Category Archives: Research

Research Tips: What Worked for Me

In preparing to defend my dissertation in July, I collected several notes in case others asked me what went well, or what advice I might have for others. I thought I’d share them here in case they are useful to others.

  1. Read a dissertation in your intended field as soon as you can. A month before I started the Leadership PhD I found one of the key dissertations that I quoted throughout my study. It was very helpful to see how the dissertation was put together, to get a map for what was ahead.
  2. Create a research journal. My research journal at first contained my search methods for finding articles and dissertations on my topics. During my statistics classes I recorded questions and thoughts about my own research ideas. During the writing stage, I recorded notes, questions, learning from talking with my committee members, and lists of things to fix in my dissertation. It ended up about 30 pages long, full of notes & ideas.
  3. Email Summaries. Another useful practice was my email summaries. Soon after I talked to a committee member, usually within an hour, I wrote a list of things I learned and things to change. This helped me rephrase my learning, “catch it out of the air” and nail it down to words that I could re-read later. Some of the statistical procedures and knowledge I would have immediately forgotten if I hadn’t written it down. My committee members also found this habit very helpful as they also had a record of my understanding of what was said. They corrected me as needed.
  4. Adapt to your advisor. I thought at first that I wanted to work via email because I want to be able to read things over & over. Yet one committee member wanted to work via phone. I found that adapting to this method was wise because of the give & take that occurred in real time.
  5. Ask questions. If you don’t understand something, don’t just say “uh, huh.” Ask! Clarify. Check for understanding. It’s your own learning! Take control of it!
  6. Take the initiative. After getting feedback on one set of multiple regression analysis, I did all the rest of them. I didn’t wait to be told to do the next analysis. Playing with my data helped me know it better, even when I had to redo analyzes.
  7. Know your data well enough to find errors. Several times I found odd results that didn’t look right. Upon further examination they weren’t right! Understanding your data and the analysis makes it much easier to reflect on the results and implications.
  8. Psych yourself up to spend time on formatting. The formatting will take longer than you expect and can get annoying. Just psych yourself up to know it’s going to be a pain and slog through it! It’s part of the process and makes for a clean nice looking document when you’re done.

What tips do you have for doctoral students writing a dissertation? Feel free to comment and share!

Blogging My Dissertation

Do you remember way back in the spring of 2008? Many of you assisted my research by completing my survey for VC coordinators. Well, now I have finally defended my dissertation, and am ready to share the results and discuss them with you!

Why This Research?

I wanted to study the role of the videoconference coordinator in the school and the factors that might affect their ability to support videoconferencing. I wanted to compare these factors with the school’s use of videoconferencing – how much they were using videoconferencing.

Read the Research

If you are sucker for punishment, you can read my dissertation here.

If you’re interested but don’t have time for the whole thing: read chapter 2 for a review of the literature on curriculum videoconferencing; read chapter 5 for the application of the results.

Discussing the Research

What I really want to do though, is take the results piece by piece, and discuss them with you. See if you agree with the results. If they are similar to what you see in your area. If you have similar opinions on what is important in the use of curriculum videoconferencing in schools. So I invite you to join the conversation. We’ll take it slow and this might drag on for a month or so. I’ll slip in other posts here and there so you don’t get too bored! But please join the conversation! I’ve been anxious to share with you!

Thank you!

Let me say again a big thank you to every single one of you who completed my survey and encouraged your VC coordinators to complete it. I couldn’t have done it without you!

How Do You Evaluate the Effectiveness of Your VC Program?

In the past month, I’ve been thinking and reading a lot about evaluation, particularly in light of my videoconferencing program at Berrien RESA. Evaluation is more than just counting how many videoconferences occurred (which is my usual pattern); it is determining the effectiveness of the program. To determine the effectiveness, we need to have some expected results, a way to measure them, and a way to find out if the program had the desired results.

What are the Expected Results?

One of the books I read on evaluation (McNeil et al., 2005) suggested that to evaluate a program, you should first consider what you expect the results of the program to be. So, what do you expect as the results of your curriculum videoconferencing program? What benefits do we expect for the students involved? We know that teachers see a benefit to their students, but what benefit is it specifically?

  • Motivation (for what? Learning?)
  • Achievement? (in specific content areas?)
  • Expanded learning opportunities
  • Interactivity?
  • Cross cultural exposure?
  • Increased communication skills?

How Can We Measure Those Results?

Next, we consider how we might measure those results. This is where I get seriously confused and unsure. Most of my teachers do one or two videoconferences a year. The highest is 12 videoconferences, and that was a preschool teacher with an am and pm class. So that was really just 6 videoconferences per class. Can six videoconferences in a school year make any measurable change in students? Can one videoconference make a measurable change beyond an anecdote?

