Written discussions and online discussions - Personal Statement Example

work] Written discussions and online discussions Reflection The articles read in preparation for the asynchronous discussions havehelped me a lot. I feel that I understand these articles better compared to how I prepared for regular oral discussions. It seems that in online discussions, there is the urgency to prepare because time is of the essence once the board opens. The sequencing of comments or reactions are ordered, so that when one is slow, one's comment is relegated below - a little farther away from the statement being reacted to or commented upon and the impact is lessened. Moreover, with online, everything is captured so that there is lesser tendency to be misunderstood. In the second written discussion, my involvement was in reading the comment on constructivist views of learning and weighing the contents of the post. Although I did not comment to it, my participation was intra-personal wherein I was weighing myself where I stood in the whole of things about skill and challenge and whether I was also getting bored; and if I was, how would I think in terms of rewards or promotions. I was also debating within myself about "enjoying if I reduced my skill" and when do I do that. I guess this means going down to the level of students, but not necessarily reducing my skill. The second point that came to my mind is how "the level of challenges would be increased for teachers." How is that going to happen By administration The post has greatly challenged my thinking. I would rate my involvement as 6. My degree of enjoyment would also be 6. The degree to which online discussion was useful to my learning is 7. Self-Analysis of Classroom Discussion Part 2: The Questionnaire Section 1: For the next questions, consider the ORAL in-class lectures/discussions: 1. What has been the role, if any, of oral discussion on your learning in this class In other words, how did you make use of what happened in class to help you understand course concepts I have been a thinker rather than a talker in most discussions. I don't like speaking in front of many people. I learn the content I learn in class while listening to others verbalizes their ideas. Sometime, it's not clear whether I understand certain content, but after listening to others' personalized examples, it becomes clear. 2. How would you describe your feelings about the oral, face-to-face discussions in terms of a. the degree of involvement (as defined as psychological engrossment or flow) you felt: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Not at all Medium Fully involved involved Explain: 4. In a face-to-face discussion, one does not have the urgency to talk. It seems that it is taken for granted since things are not recorded. Those who feel comfortable in speaking may speak. b. the degree of enjoyment you experienced 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Not at all Medium Very enjoyable enjoyable Explain: If there was a 4.5, my degree of enjoyment would be it. First, I cannot afford the face-to-face presence because of some concerns. Second, I don't very much like face-to-face set ups in conversing with other internationals where the language is not mine. c. the degree to which you felt the oral discussions contributed to your learning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Contributed Contributed Contributed not at all somewhat greatly Explain: The contribution to my learning of oral discussions is only on the level of 4, considering what I had presented earlier. I don't have the luxury of time, and I am not given to mixing in set-ups with oral concerns. Section 2: For the next questions, consider the WRITTEN (bulletin board) discussions: 3. I am interested first in having you describe how you read and understand the written comments. In particular, describe what you typically do in terms of reading comments in a Blackboard discussion. With written discussions, I open to them and read all, regardless of whether they are particularly addressed to me or not. I specially take note of the professor's comments as they may contain instructions. I re-read the posts again and again if I have the time, making sure I have not missed anything. I know that I can learn from them. With written discussions, I can read the thinking of all my classmates. 4. (a) To what degree do you feel listened to in the online discussion (b) What impact do you feel your comments have on the discussion I would be listened to as much as 6 because I can express myself better online. The impact of my comments too, may have a 6 as everyone can read the full text and take time to understand and answer them. 5. Are there some individuals in class whom you feel you know much better because of their online messages Are there individuals whose "personality" seems to be different online than the impression they give in class Explain. Yes, of course. Messages expressed serve as windows to one's soul and one can know people better through their communication. Yes, there are individuals whose personality seems to be different online from the impression they give in class. Beginning with me, I can talk better online than in person. Some people are like that. The reason for the preference redounds to personality. Some are better thinkers without having to face the public. If there is any difference, however, I do not think it would be much great. 6. Were there differences in terms of your involvement in, or response to, any of the three written discussions In other words, does one or another of the three stand out somehow either as being particularly difficult for you, or particularly engrossing The third written discussion is particularly engrossing as there is more participation or more speakers, therefore more inputs to the topic. The more diverse the thoughts, the more challenging to one's thinking. 7. What did you think about my role in particular in the written discussion Was I too responsive, not responsive enough Did you notice difference in how you reacted to or looked for my responses in the three discussions Do you have any recommendations about my role in the discussion In the third written discussion, the professor was too responsive - giving much information at one time and even followed it up with an added post. Therefore, his question on "loving" students who do average or below-average work gets buried in the process. It would take the students to read back and answer it. The following post is on the issue of minority. The attention is now shifted to this new topic he had introduced and has the effect of covering the comment placed before. 8. As you know, I think of the online discussion as equivalent to a face-to-face class meeting in terms of its value to students' understanding of the ideas I consider important in the course. Do you agree IS it as valuable as an oral meeting Yes, online discussions are equivalent to face-to-face class meetings and may be even more valuable than oral meetings. It is because of the added effect of visuals (One can read the messages) and the added effect of time (One can react a little late, arrange one's thoughts better, and can even edit what one has posted earlier for better effect). 9. How would you describe your current feelings about the written discussion in terms of a. the degree of involvement (as defined as psychological engrossment) you felt: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Not at all Medium Fully involved involved Explain: The nature of written discussions gives the added effect of being read so that although one does not comment or post, one can react to the message in the intra-personal mode. Materials that needed much thinking have this effect. I rate in this with 6. b. the degree of enjoyment you experienced 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Not at all Medium Very enjoyable enjoyable Explain: My degree of enjoyment is 6. Although the mode is not face-to-face, the expressions are enough for one to enjoy the experience. For one, online discussions are novel and exciting as words alone are able to maintain the exchange of ideas. c. the degree to which you felt the written discussions contributed to your learning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Contributed Contributed Contributed not at all somewhat greatly Explain: Contributed greatly. I even think it is better than the face-to-face which takes things for granted. No time is lost. 10. Think about the way your learning is taking place during this course. Estimate how much of your learning is coming from each of the following aspects of the class. Do this FIRST by rank-ordering the following five sources, and put the ranks in the left column. Then estimate the percentages that each source contributes to your overall learning and put that percentage in the column on the right. Note that the percentages should add up to 100%. RANK PERCENTAGE ____3_ a) assigned readings 10____ ____4_ b) instructor and student ORAL discussion in class 10____ ____1_ c) written discussion (on BlackBoard) 40____ ____2_ d) after class reading of written discussion 30____ ____5_ e) tests and learning project 10____ Read More