The Role of Netiquettes in Establishing Relationships in Virtual Learning Communities
In: International Journal of Language and Literary Studies Volume 1, Issue 2, 2019
In: International Journal of Language and Literary Studies Volume 1, Issue 2, 2019
SSRN
In: Advances in educational technologies and instructional design (AETID) book series
In: Premier reference source
This article provides an overview of Extension's Military Families Learning Network. The network is an example of Extension's commitment to building virtual learning networks in the support of targeted professional and lay audiences. The network uses well-established and emergent pedagogical approaches focusing on adult-centered learning while employing state-of-the-art online learning technologies. We present a four-dimensional model of learning activities to illustrate how the network offers different options for and approaches to adult-centered learning and training. The Military Families Learning Network can serve as a model for broader adoption of such entities across the Extension community.
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The issue of high school reform has received national attention during the first part of the 21st century. One idea brought forth in this restructuring effort has been the desire to create high schools with smaller student populations. However, in an era of tight budgets, where resources are not always available to build more schools, educators have explored the possibility of dividing existing large high schools into smaller units. This restructuring approach has many titles, but is frequently referred to as a Smaller Learning Community (SLC). Since 2000, the federal government has pledged $245 million to schools willing to create SLCs. This research has studied the schools in Florida that have received the federal implementation grant and have established SLCs. The 39 Florida high schools that were awarded the federal grant in 2000, 2001, and 2002 served as the population for this study. Twenty schools in the population completed a 45-item survey which measured implementation of five key SLC elements:(a) accountability, (b) autonomy, (c) identity, (d) instructional focus, and (e) personalization. Based on the survey results, an implementation score was determined for each participating school. Based on 5-point Likert scale (with a not applicable option) for the 35 questions that pertained to the five elements, a total score of 175 was the maximum amount possible. Individual responding school scores ranged from 104.7 - 157.1. The overall implementation score was also correlated with selected school indicators. Survey respondents also provided rationale for the implementation of SLCs and perceived benefits to students, teachers, and parents. In general, the survey respondents agreed that SLCs at their schools addressed the five key elements. The implementation scores and teacher comments, however, provided evidence that the levels of implementation of SLCs across the state varied in terms of the elements. Suggestions for future research and educational practices are provided ; 2005-05-01 ; Ed.D. ; Education, Department of Educational Research, Technology and Leadership ; Doctorate ; This record was generated from author submitted information.
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In: Academic leadership, Band 2, Heft 4
ISSN: 1533-7812
In: Bildungsgerechtigkeit., S. 49-64
In: Bildungsgerechtigkeit, S. 49-64
In: American behavioral scientist: ABS, Band 42, Heft 5, S. 892
ISSN: 0002-7642
In: Multicultural perspectives: an official publication of the National Association for Multicultural Education, Band 10, Heft 1, S. 30-34
ISSN: 1532-7892
Effective Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) contribute to the overall improvement of student learning when a system-wide, leadership-based approach from the district and school level is applied by aligning a common vision, goal, and purpose. Despite a government-led implementation of PLCs province-wide in New Brunswick schools over ten years ago, the efficacy of PLCs in one particular New Brunswick school district has demonstrated little evidence of effectiveness or improvement. A district leadership team employed an Internal District Instrument (IDI) survey to measure areas of strength and barriers as it relates to its PLC formation and growth. Additionally, the team collected pre and post perception survey data from twenty teachers (n=20) during a summer learning session on building and sustaining PLCs. IDI survey results indicated that the district leadership team was seeking help in the domain of professional growth and development and that teachers and administrators were finding PLCs to be ineffective, to lack direction, and to fail to meet teacher-learning needs.
