![]() In the intangible social space of the virtual classroom students come together to learn through dialogic, often asynchronous, exchanges. This review focuses on three interconnected socio-emotional aspects of online learning: interaction, sense of community and identity formation. Consequently, this article provides much needed insight into the murky space of asynchronous discussion forums. The notion of 'listening' (or attending to others) is proposed as a crucial condition for whether discussion progresses beyond simply 'posting'. ![]() The combined framework presented here enabled macro-and micro-understandings of discussion forums through an array of resources in the SFL model and the talk type descriptors to map linguistic features of knowledge constructing talk in an Australian postgraduate HE context. This hybrid mode of spoken-like/written-like communication demands skills which are rarely made explicit, often with the assumption that students (and lecturers) are proficient. While the benefits of discussion are commonly accepted in face-to-face learning, engaging students in effective asynchronous discussion can often be 'hit or miss', due in part to the shift to interacting asynchronously. This article combines a sociocultural model of classroom talk with a linguistically-oriented model (systemic functional linguistics) to explore what characterizes effective asynchronous online discussion in higher education (HE). Close attention to the unfolding language choices of the participants provides a logogenesis of the online discussion texts, offers fresh insights into the nature of adult learning, and into the complex relationships between the intersubjective and experiential in online learning environments. The results confirmed the significant role of the instructor in shaping dialogic opportunities that move learners towards new understandings. ![]() Two complementary theories were used: sociocultural theory, which views interaction as essential to the knowledge building process, in particular dialogically between expert-novice, and students as equals and Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) which highlights language as a meaning-making resource deployed in social interactions and allows insight into the unfolding construal of knowledge and the interpersonal relationships being enacted. This paper reports a study-in-progress examining interactions in the asynchronous discussions of a post-graduate TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) distance subject, focusing on the impact of scaffolding collaborative knowledge construction. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |