“Computer Processor on Keyboard” by danielfoster437 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Expectations For Communicating with Peers Online.
With a pivot in providing learning opportunities for students outside of the classroom, it is important that students learn what is expected and what is not expected in being a digital citizen when interacting online with or without the presence of an educator. The British Columbia Ministry of Education has made adaptations for our School District to include online cloud-based tools into our teaching methods to keep students connected and moving forward with their learning. The following resources are pieces to the puzzle in supporting peer to peer collaboration.
For each resource selected, I used the University of California’s Evaluating Resources guide. It outlines six criteria to determine if a resource is relevant for consideration through the following guidelines:
- Authority – Who is the author? What is their point of view?
- Purpose – Why was the source created? Who is the intended audience?
- Publication & format – Where was it published? In what medium?
- Relevance – How is it relevant to your research? What is its scope?
- Date of publication – When was it written? Has it been updated?
- Documentation – Did they cite their sources? Who did they cite?
Resource Links:
B.C. Digital Literacy Framework (PDF)
The framework can be found on the Government of British Columbia’s website as a guide to identify the tools, thinking, and learning needed for finding success with a 21st century environment. The document is more relevant now due to our unpredictable circumstances with Covid-19, where we need a back-up plan for remote learning. The document was created from resources based on the International Society for Technology in Education’s (ISTE)-NETS Students Standards and Performance Indicators. The B.C. Digital Literacy Framework was published in 2015, with clear headings and learning objectives for students from kindergarten to grade twelve. You can also find links to resources used in creating the document. The B.C. Digital Literacy framework encompasses more than expectations of peer-to-peer online communication, and overall find it a credible resource that is still applicable to B.C. educators. Educators can justify lesson plans and activities in relation to the building of peer-to-peer relationships in online environments through this document.
Harassment Brochure (PDF) from School District 57 (Prince George B.C. and Surrounding Area)
The brochure was created in School District 57 for Prince George Secondary School (PGSS). The document has greater relevance for me, as I recently transferred to teach at PGSS. The brochure is nicely organized and is targeted towards parents and students. The document was created in 2015 in partnership with education staff from various schools in Prince George, and with Perspectives Hr Consulting. Since this is a school district document, the actions and consequences towards bullying online are specific and relevant for me in the upcoming school year. All schools in British Columbia have a action plan for bullying, which brings into mention the next resource for B.C. educators.
Common Sense Media Digital Citizenship
The website is run by a non-profit organization based in the United States with offices located throughout the country. Their website focuses on supporting students with technology and media, with their section on digital citizenship supportive for educators and students. There are lesson plans with developed resources that are free to use within their website. The grade nine to twelve content on Relationships and Communication provide support on appropriate communication with peers online. I found the grade eleven curriculum on Connecting to Digital Audiences very supportive, as it presents strategies on communication with others in an online environment. Materials have a Creative Commons license that attribution must be provided along with restrictions on making modifications to the content. All content was created by Common Sense Media.
Fostering Student to Student Communication Online (PDF)
A great two page outline stating the benefits of online communication between peers and tips to facilitate peer communication. It is a document that was created in collaboration with three different universities in providing post secondary instruction. The foundational pieces on peer online communication expectations are concise and to the point. Links for additional resources are provided in the document to explore as well.
7 Rules for Online Etiquette
A quick seven point guide for supporting online communication that was composed from a variety of online sources. A publishing date is not shown, but from the date of the sources cited one may conclude the document was created in 2015. The document was created to support online learning for high school students and adult learners in Indiana.
Student to Student Interaction Online
Fantastic resource that outlines the following:
- evidence that supports the positive impacts of online interactions between students
- how to facilitate student to student interactions online
- additional resources for the reader to further inquire about student to student interactions online
The document is geared towards post-secondary learning at the Rochester Institute of Technology. There are various links on the website, and a downloadable PDF version is available with built in links to provide extra resources for the reader. Although some of the documents were published in 2014, all of the information relates to communication in online learning environments for adult learners. I found the the tables, headings, and the organization of all documents very easy to read and understand.
So You Want to Temporarily Teach Online
The material was written by Stephanie Moore and Charles B. Hodges in an online publication titled Inside Higher Ed in March 2020. Both of the writers are professors at post secondary institutions in the United States with backgrounds in instructional technology. The article gives some great tips in facilitating online learning. The document appears to be tailored for post-secondary education, but with simple modifications you can tailor your pedagogy for high school students.
A Beneficial Resource Not Listed
A resource that I’ve had challenges finding is a specific set of guidelines that outlines expectations of peer-to-peer communication in online classroom environments. It would be exciting to have small group collaborations between peers online with the educator acting as the facilitator.
Mike Caulfield, a professor at the University of Washington, gives an excellent presentation on the possibilities of utilizing technology to facilitate learners who are either physically in the classroom, synchronously online, or a communicating asynchronously. Although geared towards post secondary education, the foundation for building relationships between learners is created with his approach.
The next step in my project is to create a document that is transparent for students, teachers, and parents for the facilitation of collaborative, social, and emotional learning for students. With Covid-19 not going away anytime soon, giving educators and students the flexibility to build online relationships is a need not only for learning, but for mental health as well.
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