Case 2 Online portfolio and group multimedia project

Deakin's off campus students studying by distance education experience some advantages over on campus students, such as the ability to live at home, to not attend lectures and hence work or care for children, etc. One disadvantage is isolation from other students, which can inhibit students' academic, professional and social growth. This is an aspect attended to in a Mathematics Education subject offered by the Faculty of Education, Deakin University.

The assessment for this case had two components - a group online portfolio and a multimedia project submitted by pairs of students. The portfolio pieces were stimulated by prompts released each week, using the automatic timed-release function of DSO. Prompts included readings (electronic links to journal articles), short excerpts of video, a short audiotaped discussion between two teachers, a quotation, a photograph, and a number of 'expert opinions'. All of these related to six specific components of quality mathematics teaching. Groups of four students had electronic discussion areas where they could express their thoughts, discuss issues arising, and plan a group response that also drew on their own professional experience as primary or secondary teachers of mathematics. The group portfolio pieces were posted into an assignment drop box in the DSO site for this subject by the due date, and these were released (without students' names attached) during the following week. The second assignment involved pairs of students creating a multimedia resource (with exegesis) on one of the six components, using the students' contributions as well as a general commentary by the lecturer on the students' group work in each of the six areas. They were also expected to seek and use research reports about their own area of focus, using electronic databases and online journals.

The first group postings were of extremely high quality and were very extensive. The lecturer was also surprised at how well pairs of students drew on points made by the groups, and particularly at the way that classroom experiences and resources that had been openly shared in the portfolio pieces were used.

A further positive outcome was that the group work and pairing of students led to some close friendships, as evidenced by the frequency of online discussion, arrangements made online to travel to visit each other, informal chatter (including synchronous chats), and honest critique of each others' work. It was noted that very few students chose to move outside their group of four when choosing partners, even though this was a free choice, and the lecturer felt that this was indicative of the quality of friendship and trust that had been established. In fact, in one case two pairs of students swapped their assignments with each other to seek peer feedback before they were submitted.

Student evaluations showed that they appreciated the quality feedback received from people in their group as well as opportunities to share readings and classroom experiences, and that they enjoyed and learnt a great deal from their conversations about a variety of aspects of teaching mathematics. Several claimed that the range of interpretations evident in the portfolios made them think more deeply about issues raised and possible ways of responding to the series of prompts, and that this variety resulted in numerous resources for planning their multimedia work.

Issues that were reported by the lecturer who taught this subject again included some loss of members of groups and late enrolments disturbing established groups. Some groups included members who relied on the hard work of others, and the lecturer said that next time she would ask groups to issue a joint, signed report on each person's contribution and associated suggestions about sharing the marks. This problem seemed to have been overcome in the second assignments by having students work as pairs, as there was only positive feedback in the student evaluation regarding peer participation.

A further issue was the time-limited portfolio drops. When students could get online it proved a very efficient system. However, the windows of opportunity were interrupted by software maintenance periods twice, as well as individual students having technical problems. Next time, the lecturer says, she will set it up more flexibly, with longer submission periods.

اخر الاخبار

اخبار العتبة العباسية المقدسة

قسم العلاقات العامة يناقش مع منتدى شباب الإسكان إقامة مهرجان تكريم طالبات المدارس المرتديات العباءة في القادسية

سماحة السيد الصافي يدعو إلى توحيد الجهود في تحقيق التراث لضمان الرصانة والدقة وخدمة الساحة العلمية

المجمع العلمي ينظم محاضرة إرشادية ضمن المشروع القرآني في مدارس بابل

بذكرى شهادته.. العتبة العباسية المقدسة تشرع في تقديم خدماتها لزائري مرقد الإمام الكاظم (عليه السلام)

المزيد

الآخبار الصحية

6 فواكة تساعدك على الشعور بتحسّن عند المرض

حفاظا على صحة العين.. هذا أفضل وقت لتناول فيتامين أ

الاستخدام اليومي لسماعات الأذن.. أخطر مما تتصور !

هل توقيت نشاطك اليومي يؤثر على صحة دماغك؟.. العلماء يجيبون

المزيد

الآخبار التكنلوجية

ابتكار ألماني قد يغيّر مستقبل صناعة البلاستيك

تحديثات وأرباح عبر المشاهدات.. ما الذي تخطط له "لينكد إن"؟

"الكوكايين الوردي".. مخدر جديد يثير قلق السلطات الأميركية

دراسة: تغيّرات في أسلوب القيادة قد تكشف مبكرا عن الخرف !

المزيد

مواضيع ذات صلة

Parents with Learning Disabilities CONCLUSION

PROVISION OF SUPPORT

CARING FOR CHILDREN

EUGENICS AND ETHICAL ISSUES

PARENTING

DISCRIMINATION AND DIVERSITY

THE HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Parents with Learning Disabilities

Legislation and Learning Disabilities CONCLUSION

LEGAL SAFEGUARDS

MENTAL CAPACITY ACT 2005

THE HUMAN RIGHTS ACT 1998