Blogs and Wikis as Instructional Tools: A Social Software Adaptation of Just-in-Time Teaching

‘Economics with Training Wheels’: Using Blogs in Teaching and Assessing Introductory Economics

“…The instructor also noted that they gained through the blog as they became more attuned to what their students were interested in and wanted to learn. The blog can then be used as an application of 'just-in-time teaching' to determine where students need additional support (Higdon and Topaz 2009;Novak et al 1999). Glogoff (2005, p.3) notes that 'extending contact between instructors and enthusiastic students through a topical blog could provide a practical way to mentor and encourage exceptional students to continue their studies in relevant fields'.…”

“…This created a blog similar to the learner-led threaded discussions described by Brescia et al (2004), and overcame the privacy concerns associated with open environments (Wang and Hsua 2008). This also had the advantage of the instructor needing to only visit a single site to view all discussions started by all students (although this could also be achieved by using an RSS aggregation tool -see for example Higdon and Topaz (2009)). At the beginning of the semester to set clear expectations for content, tone and style, all students were provided with an example of a blog discussion from the previous semester which had scored well in assessment (following Fauske and Wade 2003-04).…”

“…Bouldin et al (2006) used posting frequency, writing clarity and the depth and relevance of postings to assess a blog in a second-year communication course for pharmacy students. Higdon and Topaz (2009) describe a simple rubric that grades a blog assessment on a scale of zero-to-three, while others, such as Hernández-Ramos (2004), have used more complex and detailed assessment rubrics. Overall, there is no consistent method applied to the assessment of blogs.…”

“…Essentially, blogs provide opportunities for learning that are not only learnercentred, but are knowledge-centred (grounded in disciplinary content), assessment-centred (focussed on ongoing, formative assessment), and community-centred (Higdon and Topaz 2009;Bransford et al 2000). Blogs also provide students with the opportunity to benchmark the quality of their contributions and evidence of learning against those of their peers, adopting the good practices of others and becoming more aware of, and consequently minimising, bad practices (Du and Wagner 2005).…”

Just-In-Time Teaching Techniques through Web Technologies for Vocational Students’ Reading and Writing Abilities

“…JiTT also emphasizes a positive attitude and helps students develop their own identities in beneficial ways because it promotes a learner's understanding of oneself with one's peers through peer activities and group work while allowing for opportunities for each student to learn as a unique individual. The students are trained in surfing the web to seek information needed as interactive skills, being attentive to other individual's unique interests, caring about others, and having a favorable attitude (Burton, 1997;Hamel et al, 2014;Higdon & Topaz, 2009;.…”