Musings on the topics of social capital and online community…

After reading the required articles this week, I have to admit, I’m exhausted! However, I did learn a few things, and it is these that I will share here.

With regards to social capital, I have to echo Terrilyn’s initial confusion about the term. It frustrates me when scholars fail to define the keystones of their articles…luckily, Imel and Stein (2003) do eventually get to what I see as a useful operational definition of social capital, which “includes the knowledge and networking resources that reside in and are available for a community to use toward the common good,” (p. 117). Now, this operational definition has two key components that I will attend to: knowledge and networks. As an instructor, I believe my job is to help my students become aware of (1) the knowledge they already possess and (2) the networks to which they have access.

(1) One of the assignments I currently offer in my f2f courses requires students to share an aspect of their self-concept (aka “identity” or “culture”) with the rest of the class through an oral presentation. This assignment encourages students to examine one aspect of their current store of knowledge. It also promotes “critical reflection, dialogue, and life values,” (Imel & Stein, 2003, p. 118). Specifically, critical reflection is engaged in as students delve into not only what they know, but how they know it. Dialogue occurs through the discussion session following each presentation, but often carries on outside of the classroom as well. Finally, life values are actually called into question, as students’ current constructions of the world are challenged by the diverse experiences of their classmates. In addition, this assignment helps to build classroom community, largely through what Rovail (2002) refers to as spirit, which includes “feelings of friendship, cohesion, and bonding,” (p. 4). Since students start to encounter each other on a deeper level, many of the barriers to intra-classroom communication are torn down.

(2) Another responsibility I claim as my own in my f2f courses centers on helping my students understand the resources and networks available to them as community college students. I think many times students have no idea as to the extent of the services instituted at the college level for their exclusive benefit, including library access (books and databases), health care access, counseling, tutoring, etc. I try and help students explore these opportunities through various assignments, including in-class library orientations.

As I transfer my courses from the traditional college classroom to the online environment, I think my duty is less about developing social capital and more about adapting my current attention to it to the online environment. A few ideas I thought about while reading these articles include taking advantage of blogs as a reflective journal, as mentioned by Williams and Jacobs (2004). I could likely retain the function of the self-concept speech (especially building community spirit) if this assignment was transferred from being orally delivered to a blog entry. This would also keep the dialogue aspect in place as well. In addition, I could continue my focus on helping students recognize their available networks by including assignments in which they need to learn how to navigate the library website or other resources of that nature.

Moving on to a discussion of online community, I believe this can best be examined by attending to each of the positive correlates mentioned by Rovai (2002) in turn.

(1) Transactional distance – Since transactional distance is “a function of structure and dialogue” (Rovai, 2002, p. 7), I believe my goal as an online instructor should be striking an effective balance between structure and dialogue. I see my job as that of a facilitator, and I understand my students as responsible for their own part in the coursework. Thus, I should not be a hand-holder, but should be an encourager.

(2) Social presence – Here again, my role as a facilitator (not dictator) is vital in order to show my active involvement in the course while making sure not to dominate discussions/learning/community building.

(3) Social equality –It is vital that instructors deal with disruptive and dominant personalities in a timely and sensitive manner in the f2f classroom, and so too should it be in the online classroom. Since it is so easy for one “sour apple” to spoil an otherwise safe and encouraging environment, attention and a quick response on the part of the instructor is necessary here. In addition, I do like Rovai’s advice to begin the course with an introductory exercise. I do this in my f2f classes on the very first day, and it seems to break the ice (the point, of course) but also encourage further dialogue between students from the very start.

(4) Small group activities – I have to admit, I had no idea (until reading this article) how important group work is to student retention and success in the online classroom. Looking back at the online classes I took, I was never placed in a small group to do work. The only reason I excelled in those classes was because I was (and am) intensely self-motivated. For students without this penchant, I bet getting through those classes was a challenge, if not virtually impossible. After the experience in this course, I know I will actively engage my students in group work early on in my online course. I also like Rovai’s recommendation to have a mix of individual assignments and group ones (also exemplified in this course).

(5) Group facilitation – I actually went over task roles and maintenance roles in my group communication class last week, but I have to admit that I never thought about my job as an instructor as one which mixes these roles as well. Of course this makes sense; not only do I create and facilitate assignments, but I also serve as an encourager, an observer, and, in the case of conflict, a harmonizer.

(6) Teaching style and learning stage – I must admit I am a bit confused about this correlate. If effective teaching “(a) matches the student’s stage of self-direction, and (b) it empowers the student to progress toward greater self-direction” (Rovai, 2002, p. 10), how do I do this? I mean, how can I attend to each individual student’s current stage and also help spur them on towards a higher one? Any advice, ideas, etc. here would be useful.

(7) Community size – This correlate is actually extremely timely and useful right now. My first online course starts this June, and my supervisor told me this week that the course is currently set at a maximum of 60 students. Both she and I thought this was a bit excessive, but were unsure if 60 students in the online environment was workable (it is not in the classroom environment for this specific subject, interpersonal communication). We decided the other day to reduce the maximum amount of students to 30, which follows Rovai’s advice.

References:

Imel, S. & Stein, D. (2003). Creating self-awareness of learning that occurs in community. Paper presented at the Midwest Research to Practice Conference in Adult, Continuing, and Community Education, Columbus, OH.

Rovai, A. (2002). Building sense of community at a distance. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 3(1), 1 - 16.

Williams, J. B. & Jacobs, J. (2004). Exploring the use of blogs as learning spaces in the higher education sector. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 20(2), 232-247.