- I like the blogs a lot. I find it easier to give generic advice here than in the Discussion Board's 'Housekeeping' section. It's easier to keep things organized and somehow I feel able to be more candid and informal on the blog than in the 'classroom'. I suppose I think of it as rather equivalent to conversations with students in the hallway after class.
- I enjoy reading your blogs as well. I find the off-topic discussions in the comments section interesting and very worthwhile. It's certainly helped me to build a mental image of some of you to communicate in this manner--it's also more efficient than e-mail for that kind of discussion.
- But, as is clear from the questionnaire--and was obvious even without that--most of you haven't the time or the inclination to update your own blogs regularly (or at all). I am fine with that--it's a tool in your toolbox, use it when and if you see a use for it. Or don't, it's your call entirely. I do have the impression, however, that you get some value out of my blog and since I like using it and find it convenient I shall continue to use it to deliver course relevant advice and comment. In other words, at the very least I suggest that you check my Blog regularly.
- Having said that it occurs to me that possibly one reason beyond the constraint of time which has kept people from using blogs is that people are turned off by the idea of an on-line journal. Again, fine. It strikes me though that a very good way of using the blogs for us is to coordinate among unit presenters. I usually hear from presenters by email about how they plan to divvy up the work, what approach they intend to take and so on. Why not do this on your blog? It's much easier for me to comment on it that way, to provide direction and so on. It also makes it rather more straightforward for you to comment and brainstorm. No forwarding emails, managing replies and whatnot. The same holds for essay outlines which some of you have asked me to comment on (and I am happy to do). We've been doing this by email but why not on your blog? It's more efficient, for one thing (if less private--if that's an issue then, OK, email it to me). Moreover, I think that you will find this way of learning can be much more naturally collaborative that way. In other words, what I'm suggesting is that you think of your blog as the hallway outside class where a lot of student-student and student-teacher interaction takes place.
Anyway, here's what the questionnaire analysis had to say (MY COMMENTS ARE INTERSPERSED IN UPPER CASE)
WiMW: Blogging and Communication tools
December 2005 survey
Returns: 22 out of 37 (59%)
Q1. How would you rate your confidence in using computers and technology?
Not at all confident
1
Somewhat confident
3
Fairly confident
12
Very confident
6
Total
22
The majority (82%) of students self assessed themselves as feeling confident in their IT skills (i.e. ‘fairly confident’ and above).
Q2. How often have you used your blog to post messages?
Never
4
Occasionally
15
Regularly
2
Frequently
1
Total
22
Q.3 Would you prefer you blog to be a private journal not accessible by others?
Yes - private blog preferred
6
No - public blog preferred
15
Total
21
Not answered: 1
Q.4 Do you find it easy or difficult to keep your blog up to date?
Major categories identified in using the blogging tool:
Time
· “Very difficult. It is hard enough to do the reading and posting to the discussions. I have no time to blog.”
· “Quite difficult. Finding the time is difficult with everything else going on.”
Purpose
· “No, It seems somewhat superflous to the studying element of the course.”
Help
· “I have given up trying to create one and don't really see the point of one.”
Low threshold
· “Easier than falling off a banana boat.”
Location
· “Do not find it difficult. However, view it as yet anither site that really plays second fiddle to main KCL site. Given time available the blog is not utilised to its full potential, if at all.”
Own tools
· “I write my own notes as I go through the course, mostly mind maps of either the course material or ideas.”
Q.5 How often do you read or check the blogs of the other participants?
Never
4
Occasionally
10
Regularly
4
Frequently
4
Total
22
Q.6 Do you have a preference for using either the discussion boards or your blog to post comments?
Prefer blog
0
Prefer discussion board
15
Both: no preference
7
Total
22
Comments:
· “Blog for useful though unrelated info e.g top tips etc. Discussion boards should be kept "on topic" otherwise it becomes a nightmare to navigate through.”
· “Discussion boards. It feels more part of the course, although I appreciate this is not exactly true as such.”
· “I prefer the discussion boards as it is easier to follow specific threads within them (as long as people title their entries). The blogs are, however, great for the "red herrings" and other interesting issues not directly related to the main discussion theme.”
· “Blog for useful though unrelated info e.g top tips etc. Discussion boards should be kept "on topic" otherwise it becomes a nightmare to navigate through.”
