Week 11: More research is needed, quality traits are emerging

To figure out the benefits and weaknesses of online schooling, more research is needed. In order for that to happen, educational researchers need more funding, time and freedom to pursue the emerging frontrunners seen as crucial elements of online schooling. This week's readings highlighted the following three:

1. group discussions (text, audio, video) to facilitate "learning through dialogue" (A. Brown et al., 1998; A. L. Brown & Campione, 1994; Lea & Nicoll, 2002; Rogoff, 1994; Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1994 in Haavind, 2006)
2. student-student interaction
3. how courses are designed

The primary role of discussion seems an established norm of high-quality online schooling. Online school designs that put the teacher in the sage-on-stage role, possibly cutting into s-s interaction and discussion, should be avoided or at least minimized. Online curriculum designers need to not only keep the end user in mind, but also the optimal learning environment needed to promote in-depth discussion, metacognition, process learning, and asynchronous (allowing for time and reflection) meetings. Have online schooling design standards been established yet?

 After reading Zucker, I began to think more about how funding requirements and timeframe could affect study outcomes, and most probably do quite regularly. Ideally, they shouldn't, but the money/timeframe element will always be a part of how research is conducted. These constraints must be fully acknowledged in research findings when discussing study outcomes.