Communicating With Technologies

Discussion Boards:

They are a form of asynchronous communication. Because there is a lack of body cues, expression and pauses, students are forced to communicate clearly. More caution should be taken in order to get an idea across accurately. They give the chance for verbal intelligence to shine.
I don’t think that I really understood the value of discussion boards until just now. I appreciate Gardner’s beliefs on the multiple intelligences. Instead of asking “How smart are you?” he asks “How are you smart?” I am naturally a good thinker and communicator. I can communicate pretty well through print and in person, but I take it for granted. It doesn’t dawn on me that some students do not communicate well in person. In order for them to also get the full experience of collaboration and community in learning, they must have another way to communicate with each other. Like all tools in technology, some are designed to meet the learning needs of certain people; and I think that makes many of the tools worth it.
I think that the removal of bias is also something of value. The power in a post comes from the strength and power of the content, instead of from the popularity or appeal of the person communicating. Students can be given a voice to discuss things that they desire, and to contribute in a way that could potentially be just as valuable as face-to-face communication.
If I do end up using discussion boards in my classroom, I want to be very explicit in communicating to students why we are using them. The question that I always address in approaching technology is why. After asking it, some things make more sense and appear more necessary, while others lose their credibility altogether.
The biggest concern I have with discussion boards is this: how do I continue to foster critical thinking and meaningful learning through it? How do I keep it from becoming just another task for school? Jonassen advises that teachers be on the lookout for shallow conversation full of phrases like “I agree” or “me too.” But how can this really be done? On thing I thought of was to encourage, or maybe even require that students ask questions in response to each other’s posts. This would be in attempt to foster critical thinking. When students question each other and do not simply agree all the time, more depth in communication can follow. The teacher is often the one to think critically about student work, and ask questions; but the students should be actively involved in this process.

Interactive Chats and Messaging:

As a pre-teen and teenager, using AOL Instant Messenger was the cool thing to do. I am very familiar with IM, and still use it now to communicate with classmates and maintain long distance friendships. Before my parents let me get an AOL account, I would go to chat rooms to talk to people. Something about it made me feel very old and independent (even though I lied about who I was most of the time).
In order to better understand other kinds of chatting, I got an account with Tapped In. I first went to the Global Schoolhouse, and found a link to www.tappedin.org. The first chat room I entered was not very exciting. There were only about 5 people there, and none of them even talked to me. Over a short period of time, each one left the room. It was kind of amusing at first. In the end I had no luck getting anyone to talk to me. I am curious as to how many people still use chatting of that sort.