Week 7 Annotated Bibliographies

Article #1
Using email to enable e3 learning

Citation:
Kim, C. (2008). Using email to enable e3 (effective, efficient, and engaging) learning. Distance Education, 29(2), 187-198.

Summary:
The use of email has increased over the last 10 years to the point where email is one of the primary methods of communication in distance education courses. The use of email to teach students in a way that is effective, efficient and engaging is examined in this article. The 3 main questions that are discussed in this article are:

1. How is email utilized for learning and instruction and specifically in the intersection of both cognitive and noncognitive aspect?
2. What are the primary characteristics of email that support effective, efficient and engaging learning?
3. What templates for email should be implemented to optimize the use of email in communications with students?

Several studies examining email utilization for learning and instruction were compared. One study focused on the use of email for mentoring, collaboration and counseling. Another study looked at the use of email as a supplemental communication between the students and instructor. Another study found that email works best when it is sent out to a group of students. But email also gave the students a sense of personal attention. "The researchers concluded that email encouraged intimacy between instructors and students, which was a result of a sense of psychological safety." (P. 189)

Email was found to provide motivational support to students in required courses. It is often difficult for instructors to change a students' attitude in a course simply through text, but sometimes a simple personal email message might change their outlook in the course. This will also encourage and facilitate learning. For students with low self esteem, a personal email might help to build a positive attitude towards the subject matter.

Finally, the framework of the email construction is discussed. There are four basic categories to constructing an email: 1) attention 2) relevance 3) confidence 4) satisfaction. The students must feel as if the instruction is giving each student the attention they deserve in the class. The students need to feel that what they are learning and spending their time on has relevance. The confidence and satisfaction level of the students in a class can be maintained through a well constructed email.

Review:
This article examines the way in which email can be used constructively in a distance education class. The effective, efficient and engaging learning model is explained clearly and in detail. Using the 3 "e" model, a distance education class can be improved through the use of email between the instructor and the students.

It is interesting how the simple construction of an email message can possibly change the attitudes of students in low motivational classes or required classes. Also, the template of the email can help to motivate students to perform better in their distance learning classes.


Article #2
Learning Designs

Citation:
DeGennaro, D. (2008). Learning designs: An analysis of youth-inititated technology use. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 41(1), 1-20.

Summary:
The youth of today are not the same type of learners as they were 50 years ago. Young children of this modern age have the knowledge to run a DVD player or set the clock on a microwave. The younger generation is growing up with digital cameras where the image appears on the back of the camera right after snapping the picture. Therefore, the learning style of today's youth should be adjusted to meet their present day needs.

The researchers in this article examined a project where IM (instant messenger) was implemented in an experimental class with a group of students. The students in the class initiated the use of the instant messenger as a means of communication with other students in the class as well as their teacher. A sociotechnical system framework was developed to structure the use of the instant messenger interactions.

The results from the study showed that instant messenger encouraged the participation and the communication within the students in the class as well as communication with their teacher. A theoretical and methodological analysis as to why this might be true is also explored in this article.

Review:
This is an interesting article describing how instant messenger can be seen as an important tool in the telecommunication between participants in a class. Although it didn't seem like the experimental class in this article was online, the study could be done again with an entirely online class to see if the results are similar or different. The data that was collected was subjective. The transcripts of the daily dialogue between students and the teacher through the use of instant messenger was printed out and examined. It is interesting that as the study went on, the length of the messages seems to decrease.

Other data that was collected were the interviews that were conducted with both students and teacher on a monthly basis. The study could have been improved by conducting an anonymous survey in which the participants could not be identified to see if similar results were stated.

Article #3
Podcasts

Citation:
O'Toole, G. (2007). Multimedia-casting syndication for educational purposes considerations of a podcast for use in higher education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 38(5), 939-941.

Summary:
Audio podcasts have become very popular in the last few years for online classes. This article looks at the development of the podcast in higher educational classes at the University of Denver. The evolution of the video podcast was a result of the audio podcast first. At first, the University was only going to allow for one audio podcast per instructor with a URL to the podcast for the students. These files at first were purely audio. But that soon changed very quickly.

The audio podcasts that were first developed each had a Coldfusion form with information like title, description, length, and file type. This information was collected so that the podcast can be uploaded to the server at the University. The idea of having the podcast available for the students at any time is a plus.

The problem with the video podcasts was the size of the files. The large files would take up too much of the server space and it would take too long for the files to download and play. The audio/visual department is responsible for handling the recording of lectures; therefore, "they did not necessarily need to upload the files, as much as tell the xml document where those files were located. (P. 940) The audio/video manager converted all of the video files into the proper format to play on a video iPod.

Review:
This article is interesting because it describes both the pros and cons of using audio and video podcasts in higher education courses. The description of the process of how the audio podcasts are uploaded to the server is informative.