This week’s topic is building an online classroom.
We discussed this issue in the class this week. How to build an online
community? This question is really hard to answer. Building an online community
is not an easy task. From my perspective, the online community initiated in a course
management system is mostly forced. Learner’s participation in the online community
is not spontaneous if the learner is not interested in it
or forced to involve in this community by course policies or other external factors.
I guess this is the nature and one shortcoming of learning management system
which might be hard to conquer. This makes me to think about the use of virtual
learning environment, such as Second Life. Did anyone use Second Life before? What
about the online community in Second Life? Could it be really different from
the one in course management system? Is the communication in virtual learning environment
more effective than learning management system?
Additionally, I would
like to introduce Richard Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning. This
theory is based on three main assumptions: there
are two separate channels (auditory and visual) for processing information;
there is limited channel capacity; and that learning is an active process of
filtering, selecting, organizing, and integrating information. The figure below
presents the model of how people learn from multimedia lessons.
The principle known as the “multimedia
principle” states that “people learn more deeply from words and pictures than
from words alone”. However, simply adding words to pictures is not an
effective way to achieve multimedia learning. The goal is to instructional
media in the light of how human mind works. This is the basis for Mayer’s
cognitive theory of multimedia learning.
Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia
learning presents the idea that the brain does not interpret a multimedia
presentation of words, pictures, and auditory information in a mutually
exclusive fashion; rather, these elements are selected and organized
dynamically to produce logical mental constructs. Design principles including
providing coherent verbal, pictorial information, guiding the learners to
select relevant words and images, and reducing the load for a single processing
channel etc. can be entailed from this theory.
Hi Zhetao,
ReplyDeleteI've wondered about community in second life as well. It seems that one thing it has going for it is that it allows for creating a virtual presence through an avatar that can interact with other virtual presences. That seems like it would be different from solely text-based interactions. But I'm not sure the influence of it on community...perhaps someone who uses SL can shed some light on that? I think linking the idea to Mayer's theory is interesting, as you do have the additional media representations.
I am still a true beginner with Second life...I did try , though but we are talking a lot of hours before being a pro at it. I saw quite a few striking examples of them on the Web. Very fancy.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise, I like the format you showed from Mayer's theory: not just words and images together but thinking about how the human mind works.
This gives me a good idea of how I could already apply this to my hybrid class. Thank you so much.
Haven't tried Second Life though I did some interactive exchanges using Extra Normal a while back. Found the technology got in the way--distracted from the exchange. SL was suggested as a discussion site for some personal writing I've been doing on Face Book. People I "know" from other MOOCs said SL was the wrong place as the people there get carried away with the personna of their avitars and act falsly. It's not a community but rather a place for individuals to show off--all on the surface.
ReplyDeleteI'm editing a set of 4 multi-media courses right now and have been exposed to a large number of "learning moments" as I go through the courses. There are three panels arranged on a monitor sized window to display the course. All 3 can support still pictures, animations, video clips or text and the standard lesson "event" usually has one still, one text panel and one active animation or video--nothing longer that 2 minutes. Every event has something still, something moving, text and speech.
As this whole project was designed with Richard Mayer's Multi-Media Learning theory in mind I'd have to do a more detailed critique than I can here. What I have noticed is the main impact for me comes from the video presentations which were done by real people telling their experience. This is the material I remember weeks later. All the other activity is understandable while it is being presented but it doesn't stick in my mind. I'm not sure why this is.
Thank you for introducing Richard Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning. It is very interesting that there is limited channel capacity. My question is are there different levels of the skills (filtering, selecting, organizing, and integrating information) required in the active process of learning? And what are the ways/methods to enhance these skills for online learning? Finding the way to effective design principles seems to be the goal to the architecture of an online class.
ReplyDeleteFang says: Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning provides us a solid guidance in designing an online course, especially when such course needs to be as effective as the in-class one. Multimedia instruction would help engage students better understand the materials meanwhile intrigue more sensory functionalities at the same time.
ReplyDelete