Online Tutoring as Conversation Design

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the design of conversations in online education. The central feature, conversation design, is presented as a continuous process that takes place not only during the preparatory phases but also during the emerging conversation, which is best understood as dialogue. We see dialogue as a useful way of understanding the principal task of the online tutor; the facilitation of the construction of knowledge by the learner within a framework of significant interaction. Furthermore, the developmental nature of this process requires a process in which the tutor, instead of implementing a series of actions designed previously, must adopt a role similar to that of the action researcher, continually observing, reflecting and adapting the process. The chapter proposes a range of theoretical considerations and practical techniques for structuring and facilitating these online learning dialogues. The aim is to offer theoretical and methodological approaches to the design of learning conversations (dialogue) as a mode of learning and constructing knowledge.