I THINK THAT ALL OF THESE ARE SALIENT POINTS. AS I'VE SAID BEFORE, HOWEVER, I THINK THE DISCUSSION BOARD CAN GET VERY CLUTTERED WITH OFF-TOPIC MATERIAL AND OTHER OBSERVATIONS. IF YOU'VE NOT A LOT OF TIME THEN I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO KEEP THE DISCUSSION IN THE 'CLASSROOM' VERY FOCUSSED AND STREAMLINED. BUT YOU, OR AT LEAST I, WOULDN'T WANT TO MISS OUT ON ALL THE OFFTOPIC STUFF WHICH IS OFTEN HIGHLY INTERESTING AND VERY USEFUL. I STILL SEE THAT AS A MAIN FUNCTION OF THE BLOG.
Q.7 Do you use the Bloglines aggregator to check other the blogs?
Yes
11
No
11
Total
22
Q.8 Would you like to have more help in using your blog?
Yes
11
No
11
Total
22
Q.9 Would you like more help in using the blog aggregator (Bloglines)?
Yes
12
No
10
Total
22
Q.10 Do you think the blogging is a useful tool? Please give your reasons?
Yes
9
No
6
Undecided
7
Total
Comments:
· “Absolutely, its the place where free discussion on topics outside of the course can be discussed and it allows more interaction between students”
· “yes because in the internet world it is hard to communicate directly, particularly in the class room because it's a bit more formal. the blog allows you to be more expressive and you see more personalities shine through”
· “NO. I haven't distilled the point of blogging yet with regard to this course.”
· “No, or at least not yet. It is hard enough keeping up with the course using the different elements of the VLE. Add to that the need to go into the KCL IMP webmail (with another 3 password portals) and it is time-consuming enough. Having then to check the tutor's blog in case you've missed an instruction or comment is massively over-complicated and strikes me as another example of using technology simply because it's there. We need one simple portal, with one simple access, so that there can be no confuson. Blogs add nothing for me thus far.”
· “I'm sure it is a useful tool if given greater guidance and more time I would undoubtedly benefit from its utility.”
· “Probably. I have not used it that much as yet and will most likely not be in a position to provide a proper reflective answer until much later in the course.”
Q.11 Do you have any suggestions or changes which might enhance your use of the blogs?
No
9
Yes (selected comments):
· “More prompting to use the blogs within the units (there have been a couple of occasions) might stimulate greater use, if this is desired.”
· “Get it into KCL...! 5MB space per student?.”
· “More enforced utility of the site especially with long discussions. Short answers on main site, example essays and long answers on the blog.”
· “Set them up and aggregate them for us so that they work from the start.”
· “Although the coursework is hectic at times especially with travel etc. The only way to incorporate the Blog format would be to make it a more designed part of the learning experience.”
· “I do not have any confidence that everyone is utilizing the Blogs as intended. The subscription levels on some blogs seem very low and the input is also low from certain areas. That said, there are those who clearly utilize the blogs frequently. I think that the use of the blogs (as in our Tutorial group) to communicate important information from our "leader" about the course is a good way of ensuring that all students access the blogs regularly.”
I'LL JUST SPEAK TO THE LAST OF THESE COMMENTS DIRECTLY, UTILIZING THE BLOGS 'AS INTENDED'. WHEN WE WERE PUTTING THE COURSE TOGETHER I CONFESS TO BEING SKEPTICAL OF THE BLOGS. I WASN'T SURE OF THEIR PURPOSE. I'D BEEN TURNED OFF BY AN EARLIER EXPERIMENT WITH A BLOGGING TOOL. I THUOGHT THE AGGREGATOR WAS A BIT CLUNKY. I STILL THINK THAT IT COULD BE STREAMLINED AND PERHAPS MORE INTUITIVE. I HATE HAVING TO REMEMBER ANOTHER LOGIN AND PASSWORD. I WOULD PREFER THAT THE TOOL WAS 'IN-HOUSE'. AND IF THE WORLD WERE PERFECT SOMEONE WOULD SET IT UP FOR ME. BASICALLY, I'M SAYING THAT I MYSELF DID NOT HAVE A FIRM IDEA OF WHAT WAS 'INTENDED'. I HAVE, HOWEVER, BECOME A BELIEVER. I THINK WE SHOULD, AND WILL, MAKE IT EASIER AND TIE IT MORE INTO COURSE CONTENT BUT I AM CONVINCED THAT OVER THE LONG TERM IT IS A USEFUL THING.
