Building a Professional Learning Community in an Online Linguistics

Live Online Session: Sunday February 7, 2010 10 AM (EST) : Live Online Session: Sunday February 7, 2010 10 AM (EST) Building a Professional Learning Community in an Online Linguistics Course: How to Learn Together and Share Knowledge Using Moodle Presenter: Christel Broady, PH.D.

What Will Be Discussed Today : What Will Be Discussed Today

Theory : Theory You can find theory “blurbs” within the presentation in support of my talking points. They can be easily recognized by the different slide design.

Introduction : Introduction Learning by Building Community of Specialists with Shared Accountability Who Are the Participants? Teachers in the field seeking additional certification in ESL Adults Family Members with babysitting needs Have time constraints Motivated to learn Technological literacy varies from novice to advanced

Logistics of Institution and Program : Logistics of Institution and Program Institution Small rural liberal arts college Moodle Basic version, ability to accommodate larger data files limited Tech Support Problems due to transition between providers Program ESL online program housed in graduate education 5 courses online Participants must pass rigorous Praxis (State test) in order to get certified One on campus face to face meeting at the beginning of semester

Limitations : Limitations Institution Rural location, takes time to reach by car E-mail system does use e-mail addresses that students do not know about. Effect: E-mails never reach recipients. Tech Support Spotty and not reliable Moodle Not sufficient data capacity for course Participants They get out of the course what they put in. There are always slackers who need to be motivated to change for the sake of all others in the course. Often, they do not want to admit to not understanding something or having technological problems.

The Course : The Course Linguistics is the last course before students are supposed to take the Praxis exam. It covers many concepts, theories, and materials. Also, students need to learn how to analyze language speaking and writing samples for the sake of improving K-12 student learning (K-12=school years Kindergarten to grade 12) Find additional materials in the presentation batch: Syllabus Major Assessment Miscellaneous others

Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? : Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? To create a professional learning community, focus on learning rather than teaching, work collaboratively, and hold yourself accountable for results.

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities When does it begin? Before the course starts: Preparation needs to be meticulous before students populate the course All possible materials need to be available on moodle not just about the class but also about academic program, state exams, etc. Problems need to be anticipated and avoided Communication needs to be planned Contacts need to be made to show students that professor cares Advising meetings E-mails Snail mails

Professional Learning Communities: What Are They And Why Are They Important? Change, Vol. 6, No. 1 : Professional Learning Communities: What Are They And Why Are They Important? Change, Vol. 6, No. 1 Attributes of Professional Learning Communities Supportive and shared leadership, Collective creativity, Shared values and vision, Supportive conditions, and Shared personal practice.

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities Building Trust Since most class interaction is online, trust need to be established to allow participants to acknowledge weaknesses and need to assistance Also, participants can only work as a collaborative team if they all trust each other’s motivation to contribute to the learning in class

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities Personal Meeting On Campus Meeting to get to know each other Putting participants in teams and groups for the semester Nice room and environment Demo of technology Discussion of syllabus and Professional Learning Community concept Food and drinks, always a good ingredient to build community

Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? : Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? Big Idea #1: Ensuring That Students Learn • What do we want each student to learn? • How will we know when each student has learned it? • How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty in learning?

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities The first Week Learn about the course, policies, assessments, moodle, etc. Reward activities with points for each activity to build accountability from day one No online discussions yet Getting ready for the real semester work

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities Each Following Week Important: Follow same procedure each week to afford students security Grade each week and post grades Have a student leader each week Students can prepare for deadlines each week Students should have an ungraded forum for personal interaction beyond class

Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? : Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? The Characteristic of Feedback: Timely. The school quickly identifies students who need additional time and support. • Based on intervention rather than remediation. The plan provides students with help as soon as they experience difficulty rather than relying on summer school, retention, and remedial courses. • Directive. Instead of inviting students to seek additional help, the systematic plan requires students to devote extra time and receive additional assistance until they have mastered the necessary concepts.

