Man - the compulsive communicator(David Attenborough)

REACHING OUT: REACHING OUT: using technology to create using technology to create

communitycommunity

Braz -TESOL Sao Paulo, July 20th, 2010

WHY DOES THIS SUBJECT MATTER?

There are benefits:◦For your own professional

development as a teacher/educator◦For your students

INTERNET = NETWORKThe task is to shape part of it into your own community.

INTERNET = NETWORKThe task is to shape part of it into your own community.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/27126314@N03/2956992219/

Community?Community?

What are the essentials of COMMUNITY? (thoughts from audience)

Support Friendship Shared vision Connection Purpose Safety net People Belonging Common interest Red wine!

““It ain’t community.”It ain’t community.”• Shane Hipps on YouTube

Community or Network?Community or Network?

I believe what happens online is connection—not community.

…at times online connections can be more life-giving than many of our offline relationships, but they are not the same.

  Online connections are good. They can be deep and good for our souls. But when we turn them into an online community, they can, and do, impact our face-to-face interactions. When we spend more time staring at a glowing monitor than we do into the eyes of those we love, it might be time to shut off the computer.(Anne Jackson http://blog.christianitytoday.com/outofur/archives/2009/02/the_social_netw.html)

Community or Network?Community or Network?

COMMENTS IN REPLY TO ANNE JACKSON:

… there are many disconnected people out there who have no particular community that would be enhanced by their going offline. For them, for right now, the connection is their community.

Let's not cheapen any act of intentional, good-willed human-to-human outreach as something less than an expression of authentic community. I doubt Paul wrote his (virtual) letters with anything less than a profound sense of community in his mind and heart. Communication builds community.

I'm surprised at the number of people framing this conversation in stark binary thinking. Physical = community. Virtual = something else. In reality, any definition of "community" must embody nuance and color and deeply shared imagination.

Community or Network?Community or Network?

DOES COMMUNITY HAVE TO BE FACE TO FACE?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/maiac/711198150/

Community v NetworkCommunity v NetworkGroup A (Community)

Group B (Network)

Domain (professional focus)

PLUS

Personal (support, encouragement, friendship )

Domain (professional focus) is the subject of all activity and communication

http://www.flickr.com/photos/choconancy/161004139/

Internet and Community- Internet and Community- what happens?what happens?

You connect less with some of the people around you in your daily life

You connect more with people who share similar interests – whether they be local or global

You connect with people you would otherwise have had no contact with

Online Community – Online Community – what’s the appeal?what’s the appeal?You connect less with some of

the people around you in your daily life!

You connect more with people who share similar interests – whether they be local or global

You connect with people you already know via a different medium (online). (You get to know people differently)

You connect with people you would otherwise have had no contact with

Online Community – Online Community – what’s the appeal?what’s the appeal?

You can connect with multiple people with similar interests at the same time (many to many communication.) (Group discussion)

Some simply prefer communicating online

Purpose of Community in Purpose of Community in the Context of Education?the Context of Education?

Enhanced professional development

Connects remote learners in distance education classes

Can establish a stronger sense of togetherness with f2f learners

Models a way of learning for the 21st century - lifelong learning; networked learning

Learning in the 21Learning in the 21stst CenturyCentury

“You’re going to need a gang!” (Mike Seyfang)

..that can assist educators and learners filter, make sense of, and

manage the incessant flow of information” (Siemens and Tittenberger)

One of My Gangs - the One of My Gangs - the WebheadsWebheads“an experiment in world

friendship through online language learning”

Several hundred members

Webhead Origins - The Webhead Origins - The PalacePalace

Where do Webheads fit?Where do Webheads fit?

ITCommunityFace to faceCommunity

IT

CommunityIT Individuals

+

WEBHEADS

=

+

What comes first – technology or community?

The spirit of sharing and support is so interconnected with...technology in this community that it's difficult to tell which is the cause and which is the effect.

