E. Mitchell's Communicate 2.1.3 – Ongoing Communication Quest

Integrating the ideas presented in Communicate: Stakeholders quests, create a blog post in which you discuss reasons why effective communication remains an essential part of online instruction. In the blog post, create an example of an ongoing communication that could be sent to all stakeholders. Ensure the product is creative, informative, and adheres to FERPA guidelines.


Effective communication is essential because that is the main way I connect to the students as their educator and mentor.  The delivery of online courses is asynchronous (mainly), so there are few guaranteed times students have direct access to me live in their course.  Though some assignments (like quizzes) are autograded by the computer, everything else is assessed by me....my standards and my expectations.  This means that students have to know I am a person not a computer instructing them in the course.  By first establishing a connection with students and parents by call and email, they know I exist but they need to know I exist throughout the entire course.  This means communicating with them at least once every week to create a constant reminder of my presence even when not there while students are working.  Additionally, this means hearing from the instructor beyond issues like grade average and academic honesty.  When I send my course newsletter I do include facilitators because I often include news about due dates and GaVS policies for which they may be unaware of.  

Here is a sample of a newsletter I have sent out.  

E. Mitchell's Communicate 2.1.2 – Communication Guidelines Quest

Reflect on the needs for your individual Communication Plan. Then, construct a general outline that includes the following:

• Welcome email (generic for all courses)
• Personal notes versus mass communication to stakeholders (appropriate times)
• Stakeholders
• School Policies regarding Communication
• Tools available for effective Communication

Welcome Email

A proper welcome email should clarify some details and expectations of GaVS as well as the individual teacher.  Additionally it should establish clear lines of communication stating the various ways students, parents, teachers, and facilitators should stay connected.  I also feel a welcome email should be responded back to.  I ask in the email for a response from students and parents confirming they have read through it and understand the expectations.  Additionally I create or borrow a "getting started" video and highly suggest students and parents watch together so technology and navigation are not issues in beginning the course.

Personal notes versus mass communication to stakeholders (appropriate times)

Personal notes are great reminders about the student on a personal level.  There are things that students and parents will confide in teachers (i.e. anxiety issues) that the teacher has no right to spread to others.  However the information students and parents are willing to share gives personal insight to the student's life and tells you something about their home life and social life that can definitely impact the quality of their work.

Stakeholders

Stakeholders would be like a facilitator or some one helping with IEP accommodations.  This is important when needing to immediately contact a student or checking for attendance and F2F provisions for the online course.  Additionally it establishes a clear understanding for the student's provisions so that everyone is knowledgeable and can not play one against another.  

School Policies regarding Communication

Though I do send the bi-weekly reminders to parents, students, and facilitators, I try to exceed communication minimum standards.  I think (though maybe a little annoying) it shows my investment in student success.  For example, I do post the link to the weekly recorded Adobe sessions but I also email them to the students and parents that evening after the session has concluded.  I also contact parents and facilitators of students whose grade falls below a 70 every time we have a benchmark due date, not just the first time their grade dips.  The SchoolCast call that GaVS makes is just an additional aid.

Tools available for effective Communication

TONS!!  I send out bi-weekly newsletters of class events (i.e. highlights of student work, reminder about policies, AP exam information) using Smore.  I do have a GaVS Twitter account, I use Remind101, and I also use DialMyCalls.  There are plenty of aids for communication that require little effort on the teacher's part to use so there really is not an excuse.  Just inform the students and parents that they exist and encourage them to sign-up!

E. Mitchell's Communicate 2.1.1 – Identify Stakeholders Quest

• Do the descriptions correlate to your perception?
  
• In a way, yes.  I do feel open lines of communication are key in the virtual classroom as in the traditional setting. The longer I teach online, I learn little tricks of the trade for communication.  Sometimes getting started is a hassle, but once a product is made it can easily be modified (i.e. a class newsletter).  I do feel though sometimes too much responsibility for grade communication is on the teacher.  If it is posted in the portal and calls and emails are made, how much more are we responsible for?  As a student in the past, I was overly attentive to my grade as were my parents.  May be stressing to the parents their role expectations is key.
  
  
• How can they be expanded upon or described further?
  
• I do think the contact people at the local school could b more helpful in communication.  When working with certain facilitators in the past, some have been awesome and will get the student out of class to address an issue.  Others could never be contacted.  Though I know they have their own duties and responsibilities at their traditional settings, it would be more helpful in communicating with students and parents.
  
  
• Are there other stakeholders within an online environment not considered above?
  
• My only thought here would be anyone in relation to special accommodations that a student may need.

E Mitchell's Communicate 1.1.2 – Laws of Communication Quest

• How can one refrain from violating FERPA guidelines in online communication?
• To be honest, I would always error on the side of caution.  After taking the FERPA training that was suggested to all GaVS employees, I am now more aware of FERPA standards and the importance of adhering the to rules for the protection of all parties involved.  I think about, "What if this email address is incorrect"?  What if you just sent personal information via email to another email address unrelated to the students household.  Additionally I have had situations where students were involved in a custody battle with their parents and I had to know who exactly I could notify about the student's performance.  I would stay as vague as possible, making blanket statements.  Since parents have the ability to login for themselves and view grades, this is the best thing to suggest to them individually if they want more detailed information.
• What methods could be employed to verify that copyright is not being violated?
• When in doubt, ASK!  Having a review committee is a great way to double check for a content developer.  In addition, reading the fine print.  Teaching AP, College Board makes known their copyright policy on everything.  For example practice exams.  I have the right to use a released practice exam from College Board for instructional purposes.  What I can NOT do is post the practice exam I secured from them on my website.  Now if the site is protected and students have to login and the exam is posted in a quiz format, not one that students can download and save, then it is okay.     
• Does copyright require that all work, images, words, and graphics must be original?
• No, and that is where is gets tricky.