  • If we expect increased motivation, is that measurable after just one videoconference? Two?
  • If we are measuring achievement, how would it be measured across my 70 schools with VC carts who use VC in a myriad of ways in the curriculum?
  • If we are measuring expanded learning opportunities, maybe we just count how many they did and leave it at that?
  • Do we determine the effectiveness of our videoconferences by how interactive they are? Do students learn more from a one-on-one vs. a view only session? Maybe. But sometimes the teacher needs to see a view-only before they will attempt a live interactive session.
  • If we are measuring cross cultural exposure, does a Michigan-Texas videoconference count? (That’s for you, Rox!) What about connections to zoos & museums?
  • How would we measure students’ increased communication skills? Teacher perceptions? Student surveys?

Measure Effectivness by Comparing Results

The next step would be to compare results to baseline data (before the program) and after the program. McNeil suggests using last year’s data as the baseline for this year.

But to do this, we have to resolve the issue of what is the benefit and can we measure it?

I’m not asking these questions because I don’t think there is a benefit. I do!! But can we get clearer and more articulate about the benefits of using curriculum videoconferencing? Can we improve our annual evaluations beyond just counting participation? Is it possible?

Reflection

The problem with asking these questions is it starts to make you think that videoconferencing may not be worth doing. But are the things worth doing only those we can measure? Certainly the current NCLB climate leans that direction.

How did schools justify in-person field trips? Should there be hard SBR data to prove that field trips to a zoo or museum are worth doing before we actually do them? Similarly, do short-term learning experiences like videoconferences need hard data to show it’s worth doing?

I don’t know the answers to these questions. But I sure want to talk to you all about them!! Please comment and share your thoughts/reactions to these questions even if you don’t have an answer either! Help me think about this!!

References

McNeil, K. A., Newman, I., & Steinhauser, J. (2005). How to be involved in program evaluation: What every administrator needs to know. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Education.

Learning and Doing

Ok, this post isn’t tooooo closely tied to VC, but I want to keep these tweets somewhere close by! Thanks @cheryltice and @lcolwill for helping me find these!

They are all related to the idea that if you don’t use or experience knowledge, you haven’t really learned.

And the one that started my search:

@roxanneglaser: “@rhumgordon hmm. Now you are making me think. If you read and don’t do anything w/ the knowledge, do you learn?”

Makes you think, doesn’t it?!

Teacher Comments on VC

This post is part of a series of posts with some of the results from a survey of my top VC-using teachers. Read more about it in the first post of this series. Remember, they are using videoconferencing to support curriculum instruction (not full length courses).

The question featured in this post is the last question in the survey:

Any Other Comments You Want to Share?

This is a qualitative representation of the results using Wordle. Click the graphic for a larger version.

Teacher Comments

Students and learning are front and center. Are you surprised? Here are some more comments:

This is a song we sang at our Read Across the Planet (to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star) Distance learning is a fabulous experience & I’m exceedingly thankful that I can give my kids the chance to be a part of it!

We hope you’ve enjoyed our show
Distance learning helps us grow
We learn to speak and to perform
We get to explore explore
We hope you’ve enjoyed our show
Distance learning helps us grow. – Heidi Clark, 1st grade teacher at Three Oaks Elementary, River Valley.

We enjoy the videoconferences and I feel that my students learn about themselves, the curriculum, and the world around them while participating. –Wendy Zahrn, 4th grade, Sylvester Elementary, Berrien Springs

This has been an exciting opportunity for our Preschoolers and created new methods of learning and teaching. –Esther Nixon, Preschool, Mars Elementary, Berrien Springs

The students gain so much from a VC that they are worth the time and effort involved. -Karen Ennesser, 7th grade science, Dowagiac Middle School, Dowagiac

My goal is to have videoconferencing right in my classroom. –Linda McConville, 4th grade, E. P. Clarke Elementary, St. Joseph

Videoconferencing is much easier than many think it to be. It is an excellent tool to share with your students. Real world/life plays a big part in this process. We are becoming a technological world and students will need these kinds of experiences to succeed. -Dori Hughes, 2nd grade, Eagle Lake Elementary, Edwardsburg

One of the 7th graders stated that the video conference was the most memorable activity for this school year. Students are “charged” to learn in this way. It’s a great tool to connect small-town students to the world around them. -Peggy Clore, 5-7th language arts, Coloma Middle School, Coloma

I am a big fan of videoconferencing because of the interactions of host and classroom. -Barb Vegter, 3rd grade, Countryside Charter

Videoconferencing has proven to be a great motivator of student interest. They enjoy the experience and invariably ask when we’ll do another. –Anonymous high school teacher

Reflecting on the process:

Did you get any ideas for your future program evaluations? I’m thinking that some of these questions could be easily made into a multiple choice to get more quantitative data to compare from year to year. I’m thinking I would also like to survey my teachers who have done a VC before, but didn’t do one this year. This could be very valuable data as well.

