Communicating

		Introduction Words are the tools of ideas. Students need opportunities to use these tools as they interact with new concepts in your class. Learning occurs when students can test, stretch, connect, reflect upon, and assimilate new ideas. One way this happens is through communication.

		Communication is different than reporting. Communication is usually an exchange of information that goes back and forth between two or more people. Information is both given and received. Both communication and reporting can be synchronous or asynchronous. However, communication is usually more synchronous than reporting. Communication is repetitious and occurs during active learning. Reporting is more summative. It occurs at or near the end of a unit of study. Communication is a way of acquiring more information. It is a way of connecting areas of knowledge. Communication is also a way of broadening the scope of inquiry. Reporting is a way of organizing what has been learned by retelling and sharing with others. Ultimately, many of the same technologies support both reporting and communication. The difference between them is the purpose and intended audience.

		In this lesson you will learn about using technology in the classroom to enable and support communication. Some technologies that you may use are e-mail, text-based discussions, text-based chat, voice-enabled chats, video recordings, and video conferencing. You and your students may already be using many of these technologies. This lesson will help you better understand why communication is an important learning activity. It will help you understand how different technologies impact communication. Finally, it will help you understand how to develop technology-enhanced learning environments to foster communication.

		Learning Theories First, we will briefly review some learning theories. These theories will inform us about using communication as an activity. We will review Vygotsky's Social Development Theory, Situated Learning, and Constructivist Theory.

		Vygotsky's Social Development Theory points out the importance of communication to learning. Language used in social relationships is central to Vygotsky's ideas about intellectual development. Zone of Proximal Development, or "ZPD," is an important part of this theory. ZPD distinguishes between a person's ability to solve problems alone and a person's ability to solve problems with someone's help. This help is sometimes called scaffolding. Vygotsky viewed scaffolding as a social process. Through scaffolding, the learner externalizes higher cognitive functions with help from someone else. The learner then internalizes these functions. Learning environments influenced by Social Development Theory bring learners together in purposeful interactions with adults and knowledgeable peers. These environments shouldn't be about random communication. Rather, the adult or knowledgeable peer should have a clear idea about what the learner should achieve. Language should be used to help the learner accomplish the task.

		Communication is also essential to Situated Learning. This theory is often attributed to Lave. Situated Learning Theory holds that learning can't be effectively accomplished in isolation. Rather, effective learning takes place through social interaction. This interaction must occur in environments where the learning is tied to the context of a situation. This type of learning is often structured as group problem solving, or "anchored instruction." Anchored instruction is a learning activity centered on an interesting problem, story, or situation. Activities influenced by Situated Learning feature relevant problems that students solve by working together in cooperative groups. The communication about the problem is instrumental to the students' learning. Some models of Situated Learning feature mentorships or apprenticeships. Knowledgeable others help less knowledgeable members of the group become full members of the group. These members in turn become mentors themselves. Constructivist Theory reflects both Social Development Theory and Situated Learning Theory. Constructivist Theory is influenced by the work of John Dewey, Jerome Brunner, Piaget and others. This theory holds that children internalize learning through an ongoing process of connecting new information to existing ideas. Communication is a vital part of this process; children must test their understanding of new concepts by interacting with others. Constructivist learning situations may include Socratic dialogues, discussion groups, problem solving, group task performance and round table sharing sessions. Such activities should be designed to help students connect new information to what they already know.

