Verified Document

Understanding Barriers To Effective Online Learning Essay

Kiefer, K. (2007). Chapter 8: Do students lose more than they gain in online writing classes? In Joe Lockard and Mark Pegrum (Eds.), Brave New Classrooms: Democratic Education and the Internet (pp. 141-151). New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishing, Inc. Introduce the topic and introduce the author and essay. Then state your thesis.

Writing courses in higher education are increasingly being offered in online environments, right along with many other academic coursework. Opinions about how well this online writing instruction is working vary widely. Kate Kiefer contributed a chapter to the book Brave New Classrooms: Democratic Education and the Internet. As a composition specialist teaching graduate writing theory and undergraduate composition courses, including a course titled Computers and Composition, Kiefer is solidly qualified to provide scholarly commentary on the very field in which she labors. In the early 1980s, Kiefer began a long-standing interest in computers and writing, co-founded and edited Computers and Composition, and -- today -- continues her research and teaching in both physical and virtual computer contexts. Effective Learning and Teaching of Writing and Computers and Composition is a recent publication of Kiefer's. Reviewing Kiefer's article in its entirety, I find myself agreeing with her premise and her examples. An instructor who teaching writing through online and/or hybrid channels faces barriers that intrinsically offer more resistance to efforts to overcome them -- indeed, the barriers are different from those encountered in face-to-face instruction.

Summarize the author's argument or arguments. Your opinion is not included here. You simply summarize the author's points.

Kiefer argues that the platforms utilized for online courses are inadequate to the demands of a writing course in which students are expected to read and comment on each others' work...

The most commonly used classroom support software and online platforms do not facilitate document sharing and review, nor do the information technology management networks always provide sufficient bandwidth to enable reasonably expedient access to blackboard discussion areas, or uploading and downloading of assignments, readings, and completed work. Moreover, students' time constraints exacerbate the inefficiencies of the classroom support software. Although Kiefer encourages her students to strive to work in short bursts or brief blocks of time across the week in order to complete their academic reading and finish assignments, she has found that adult learners are typically unable to achieve this ideal. Indeed, most of Kiefer's students do all of their weekly coursework on Sundays, a day when they can set aside a large block of dedicated time.
Critique the author.

Kiefer's analysis incorporates an evaluation of the barriers and challenges to accomplishing her instructional goals in both conventional real-time and virtual classroom instruction. She fairly admits that some problems feel intractable to an instructor, and may be related more to the attributes of college students than to any particular instructional format or context in which learning occurs. Moreover, Kiefer underscores her belief in the veracity of current writing theory related to the situatedness of language and, though she does not elaborate here, Kiefer bolsters her assertion through reference to the context-bound construction of meaning, as found in perspectives from cultural, sociocognitive, and rhetorical theories. While recognizing that Kiefer presents more deficits in the full text of her chapter, it does seem that the two deficits that are offered for this critique interlock to a degree that makes it difficult to consider them separately. Yet, perhaps that is Kiefer's point: an online writing course is negatively impacted by cascading difficulties.

Evaluate the author's argument or arguments.

Kiefer's presentation of the difficulties imposed by the computer support software does not seem convincingly robust. People working in business enterprises or small businesses experience many of the…

Sources used in this document:
References

Bacow, L.S., Bowen, W.G., Guthrie, K.M., Lack, K.A., and Long, M.P. (2012, May). Barriers to adoption of online learning systems in U.S. higher education. Ithaka S+R. Retreived http://www.sr.ithaka.org/sites/default/files/reports/barriers-to-adoption-of-online-learning-systems-in-us-higher-education.pdf

Pickett, M.C. (2009). Overcoming technology barriers in adult online learning environments with modular instructional design. Proceedings of the ASBBS Annual Conference in Las Vegas, in February 2009, 16(1). Retreived http://asbbs.org/files/2009/PDF/P/PickettM.pdf

[Type text]
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Online Learning Verses Classroom
Words: 1847 Length: 6 Document Type: Research Proposal

Online Learning as Effective as Classroom Learning Online Learning Verses Classrom In the contemporary times, developments in technology have expanded access to education. The internet and other technological advancements have created an efficient platform that facilitates online learning. This has redefined the traditional approach of learning which is done in physical classrooms. Students using this approach are not required to be physically present in classrooms in order to learn. There has

Academic Argument on Faculty Perceptions of Student Disengagement...
Words: 1578 Length: 5 Document Type: Research Paper

Academic Argument on Faculty Perceptions of Student Disengagement in Online Learning The emergence of technology has meant that today people are challenged every single day to accept something new in their lives on a regular basis. This is not to say that this is a bad thing, but the argument that can here is that are we really ready as a society to incorporate these new technological advancements in their day-to-day

Learning Literature Review Autonomy, Mastery
Words: 2564 Length: 8 Document Type: Research Proposal

Toyota has specifically created the TPS to break down the organizational barriers between suppliers and create a more effective approach at managing knowledge workflows between suppliers and also with Toyota itself. To accomplish this, Toyota actually works with suppliers to re-engineer their internal learning processes, making available a system integration team that is responsible for creating the necessary process integration links within and between suppliers (Dyer, Nobeoka 2000). This

Technology in Learning of Elementary
Words: 10688 Length: 39 Document Type: Thesis

For the purposes of this review, Web-based instruction is considered to be any educational or training program distributed over the Internet or an intranet and conveyed through a browser, such as Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator. Java applet-based instruction is a special form of Web-based instruction. Although there is very little research on comparing the effectiveness of Java applet-based instruction to the traditional face-to-face offering. However Web-based instruction has received enough

Learning Styles As Identified by Kolb That Promote Academic Success...
Words: 7960 Length: 30 Document Type: Term Paper

growing recognition of the changing educational needs of college students, particularly those attending community colleges. In response to this awareness, reform efforts have been implemented in order to meet the needs of students. As reform efforts have been considered, increasing attention has been directed toward assessing the influence of learning styles on academic performance. The term 'learning styles' has been used to refer to the ways in which individuals

Learning Quest: Neo and On-Boarding the Critical
Words: 2710 Length: 8 Document Type: Essay

Learning Quest: Neo and on-Boarding The critical thinking assignment module utilizes a Learning Quest. You participate explorer a quest learn New Employee Orientation (NEO) On-boarding. As explorer, search information practices utilized NEO-On-boarding programs. Learning quest: NEO and onboarding New employee orientation comes immediately after selection as the next process in the human resources management activities. Orientation of new employees to the organization and to their positions is essential to establish a productive and

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now