Did you find this little series helpful? What did you learn? Click comment below to share your thoughts.

Critical Supports for Teachers

This post is part of a series of posts with some of the results from a survey of my top VC-using teachers. Read more about it in the first post of this series. Remember, they are using videoconferencing to support curriculum instruction (not full length courses).

The question featured in this post is the following:

What are the supports that are critical for you to keep on using videoconferencing?

This is a qualitative representation of the results using Wordle. Click the graphic for a larger version. This time instead of including all the words, I renamed them similar topics to the same words so that the results were more understandable.

Critical Supports to Sustain Use

To me, these results are a mandate to continue the following components of our videoconferencing program:

  • Our online registration which provides scheduling for most of the programs our schools do
  • Supporting, training, sustaining VC Coordinators, making sure they are replaced and trained if they leave
  • Providing resources, both print and web-based, to help teachers see how VCs match their curriculum
  • Offering free programs to our schools (ASK and collaborative projects) that are tightly matched to their curriculum, including the “boxes” that come with the ASK programs
  • Offering mini-grants to help pay for programs
  • Increasing access to VC in every school
  • Assisting principals and tech coordinators in the districts with supporting VC

How would your teachers answer this question? If you’re a teacher, do you agree with this list? What supports must continue to sustain your use of videoconferencing? If you support teachers, are you able to provide most of this support? Do you provide any other supports? What do you see as most important? Please comment!

Selecting and Preparing for VCs

This post is part of a series of posts with some of the results from a survey of my top VC-using teachers. Read more about it in the first post of this series. Remember, they are using videoconferencing to support curriculum instruction (not full length courses).

The question featured in this post is the following:

Comment on how you select and prepare for a videoconference.

This is a qualitative representation of the results using Wordle. Click the graphic for a larger version.

Selecting and Preparing for a VC

Curriculum and questions sure stand out, don’t they? Let’s look at a list of how my teachers find out about programs:

  • Check websites
  • I use the ISD website to search for programs that are available.
  • I go to the teacher who helps us in our building for help. VC Coordinator.
  • Look is ASK directory.
  • Investigate messages listing available topics. (My emails to the teachers came up quite a bit.)
  • Jazz mini-sessions.
  • Librarian assistance. VC Coordinator.
  • I use some of the same ones each year because I know the expectations and the results. I watch for Janine’s emails to see what is new that I can use, and I look for FREE ones.
  • I use the ones I have experienced. Interesting on these repeat comments. What hooked them the first time?
  • There is a print out at the beginning of the year that I try to find things that go with my theme.

What is their criteria for choosing?

  • Whatever is free!
  • I look for videoconferences that integrate with our learning.
  • Based on our GLCEs / curriculum. This came up again and again in various wordings.
  • Videoconferences that are at my students’ level.

Preparing for a videoconference can include:

  • Making sure they understand the content before the VC
  • I usually provide the students with guidelines and we vote on what medium or type of presentation to give. The students then work in groups to complete the presentations.
  • We prepare according to the instructions, formulate questions, discuss the topics etc.
  • As for preparing, sometimes the ISD sends kits for us to use or I check with the place holding the VC.
  • I expose my students to the information necessary for them to become fully engaged when viewing the decided VC. WE discuss and then prepare questions that can be asked or answered by viewing the VC to make it a much more richer experience.
  • Prior to the LEST WE FORGET conferences I will spend a class period providing background info or reinforcing prior learning of the war involved. We then develop questions based on student ideas of what they would like to hear more about.

Your Turn: How do you select and prepare for videoconferences? What resources and strategies do you use to help teachers select videoconferences? How do you help teachers prepare for videoconferences? Please comment!

Videoconferencing is like…

This post is part of a series of posts with some of the results from a survey of my top VC-using teachers. Read more about it in the first post of this series. Remember, they are using videoconferencing to support curriculum instruction (not full length courses).

The question featured in this post is the following:

If you asked your students to fill in the blank: Videoconferencing is like ___________ What would your students put in the blank?

This is a qualitative representation of the results using Wordle. Click the graphic for a larger version.

VC is Like...

Some of the teachers actually had their students answer the question, and they came up with very creative answers. See what you think of these:

… going on a cool fieldtrip without leaving our desks.

… eating double deluxe chocolate pie.

… playing the best video game ever.

… real live movies that we participate in.

… a rainbow on a Sunday afternoon.

… a fieldtrip coming to our classroom.

… talking to someone in the same room, even though they’re far away.

… school… only way better! 🙂

Do you get the sense that the students in these classes (where teachers have done 6-12 videoconferences in a year) found that videoconferencing enriched their learning and engaged them?

So, how would you answer this question? How would your students answer this question? Do you get the same reaction from your students? Please comment!