		Computer-Mediated Communication Many people believe the capacity for complex symbolic language is a primary characteristic of humans. Therefore, it isn't surprising that there are so many learning theories that have strong communication components. Each theory gives reasons why teachers should design learning environments that offer students a variety of ways to communicate. In addition to learning theories, there are other reasons communication is an important learning activity. Among these is the need for communication skills in order to be successful in the work environment. Interpersonal communication skills in face-to-face environments are critical. There is also a growing need for skills in computer-mediated communications, or "CMC." Computer-mediated communications are communications between two or more people that are mediated by computers and related technologies. The people involved in the communication are often not in the same place. People involved may also engage in the communication activity at separate times. While not as common, the language of the communication may also be mediated in some way, such as through a translation system. Activities that make use of CMC may take many forms. Common forms are individual-to-individual use of e-mail, desktop conferencing, or instant messaging. Another form is individual-to-group, which may make use of desktop video conferencing or web casting. Still another form is group-to-group, which often uses text-based discussions or multi-user chat technologies. Each of these CMC environments has it's own characteristics that you should know about. One way of understanding some characteristics of these CMC environments is found in Media Richness Theory. Media Richness You learned about Media Richness Theory in the first reading of this lesson. Media richness provides a way to examine CMC technologies. Specifically, media richness examines the ability of a technology to relay the communicator's message. Knowing the relative richness of different media can help the user select the most efficient or appropriate medium. In general, richer media is needed to effectively communicate subjective messages. In other words, richer media should be used when there is room for interpretation in a message.

		We are all familiar with communicating in very rich face-to-face environments. When we communicate face-to-face, we can listen to the speaker's words and voice inflection. We can also watch body language in face-to-face communication. However, there are times when we can't be all together in the same place at the same time. In these situations, communication through intermediaries such as computers is required and this form of communicating is different than face-to-face communication. Different media technologies have different abilities when relaying information. Media Richness Theory describes two kinds of information in a message. First is the message itself, the central idea being transmitted. The second type of information is information about the message. This information is transmitted in face-to-face encounters through facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice. These cues are absent in many CMC environments. Using Media Richness Theory, you can choose the technology that most efficiently accomplishes the goal of the activity. In some cases, the intent of the activity includes a significant component of community- or relationship-building. In such cases it is useful know a little bit about Social Presence Theory. Social Presence In addition to Media Richness Theory, you read about Social Presence Theory. Different communication technologies support different levels of social presence. Social presence measures the sense of importance that others have of each other in a mediated communication environment. Some communication technologies can cause people to forget about the other person involved in the communication. Therefore, social presence is important to consider as part of a CMC supported educational activity.

		You may have already been witness to an e-mail flame war. People in a flame war may write things to each other that they wouldn't dare to say face-to-face. One of the reasons that this happens is that some communications media isolate the communicators from each other. People may never think they are just communicating with a machine, but some still lose the sense of talking to another person. Because of this, they don't follow customary rules of conversation. In less dramatic situations, students may fail to write or respond to each other, even if this is the activity's purpose. Occasionally, students may use the communications medium to attract the instructor's attention, rather than to converse with other students. This may be caused by the communicator's low sense of social presence for others in the communication environment. If this happens, it's important to try to find ways to raise social presence among the students.

		In general, CMC requires more time to develop relationships than face-to-face communication. Also, richer media seems to foster a greater sense of social presence than leaner media types. All of this information can guide you as you create learning activities that use CMC. Using Social Presence Theory will help you design learning activities and choose the most appropriate communications media.

		Using Vs. Teaching Technology Educators today feel a lot of pressure from a number of sources. Public scrutiny of education is high. Students are much different than they were in past years. There is a growing understanding that old education paradigms are not always going to remain the best paradigms. Educators are expected to use technology like never before. Sometimes, the stress and pressure educators feel is self-imposed. An example of this is the stress that some educators feel about technology. Educators pride themselves on being experts, often in a particular field or in teaching techniques. Often, educators believe that they must be technology experts to use technology in their teaching. While a certain level of competency is important, it is essential to differentiate between teaching technology and teaching with technology.

		A teacher does not have to be an expert in technology to effectively use technology. The discussion of Media Richness Theory and Social Presence Theory pointed out the importance of choosing technologies that best fit the intended purpose. However, learning environments must still meet the larger course objectives. Simply put, if your students spend all of their instructional time learning technologies, when will they learn the content? For this reason, you should choose the most appropriate technology based on the medium's effectiveness, availability and familiarity. Knowing that desktop video conferencing might be the best medium for an activity doesn't help if desktop video conferencing is not readily available.

