Lesson 2

Last Updated: Last Updated: 08/21/2023

Foundation & Theories of Online Learning

Goals

• Discuss the foundation of online learning.

• Explore the theories of online learning. 

Instructor's Note

This lesson is very important because we need to learn the foundations and theories of online learning.  Online learning has its own learning domain and applied learning theories.  It is very critical that we finish the readings before the lesson starts; otherwise, we won't have good understanding in participating in the lesson discussions.  With good understanding in the foundations and theories of online learning will help us to develop and to design effective online learning instructions.

In ETC645, we need to obtain comprehensive understanding the framework of "Online Learning."  Each our lesson will guide you to learn each area in the framework

• Learning Theory: Constructivism

• Pedagogy: Online Learning Community (OLC) & Community of Inquiry (CoI)

• Design Model: Online Community of Practices (OCoP)

• Instructional Strategies: Online Constructivism Instructional Strategies

In fact, when you learn any new type of technology-based instructions, you need to be able to identify its framework.  For example, when you learn "Mobile Learning," you need to ask what what mobile learning framework is. What is the applied applied learning, pedagogy, design model, and instructional strategies?

Both the foundations and theories of online learning are important to us because when we design effective online learning instructions, we need to follow the foundations and theories of online learning to design and to develop the instructions.  Additionally, we need to be able to justify why we design our online instructions in integrating certain online technologies and online instructional strategies. As experts of online instructional designers, the knowledge in foundations and theories of online learning is what distinguish us from others.  Do the required readings thoroughly.  If you have difficulties to understand the readings, you may wan to read it over to obtain good understandings. I highly encourage you to conduct additional readings for this lesson and other lessons to broaden your knowledge in online learning.  For Assignment 4 Final Project: Online Professional Development for Global Digital Learning, we will need the knowledge from the foundation and theories for online learning to guide our design and justify them in the project presentation.

Remember!  Effective online teaching and learning does not replicate what and how we design for face-to-face instructions.  Online learning has its own learning domain.  Simply convert FTF instructions to for online learning doesn't result in effective online learning.  If not, what are the important learning concepts we should know?  That is what we will explore in this lesson.

Activity

Online Discussions (4 Points)

• Exploring the Intersection of Online Learning Foundations and Interactive Attributes

  • Introduction

    • Both online learning foundations and attributes of learning and interaction are crucial aspects of designing effective online educational experiences. We aim to delve into a comprehensive exploration of the foundational components of online learning while considering their alignment with the attributes of effective learning and interaction. This holistic understanding will help us design more impactful online learning experiences that foster meaningful engagement, collaboration, and learning outcomes.

    • This aims to explore the interplay between these two domains and how they contribute to enhancing the quality of online education.

  • Read

    • Foundation of Online Learning

      • In Ally's Chapter 1: Foundations of Educational Theory for Online Learning, a model of online learning components is proposed. Don't forget to read Gunawardena's chapter to help you to obtain better understanding.

      • Gunawardena, C. N., & McIsaac, M. S. (2003). Distance education. D. Jonassen (Ed.), Handbook for research on educational communications and technology (pp. 355-396). New York: Simon and Schuster.

        • Focus your reading on the sections of: 14.2.1 Defining Distance Education (p.357-358) & 14.3.1 Theoretical Developments (p.360-363)

        • Obtain good understandings on: Guided Didactic Conversation; Independence and Autonomy; Transactional Distance; Control; Interaction; Sociocultural Context; & Social Presence.

    • Attributes of Learning & Interaction

      • • Anderson's Chapter 2.

  • Discussion Questions:

    • 1. Explain the Components and Attributes:

      •    a. How does Ally's model (Learner Preparation, Learner Activity, Learner Interaction, and Learner Transfer) intersect with the attributes of learner-centered, knowledge-centered, assessment-centered, and community-centered learning?

      •    b. How do the attributes of learning (learner-centered, knowledge-centered, assessment-centered, and community-centered) relate to the six forms of online interaction discussed by Anderson? 

    • 2. Modification for Enhanced Integration:

      •   a. What weaknesses do you observe on Ally's model and Anderson’s six forms of online interaction? 

      •   b. Propose modifications to Ally's model and Anderson’s six forms of online interaction based on the identified weaknesses in relation to the attributes of learning and interaction. How can these modifications lead to a more harmonious integration of these two aspects?

      •   c. Provide examples to illustrate your points.

    • Note: 

      • Support your proposed modifications with references from other relevant literature, if needed.

      • Ensure that you comprehensively address all posed questions, along with their respective sub-questions. Employ appropriate headings and subheadings to distinctly delineate these sections, enhancing the comprehension of your peers. The absence of specific length constraints is intended to encourage the thorough articulation of your arguments and concepts.

Assignment

No assignment for this lesson.  Prepare the upcoming assignments.

Although there is no assignment due in this lesson, your team should start planning your Assignment 4: Final Project: Online Professional Development for Global Digital Learning. 

Assignment 2 and 3 are individual work.  With good team planning, these two individual assignments can be applied to support your team final project.

The central idea of the final project, Assignment 4, is the same as a group. After deciding the central idea for the final project, each individual member works on your own separately so your individual assignments carry your own creativity and originality.