http://www.deakin.edu.au/future-students/online-offcampus-studies/
I think the the fact that Deakin university gives students a choice of how they study is a good thing. As many people find different ways of learning better for them. We all have certain preferences that are best suited to us so it gives you that choice. I no many people working they would prefer going to the campus and recieve face to face teaching, whilst others would prefer just to sit at home and learn themselves through the internet etc. Some maybe dont mind and would prefer to experience both ways i think i would be one of these people as i wouldn't like to be constantly looking at a computer screen and learning through the internet sat at home all the time as i like getting out and interacting with people. Plus i find it easier raising any questions or queries with somebody face to face rather than online.
I think in the long run the fact that from 2004 they made everybody do one online unit is probably a good thing as it does give people that bit more experience with online technology and interaction. In our society today its probably most needed later on in life due to the constant change and development in new media and it will become most useful if you have some kind of experience as a lot of jobs etc today include some kind of online and computer interaction.
Although online interaction is good i think attending some on campus learning is also an important way of learning and develops your social and talking skills for later on in life. As you get practice in face to face converstaion and debates with people. I sometimes enjoy seminars rather than been sat at a computer blogging as i feel i get more feedback state away whereas with computer blogging you dont people dont always answer your questions. I think that seeing peolpes facial expressions or the tone you say something is important as it can help people understand something you are trying to say. You would not see this if you were having a conversation online.
Now i have some experience in online learning from this unit i can understand it more and can see how learning online is done before i may have found it hard as i was just so used to having face to face teaching as i was just used to attending lectures and seminars and sitting infront of a tutor.
Wednesday, 12 March 2008
Monday, 10 March 2008
Week 7 Distance learning- China
China was one of the first countries to use radio and television for higher eductional purposes. in the early 1960's the first television universities were founded in the capital Beijing and other sities to meet the demand for adult education as there wasn't available funds to be able to hire teachers to fullfill the usual teaching methods like being taught face to face in a class room along with many other students.
I Think the posative aspects to learning though radio and television in china is the fact that they can train more people in less time as China has such a large population and is such a big place. The distance between the universities is very far unlike england where there are many universities and collefes everywhere for people to attend. People in China would have to travel long distances to be educated which many people would be unable or unwilling to do. The classes would have to many people in them and it would be harder to eductate people. Students are more likely to get distracted if they are amongst a lot of people and it can be hard to concentrate and focuss on listening to one lectures in a big room as hearing them may be a problem. So i think this is why over the past eight years the enrolment into these universities has totalled 1,291,833 as more people had easier access to learning. Many people like the fact that they are learning in the comfort of their own hoem and don't have to go out or travel to be educated.
I think this method of learning can be negative as you arn't really interacting with people who arnt your friends. As from my experience when you are in a class room learning you often have the chance to voice your opinion and discuss certain topics with people and listen to what they have to say which helps a lot as often everybody doesnt always look at things in the same light so you can learn from others. Also you are often put into groups to work so you have the chance to work and intertact with people face to face that your wouldn't normally giving you experience for later on in life when you go into a job. Learning from home doesnt give you any of these experinces. However with this learning through television and radio there is the option of some face to face tution if it is needed.
I Wouldnt really like to learn all the time sing this method its not really for me as i like learning amongst other people and i find it hard to work at hoem sometimes.
I Think the posative aspects to learning though radio and television in china is the fact that they can train more people in less time as China has such a large population and is such a big place. The distance between the universities is very far unlike england where there are many universities and collefes everywhere for people to attend. People in China would have to travel long distances to be educated which many people would be unable or unwilling to do. The classes would have to many people in them and it would be harder to eductate people. Students are more likely to get distracted if they are amongst a lot of people and it can be hard to concentrate and focuss on listening to one lectures in a big room as hearing them may be a problem. So i think this is why over the past eight years the enrolment into these universities has totalled 1,291,833 as more people had easier access to learning. Many people like the fact that they are learning in the comfort of their own hoem and don't have to go out or travel to be educated.