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Abstract In 1985, professional learning community (PLC) pioneers, Shirley Hord, Richard DuFour and Robert Eaker undertook an exploration of the concept of teachers working in small groups or learning communities. Participants in these initial learning communities shared common experiences, ideas, practices, and developed strategies to address issues they faced in their work with students (Hord 1997; DuFour & Eaker 1998). This concept was supported by McLaughlin and Talbert (1993) when they suggested that, given the opportunity for collaborative inquiry, veteran teachers will share the wisdom they have gained through experience in a way that allows improved teaching practices for all involved. In 2000, Senge, Cambron-McCabe, Lucas, Smith, Dutton and Kleiner, reported that the, "learning organization approach to education" needs to be more than just talking and working in groups. It needs to involve everyone "…in expressing their aspirations, building their awareness and developing their capabilities together" (Senge et al., 2000, p. 5). Over time this learning community concept became known as the professional learning community, or PLC (Hord, 1997). DuFour & Eaker (1998), Lieberman and Pointer-Mace (2009), Darling-Hammond (1996) and Bryk and Schneider (2003), all contended that these professional learning communities have the capacity to transcend reform movements and result in continuous improvement in schools. Over time, many school districts and their leaders have modified the professional learning community concept. They have done so to such a degree that they may no longer achieve, fully, their originally desired or anticipated results. In July 2011, the Minnesota legislature passed House File No. 26 (HF 26), a revision of the statewide teacher evaluation system. This legislation brought about numerous changes to Minnesota Statute 122A.40, subd. 8. One of these changes was the promotion of PLCs in public schools. Even though much has been written about PLCs and their intended uses, limited research was found regarding whether or not PLCs are being implemented consistent with best practice, as identified in research, in the public schools of Minnesota. This study will examine the level to which the key characteristics of PLCs, as identified by DuFour, DuFour, Eaker and Many (2010) are being implemented in Minnesota public schools. It also identifies the barriers encountered by public school districts in implementing PLCs. The conceptual framework for this study was derived from the work of DuFour et al. (2010), in their book, Learning by Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work (2nd Ed). The purpose of the study is to examine professional learning communities in public schools in Minnesota using the characteristics identified by DuFour et al. (2010). While PLCs are now recommended in all public schools by Minnesota State Statute, there are no studies which examine whether or not these PLCs are being implemented effectively based on best practices described in research. This study attempts to determine if PLCs are in fact being implemented effectively, based on best practices described in research, by: describing and contrasting the characteristics of PLCs employed in public school districts in Minnesota, the districts' duration of use of PLCs, and district barriers teachers and administrators have encountered when implementing PLCs.
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The scientific community has provided a wide range of evidence that family and community involvement in schools benefits not only students' learning but also their surrounding community. The INCLUD-ED project has conducted case studies of successful schools around Europe that have strong community participation. Some of them are engaged in the Learning Communities project, an international project of educational and social transfonnation aimed at overcoming school failure. Through these case studies, INCLUD-ED has gone beyond the state of the art in the field and has provided a classification of types of family and community participation and identified forms of involvement that improve students' academic achievement. This article presents the benefits of those fonns of participation and focuses on some forms of commooity involvement in the Learning Communities that have been found to improve students' school learning and other education-related aspects, such as living together. ; peer-reviewed
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The work and collaborative learning of teachers are recognized, as fundamental factors in the professional development of teachers and in the quality of educational organizations. This text presents some results of a case study carried out in a Group of Schools in the north of Portugal staffed by 134 teachers of various educational levels by means of a qualitative and quantitative methodology. The objectives of the investigation focused on understanding the way that the teachers described their learning opportunities, recognized the facilitating and inhibiting elements of collaborative professional learning in the workplace and analyzed the way how the teachers perceived their professional learning in the work place. Information was collected by recourse to an enquiry using a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. Fundamentally we focused on results of a qualitative nature with particular attention to information resulting from the interviews and also from the questionnaires. The results showed the recognition on the part of the teachers of the ways and contexts of collaborative work and learning and their importance in their professional daily life and quality of work. They also reflected that, although the teachers recognized these contexts in their current professional experience, they did not associate these experiences directly to communities of practice. ; COMPETE: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007560 and FCT [Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia] (The Portuguese Government Fund for Science and Technology) within the Project Scope: ...
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Recent decades teachers at Danish vocational colleges have been met with high demands in adapting their pedagogy and practice to meet the requirements of new legislation, which require implementation of new pedagogical ideas as well as new ways of teaching and cooperating with colleagues. But teachers often find themselves lacking the necessary time to reflect on how to implement the new ideas and requirements. This condition thus represents a challenge to the success of implementing the demanded changes. In this article, we address the question of what is needed to create environments to support teachers' reflection and their professional development in VET with a specific focus at the potentials of 'professional learning communities' (PLC´s).
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This study aimed to analyze the student's behaviour in relation to their degree of commitment, participation, and contribution in a MOOC based on a social learning approach. Interaction data was collected on the learning platform and in social networks, both of which were used in the third edition of a social MOOC course. This data was then studied via statistical methods and analysis of social networks. This study assumes that social communities would arise around the course, would remain over time, and that participants would even contribute with new proposals. The findings indicated that social learning communities are built and continue only while the course is open and while the teachers are involved in fostering participation. Although this study is limited, the design criteria of the course, the pedagogical model on which this is supported, and the methods applied for this analysis provide other researchers and educators with clues for better understand the dynamic process of social learning in social MOOCs. ; We thank Taner Engin for his collaboration in the development of the software modules used to extract data from social network services. The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Community's CIP: CIP-ICT-PSP-2013-7-621127 Programme under grant agreement No. 21127 and from the Spanish Government under grant TIN2014-56158-C4-2-P (M2C2).
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