1.Read “Read-Only Participants: A Case for Student Communication in Online Classes” by Nagel, Blignaut, and Cronje. 2.After reading the Nagel, Blignaut, and Cronje article, write a 250-500 word summary of it. 3.Refer to the guidelines for writing an effective summary presented in the Module 2 lecture for use as a guide. Review the assignment rubric as well prior to beginning the assignment. 4.Be sure to include a discussion of the research problem, questions, method, findings, and implications discussed by the authors. 5.Prepare this assignment according to the APA guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required. 6.This assignment uses a grading rubric that can be viewed at the assignment’s submission box. 7.Submit the assignment to Turnitin
Read “A Case for Student Communication in Online Classes”
One can still learn even if they do not take a part in the online discussion (Beaudoin 2002).
Read-only participants: a case for student communication in online classes was done to show the other side of Beaudoin’s article, Learning or lurking? Tracking the “invisible” online student. Nagel, Blignaut, and Cronje wanted to show how successful students are when they take advantage with in an online community. In order for a student to be able to succeed in any online course, the student must contribute as often as possible. Over eight weeks,, a web only based course was given at the University of Pretoria. And every week the student would do research, participate in discussions, web artifacts and later do a group assignment (Nagel, Blignaut, & Cronje, 2009).
Through these assignments, Nagel, Blignaut, and Cronje were able to see how each of the students was able to relay on one another for help, and also giving feed back.
The final grades were based on, 10% from the discussion pose and the other 90% came from research posting, web artifacts, group assignments, peer review, and final essays assignment (Nagel et al.).Though the study was conducted on the base to find out how well a student would do by participating, they also looked at those who did not and those who semi participated. Students were put into to three categories: the fail group ( 50% and less), Pass group (51% to 74%) and the Distinction group (75% and higher)(Nagel et al.).
With the case study you can see that students had more success based on if they posted online, turned in assignments, or interacted with in the online community. Those who do not participate may need up failing or dropping out of school. No one really knows why there are students who would not interact…
Summery 2
Article Summary: Read-Only Participants: A Case for Student Communication in Online Classes As technology advances more and more, computers and internet have become more accessible, affordable, and ever so popular in recent times. With easy accessibility to internet, the online learning environment is a growing trend. Schools all over the nation offer online programs and fast earning degrees. Students from different demographics and age groups fill online classrooms making it even more popular. However, with such diversity in the classroom how does the instructor control communication in the classroom? Does the lack of participation from fellow students influence the learning environment? What are some of the different types of students often found in the online classes environment? This article will summarize the main points found in a research based on a case study prepared by Nagel, Blignaut, and Cronjé. With extensive research, investigation, and observations Nagel et. al.(2007) put together an article highlighting the importance of communication in the online classes.
Noticing a significant drop-out rate in online classes, they were determined to research what affected this rate and which aspects of the online classes were setting students behind. The authors used different methods to gather data to support their findings, and used different articles to incorporate their research and back up their conclusions. In order to analyze student participation they “presented an 8 week course on web-based distance learning to Masters students on a computer-integrated education course at the University of Pretoria” (Nagel et. al., 2007, p.41).
Matriculated in this course were students from a diverse background and different age groups ranging from 30 to 50 years old. Throughout this 8 week course Nagel et. al.(2007) were able to observe and evaluate students from different perspectives. The authors used the different tools provided online in order to analyze…
Title: UNV-5: Article Summary
This article titled “Read-only participants: a case for student communication in online classes” discussed the importance of communication in online courses as well as the reasons why students succeed or fail in these online courses. To obtain answers to the concerns previously listed, an 8 week study of students in an online class was conducted. This study consisted of monitoring online communication and classroom activity among students with different backgrounds with geographical location and age being two of the main contributing factors. From this study, results of both success and failure were discovered and documented. From the aspect of success, the following results were found: First, classes that had online discussion helped students that would normally be introverts in a traditional class, to be active in discussions. Second, this type of class helped to improve the learning of students by creating questions and answers (in the form of posts) of high critical thinking skills.
Third, online discussions that were developed created a community of support and healthy interaction (L. Nagel, et al., 2007).
Fourth, the facilitator (professor) that was very interactive with his class became a great asset to the online class because he provided feedback and affirmations to the students through posted replies. Because of the interaction of the facilitator, students became more involved with the class. Results from failures were also documented. One main point was the creation of the “read-only student”. This type of student would not actively participate. He would read the discussions/posts, but would not involve himself in the actual posting of questions or comments or giving very limited comments. Reasons for this type of behavior were procrastination, isolation, and/or unfamiliarity with technology (L. Nagel et…
Summery 4
The article states that student participation in an online class significantly relates to successful completion. The article strongly encourages students to participate fully in an online class. The goal was to find a model to predict online success, since “drop-out rates for online courses range from 20 to 50%” (Bernard, Brauer, Abrami, & Surkes, 2004).
Based on the authors’ findings, students that not only logged on regularly, but also communicated effectively with their classmates or the facilitator, were the ones who successfully completed the class. Those students who did otherwise did not share in the success. Researchers used a learning management system (LMS) to track students’ contributions within online communities. The LMS reveled that some students do not realize the benefits of participating online, which was evident by their failure in the class.
Students that listened but did not participate did not gain the same benefits as those who participated fully. Interacting with your peers can help eliminate the social isolation that online students often experience. These interactions insure students are a part of facilitator-controlled discussions. As the student participates they gain more knowledge of the material, and are able to contribute to the community more. Groups of students are better able to problem solve, as well as clarify ideas.
“Well-facilitated online discussions can be more inclusive than classroom discussion by including introverted students and enabling better quality interaction” (Cox, Carr, & Hall, 2004).
Since, the authors were ultimately interested in improving course completion rates, they divided these “Low online visibility and participation”(Nagel, Blignaut and Cronje 2007) students into five categories. The first is the read-only participants, students that logged in and posted frequently but did the post anything of value in the forums, students that had issues logging on (due to poor Internet connectivity),…