I think this method of learning can be negative as you arn't really interacting with people who arnt your friends. As from my experience when you are in a class room learning you often have the chance to voice your opinion and discuss certain topics with people and listen to what they have to say which helps a lot as often everybody doesnt always look at things in the same light so you can learn from others. Also you are often put into groups to work so you have the chance to work and intertact with people face to face that your wouldn't normally giving you experience for later on in life when you go into a job. Learning from home doesnt give you any of these experinces. However with this learning through television and radio there is the option of some face to face tution if it is needed.
I Wouldnt really like to learn all the time sing this method its not really for me as i like learning amongst other people and i find it hard to work at hoem sometimes.
Sunday, 2 March 2008
Sue's Tasks -Task four
Our forum as a community of practice
I would say our new media cultures forum is a community of practice as we all our interested and want to learn about the same things and are aiming for the same goals. We all have a similar level of understanding and help one another along by giving advice and commenting on one anothers blogs when we have posted certain information and tasks each week. We are learning each week by reading books and researching and doing tasks to help us learn as we all want to achieve high grades in order to be successful. We all started as new comers and were on an equal level. We hadn't really had much experience on submitting our work on blogs before. However with in the group there would be people who had more background experience posting on blogs and forums as they may have used them before for personal interests besides work.
Like Wenger says in a community of practice there is no strict rules to follow and nobody really acts as the 'boss' its less informal unlike and organisational unit. In our community we don't have particular rules and somebody to report to. Although we do have tutors who are there to guide us and give us advice when needed. So we do have the hierarchy and a kind of power structure where the tutors who are the experts and have the knowlege are at the top and we as the pupils are lower as we are slowly learning.
We don't have srict rules for work we have to do. We are encouraged and told what things we should be learning and the kind of things that we are expected to do. It is then up to us how we but out ideas and learning experiences forward to be marked.
Now we are about six weeks into the topic there will be a bit of a power structure between us as students as some will have learnt more and completed more tasks in those weeks than others as some people have fallen behind so you could say they were even lower in the hierarchy.
What do other people think do you agree that this is why we have become a community of practice?
I would say our new media cultures forum is a community of practice as we all our interested and want to learn about the same things and are aiming for the same goals. We all have a similar level of understanding and help one another along by giving advice and commenting on one anothers blogs when we have posted certain information and tasks each week. We are learning each week by reading books and researching and doing tasks to help us learn as we all want to achieve high grades in order to be successful. We all started as new comers and were on an equal level. We hadn't really had much experience on submitting our work on blogs before. However with in the group there would be people who had more background experience posting on blogs and forums as they may have used them before for personal interests besides work.
Like Wenger says in a community of practice there is no strict rules to follow and nobody really acts as the 'boss' its less informal unlike and organisational unit. In our community we don't have particular rules and somebody to report to. Although we do have tutors who are there to guide us and give us advice when needed. So we do have the hierarchy and a kind of power structure where the tutors who are the experts and have the knowlege are at the top and we as the pupils are lower as we are slowly learning.
We don't have srict rules for work we have to do. We are encouraged and told what things we should be learning and the kind of things that we are expected to do. It is then up to us how we but out ideas and learning experiences forward to be marked.
Now we are about six weeks into the topic there will be a bit of a power structure between us as students as some will have learnt more and completed more tasks in those weeks than others as some people have fallen behind so you could say they were even lower in the hierarchy.
What do other people think do you agree that this is why we have become a community of practice?
Sue's Tasks Wenger and Jean Lave -Task three
I have chosen this website
http://www.friendsreunited.co.uk/practices as my online community of practice.
This is a website where people can find old friends you have lost touch with and discover what they are doing with themselves now by getting back in touch with them and organising reunions. These people become part of a community by signing up and getting back in touch with people that they havn't spoke to in years. People they went to school, college, university or worked with. Many people on this website have the same interst in finding people they have lost touch with and work together to help find one another buy joining up to this site and sharing their life experiences through posting photographs and writing notes etc and learning together as a group what each of them are doing with their lives now. Giving this website a kind of 'joint enterprise'.
Many people are actively involved in this website and with progression can catch up with many friends from the past. People join up with this website with a certain goal in mind to find a particualr group of people that have been part of their lives. Once they have found through searches their friends they can always keep intouch with each other on this website and develop a sort of online community.
I think it is quite like a community of practice as with this website you know the people you are talking to as you have known them before. Unlike other online communities of practice whereby you don't really know people so the interaction between people involves a lot more of you using your imagination as you can't see them you have to rely on words rather than face and body expressions to get to know the people as you arn't interacting with people face to face like you would in real life. Not that this means it cant become a community practice i think its just harder to build.
With this freinds reunited there is a section where you can join up to 'reuinions' where people plan to meet up with each other agen so they are seeing each other face to face again after years and years which makes the joint enterprise easier.
I wouldn't say this website particulary had anybody who was in more power than anybody else. However like a community of practice there is more people with more experience than others and know there way around the website better than new comers would as they have been members for a while so new people will look up to them. They have steps as to how you can go about finding your friends for newcomers to the site .They tell you information of what other people have done and experienced so you get a rough idea and can get advice from them and there experiences on the site.
On the top right hand side of the page there is the section for new people 'New to friends reunited' this is where you give your details and any advice is given to make you feel comfortable with what you are joining and to help you regain good relationships with the people you wish to. The same as if you were to join a community of practice offline you would be welcomed and slowly introduced when starting somewhere new.
I think is a good example of an online community of practice as it is a place where people can build on their past friendships together and learn of each others interests and experiences together. Would anybody else agree?
http://www.friendsreunited.co.uk/practices as my online community of practice.
This is a website where people can find old friends you have lost touch with and discover what they are doing with themselves now by getting back in touch with them and organising reunions. These people become part of a community by signing up and getting back in touch with people that they havn't spoke to in years. People they went to school, college, university or worked with. Many people on this website have the same interst in finding people they have lost touch with and work together to help find one another buy joining up to this site and sharing their life experiences through posting photographs and writing notes etc and learning together as a group what each of them are doing with their lives now. Giving this website a kind of 'joint enterprise'.
Many people are actively involved in this website and with progression can catch up with many friends from the past. People join up with this website with a certain goal in mind to find a particualr group of people that have been part of their lives. Once they have found through searches their friends they can always keep intouch with each other on this website and develop a sort of online community.
I think it is quite like a community of practice as with this website you know the people you are talking to as you have known them before. Unlike other online communities of practice whereby you don't really know people so the interaction between people involves a lot more of you using your imagination as you can't see them you have to rely on words rather than face and body expressions to get to know the people as you arn't interacting with people face to face like you would in real life. Not that this means it cant become a community practice i think its just harder to build.
With this freinds reunited there is a section where you can join up to 'reuinions' where people plan to meet up with each other agen so they are seeing each other face to face again after years and years which makes the joint enterprise easier.
I wouldn't say this website particulary had anybody who was in more power than anybody else. However like a community of practice there is more people with more experience than others and know there way around the website better than new comers would as they have been members for a while so new people will look up to them. They have steps as to how you can go about finding your friends for newcomers to the site .They tell you information of what other people have done and experienced so you get a rough idea and can get advice from them and there experiences on the site.
On the top right hand side of the page there is the section for new people 'New to friends reunited' this is where you give your details and any advice is given to make you feel comfortable with what you are joining and to help you regain good relationships with the people you wish to. The same as if you were to join a community of practice offline you would be welcomed and slowly introduced when starting somewhere new.
I think is a good example of an online community of practice as it is a place where people can build on their past friendships together and learn of each others interests and experiences together. Would anybody else agree?
Sue's Tasks Wenger and Jean Lave -Task two
An example of an 'Organizational unit' that Wenger talks about is when somebody in that organization holds a higher status than everybody else and they act as a kind of boss. Everybody else in that organization has to stick to their rules. An example of where this happens is in the workplace, in a school or at home with parents and children. With an organizational unit you are under pressure and you have to go by the 'bossess' rules and it is essential that you attend and complete what is asked of you. You wouldn't argue with your boss or school teacher or not turn up to work/school one day. It is a more strict enviroment the person in the organization who holds the power and authority is there for a reason to keep people in their place and make sure they are doing their job right. For example if you didn't take you 'boss' at work very seriously and see them as having authority and the power to sack you then you wouldn't do your job properly and often wouldn't turn up.
