Theme 3

In the first article, ”Mixed Research and Online Learning: Strategies for Improvement” (Lownthal & Leech, 2009) the authors main focus is the use of different research methods when investigating how the results of online learning differs from traditional face-to-face learning. The main concept of the article is that a combination of different research methods (sometimes called mixed methods) produces the most rigorous and indisputable results. This the article attempts to explain by pulling in various sources and studies, and from them forming both it’s general thesis, and also presents some steps one must undertake if the use of mixed methods shall prove efficient and successful.

The presentation of the arguments and sources follow a quite logical path. This is due to the articles good separation into different chapters, so the reader is able to follow along the text without being flooded with to many sources at the same time. Discussing these sources, that might be the only thing that lowers the general grade for the article. It’s quite obvious from the text that the authors want to form a solid base with related theories and data from other sources and other authors. This does create a problem though: the text gets quite thick with citations, causing it lose some of its momentum, and by losing that, losing its ability to lay out its arguments with clarity. This does not occur on every page, but I found it to be quite disturbing from time to time. It’s a relatively short article (14 pages) but the references take up over five pages. That is a lot of sources and citations. And it’s of course important to remember, and this we’ve been through earlier in the course, the fact that you have a lot of sources does not automatically make your theory a lot better.

The second article: “Emotional Presence, learning and the online learning environment” (Cleveland-Innes & Campell, 2009) I found to be better. The theory is well explained for the reader, so that it becomes very clear what the authors intend with this research, and how they are going to achieve it. The strong theoretical basis then turns into a formulation of the method. The method of choice in the paper is a quantitative method that involves a lot of students from different schools in the U.S. Because of their good explanation of the theory, their method feels quite adequate when introduced and its use feels very motivated.

The data they collect through their study is quite adequate for their purpose. However it’s of course a lot to take in for the reader as it’s simply displayed in huge tables. It takes time and effort to really get into the material so that conclusions might be drawn. They of course assist with this by drawing their own conclusions. I found these to be quite what I expected; for me learning always has been an emotional process. If I come across something that I find interesting and exciting, my ability to take in information and go deep in the subject is really enhanced, and vice versa. This is overall something I believe is overlooked in the learning of today: The power of emotional engagement. If you as a teacher or lecturer can awaken that engagement in a student, that student is very well set for the future of the course. But so many times the opportunity to do something like that as a teacher is often missed or the know-how isn’t there. And that is to me both a shame, and a threat to learning itself. Well, now I just reflected a bit though it wasn’t the real task. Maybe I’m emotionally engaged?