E. Mitchell's Communicate 1.1.1 – Definitions of Communication Quest

• 1. How have your individual communication skills changed as with the innovations in technology?
• 2. How have advancements in technology altered classroom communication? Will these change further?

1.  My communication skills have been slow to change.  I feel my relationship with technology is an accurate representation of my personality.  I am introverted, tend to keep to myself with my emotions, and my circle of friends is small.  I have never been a phone talker, and have always preferred personal conversations face-to-face.  I feel technology in a sense has made me a little bitter with how I see others use it that I have purposely tried not to change.  But I must admit, texting is apart of my life with my best friend.  Due to the differences in our schedules and managing family life, conversations mainly take place through texts.  As compared to Turkle's speech, they are not merely "sips" but definitely lacking a personal bond that is cornerstone in friendships.  Even with my parents, I will send them a text to answer a question rather than call.  This is something that in life I regret and need to change.

2.  As far as communication with my students.....wow, that has changed.  They would prefer to only know the gist of the story rather than the whole thing....they cut corners in reading because it takes up too much time.  Having communication outlets like Remind101 caters to their texting lifestyle but enabling to move away from personal responsibility.  In my face-to-face classroom, they have difficulty speaking in class; they don't want to be judged---exactly what Turkle said, they can't plan or edit their speech.  It is a fear that is clearly communicated on their faces but something they don't show through social media.  As far as the future, I'm not sure.  With ,my two children I know the behaviors I want to model for them.  I do not have my phone around them, I do not work until they are sleeping, I do not have the TV constantly on, and dinner time is dinner time not phone time.  

E. Mitchell's Navigate 4.1.1 – Trend Impact Quest

Select the trend that will make the most impact on digital learning over the next five years and discuss in your respective blog.

Though my interest is pulling me toward social media in education, the graphic alludes to a heavy interest in online educational resources.  My perception of online educational resources are ones that students use in gathering support for content material in class as all as resources educators can gather that are credible.  I know most students first go to is Google and of course the first suggested site (Wikipedia) becomes their one and only source.  Though Google Scholar can be helpful, there are numerous databases that exist, full of enriching content for students to use.  Students want an easy approach to education and gathering additional support information.  As an educator you want them to search for information on their own but want to make sure what they are finding is correct---correct that it is providing them solid information to base their own opinion from.  Online schools do have a sort of "library" for student use, but most students pass over it.  With an economy that is interdependent and launching students into future global careers, they can not be approaching the world with misinformation.  This references my other interest of social media.  Most students tell me they heard about world events on Twitter.  With limited characters to express (though you can link articles and such), most students take what they read at face value and do not dig for further information or to verify the source of the information.  I want to make sure students are armed with current knowledge to adapt to new situations.    

E. Mitchell's Navigate 3.2.1 – Tools for Deciding on an LMS Quest

Categorize the top LMS/CMS vendors associated with a specific learner (K12, Higher Ed., or Business) in your blog. Make a selection for what is the optimal LMS for the organization.

I found this recently posted to sum up the top LMS Software from 2014 (http://elearningindustry.com/the-20-best-learning-management-systems):

I have prior experience as a user of some of these systems:  MOODLE, Edmodo, Blackboard, and D2L.  As a user, the friendliest system has been D2L.  I felt the way the system enabled my instructors to set up their courses was easy to follow and had some flow.  On the flip, I have also used many of these systems as an instructor and still favor D2L.  I felt MOODLE was limited in design and was not interactive enough (for what I desired).  Nor do I think some are aesthetically pleasing which may seem superficial but as a user you want something that is not harsh when working. 

For use in the k12 arena, a LMS needs to cater to some needs:

1. cost
2. features (interactive interface, content, assessments)
3. reliability and accessibility
4. maintenance / upgrades
5.  User friendliness (ranging from students with little to no technology skills to those who are advanced)
6. Tech friendly

E. Mitchell's Navigate 3.1.4 – LMS Reporting Quest

What are the options for grade reporting? Are there various levels? Which levels remain most valuable for the online instructor in regard to student performance?

There are various options for grade reporting that I have used in my teaching practice.  The most beneficial has been the incorporation of rubrics that I have in place before students complete the assignment.  They are knowledgeable by choice of the expectations ahead of time.  This allows me in my evaluation to point out that fact.  But  definitely the quality of work improves when everything is stated ahead of time.  The rubrics are awesome because you have the ability to devise them in multiple ways but also added personalized reflections to student work.  This helps tie together objective evaluation with power of professional expertise with subjectivity.

The ability to create categories in the gradebook to breakdown grades is valuable.  Being able to create objective multiple choice exams to evaluate student knowledge in combination with a discussion adds meaning to the students cumulative class average.  Discussions can be evaluated with rubrics with integrating student participation and progress.  I evaluate discussions during the week.  The system allows me to provide feedback along the way and allow students to modify their contributions.