Whereas with a community of practice there is the people who have more knowledge and are the experts at that particular thing than others but it isnt as strict and is more 'informal' as Wenger says. You don't see them as much of a 'boss' they are more there to help you learn something you are interested in and have fun with it. After all you are there because you want to be not because you have to be like with school or work. With my horseriding teacher that I talked about previously i saw her more as a friend rather than a teacher and i saw her outside of my horseriding lessons and she is friends with all my family. As we lived in the same village also we new a lot of the same people. I think when you first start a community of practice like dancing or horseriding you may see the person who runs it as a kind of teacher especially if you are young. I think the older you get though and the more you get to know them you become to see them as a freind that you respect and look up to rather than seeing them as a boss. As you all share the same interests it is harder to put some people above others you just get along and work together as a team and enjoy what you are there for.
As Winger quotes '"Communities of practice are not a new kind of organizational unit; rather, they are a different cut on the organization's structure—one that emphasizes the learning that people have done together rather than the unit they report to" with communities of practice you are not pushed to go and don't have to report to somebody say for instance if you don't show up for a couple of weeks its acceptable. You kind of have the freedom to do what you want to a certain extent. You often make choices as a group rather than been told to do so or having to abide by rules and regulations like you would in school.
Communities of practice are a more relaxed atmosphere than an Organizational unit. You can learn at your own pace like taking exams when you are ready and helping one another. Age doesn't really matter you mite start a dance school and not know as much as somebody who is younger than you who has been there a long time. However with school for example most of your learning just comes from your teacher. You move along with everyone else who is the same age as you and is in the same class and don't have a choice when taking exams things are more structured.
Whereas with a community of practice there is the people who have more knowledge and are the experts at that particular thing than others but it isnt as strict and is more 'informal' as Wenger says. You don't see them as much of a 'boss' they are more there to help you learn something you are interested in and have fun with it. After all you are there because you want to be not because you have to be like with school or work. With my horseriding teacher that I talked about previously i saw her more as a friend rather than a teacher and i saw her outside of my horseriding lessons and she is friends with all my family. As we lived in the same village also we new a lot of the same people. I think when you first start a community of practice like dancing or horseriding you may see the person who runs it as a kind of teacher especially if you are young. I think the older you get though and the more you get to know them you become to see them as a freind that you respect and look up to rather than seeing them as a boss. As you all share the same interests it is harder to put some people above others you just get along and work together as a team and enjoy what you are there for.
As Winger quotes '"Communities of practice are not a new kind of organizational unit; rather, they are a different cut on the organization's structure—one that emphasizes the learning that people have done together rather than the unit they report to" with communities of practice you are not pushed to go and don't have to report to somebody say for instance if you don't show up for a couple of weeks its acceptable. You kind of have the freedom to do what you want to a certain extent. You often make choices as a group rather than been told to do so or having to abide by rules and regulations like you would in school.
Communities of practice are a more relaxed atmosphere than an Organizational unit. You can learn at your own pace like taking exams when you are ready and helping one another. Age doesn't really matter you mite start a dance school and not know as much as somebody who is younger than you who has been there a long time. However with school for example most of your learning just comes from your teacher. You move along with everyone else who is the same age as you and is in the same class and don't have a choice when taking exams things are more structured.
Sue's Tasks Wenger and Jean Lave -Task one
I have been part of many community of practices when i was a child. I used to attend a dance class near to wear i lived once a week called 'New Mills Dance and theatre Centre'. I also attended horse riding which took place in the village that i live in I also went to this once a week. I have chosen these as examples as i believe they were very important to me as a child and I had a lot of interest in both of them and continued to get better and better at them as i got older. They were my childhood hobbies. I Used to attend dancing every Tuesday night after school and used to practice to be in local shows that took place at the local theatre and work hard to take exams which would be marked by a proper examiner. Each time I passed an exam I got presented with certificates and medals then i would move up to the next grade. I didn't take my horse riding as seriously and this was a much smaller community of people. Every Friday or Saturday i used to learn how to look after and tack up the horses you could say this was the Joint Enterprise of the practice as we were all learning the same technique that was meant for grooming and tacking up the horse as we went through different stages of putting the saddle and bridle on etc. We would then go out horse riding together as a group. As Wenger says we were socially bounded as we all kind of had the same relationship with one another as we shared a passion for horse riding and did things together as a group.