(Nancy White: Digital Habitats)

Where are the Webheads?Where are the Webheads?

in approximately 50 countries

Webheads TodayWebheads Today

In 2010, the Webheads community is alive and well (weekly meeting, daily communication, many gather each year at the international TESOL convention in March, several met for the first time in Argentina just last week….)

How/why has this community How/why has this community survived?survived?

HUMAN FACTORS

TECHNOLOGY FACTORS

How/why has this community How/why has this community survived?survived? Shared vision Weekly online meeting (Tapped In) Daily discussion (email list) Regular events/projects Everything is documented and

shared Face to face meetings Shared (and rotating) leadership Annual intake of new members Spirit of support

How/why has this community survived?How/why has this community survived?

Online meetings have inspired f2f meetings

Which tools for what task?Which tools for what task?

Home Base (portal)◦Communication Channels◦Collaborative Workspaces◦Artefact Storage◦Resources◦Event Promotion

What would my community What would my community look like?look like?

The Communication ChannelsThe Communication Channels

Several modes of communication (email, discussion boards, Instant Messaging, blogs, wikis, voice tools, webcams, virtual classrooms, websites, virtual worlds (Second Life), micro-messaging (Twitter)

THE EMAIL LIST IS STILL THE LIFEBLOOD

Synchronous MeetingsSynchronous Meetings

Tapped In:◦Weekly regular event (Tapped

In)◦Other meetings might

variously use: Instant Messengers, Virtual Classrooms > voice interaction; webcams, etc

Virtual ClassroomsVirtual Classrooms(Web Conferencing)(Web Conferencing)

Big Bucks Elluminate (free 3 person vroom @ http://elluminate

.com/vroom/)

Very affordable: iVocalize (http://ivocalize.com/) Discover-e (Australian) http://www.compued.com.au/

discovere/

Free Wiziq – new, but seems good http://www.wiziq.com/ DimDim – can be integrated with Moodle

Virtual ClassroomsVirtual Classrooms(Web Conferencing)(Web Conferencing)

The Role of VoiceThe Role of Voice

Provides sense of immediacy, and

More personal contact

SYNCHRONOUS TOOLS:

Yahoo Messenger, Skype, Virtual Classrooms, Second Life Image courtesy of mosmanlibrary

Free Tools for Free Tools for (asynchronous) (asynchronous) Spoken ConversationsSpoken Conversations

Voxopop◦ example (advanced EFL listening)

VaestroVoiceThread

◦ Webheads anniversary

WEBHEADS WEBSITE(S) – the WEBHEADS WEBSITE(S) – the ArtefactsArtefacts

Collective and individual spaces (pages, blogs, wikis)

Photos (people, colleges, places of work, family)

Writings on individual pages, blogs

Resources created by the community

All of this can be shared via the Web

Which tools for your Which tools for your community?community?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/infomatique/1387269271/ Licensed under Creative Commons

CHOICE is

affected by

CONTEXT

Other possible complementary Other possible complementary tools:tools:

Twitter/YammerAggregators:

http://addictomatic.com/topic/webheads

http://spezify.com/#/webheadsLive Polling (Poll Everywhere)Survey Tools (Zoomerang, Survey

Monkey)Mobile Phones

◦ audio/picture blogging◦ Net to SMS

Maps: Frappr, Google, FlickrPosterous

Responses to Live Poll Responses to Live Poll ((Poll Everywhere): on Technology ): on Technology and Community:and Community: the y generation don’t see a difference between the

online and offline communities. They go home from school to My space.

