“Wralking and Ristening” – Developing Key

Slide 1: “Wralking and Ristening” – Developing Key Communication Skills for Online Distance Education Learners Moira Morrison & Bettina Brockerhoff-Macdonald Centre for Continuing Education April 29, 2008

Slide 2: Institutional Overview • DE is administered by the Centre for Continuing Education • Over 360 courses (English and French) in DE inventory • 89 courses are fully online within WebCT • 36 have online components within WebCT (Blended) • 2007FW total number of course registrations was 5650, of which 1521 were in either fully online or blended courses

Slide 3: The Problem… Some students were not participating fully What’s missing? - the progressive stages of forming an online identity - the beginning discussions of issues and course content - engagement in collaborative and constructivist learning

Slide 4: What is happening? Students were given basic netiquette and course specific guidelines for discussion forum use BUT… Even where there were committed faculty facilitating the discussion forums, not all students were using the forums effectively

Slide 5: Who are the participants? Different groups with a very diverse level of experience in online communication: • Young adult students • Mature students • Faculty

Slide 6: What the literature says… “The literature says we retain 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, 30% of what we see, 50% of what we hear and see, 70% of what we say, and 90% of what we say and do.” (Pike, Creative Training Techniques Handbook,1994) “When technology is used, communicating is in writing, requiring different skills than speaking.” (Wulff, Aligning for Learning Strategies for Teaching Effectiveness, 2005)

Slide 7: What the literature says… “The way people communicate online is a unique and evolving mix of written and spoken communication.” (Salmon, E-tivities, 2002) “There is strong evidence that communicating through text on screen is a new genre in its own right and most people are just coming to grips with it.” (Salmon, E-tivities, 2002)

Slide 8: Spot the Difference! Talking and Listening Spoken language is social, immediate, spontaneous, and can be emotional, heated etc. There are lots of clues to help you find meaning - body language will tell you if people are in agreement, disagreement, wish to make their own point, are paying attention, etc. Tone, volume and rhythm of speech give you more clues.

Slide 9: Spot the Difference! Reading and Writing Writing and reading are more solitary skills allowing time for reflective thought and redrafting of ideas. You can communicate more complex concepts using more difficult terminology (e.g. chemical names, etc.). You can read and reread difficult and complex issues and ideas to fully understand them.

Slide 10: Online Communication Skills Talking Wralking Reading and and and listening Ristening Writing

Slide 11: Speech “Wralking and Writing Ristening” Time-bound Adapt Space-bound Spontaneous Combine Contrived Face-to-face Adapt Visually decontextualized Socially interactive Combine Factually communicative Loosely structured Choose Elaborately structured Immediately revisable Choose Repeatedly revisable Prosaically rich Adapt and combine Graphically rich (tone, nuance, loudness, (figures, graphs, tables, rhythm, etc.) illustrations etc.) Based on Language and the Internet (Crystal, 2006, p. 31)

Slide 12: What are “wralking and ristening”? Taking part in a discussion forum means using computer technology to communicate with a hybrid form of communication which lies somewhere between writing and talking (“wralking”) and reading and listening (“ristening”). Spending a little time thinking about how these ways of expressing yourself differ from everyday conversational interactions and how you interpret written texts, can help you get the most from the discussion forum activities.

Slide 13: Why do “wralking and ristening” matter? • In fully online courses this is the primary method of communication • Communicating in discussion forums may feel different from the ways you currently communicate online (e.g., email, instant messaging) • Communicating effectively can enhance the learning process • Avoiding misunderstandings can reduce stress

Slide 14: Communicating Online Wralking and Ristening “Wralking and ristening” give you the opportunity to combine the range of language and writing skills you already have and adapt them for communicating online. Asynchronous technologies, such as the discussion forum, give you time to reflect on your thoughts and ideas before you share them. You have the time to read other students’ postings carefully and respond in a considered and thoughtful way.

Slide 15: Next Steps… Development of a Student Guide to “Wralking and Ristening” to be given to students in upcoming Fall and Winter terms Exit survey of students to determine helpfulness and efficacy of guide Publication of model and survey results

Slide 16: Questions??? Thank you!!! Moira Morrison mmorrison@laurentian.ca Bettina Brockerhoff-Macdonald bbrockerhoff@laurentian.ca