		Additionally, you need to make informed decisions about your students' technology skills. You should choose a leaner medium, like e-mail, over a richer medium, like a text-based chat, if your students don't know how to use a text-based chat system. This is not to say you always have to choose technologies that your students know how to use. However, you may need to make time for students to learn how to use a technology, perhaps through peer coaching. There are other ways of incorporating technology into an activity that don't require you to have technology expertise. For example, you can make use of technology expertise that students already possess. If your students have already had instruction on developing web pages, for instance, you may substitute website development for a traditional paper assignment.

		Sometimes technology fails. There are commonsense strategies for minimizing the chances of technology failure. These strategies can also minimize the negative impact of unexpected failure. Don't attempt to use unfamiliar technology in a widespread or high profile application all at once. When adopting a new technology, first find small-scale ways to put it to use. Use the new technology in ways where recovery from failure causes little disruption to the classroom. Allow the technology to prove its reliability and worth over time. Another strategy is to have a backup plan for high-visibility, high-consequence activities. For example, if you're planning on having an important speaker do a web cast, try to have a phone backup and a picture of the presenter on display as he or she talks. For technologies that students use alone or in small groups, develop trouble-solving strategies for students to work on if the problem solving system doesn't work. In fact, developing these problem-solving strategies cooperatively with a class provides a positive example of proactive problem solving that will benefit students.

		Activity Structures Over time, choosing technologies based on their appropriateness, availability, and reliability, will help you develop a repertoire of classroom activities. You may recognize this concept from the second reading for this lesson, the abstract of Virtual Architecture Designing and Directing Curriculum-Based Telecomputing by Judi Harris. Dr. Harris describes several useful activity structures for educators. Let's consider some of these activity structures in light of what we know about media richness, social presence, and other factors we've discussed. After reviewing the reading, you should note that the different activity structures present ways to organize communication activities in the three basic communication groupings discussed earlier. These three groupings are one-to-one, one-to-group, and group-to-group. Each type of grouping structure has strengths and weaknesses that you should consider as you adopt them in your classroom.

		Keypals, telementoring, and peer feedback are typically one-to-one activities. E-mail is the most often used technology for this type of activity. However, it is becoming more common to use text-based chat, or instant messaging. E-mail is a relatively lean medium because it is not usually synchronous. However, e-mail does make it possible for students on opposite sides of the planet to communicate, each in their own time zone. Chat environments, instant messaging, and conferencing technologies are real-time, or synchronous. This makes them more engaging than e-mail, and raises the degree of social presence the participants feel for each other. Often, one-to-one activities are selected for a high degree of social presence. This is why these richer media are becoming popular. For example, you'd need richer media if you wanted students to empathize with each other to better understand a different culture or society. Knowing someone in a personal way is also a great motivator for students to learn more about the other person's country. This kind of activity is also good for helping students practice language skills (Claro que si!).

		Typically, individual students perform these one-to-one activities. The instructor is not directly involved, except to help set up the initial communications. The instructor may also periodically monitor the activity to ensure that both parties are participating. It's impractical for a single instructor to attempt to monitor the many messages the two students will share. However, the instructor can set up reporting requirements to monitor the activity's progress. In some cases, the instructor will need to intervene if one of the students fails to engage in the communication process. If this happens, it's a good idea to try to develop a way for students to select a new partner on their own.

		Electronic appearances, question and answer, as well as impersonations, are most often set up as one-to-group situations. One-to-group situations are often done via text-based chat, audio, or video conferencing technologies. Such activities make it possible for the group to experience a high degree of social presence for the person who is presenting to them. However, it is more difficult for the presenter to experience much social presence for the individual members of the group. This is also typical for face-to-face, one-to-many presentations. The technologies that support one-to-many presentations accentuate this characteristic of a one-to-group presentation. One-to-many activities are good if there is a high profile individual who is willing to share a message that is important to the members of the group. It is possible for one person to present to many different groups all at the same time. This can maximize the time investment of a busy person willing to participate in this type of activity. Often, the transcript (when text-based chat is used) or multimedia resource (when video conferencing is used) can be kept and used for later reference. These types of activities can be effectively accomplished with the instructor or a knowledgeable student acting as moderator. The moderator can field questions from the group and select the best questions to ask the presenter. When setting up this type of activity, it's helpful to have a large format display so that the entire group can see what's happening. If you use text-based chat or instant messaging, it's a good idea to have a picture of the presenter displayed for the group to see. Pictures, especially large pictures that show the presenter's face, can raise interest and social presence.