Sustaining Use of VC

This post is part of a series of posts with some of the results from a survey of my top VC-using teachers. Read more about it in the first post of this series. Remember, they are using videoconferencing to support curriculum instruction (not full length courses).

The question featured in this post is the following:

Please identify and describe a key experience that helps sustain your use of videoconferencing.

This is a qualitative representation of the data using Wordle. Click the graphic for a larger version.

Sustaining Teacher Use of VC

This Wordle is a great confirmation of Owston’s (2007) model on the sustainability of an innovation. He suggests that an essential condition (among others) for sustainability is that the students must support the innovation. Clearly these teachers see the value of videoconferencing to their students. Here are a few full quotes:

A key experience that motivates me to continue using videoconferencing is the fact that my students are able to communicate with other classrooms, authors, and educators around the world. –Wendy Zahrn, 4th grade, Sylvester Elementary, Berrien Springs

Connecting kids to experiences outside of our community without leaving the school! -Tami Miller, 2nd grade, Eagle Lake Elementary, Edwardsburg

The comments the students were making and the level of understanding they had was amazing. -Lacy Payne, 6th grade, F.C. Reed Middle School, Bridgman

The students enthusiasm! They love to VC. -Karen Ennesser, 7th grade science, Dowagiac Middle School, Dowagiac

These are interactive field trips that we don’t even have to leave the building for. Students walk away with new knowledge and experiences. -Dori Hughes, 2nd grade, Eagle Lake Elementary, Edwardsburg

When I see the students interact, with great interest, listening to the speaker or other classroom, I’m delighted to see their involvement. -Peggy Clore, 5-7th language arts, Coloma Middle School, Coloma

I LOVE videoconferencing! It gives my kids exposure to things we couldn’t otherwise do. It gives them practice in presenting & performing skills and is just so much fun! -Heidi Clark, 1st grade teacher, Three Oaks Elementary, River Valley

So, how would you answer this question? What keeps you going in sustaining the use of videoconferencing in your classroom or school? Please comment….

Reference: Owston, R. (2007). Contextual factors that sustain innovative pedagogical practice using technology: an international study. Journal of Educational Change, 8(1), 61-77. doi:10.1007/s10833-006-9006-6

Stigmergic collaboration: A theoretical framework for mass collaboration

Continuing work on my 5th competency:  Servant Leadership in Technology Facilitation and Collaboration.

Elliott, M. A. (2007). Stigmergic collaboration: A theoretical framework for mass collaboration (Doctoral Dissertation, University of Melbourne, 2007). Retrieved from http://mark-elliott.net/blog/?page_id=24

Notes (instead of a summary)

This work is incredible, detailed, and presented in an attractive way. I feel that I can’t do it justice, but here are a few notes.

Definitions: “Collaboration is the process of two or more people collectively creating emergent, shared representations of a process and or outcome that reflects the input of the total body of contributors” (Elliott, 2007, p. 31).
“co-created emergent shared representation” (p. 45).
“Stigmergy is a class of behavior in which collective activity is coordinated through the individuals’ response to and modification of their local environment—one agent’s modification becomes another’s cue (p. 8). (swarm intelligence)

Some principles: Non zero sum outcome (i.e. win win)
Includes creative activity (not just cooperating together); must create (p. 40).
Generate multiple solutions to a problem and one is selected by the collective (p. 40)
Collaboration transcends and includes cooperation which transcends and includes coordination (p. 41)
The Internet is fundamentally a stigmergic system in that it supports mediated indirect communication and inspires users to respond to its encoding by further encoding it (p. 92).

What does it take to create the environment for it?

The individual must relinquish some control to the collective, including sole authorship (p. 49)

Collaborative output requires “constant attention and redevelopment” through out the process, and the purpose needs redefining daily, each moment (p. 50)

Procedures must be previously agreed upon (p. 51).

What are the participants like?

Multiple participants with varying social capacities, personalities, histories and relationships (p. 53)

An ideal prospective collaborator…
1. is enthustiastic about the subject of our collaboration
2. is open-minded and curious
3. speaks their mind even if it’s an unpopular viewpoint.
4. gets back to me and others in a timely way.
5. is willing to enter into difficult conversations
6. is a perceptive listener. (p. 54)

Communication happens through all types of mediums, and may not stay in the same medium. It also isn’t two-way, it has multiple paths and multiple participants.

What does it take for digital stigmergic collaboration to happen?

Someone has to:

“Define an objective for which collective creative contribution is required in order to build value through user contribution.

Define a set of procedures designed to provide the capacity for participants to make such contributions.

Develop an online environment which caters for these contributions and enables the emergence of collectively created shared representations, and cultivate a community which supports the objectives.

[Then]  “Compliant participants make creative contributions and benefit from collective efforts.” (p. 104)

——

Reaction:

Wow. This deserves much further thought! Preferably stigmergic collaborative thought.