Subject: Re: [IFETS-DISCUSS] research on factors that encourage participation by students
From: Bill Williams (bwilliams@ESCE.IPS.PT)
Date: Fri 06 Jun 2003 - 14:41:52 MEST
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 2003 13:41:52 +0100 From: Bill Williams <bwilliams@ESCE.IPS.PT> Subject: Re: [IFETS-DISCUSS] research on factors that encourage participation by students
I suspect that the "does it count for assessment?" question may be more of
an issue in courses at under-graduate rather than post-graduate level.
In a small (unpublished) study I carried out on factors contributing to a
high level of participation in sections of an international online
post-graduate course (where participation was not being assessed) I
concluded that the biggest factor in encouraging a high level of
participation was the design of the learning task (in effect how
"collaborative" it was). The next most significant factor seemed to be the
role of the tutor/moderator. An interesting aspect was that professed
learner difficulties with English (the language of communication but not the
first language of most participants) need not be a significant limiting
factor on learner participation when there is appropriate task design and
tutor involvement.
I would be interested in hearing from anyone else working along similar
lines.
Bill Williams
Setubal Polytechnic
Portugal
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