		Global classrooms and simulations are usually group-to-group activities. Group-to-group activities often use text-based chat or desktop conferencing. Either can be chaotic and confusing if the participants do not follow certain guidelines for using the technology. Because of this, these types of activities can be a little more difficult to coordinate and synchronize. Such activities can be done with whole-class participation, using the instructor or knowledgeable student as a moderator. These types of activities can also be done within a small group activity. If there isn't a moderator, and everyone can add to the discussion, the results can be disorganized. It's important for students to know how to function in such multi-user environments. For the activity to be successful, there should be a clear expectation for the interaction. For this reason, it's a good idea to help the group establish communication etiquette and develop clear goals for the group collaboration.

		Most people think of CMC-facilitated communications as conversing in widely separated places. It's important to not restrict communication opportunities to this scenario. It may seem odd to have a student using a threaded discussion to discuss topics with students in the same class, but there are reasons for doing so. This type of communication is becoming more common every day in the workplace. One example is a group of people who worked to develop online instruction. The group consisted of a programmer who was creating software and one or two content developers who were using the software. Even though they were within 50 feet of each other, and sometimes in the same room, instant messaging was helpful as they tested the software's reliability. It may be possible for your students to use available technologies to collaborate with individuals in your local area. Students can also interact using some of the activity structures outlined in the reading.

		As you incorporate some of the activity structures into your classroom, you may want to begin by replicating existing classroom activities. This can help ensure that the activity you design will fit well with your intentions. Also, you can use the previous activity method as a fall back in case the technology fails. As your students become more proficient with technology, and as the technology demonstrates its reliability, you can develop new ways of using technology to facilitate communication. In the book Virtual Architecture Designing and Directing Curriculum-Based Telecomputing, Dr. Harris notes that instructors who do this commonly complain that they don't have enough time. She makes the excellent point that although this may be true, the technology isn't always what takes up the time. In many cases, as new technology-enhanced activities are added to the classroom, the instruction changes from teacher-directed to student-centric. There's evidence to support that such student-centric learning environments are best. However, these environments do take more time than traditional instructor-centered learning environments. Thus, it is often good teaching, rather than technology, that takes more time. Yet, this is a trade-off that many instructors are willing to make as they work to achieve their own best practice.

		Conclusion Communication skills are crucial to success. Students need to learn some of these skills as part of their instruction. As we move through this information age, some skill with computer-mediated communication is almost as critical as face-to-face communication ability. Several learning theories stress the importance of language and communication to cognitive development. Many theories include communicating as an important part of the learning process. There are many ways to use technology to foster environments that facilitate communication. However, it is important to understand that CMC is not the same as face-to-face communication. Each technology has its own characteristics. The media's richness and the degree of social presence that participants feel can help you understand a communication media's characteristics. Media types that are richer are able to carry more information. There are at least two types of this information. One type is the message itself. Another type is information about the message that is often conveyed in tone of voice and body language. A media's ability to carry both types of information can have an impact on the social presence experienced by the participants. Also, synchronous as opposed to asynchronous environments can help communicators develop greater degrees of social presence.

		Different types of communication activities have been used with success in educational settings. Becoming aware of these activity structures and knowing their characteristics can help you choose, modify, or adopt those that best fit your plans. As you begin to use technology more in your teaching practice, be aware that using the technology in relevant ways is important for your students and for you. In fact, if you use a technology yourself, you are more likely to find ways that the technology can work for your students.

Technology Enriched Learning