Within these practices that were formed many people from the same school and town as me attended. I was surrounded by people with the same interest and they were all their for the same reason. This relates to Wenger’s discussion of communities of practice where by several people with a common interest get to together for the purpose of furthering their knowledge and practice of that interest (Wenger and Lave 1988)
Our mutual engagement In the dance classes was to become the best dancers to try and get to the top by learning different routines in jazz, modern, ballet and tap dancing.
Both practices i attend had a shared repertoire as we were all enthusiastic about learning new things like the routines we had to learn in dancing and the certain facts and names for types of horses and everything that comes with them.
Wenger’s reading also covered the aspect of knowledge and hierarchy's as there was a certain power structure in both practices i attended. There was the main teacher who owned and was in charge of the practices. Caroline was the main dancing teacher and Sarah was the main horse riding teacher both of these people were at the top of the hierarchy as they were the people with the most knowledge.
As Wenger says people always have different knowledge about things some will be better than others as they will have more knowledge and experience on a certain think and have the power to teach people who don't know the first thing. This is very true with the practices i attended.
In dancing Caroline had the most knowledge and experience then we had another teacher who was like second from the top of the hierarchy called Steph us as pupils didn't view her as highly but still respected her as a teacher as she was far more experienced than us. There was different classes in dancing which you can look at as a kind of power structure as people were at different levels. There was the older people who had done more exams and were on the highest grades then there was the younger ones who hadn't done as many and were on lower levels and there was a class for new comers. They didn't really have much experience as some of them hadn't even danced before. The higher the level you kept going the higher you are on the hierarchy and the more respect you got.
In horse riding when i first started i was at the very bottom I didn't really no much as i became more knowledgeable and the longer i was then i gained more power and was able to start teaching younger people in the practice how to horse ride.
Wenger also discusses team work and participation. In my dancing classes we all had to pull together as a group and help each other when we are performing shows so we could achieve the best of our potential.
With both practices i attended we had to wear a uniform which nobody else had. For dancing i had to wear a black or blue leotard with a black jumper that had the logo in the right hand corner 'new mills dance and theatre centre'. This brought us together as a community and people would easily recognise that we were part of that social practice even when we were not all together.
Within these practices that were formed many people from the same school and town as me attended. I was surrounded by people with the same interest and they were all their for the same reason. This relates to Wenger’s discussion of communities of practice where by several people with a common interest get to together for the purpose of furthering their knowledge and practice of that interest (Wenger and Lave 1988)
Our mutual engagement In the dance classes was to become the best dancers to try and get to the top by learning different routines in jazz, modern, ballet and tap dancing.
Both practices i attend had a shared repertoire as we were all enthusiastic about learning new things like the routines we had to learn in dancing and the certain facts and names for types of horses and everything that comes with them.
Wenger’s reading also covered the aspect of knowledge and hierarchy's as there was a certain power structure in both practices i attended. There was the main teacher who owned and was in charge of the practices. Caroline was the main dancing teacher and Sarah was the main horse riding teacher both of these people were at the top of the hierarchy as they were the people with the most knowledge.
As Wenger says people always have different knowledge about things some will be better than others as they will have more knowledge and experience on a certain think and have the power to teach people who don't know the first thing. This is very true with the practices i attended.
In dancing Caroline had the most knowledge and experience then we had another teacher who was like second from the top of the hierarchy called Steph us as pupils didn't view her as highly but still respected her as a teacher as she was far more experienced than us. There was different classes in dancing which you can look at as a kind of power structure as people were at different levels. There was the older people who had done more exams and were on the highest grades then there was the younger ones who hadn't done as many and were on lower levels and there was a class for new comers. They didn't really have much experience as some of them hadn't even danced before. The higher the level you kept going the higher you are on the hierarchy and the more respect you got.
In horse riding when i first started i was at the very bottom I didn't really no much as i became more knowledgeable and the longer i was then i gained more power and was able to start teaching younger people in the practice how to horse ride.
Wenger also discusses team work and participation. In my dancing classes we all had to pull together as a group and help each other when we are performing shows so we could achieve the best of our potential.
With both practices i attended we had to wear a uniform which nobody else had. For dancing i had to wear a black or blue leotard with a black jumper that had the logo in the right hand corner 'new mills dance and theatre centre'. This brought us together as a community and people would easily recognise that we were part of that social practice even when we were not all together.
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