Fostering Communication through e-Communities : Fostering Communication through e-Communities Judy Campf
jcampf@bcps.org
Jodi O’Neill
joneill@bcps.org
What is an e-Community? : What is an e-Community?
Benefits and Challenges : Benefits and Challenges Benefits
Available 24/7
Reflection
Asynchronous
Electronic resources
Efficient collaboration
Everyone has a voice! Challenges
Sustaining interest
Maintenance
Promoting involvement
Time
Technology skills/comfort
Administrative support
Collaborative Tools : Collaborative Tools Asynchronous Discussions
Synchronous Chats
Webinars
Blogs
Wikis
Digital Lockers
Podcasts
Preparing Your e-Community : Preparing Your e-Community Shared Vision and Goals
Purpose
LMS and Collaborative Tools
Timeline
Shared Vision and Goals : Shared Vision and Goals Everyone deserves a voice!
Common roles, issues, problems
Purpose : Purpose Enhance and Enrich Communication
Learning Management System Options : Learning Management System Options Based on system availability
Cost limitations
Usage restrictions Blackboard Desire2Learn Moodle Angel Edu 2.0 SharePoint 3.0 Collective X
Collaboration Tools : Collaboration Tools Asynchronous Discussions
Book Study
Best Practices
Questions, Comments, Support
Synchronous Webinars
Pager / Instant Messaging
Email – Internal and External
News
Asynchronous Discussion : Asynchronous Discussion Content
Related
Discussion
Asynchronous Discussion : Asynchronous Discussion General Questions & Comments Technical Support Cyber Cafe
Synchronous Webinars : Synchronous Webinars
Pager : Pager Pager
Allows you
to see
who’s
online
Allows you
to contact
individual
participants
(or any number
of participants
simultaneously)
Emails : Emails To publicly
recognize
user participation
To provide
reminders
about activities
To provide the
link for accessing
the e-Community
site
News Page : News Page e-Community
Homepage
Timeline : Timeline Identify each of the following:
Need, purpose, and audience
LMS tools
Expectations
Incentives
Time commitment
Co-facilitator
Professional Development
Pedagogy
Tools
The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community : The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community
Set clear goals for the community. Establish and communicate benchmarks for attaining the goals.
Inform members of your participation expectations and provide feedback on their participation.. What is your role?
Orientation for Participants Training Participants : Orientation for Participants Training Participants Face-to-face vs. online
Scavenger hunt vs. guided tasks
Strong emphasis on expectations
The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community : The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community
Work cooperatively with participants to determine the direction of the community.
Actively seek leaders who show promise for co-facilitation responsibilities.
Celebrating collaborative efforts
The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community : The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community
Be accessible but not overbearing.
Remember that your participants will need gentle reminders to return to the site so they can collaborate with others
The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community : The Facilitator’s Role in an e-Community
Consider how you are a role model for effective use of collaboration.
Learn with and from your participants.
Everyone has an Online Voice! : Everyone has an Online Voice! Encourage passive observers to become actively involved
Think about learning preferences
Asynchronous communication allows everyone to contribute at their own pace
Allow anonymous postings
Some may need an extra nudge
Others may monopolize discussions.
What can you do with this statistical information? : What can you do with this statistical information? Review the numbers!
Does the data accurately reflect the current number of participants in your community?
Does the number of logins match your goal for participation?
How can this information assist you in meeting your community goals? : How can this information assist you in meeting your community goals?
Take time to reflect and analyze!
Have you looked through the list of participants who logged in during this timeframe?
Surveying the Group : Surveying the Group
Survey Results : Survey Results
What is an e-Community? : What is an e-Community? An e-Community is a _________ environment allowing participants to exchange _______, share __________ and _______________, and provide ________ to one another. VIBRANT IDEAS SUCCESSES SUPPORT CHALLENGES
Next Steps : Next Steps Think about where you are
right now.
Think about where you
want to go.
How can you get there?