OMDE 610 Reflective Journal
Week Two - September 18th - 24th
Social and Cognitive Presence in Online Learning
In explaining social and teaching presence in the OMDE 610 course, these two elements are available in the OMDE 610 course as social presence is available through the weekly conferences as we participate by providing an initial response to the questions that are presented to us, as well as responding to the various responses that are posted by our classmates. Social presence is also available as the instructors offer us the Whistle Stop café, which is an area strictly for open communication. Teaching presence is available as our instructors provide content to promote our learning, and give feedback on our weekly responses. The third element, Cognitive Presence is available to us as meaning is developed as we socialize among each other, and provide various perceptions on the content that is presented to us based on our background knowledge, as well as the knowledge that we have gained as we have been going through the MDE program.
When I think back to my OMDE 601 course, I would have to say that I favored their approach in enhancing the instructional environment through the use of technology to promote learning. The instructors in the OMDE 601 course appeared to use the Uses Determinism philosophy because in the course, we used various tools to enhance our learning, such as blogs, social networking sites, etc. It is amazing that there are so many free tools on the web that can be used to support the distance education learning environment; and the instructors in the OMDE 601 course seem to lean on the philosophy that the technology does not control the learners, but instead is used as a tool to promote and enhance learning in the instructional environment. The use of the technology in the instructional environment is controlled by the facilitator and the students, as opposed to the technology controlling the facilitators and the students (Kanuka, 2008).
As a distance education instructor, I would promote my presence in the course by actively participating in the discussions with my students. I believe that in being present, I will learn valuable knowledge from my students. I also believe that my active engagement would encourage my students to actively participate. Some students may not actively participate in the conferences because they may feel as though their input is not being properly acknowledged by the instructors. However, if they see that their instructors are responding to their responses, then they may be encouraged to participate. Regular feedback from the instructors is necessary so that the students know whether or not they are on the right track, and if they can do anything to improve their effectiveness in the course. Social presence and cognitive presence contribute to well-balanced, effective online learning!
Reference:
Kanuka, H. (2008). Understanding e-learning technologies in practice through philosophies in practice. In T. Anderson (Ed.), The Theory and practice of online learning (2nd Ed.)pp. 91-120. Athabasca, CA: Athabasca University Press. Retrieved fromhttp://www.aupress.ca/books/120146/ebook/99Z_Anderson_2008-Theory_and_Practice_of_Online_Learning.pdf
blogs.fanbox.com
