 2Participation
in Online Practicum Discussions OR Practicum
Journal

• Teaching practice by itself does not
  automatically lead to becoming and improving as a
  professional. One needs to reflect on practice
  addressing questions such as What did the class
  accomplish?, What worked well?, What did not work
  well?, What reasons might there be for the
  outcomes?, What changes might you make in the
  lesson?, and What general teaching/learning
  principles might be drawn for the experience?.
  Working alone, a teacher can ask and answer these
  questions, but there is great value in discussing
  such issues with fellow professionals.
  Assignment 2 asks you to reflect on your
  practicum experience in one of two ways.
• Option A Participation in Online Practicum
  Discussions 23
• Candidates selecting this option will log into
  the course WebCT site at least twice each week
  during the Fall Practicum. On each visit you
  will i) post a note that describes a teaching
  event that you wish to explore, pose some
  questions, and give your initial answers or
  reactions, and ii) read and respond to the
  messages posted by other candidates. You may not
  relate to all the experiences and issues being
  raised, so a response to all messages is not
  required. But, you should select and join the
  discussions concerning a range of experiences and
  concerns.
• In addition to providing a forum for professional
  growth you should find that these Practicum
  conversations give class members mutual emotional
  support and also allow the sharing of practical
  teaching suggestions.
• Option B Practicum Journal 5
• Candidates selecting this option will keep a
  journal during their Practicum weeks. In the
  journal you will briefly describe events
  highlighting those that you wish to explore. For
  these experiences you will record your reactions
  and interpretations, the issues and questions
  raised, and what you learned. Journals will be
  submitted electronically or by mail in the week
  after the Practicum is completed (Dec 18 -24).
  Prior to submission you will have the option of
  removing any journal sections that you do not
  wish to have read.
• Due to the lack of professional interaction,
  Option B is likely to be of less value to
  candidates than Option A. All class members are
  encouraged to locate some means of accessing the
  Web and joining the Practicum Discussions.

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WebCT

• extensive experience
• B.A./B.Sc. at Queen's
• B.Ed. courses
• CURR343 Intermediate-Senior
• Mathematics Curriculum

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Experience Data

• frequency of participation
• Questionnaire - 26/28
• why conference or journal
• positives negatives of the conference
  experience
• links to on-campus experience
• Interviews - 5 - range of participation
• comfort levels with sharing
• community building

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Frequency of ParticipationVisits with Posting
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Frequency of ParticipationVisits Messages
Posted
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Frequency of ParticipationHighly Activity
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Frequency of ParticipationHigh Low Activity
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Frequency of ParticipationHigh, Low Typical
Activity
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Participation

• 70 visited conference 2 or more times per week
  (the requested frequency)
• 50 posted messages 2 or more times per week (the
  requested frequency)
• 60 desired to access the conference with greater
  frequency
• Lack of time the main deterrent

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Ease of WebCT Conferencing

• 95 found WebCT conferencing easy
• 95 used the reply option to respond to messages
• 85 found following discussion threads easy
• 75 employed the 'following threads' feature when
  reading
• 90 used the WebCT editor rather than a word
  processor for composing messages

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Conference Value

• 85 reported value
• classroom based practical topics classroom
  management, resources, success/failure of lessons
• 65 received valuable advice
• 70 reported increased reflection
• 40 found conference useful for linking on-campus
  activity to the practicum
• 75 would participate even if not a course
  assignment

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Comfort Community

• 85 comfortable sharing teaching dilemmas
• 85 comfortable with receiving critiques
• 100 comfortable with instructor/TA participation
• 75 appreciated the anonymous posting option
• 80 experienced positive support
• 70 increased sense of community

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Journal (Non-conference) Option - Why?

• Not due to lack of computer expertise or Internet
  access
• Not due to lack of interest in others'
  experiences
• Previous negative computer conferencing
  experiences
• Value of journaling
• Shy/prefer to work alone

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Interviews Mixed Messages

• too many postings, too much chatter
• long unfocused messages
• do not have mandatory posting
• in-class preparation - rules for conferencing
• use pre-established topics discussion areas
• greater moderator rule by instructor
• no anonymous posting

• "great, and useful, and wonderful"
• make conference mandatory
• no problems with number and length of messages -
  selective reading
• got to know people in the class
• no need for in-class preparation - professional
  standards were fine
• do not use pre-established topics - "We crafted
  it as we went along"
• permit anonymous posting

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?Next Year?

• continue with online conference for all
• mandatory visits/voluntary posting
• pre-conference discussion re best practices for
  conferencing
• establish separate discussion areas when distinct
  continuing themes emerge
• increased instructor participation - probing
  questions to deepen discussion