One person can be connected with many communities. Online places can strengthen your existing connections. Find like-minded souls wherever you can.

each technology has social & political direction built in. accepting technology without critical evaluation is unscientific & dangerous it works well if combined with f 2 f. emotions are complicated and not clear on line

Religious communities begin with someone they can't see...can't hear...and can't touch. Maybe God needs a Facebook profile

Good in its place, but what's its place? can be a way to continue a face to face community

which you have physically left behind

Responses from my Twitter Responses from my Twitter NetworkNetwork

In response to the question , “Do you think you can create community with technology?” people replied:

JoHart: @mikecogh #accessace absolutely isn't that we are doing right here in Twitter?

marudelcampo: @mikecogh #accessace Of course you can create communities using technology. Twitter, Ning and YH Groups are some examples. All the best Mike

DishMopTop: #accessace I rely on Web 2 for my community as work in solitude. Takes some time to build it up though

Responses from my Twitter Responses from my Twitter NetworkNetwork leogaggl: @mikecogh #accessace without

tech they would probably never meet - so in the words of Barack 'YES WE CAN' :P

leogaggl: @mikecogh seems to be lots of 'communities ' starting IRL due to twitter - tweet-meets such as @SATUB #accessace

StonyRiver: #accessace - For Sure - in both Quality and Quantity - With technology we may have One Human Race

rhysatwork: @mikecogh of course you CAN create it. But can also use tech to aid in improving community. now using Ning 4 Kindy committee :) #accessace

Flickr MapsFlickr Maps

Survey ToolsSurvey Tools Eg ZoomerangSurvey Monkey

More at http://users.chariot.net.au/~michaelc/mfo/zoom/results.htm

Community Home(s)Community Home(s)

Own Moodle ($1000/yr approx) – esp good for class groups

Google or Yahoo GroupsFacebook, Grou.ps, ELGGProtopage (eg http://www.

protopage.com/elearning07)Second Life

CLASS AS COMMUNITYCLASS AS COMMUNITY

Second LifeSecond Life

Image courtesy of Jo Kay http://www.flickr.com/photos/jokay/3354082811/

Cornerstones: Technology Cornerstones: Technology - - Enables regular group and one on

one communicationsBrings together people who otherwise

may be unknown to each otherAffords multiple channels of

communicationProvides for individual and

collective needsProvides shared public and

permanent record for all to seeAllows everyone to contribute to

this shared record

The Internet is…. The Internet is…. “not about dot coms,

online malls…. It’s not about routers, servers, browsers.…In fact, the Internet isn’t even about technology. It’s about us. The collective us.”

COMMONSPACE: Beyond Virtual Community: Surman & Wershler-Henry; 2001

““The Read/Write Web”The Read/Write Web”(Tim Berners Lee)(Tim Berners Lee)

Original photo by Hummanna

TESTIMONIALTESTIMONIAL On Saturday May 15, 2010 I got my PhD!

I've been very lucky to be part of this intellectual community, whose members are teachers, educator, fantastic scholars, extraordinary professors and amazing human beings. It would be impossible to overstate the impact you all had, and still having, on my life. The lessons I learned from you are many and profound lessons you imparted by quietly setting an example to me. It's a community "by the all to the all". (Authentic translation).

What I've learned from every one of you is to stand up to challenges. As Vance wrote to me once, "keep your dreams strong'. I did, and I will always do.

You all will always be a source of intellectual inspiration.

Thanks again for all have given me.

Hala Fawzi, PhD (that sounds nice ;-)

THE BIG QUESTIONS……THE BIG QUESTIONS……

Can you build relationships... …online?

Can you build social capital …online?

Can we develop community … …online?

YES WE CAN!!

Webheads Theme Song Webheads Theme Song CHORUS

Webheads – all over the worldWebheads – we’re all over the world

24/7 – we’re onlineIt doesn’t really matter – whatever the timeSomeone’s there to answer the CALL

CHORUS

You want to know how to do it rightOr maybe you’re lonely in the middle of the nightSomeone’s there to answer your CALL

CHORUS

You want to join your class up across the worldOr you want an expert to talk to them liveSomeone will answer your CALL

CHORUS

You’re going on a journey to a foreign landWant to meet a friend there to show you aroundThere’ll be someone there to answer your CALL

CHORUS

Learning together – sharing our viewsLiving together – sharing our newsAlways someone there – on the same wavelength

CHORUS

Audio at http://webheadstheme.wikispaces.com/

THANK YOU michaelc@chariot.net.au

http://protopage.com/michaelc