The Use of Computer-Mediated
Communication in Teaching
Computer-mediated communication (CMC) describes the process that's taking place right now as you read this message. Every time we send or receive an email message, we're taking part in CMC. To me, and others, the Internet is all about communicating with individuals or groups. The most widely available method for CMC on the 'Net is through text, but the expansion of audiovisual capabilities will continue. By looking at the positive and negative aspects of this mode of communication, we can all find ways that CMC could be incorporated into our instructional activity.
Sometimes physical education teachers, music teachers, and others suggest they don't need computers in their teaching--that it is irrelevant for their domain. This is definitely NOT TRUE! As you will see in the suggestions below, there are lots of applications that go way beyond the "text-based" classroom. Even if you only used the Internet for professional communication (with parents and other teachers) and resource gathering (there are a lot of lesson plans in Internet archives), you should see the utility of using the Internet as a professional teacher.
While I hope by this point we've already delved into this issue a bit with a discussion in class and on our Discussion Group, I wanted to write a separate lesson to explore these possibilities and note some useful articles. This lesson will consist of several scenarios where CMC may be of use and a short bibliography.
Some Prerequisites
I couldn't just make this simple for you, could I? 8-) There are certainly some things you'll need in advance to try any of these options. For starters, your students would need to have their own email accounts and somewhere to access them from. Next, they'd need some basic instruction on how to use the accounts (at least for email). At this point, you're basically ready to go. Other capabilities you'd like to see from your students, such as confidence in communicating with their classmates and with you, can be developed as your CMC project goes along.
To meet these needs on an school-wide basis, a number of infrastructure and instructional improvements are needed. First, the numbers of computers (with telecommunications capability) available to students will need to increase. Second, instructional opportunities on how to use email would need to be instituted. In addition, there would need to be either an on-site or remote help desk (probably staffed in the beginning by you!) available to advise students with email difficulties. None of these are crippling needs, however, and with proper planning could be easily put in place. The question a school has to face, however, is whether or not the benefits of CMC outweigh the costs.
Case One: Using Email to Facilitate Class Discussion
This is, perhaps, the primary current use of email in a class setting. The ideas behind holding electronic discussion sessions to complement a live lecture class are threefold. First, there may not be enough time in class to hold discussions. Second, some students may feel too intimidated to hold forth in a live discussion. Third, live discussion sessions often don't give students adequate time to make a thoughtful response. An email discussion group solves these problems by providing an additional outlet for discussion that is non-threatening to the shy user and accommodates delays for reasoned responses.
Case Two: Using Email for Advising, Tutoring, and General Questions
This use of CMC, whether by students in an teacher's class or those s/he advises or tutors, gives the student quick, private access to an teacher without the two having to physically meet. It allows teachers, if they wish, to respond quickly to student questions by regularly checking their email. Students gain the sense that they can always get a hold of the teacher, particularly if the teacher checks their messages often. Questions of a general nature can also be answered via a class discussion group so that the instructor does not have to repeat the answer to several people. Students can notify teachers when they will be absent and/or request missed learning materials. The instructor can also easily contact individual students as needed. Regular reading of mail by all participants in such a situation makes for assured communication on all sides.
Case Three: Using CMC in Assignments
Teachers can try a number of different ideas to use email to enhance communication and learning. While many of these suggestions would seem to be most useful to those teaching middle- and high schoolers, I think you can adapt some of them for use with elementary-age learners (and their parents). Some suggestions:
Case Four: Using Email for General Announcements
This is quite similar to Case One and could be done in conjunction (as could all of these cases). Examples of this use by instructors are as follows:
Some Positive Factors of CMC in Instruction
Some Negative Factors of CMC in Instruction
Conclusion
CMC is certainly not something to integrate into a course too quickly or without proper preparation. The cases and merits I mentioned above should, however, give you some idea of the positive outcomes of this method of communication. Keep in mind that the cases above only involve intra-class communication, and do not branch out into student participation in other listservs and discussion groups.
Our own class, by the by, is an example of partial CMC instruction. While I have discussed CMC in conjunction with live learning activities, it need not be in this format. The possibility of classes "remote in space and time" (Jacobson, 1994, p. A26) is very real. Distance learning at least is a prime opportunity to experiment with CMC as a means for instruction.
How effective is CMC, and is it truly beneficial? These questions can best be answered by those who have attempted it, and most are emphatically positive. Only by more rigorous examination can "proof" be obtained. The evaluation you make of this course will help advance the study of CMC in teaching. For myself, I will be using CMC as a supplement to this course and will continue to analyze it firsthand with students.
There are many other articles and books available on these topics. A subscription to free magazines such as Technological Horizons in Education Journal (a.k.a., T.H.E. Journal), and Syllabus might be an inexpensive way to keep up in the field. I have review copies of these magazines (and several others) shelved in racks in room SVE 3 (next door to my office). Media and Methods, Educational Technology, Technology and Learning, and Electronic Learning are some other magazines in this area which you can examine. The Augsburg Library subscribes to several of these. You may wish to check out these magazines as well. Several magazines also have electronic versions such as Technology and Learning.
I am, if it isn't too obvious 8-), extremely excited about CMC and its use in teaching. I hope that this lesson has introduced you to the subject and given you some points to ponder. If you are interested in discussing this issue or are thinking of experimenting with it yourself, please contact me or post something to our moodle Discussion Group.
Happy Netting!
Internet Lessons version 1.8. Copyright of lessons (C) 2007 by Joseph A. Erickson, All Rights Reserved. Permission Granted for Individual Usage.
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