The interface design - This facilitates communication. If people have a hard time using it, they will tend to cut back on their communication efforts.
Training of faculty and staff - No technology can replace proper netiquette.
Cost - If an institution cannot afford to maintain the tools, they will not work correctly and this will frustrate everyone. This frustration will be carried over into communication and the entire communication structure will suffer.
I would consider whether the tool provides clear easy communication with the students. I would want to ensure it was a safe tool and that privacy is maintained. I would consider the cost of using the tool or whether students would have to purchase extra supplies to utilize the tool. If there were less expense tools I would probably go that route. The most important thing to consider is the communication itself. The tool must enhance communication.
Aida,
I agree that understanding the use of a tool is key. Instructions and practice time for using the tool is going to be important for students and faculty. There is nothing worse than opening up a teleconference only to wait for 10 minutes while the presenters figure out how to use the system.
Lois
James,
You got a lot of "Cs" in this post that hits the nail on the head. Cost, communication, content, etc. thanks for contributing.
James,
We do not want the frustration to win. That is for sure. Keep up the communication and help students improve and we will reach our goals.
Thanks.
Lois,
Communication and cost have come up in a lot of postings. I think you are all thinking on the same wave length. We must have had issues with these things before. ;-)
Thanks.
Lois and Aida,
Ah - this is the frustration we feel many times with technology. We have to keep the frustration to a minimum so people will continue to use the technology and succeed. Thanks for your input.
Not only is social networking sites like facebook banned for many instructors, students may also have an issue in logging in because a lot of workplaces have also banned the social networking sites from their internal internet as well. A lot of our students log in to their classes while they are at their place of employment.
Julie,
Interesting that it is booked for instructors. I must have much more availability at my institution. Thanks for your input.
Cost effective - If it's too expensive students will not use it.
Easy to use - Some of my student are older and are not very technology inclined. They tend to shy away from things are difficult to understand.
Accessible - If it difficult for them to access they may give up before they even start.
Timothy,
Good points. We do need to be aware of the cost and the function of what we are using. If the students cannot or don't use something we need them to use to succeed, they won't succeed. Thanks.
The ability of the students to use the computer effectively. Make sure there is ease of use and be sure to give feedback in a timely fashion. The communication must be civil and constructive to the topic at hand.
Three most important things to assess the use of technology communication tools in a virtual learning environment are:
1. Avoid the use of unnecessary excessive scrolling. It is extremely annoying to have most of the monitor’s real estate taken up by useless text.
2. Use black color font, not grey which is extremely difficult to read.
3. Make printing things easy, accessible and on ONE page if possible.
Patricia,
Excellent suggestions. Thanks for your input and helping others as they read the posting in this forum.
Nice job.
In my experience three important things to consider are accessibility; timeliness and outcomes. Inability to access the dropbox or site established from which to communicate is counterproductive and frustrating. Students will use tools that are friendly and result in the outcomes they are looking for - specifically, feedback. Providing consistent, timely communication opportunities between student and teacher is value added and enhances the learning environment. Finally using tools that help students successfully complete course requirements will add the to learning experience for all the students.
francis,
You have explained this concept very well. Thanks for the effective communication in this forum and keep it up in your online classroom.
Thanks!
Lynn ,
You have provided a good list of things to consider in the online environment. The consistency you talk about is equally important as the accessibility, timeliness and the learning outcomes. Thanks for your input.
Dr. Crews you and I appear to be on the same page when it comes to the phone. My experience with the phone is only at the end of a course and I haven't responded fast enough to a student's email request for an extension. Email, webinars, and Skype get great responses from students.
Terrence,
We all have varying opinions about communication, but I think a lot of it comes from experience.
Thanks for your input.
I think it is important to consider the students' technological ability, the usefulness/appropriateness of the tool in regards to the type of learning you are trying to assess, and the ease of use by the instructor.
For example, I've used online quiz tools that were very easy to use as well as grade and troubleshoot; I've also used tools that were difficult to troubleshoot, and it is frustrating when a student has a question about a quiz answer being automatically graded incorrectly and I can't figure out how to fix it!