Q.12 Have you subscribed to other non-War in the Modern World blogs? If so please give examples?
No
10
Yes
Types: mainly news and political
10
Total
20
Not answered: 2
Comments:
· “KCL could provide advice on blogs relevant to the course.”
· “No can I do that???”
· “Yes. Some news: BBC News and Reuters; and a bit of entertainment: Dilbert and Quotes of the Day. I subscribed to a lot more to start with, but have cut down as they are too time consumming - I need to use my limited spare time to study after all.”
I DON'T. I HAVE MY OWN HABITS AND WAYS OF BROWSING FOR NEWS. I HAVE AN IDEA FOR HOW I CAN SHARE THAT WITH YOU. I JUST USE THE AGGREGATOR FOR THIS COURSE. I LOOK IN, SEE IF THERE'S ANYTHING NEW AND LOG OUT. QUICK. EASY.
Q.13 What other forms of communication have you used within the course?
Email
100%
Skype
14%
Chat oom
32%
Telephone
45%
I'VE HEARD FROM SOME OF YOU BY PHONE OR ON SKYPE. FEEL FREE TO CALL ME MORE. SKYPE IS CHEAP (FREE) AND ACTUALLY HAS BETTER SOUND QUALITY MOST TIMES. IF YOU HAVE A QUICK QUESTION AND DON'T WANT TO TYPE THEN CALL!
Q.14 What is your preferred method of communication? e.g. e-mail, telephone, blogging, discussion forum, chat.
First choice
Email
10
Discussion forum
9
Chat room
0
Telephone
2
No preference
1
Comments:
· “e-mail and discussion. I have enabled a Skype account and would use that.”
Q.15 Can you identify on which part(s) of the course you spend the majority of your time? e.g. reading, writing discussion posts etc.
Reading
13
Reading and discussion
9
Total
22
Comments:
· “Reading: by a long way. I wish there was more reading time.”
· “Split between reading and discussion posts.”
· “The reading is the most time-consuming part of the course. That said, in the early days, the writing of discussion posts also took a long time. In our group we agreed to cut down posts to a paragraph (or so) and this not only saved time but also focussed the discussions a bit more.”
· “Reading both the background material and other peole's postings.”
THE THIRD POINT ABOVE SHOULD BE ADOPTED BY OUR GROUP TOO. VERY SENSIBLE. AS FOR READING TIME, THAT'S WHAT AN MA IS: READING, READING and MORE READING.
Q.16 Do you feel you have enough time to participate in all aspects of the course?
Plenty of time
1
Enough time
2
Somewhat under time pressure
10
A lot of time pressure
9
Total
22
Probably as we might expect, most students perceive themselves as ‘somewhat under time pressure’ with nearly half (41%) reporting that they are under “a lot” of time pressure. Students must therefore have to prioritise their workload – it would be interesting to know what criteria they choose to make these decisions. From Q.15 it appears that reading is the major area that impacts upon their available study time.
Q.17 How would you rate the importance of the discussion boards to your study?
Not at all important
1
Moderately important
6
Important
4
Very important
11
Total
22
Q.18 How would you rate the importance of the blogs to your study?
Not at all important
14
Moderately important
5
Important
2
Very important
1
Total
22
This is interesting as 14 responses here rate the blogs as ‘not at all important’. This it does not match the responses to Q.10 where 9 students answered positively regarding the usefulness of the blogging tool and 6 remained undecided.
Q.19 How would you rate the importance of the e-mail to your study?
Not at all important
1
Moderately important
12
Important
3
Very important
6
Total
22
Q.20 Do you prefer studying alone or as part of a group?
Alone
18
Part of a group
4
Total
22
It will be interesting to see if these figures change over time and students become more closely associated with each other and perhaps open to group work at a later date.
Q.21 How closely associated do you feel with the other group members on the course?
Closely
3
Somewhat
11
Distant
6
Very distant
2
Total
22
8 students report that they feel either ‘distant’ or ‘very distant’ from the group. This seems a high figure?
I THINK IT SOUNDS HIGH. ANYWAY, I DO NOT LIKE IT. ANY IDEAS WHAT WE COULD DO BETTER?
5 comments:
Thank you for sight of the results of the questionnaire and your comments. All very interesting but a little disappointing that only 22 of us completed it. I wonder - a reflection on interest or pressure of time? I actually suspect (and hope) the latter.
