Table 1 Summary of Traditional... | Emerald Publishing

Table 1

Summary of Traditional Technologies for Engaged Learning

Technology	Advantages	Disadvantages	Implementation
Discussion boards (Ning networks,¹ etc.)	Facilitates peer interaction Supports student driven content Creates supportive climate Fosters camaraderie	Does not deepen analytical and evaluative skills Asynchronous communication (i.e., posting delays) Potential for student “lurking”	Instructor sets-up discussion board in course management system or elsewhere. Instructor provides “prompts” to direct student learning activities within the discussion board and may post comments from time to time, depending on the nature of the assignment.
Chat sessions (Google Talk,² Windows Live Messenger,³ etc.)	Supports student driven content Fosters spontaneous student interaction (synchronous communication, no communication delays)	Underlying pedagogy is questionable Good typists may dominate conversation Tendency for out of sync contributions and overlooked/misread comments	Instructor selects chat mechanism and establishes guidelines (i.e., schedule, discussion topic, etc.) for the learning activity. Instructor may participate in the chat session, depending on the nature of the assignment.
Blogs (Blogger,⁴ etc.)	Supports student driven content Involves students in the learning process Enhances students’ overall learning experience	Asynchronous communication (i.e., posting delays) Posts are typically longer than that seen in discussion boards or chat sessions	Instructor sets-up the blog, emails the link to the class, and monitors the content posted by students. Students can post their comments, report the status of their projects, ask/answer questions, etc. A notification can be created so that the class is automatically notified about each new posting, and students can post directly to a blog using their handheld/mobile devices.
Wikis (Wikidot,⁵ etc.)	Promotes student collaboration on assignments/tasks	Composition of group can affect performance due to socialization issues	Instructor sets-up wiki (hosted through a web page), e-mails the link to the class, and develops the assignment. Instructor can periodically review the work complete by students within the wiki.
Group tasks	Facilitates peer interaction Encourages learning Provides support (i.e., overcomes feelings of disconnection and isolation)	Team must identify how they will work together virtually Work equity may not be equal among group mem bers	Instructor creates the group assignment/project including detailed instructions about the deliverables. Instructor can suggest virtual collaboration tools that teams can use to work together and outline roles and responsibilities for each team member promote equity of work.
Peer assessment	Promotes student collaboration on assessment criteria Facilitates self assessment and reflection Encourages peers to coconstruct meaning	Assessments may not reflect actual peer performance or knowledge Evaluation may be biased if assessment criteria are not well understood by students	Instructor can either (1) develop assessment instrument and have students use it to rate their peers or (2) involve students in the development of the assessment instrument. Instructors should encourage students to take the assessment process seriously and provide clear definitions for the assessment criteria.

Technology	Advantages	Disadvantages	Implementation
Discussion boards (Ning networks,¹ etc.)	Facilitates peer interaction Supports student driven content Creates supportive climate Fosters camaraderie	Does not deepen analytical and evaluative skills Asynchronous communication (i.e., posting delays) Potential for student “lurking”	Instructor sets-up discussion board in course management system or elsewhere. Instructor provides “prompts” to direct student learning activities within the discussion board and may post comments from time to time, depending on the nature of the assignment.
Chat sessions (Google Talk,² Windows Live Messenger,³ etc.)	Supports student driven content Fosters spontaneous student interaction (synchronous communication, no communication delays)	Underlying pedagogy is questionable Good typists may dominate conversation Tendency for out of sync contributions and overlooked/misread comments	Instructor selects chat mechanism and establishes guidelines (i.e., schedule, discussion topic, etc.) for the learning activity. Instructor may participate in the chat session, depending on the nature of the assignment.
Blogs (Blogger,⁴ etc.)	Supports student driven content Involves students in the learning process Enhances students’ overall learning experience	Asynchronous communication (i.e., posting delays) Posts are typically longer than that seen in discussion boards or chat sessions	Instructor sets-up the blog, emails the link to the class, and monitors the content posted by students. Students can post their comments, report the status of their projects, ask/answer questions, etc. A notification can be created so that the class is automatically notified about each new posting, and students can post directly to a blog using their handheld/mobile devices.
Wikis (Wikidot,⁵ etc.)	Promotes student collaboration on assignments/tasks	Composition of group can affect performance due to socialization issues	Instructor sets-up wiki (hosted through a web page), e-mails the link to the class, and develops the assignment. Instructor can periodically review the work complete by students within the wiki.
Group tasks	Facilitates peer interaction Encourages learning Provides support (i.e., overcomes feelings of disconnection and isolation)	Team must identify how they will work together virtually Work equity may not be equal among group mem bers	Instructor creates the group assignment/project including detailed instructions about the deliverables. Instructor can suggest virtual collaboration tools that teams can use to work together and outline roles and responsibilities for each team member promote equity of work.
Peer assessment	Promotes student collaboration on assessment criteria Facilitates self assessment and reflection Encourages peers to coconstruct meaning	Assessments may not reflect actual peer performance or knowledge Evaluation may be biased if assessment criteria are not well understood by students	Instructor can either (1) develop assessment instrument and have students use it to rate their peers or (2) involve students in the development of the assessment instrument. Instructors should encourage students to take the assessment process seriously and provide clear definitions for the assessment criteria.

Note:

¹www.Ning.com; ²www.google.com/talk/; ³messenger.msn.com; ⁴www.blogger.com; ⁵www.wikidot.com.