Abstract
Distance education for professional programs in higher education changes as new technologies emerge. Online courseware offers a different medium for the delivery of distance courses previously offered through live or recorded television. The computer mediated communication features of online courseware provide an effective venue for peer and social learning to take place through collaborative inquiry, contributing to the building of knowledge and skills by all active participants. Students grow as a community of learners and, as common goals and priorities are emphasized, begin to view themselves and others in terms of this community, generating one cohesive group identity. This chapter explores how computer mediated communication (CMC) is seen as an effective tool for building the necessary knowledge, skills, disposition, and attitudes needed by candidates to discover their professional identity.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Collaborative Learning: Learning that occurs by interaction with one’s peers and instructor and under the guidance of those more knowledgeable and experienced. It involves group work, discussion, and activities.
Discussion Forum: The feature in online courseware that gives the instructor the opportunity to post topics for discussion and provides the students a tool for responding. Each topic is referred to as a “thread.”
Discussion Forum: The feature in online courseware that gives the instructor the opportunity to post topics for discussion and provides the students a tool for responding. Each topic is referred to as a “thread.”
Professional Identity: The acquisition and demonstration of the knowledge, skills, disposition, and attitudes characteristic of a professional field, such as education, law, or medicine; recognition as a member of a particular profession.
Asynchronous: A type of communication feature that allows for responses to individual postings in online courseware anytime throughout the day, seven days a week. Individuals are not involved in simultaneous communication.
Asynchronous: A type of communication feature that allows for responses to individual postings in online courseware anytime throughout the day, seven days a week. Individuals are not involved in simultaneous communication.
Social Learning: Learning through observation and modeling of behaviors belonging to one more advanced.
Synchronous: A type of communication feature that allows for individuals to carry on “live” conversation; individual responses are not delayed.
Social Learning: Learning through observation and modeling of behaviors belonging to one more advanced.
Professional Identity: The acquisition and demonstration of the knowledge, skills, disposition, and attitudes characteristic of a professional field, such as education, law, or medicine; recognition as a member of a particular profession.
Collaborative Learning: Learning that occurs by interaction with one’s peers and instructor and under the guidance of those more knowledgeable and experienced. It involves group work, discussion, and activities.
Courseware: A Web-based software program that is used for online delivery of individual course content and communications, organizational materials, and resources. Common programs are Blackboard and, formerly, WebCT.
Synchronous: A type of communication feature that allows for individuals to carry on “live” conversation; individual responses are not delayed.
Courseware: A Web-based software program that is used for online delivery of individual course content and communications, organizational materials, and resources. Common programs are Blackboard and, formerly, WebCT.