I suppose that each of us has differing motivations for doing this course. Is getting the MA the be all and end all and, if so, at what level of effort? Or is the study in itself, and an understanding of what we study, the main purpose? It is a matter of "means" and "ends". There is, however, clearly an issue of time for many people and therefore your analogy of the discussion platform as being the "classroom" and the blogs as the "corridor discussions" hits a chord. I agree that the Blogs should be utilized more. Not only your own for guidance, direction, etc but also our own for more general "chit chat" about the wider issues we are studying. The "classroom" can then be used for more focussed study on the core elements of the course. It is, however, a judgement call on what falls where.
In order to address the issue of some (too many?) people feeling distant I firstly wonder how important this actually is. Many of us are certainly geographincally distant and we can't change that but I believe that "immersion" in the course is the key. The course is clearly about a lot of reading, which is by nature, an individual activity. The discussions we have on topics are objective (or at least should be)and impersonal. Neither are great team bonding exercises in themselves but I do believe, over time, the latter will enable us feel less distant as we draw on each other for our learning. I do not subscribe to the "let's all have an on-line beer together" because I don't think that it matters as much as you perhaps fear. I say, "let every one find their own level of immersion". Afterall, 18 out of 22 say that they prefer studying alone and I do not therefore think that the 'distance' issue really matters that much.
Thank you for sight of the results of the questionnaire and your comments. All very interesting but a little disappointing that only 22 of us completed it. I wonder - a reflection on interest or pressure of time? I actually suspect (and hope) the latter.
I suppose that each of us has differing motivations for doing this course. Is getting the MA the be all and end all and, if so, at what level of effort? Or is the study in itself, and an understanding of what we study, the main purpose? It is a matter of "means" and "ends". There is, however, clearly an issue of time for many people and therefore your analogy of the discussion platform as being the "classroom" and the blogs as the "corridor discussions" hits a chord. I agree that the Blogs should be utilized more. Not only your own for guidance, direction, etc but also our own for more general "chit chat" about the wider issues we are studying. The "classroom" can then be used for more focussed study on the core elements of the course. It is, however, a judgement call on what falls where.
In order to address the issue of some (too many?) people feeling distant I firstly wonder how important this actually is. Many of us are certainly geographincally distant and we can't change that but I believe that "immersion" in the course is the key. The course is clearly about a lot of reading, which is by nature, an individual activity. The discussions we have on topics are objective (or at least should be)and impersonal. Neither are great team bonding exercises in themselves but I do believe, over time, the latter will enable us feel less distant as we draw on each other for our learning. I do not subscribe to the "let's all have an on-line beer together" because I don't think that it matters as much as you perhaps fear. I say, "let every one find their own level of immersion". Afterall, 18 out of 22 say that they prefer studying alone and I do not therefore think that the 'distance' issue really matters that much.
I too like David's analogy of 'classroom and corridor' when he illustrated the value of blogs compared to the discussion forums.
In my experience, from the many and varied courses that I have attended throughout my military career to date, often it is from the less formal chat with your peers over a tea/coffee/beer in between lessons, that the real value of attending a course in person can be gleened. Indeed, depending on the type of course, I often learn more from this sort of interaction than I do from the lectures themselves because it is only here that I begin to convert what I have been told into the way I think. And it is here that I start to consign the real gems of information to long-term memory. Trouble is, we are not attending a course in person, the content is on line. Whilst not being perfect, perhaps we should be encouraged to embrace blogging with more vigour.
'I often learn more from this sort of interaction than I do from the lectures themselves because it is only here that I begin to convert what I have been told into the way I think.'
Killer quote. If I ever get arouond to writing an article about elearning this is going to be in it!
It's quite true. There is a huge difference between listening to a lecture and actually learning from the experience.
The process of, for example, taking what you have heard and converting it into socially acceptable conversation is hugely important to actually learning the stuff. (See my comments on my blog regarding religion and doctrine, this is essentially the same thing).
Every lecture should have time/resources allocated for reflection and scrutiny. If a lecturer wants something to be accepted, that is to say, that it becomes doctrine, it has to go beyond simply being taught - it has to be believed. For something to be believed it must stand up to scrutiny. This scrutiny should go beyond your own personal thought processes and take place in public, preferably amongst peers who are more than happy to look you up and down and call you, say, a complete wanker if you've got it wrong. This encourages the student to absorb the information in the first place and then reconcile the information against its practical purpose.
Probably.
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