**10. Developing learner traits**

the instructions and follow them carefully. If there is something you don't understand, I am here to help. Please also review the example responses that I posted in the announcements this

The instructor response example follows the sandwich approach, which entails starting and ending with positive comments (the two slices of bread) while the middle portion (the filling) provides specific recommendations for improvement. The purpose is to encourage learners while helping them improve. Instructor dialogue in the form of feedback on assignments can be individualized, as in the example above, or it can be provided to the entire class, which is the purpose of the announcement the instructor refers to. The whole-class approach allows the instructor to provide a more extensive response with examples and models. To do this, the instructor notes commonalities in strengths and weaknesses in the students' interactions and provides feedback, examples, and direction to the entire class similar to what would occur in a face-to-face course. Some of this information, depending on the length, could also be posted in the discussion board itself—during the time period that students are doing the assignment. Students do need to know where to find the information, so it is best to have a common practice

Providing a rubric for assignments and including it with the instructions also provides structure and helps learners know how they will be graded. However, often learners need to be reminded to examine the rubric carefully and compare their work to it. An option related to this is to use the practice of collaborative control to help learners develop their own evaluation abilities. Learners could be paired or assigned to small groups and asked to review and discuss each other's posts and then evaluate them with the rubric, providing rationale for the scores assigned. Although students may tend to give each other high scores, the activity at least increases their awareness of the rubric and helps them explore common or differing understandings of it. This is also an example of how the social environment can be integrated into a course. Another way to use the social environment is to simply have an open discussion board in which students post their own questions about anything related to the course to other students. In this way, students can get help on their own that is not instructor-focused. This supports the development of autonomy and self-regulated learning in that they are selecting

This discussion has included guidelines for instructors related to the components of structure, dialogue, social environment, and collaborative control. In the instructor course, structure is provided in the set course modules on various topics—introduction to the university mission and English language program, logistics about the course they will be teaching and the learning management system, understanding their role as online instructors, planning and preparing, and exploring techniques for response. Dialogue and the social environment are incorporated into the course design with opportunities for instructors to share perspectives on the infor‐ mation in the various modules such as how to apply the teaching strategies presented. Examples such as those shared regarding student posts and corresponding instructor feedback can be included in the course to help teachers see models of response. Additionally, strategies

topics of need and taking responsibility for factors affecting their learning.

week. I look forward to your next post.

48 E-Learning - Instructional Design, Organizational Strategy and Management

for this.

The goal of online instruction based on the model of eLearning and eTeaching is characterized in following quote: "The capacity to learn autonomously is seen to develop from a state of selfawareness and willingness to take an active part. In order for learners to achieve this state, teachers must also play their part" [37, p. 220]. The first component of the model accounts for the need to develop learners' awareness and engagement by having them examine their purpose for learning, beliefs about learning, and by setting goals. They take an active part as they learn and apply strategies, monitor their outcomes, and modify their approaches. Taking an active part also involves the social environment and dialogue with others in the course. The model provides guidance for how instructors can "play their part" to help learners become more self-aware, fully participate in the learning process, and take control of their learning. Teachers facilitate this through practices related to structure, dialogue, the social environment, and collaborative control. They model these behaviors in the teacher training course.

The aim of the model of eLearning and eTeaching, reflected in the third component—devel‐ oping learner traits—is to help learners develop greater capacity for autonomy and selfregulation, and to meet learning objectives related to the targeted skills and knowledge of the course. For teachers in a training course, the model assists in giving them direct experience with self-regulation and related theoretical components in order to understand the course design philosophy and how they can facilitate the goals of the model as they interact with learners.

In this section, I review possible methods for determining evidence of the model validity. The first possibility involves using the self-reflection instruments that are built into the course as a means to determine learners' experiences and their views of their own learning. In both the student and the teacher training courses, participants are involved in self-reflection through some type of journal, discussion board post, formal paper, or video recording. These may be required at various points in the course such as weekly or at the middle and end of the term. Prompts for reflection can be specific to the course content, focused on learning in general, and be formative or summative as the examples in Table 2 illustrate. All of the examples are focused on the self-reflection aspect of self-regulated learning.



**Purpose Reflection Prompt:**

Specific to course content and activities

**Students**

you write?

What was the most helpful thing you learned about vocabulary study this week? How will you apply this in the future?

How did the course help you improve your academic writing skills?

Review the diagnostic survey you took at the beginning of the semester and the goals you set based on the areas in which you wanted to improve. Evaluate your progress on your goals and explain what you will do in the next half of the course to continue to make improvement. This may include modifying

your goals.

Think about the readings you discussed with your

General learning/ teaching strategies What did you learn about organizing a paragraph in this week's lesson? How did it make a difference in the way

50 E-Learning - Instructional Design, Organizational Strategy and Management

**Formative Summative** **Reflection Prompt:**

students become more self-regulated? What types of feedback can you provide that will help students increase their self-regulated behaviors and strategies?

**Formative Summative**

Formative Methods

Formative Methods

Summative Methods

Formative Forethought

Formative Forethought

Performance

**Model/Theory Elements**

Dialogue

Dialogue

Performance

Performance Dialogue

Social Environment

Social environment

Social environment

**Teachers**

Formative What did you learn this

Summative How did the training

teaching?

Formative What strategies did you

Why?

Formative What do you think of the whole-class

week about types of technology you can use to communicate with students? How will this make a difference in your teaching this semester?

course help you change your perspective of online learning and

learn in the module for creating a community of learners online? Which of these will you use in your course?

Summative How can you help


**Table 2.** Self-reflection Prompts and Theoretical Connections
