Event Title

SSA02 - From Fake Participation to Embedded Selves: Four Dimensions of Participation in Open, Online Learning

Presenter Information

Kira Baker-Doyle

Location

CB1-307

Streaming Media

Start Date

4-11-2017 1:45 PM

Description

Open, online learning has been embraced by some educators as a way to broaden the networked scope of learning and foster connections to real world contexts and communities. Openly-networked learning introduces a different paradigm of student engagement, shifting from a traditional mode of participation in which the student primarily engages dialogically with the instructor regarding assignments and feedback, to one in which students exchange information, resources, and feedback with each other and the communities in which the course connects the students. The shift represents a different way of thinking about equity, access, expertise, and public representation in learning contexts. This presentation describes the results of research on the ways in which students participated in an open, online course that used the Connected Learning (Ito et al, 2010) approach as a pedagogical framework. Connected Learning emphasizes openly networked and peer-supported learning. The findings demonstrate tensions for students in their expectations and understanding of participation in the openly-networked paradigm of learning. This presentation will describe the four different ways in which students perceived and enacted participation in the course, ranging from "fake participation" to authentically embedding themselves in the learning community. This research has significant implications for issues of access and equity for openly networked learning and has specific take-aways for online practitioners regarding how to establish a culture of democratic participation in an open, online course, and how to evaluate participation.