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities Accountability Students get graded weekly with opportunity to improve previous bad grades for class paper (not discussions) Students facilitate weekly discussions, present a summary of readings, and guide overall class discussions Students post drafts of their major papers for to the class for feedback from others Teams grade each other’s performance

Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? : Richard DuFour What Is a “Professional Learning Community”? Big Idea #2: A Culture of Collaboration Big Idea #3: A Focus on Results

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities Leadership Students need to learn everything required about moodle, course, program, and linguistic objectives Students need to lead in their teams and groups Students lead entire class for one week Students need to honor itinarary

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities Each Person is Important and Will Impact the Class Each person will have to be accountable for their learning and that of others in class Therefore, they are con-constructors of knowledge and deserve highest respect They need to be seen as person in addition to their role as students There is a forum for personal messages in each week Students can share about their life to let others know that they are facing adverse conditions that may impact their learning. Sharing in this aspect of student life creates more trust and feeling of community

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities Sharing Every Step of the Way Students share their struggles and successes They share questions about technology and the class to get help from each other. This elevates the assisting class members and shows the others that students can achieve great literacy in technology (Students providing assistance receive extra credit) Students share their papers. They do not protect them as secret. Instead, they provide feedback to each other and learn from each others research.

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities The Role of Instant Feedback Students need to focus on learning and constructing knowledge. Therefore, they need immediate feedback to see if they are on the right path. In case of low performance, precise feedback needs to be provided so that the students feels that she is in control of her learning

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities The Role of the Professor The professor establishes what needs to be learned by when The professor creates the environment in which learning will be possible to occur The professor provides resources that support learning The professor will always know how well all participants are doing.

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities The Role of the Professor The professor does not provide the actual learning The professor cannot control the intake of learning The professor cannot be responsible for student papers The professor does not give grades, students earn them

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities The Role of the Student Students need to have a willingness to learn Students need to be willing to utilize all resources Students need to be willing to collaborate with each other Students need to be willing to convert constructive criticism in change and higher learning Students need to accept that professors are not responsible for their learning

Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities : Opportunities: Building Professional Learning Communities The End Product Students need to all “pull their weight” to create a product that will benefit the entire group They must keep all deadlines They must be willing to edit the draft several times until they will have reached their best

What Students Did in the Course : What Students Did in the Course Major Course Assessment Different heritage language to collect a data base of samples for linguistic analysis E-book Utilized Technology Podcasts E-documents Word Processing Excel Skype Digital Recording Conversion from paper to e-document Created a Professional Learning Community Shared responsibility for learning Provided feedback to and about each other

How They Build Community : How They Build Community In fist meeting potluck By e-mail By Skype Sharing personal issues Accepting feedback Asking questions of each other and answering them Building trust

How Well They Learned : How Well They Learned They learned everything they were supposed to learn Professor has data for this claim Students take praxis exam after class and pass it Students have professional skills

Lessons Learned: Why Community is so Important : Lessons Learned: Why Community is so Important Graduate students who have families and jobs cannot afford to spend much time on figuring things out. They need instant feedback and assistance. They want to feel in control and successful. They are motivated to learn and want to do well. After all, they spend much money on their training. They are also building professional relationships with others in their field since many lack professional contacts in their own work places. This is the case because they may be the only ESL teacher in their school. Therefore, establishing contacts with other teachers is vital.

Planned Changes in the Future : Planned Changes in the Future Provide more instruction on technical competencies by using Camtasia demonstrations Possibly meet with students with low tech literacy to provide an additional booster

Theory Background:Moving from Teaching to Learning : Theory Background:Moving from Teaching to Learning All Things PLC, All in One Place http://www.allthingsplc.info/ http://www.allthingsplc.info/about/aboutPLC.php

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Did We Cover Everything? : Did We Cover Everything?

Appendixes : Appendixes

How to Get in Touch : How to Get in Touch christel_broady@georgetowncollege.edu Info: CHRISTEL BROADY, Ph.D., a native of Germany, is an associate professor of graduate education at Georgetown College. She is also the director of the online ESL Endorsement program. She received her Ph.D. at the University of Nebraska where she wrote her dissertation on online teacher development. Online learning and teaching is a thread that runs through her professional life in many aspects of teaching, research, service, and advising. Christel is very interested in professional learning communities, global learning, and 21st century skills.