Cases on Online Tutoring, Mentoring, and Educational Services: Practices and Applications (Premier Reference Source)

Cases on Online Tutoring, Mentoring, and Educational Services: Practices and Applications Gary A. Berg California State University Channel Islands, USA

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Copyright © 2010 by IGI Global. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, without written permission from the publisher. Product or company names used in this set are for identification purposes only. Inclusion of the names of the products or companies does not indicate a claim of ownership by IGI Global of the trademark or registered trademark. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Cases on online tutoring, mentoring, and educational services : practices and applications / Gary A. Berg, editor. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. Summary: "This book examines the rapidly developing sector of online tutoring and mentoring, featuring case studies of the adaptation of university-based programs for tutoring and mentoring"--Provided by publisher. ISBN 978-1-60566-876-5 (hardcover) -- ISBN 978-1-60566-877-2 (ebook) 1. Education, Higher--Computer network resources--Case studies. 2. Tutors and tutoring--Computer networks--Case studies. 3. Mentoring in education-Computer networks--Case studies. I. Berg, Gary A., 1955LB2395.7.C42 2010 378.1'7344678--dc22 2009021569 British Cataloguing in Publication Data A Cataloguing in Publication record for this book is available from the British Library. All work contributed to this book is new, previously-unpublished material. The views expressed in this book are those of the authors, but not necessarily of the publisher.

List of Reviewers Mark Lee, Charles Sturt University, Australia Bernie Luskin, Touro University Worldwide Catherine McLoughlin, Australian Catholic University, Australia Ramesh Sharma, Indira Gandhi National Open University, India Linda Venis, UCLA Extension, USA

Table of Contents

Foreword ............................................................................................................................................. xii Preface ................................................................................................................................................. xv Acknowledgment ............................................................................................................................... xxv

Chapter 1 Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers .................................................................... 1 Judi Harris, College of William & Mary, USA Chapter 2 The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering ................................................. 12 David Porush, MentorNet, USA Chapter 3 Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Technology Based at the University of Illinois at Chicago Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program ...................................... 23 Sarah Shirk, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Veronica Arreola, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Carly Wobig, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Karima Russell, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Chapter 4 Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap ................................................................................... 43 Caroline Kim Oh, iMentor, USA Theresa Stroisch, iMentor, USA Chapter 5 Mentoring the Next Generation ............................................................................................................ 53 Kate Schrauth, icouldbe.org, USA Elie Losleben, icouldbe.org, USA

Chapter 6 Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System................................................................... 64 Vassilis Syrris, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece Fenia Tsobanopoulou, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece Chapter 7 Supporting Peer-to-Peer E-Mentoring of Novice Teachers Using Social Software ............................. 84 Mark J. W. Lee, Charles Sturt University, Australia Catherine McLoughlin, Australian Catholic University, Australia Chapter 8 E-Mentoring the Individual Writer within a Global Creative Community ........................................... 98 Linda Venis, UCLA Extension, USA Chapter 9 Design of an Online Community of Practice to Support an Emerging Doctoral Culture................... 117 James M. Monaghan, California State University, San Bernardino, USA Chapter 10 Writing a Dissertation—University of Phoenix Style......................................................................... 127 Norma J. Turner, University of Phoenix, USA Chapter 11 Online Tutoring ................................................................................................................................... 136 Christa Ehmann Powers, Smarthinking, Inc., USA Chapter 12 On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World ......................................................................... 150 John J. Stuppy, TutorVista.com, USA Chapter 13 Reaching Beyond Bricks and Mortar: How Sylvan Online Expands Learners’ Options ................... 160 Saul Rockman, Rockman et al., USA Lynn Fontana, Sylvan Learning, USA Chapter 14 Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams ................................. 172 Nicholas Bowskill, University of Glasgow, Scotland David McConnell, Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland

Chapter 15 Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University............................................ 185 Ramesh C. Sharma, Indira Gandhi National Open University, India Sanjaya Mishra, Indira Gandhi National Open University, India

Compilation of References .............................................................................................................. 201 About the Contributors ................................................................................................................... 212 Index ................................................................................................................................................... 219

Detailed Table of Contents

Foreword ............................................................................................................................................. xii Preface ................................................................................................................................................. xv Acknowledgment ............................................................................................................................... xxv

Chapter 1 Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers .................................................................... 1 Judi Harris, College of William & Mary, USA The Electronic Emissary is a Web-based service and resource center that helps teachers and students primarily from North America with Internet connections to locate mentors who are experts in various disciplines, and then plan and engage in curriculum-based learning. These project-based online conversations typically range in length from six weeks to a full academic year, as students’ needs and interests dictate. Chapter 2 The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering ................................................. 12 David Porush, MentorNet, USA MentorNet is dedicated to diversifying the engineering and scientific workforce by providing e-mentoring to women and underrepresented minorities in colleges and universities. Founded in 1997, the organization has partnership agreements with over 100 universities. Chapter 3 Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Technology Based at the University of Illinois at Chicago Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program ...................................... 23 Sarah Shirk, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Veronica Arreola, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Carly Wobig, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Karima Russell, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA

GEM-SET is one branch of pre-college mentoring provided by the Women in Science and Engineering program at the University of Illinois at Chicago that links volunteer women mentors in the fields of science, engineering and technology to student members from across the United States. More than 1,300 young girls ages 13-18 years old and 200 mentors in graduate school and beyond have participated via online mentoring and face-to-face programming where available. Chapter 4 Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap ................................................................................... 43 Caroline Kim Oh, iMentor, USA Theresa Stroisch, iMentor, USA iMentor is a New York City-based youth mentoring organization that uses guided e-mail communication to enhance in-person youth mentoring and continues to leverage lessons learned to help other groups to start up their own mentoring programs. This case study illustrates how the organization has effectively used technology to add flexibility and structure in its mentoring program, engaging professionals as mentors and mentees from some of the most economically and geographically isolated communities. Chapter 5 Mentoring the Next Generation ............................................................................................................ 53 Kate Schrauth, icouldbe.org, USA Elie Losleben, icouldbe.org, USA icouldbe.org’s online mentoring programs reach young people who do not have access to quality educational resources, using a learning environment to connect them to mentors who offer practical and individualized advice, information and expertise. The organization’s program is grounded on an evidence-based curriculum that is student-paced and student-led, placing young people at the center of a community of classroom teachers and adult mentors invested in their futures. Chapter 6 Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System................................................................... 64 Vassilis Syrris, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece Fenia Tsobanopoulou, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece In this case study, the authors see that the application of computer-based videoconference systems seems to have successfully bridged geographical distances, improved interaction considerably, and reduced the response time of interventions. The authors explore the issues related to electronic distance mentoring of young people in the framework of professional development and support. Chapter 7 Supporting Peer-to-Peer E-Mentoring of Novice Teachers Using Social Software ............................. 84 Mark J. W. Lee, Charles Sturt University, Australia Catherine McLoughlin, Australian Catholic University, Australia The online mentoring of adults for specific professions is a growing area of interest. The Australian Catholic University, a public university funded by the Australian government, added a new dimension

to the teaching practicum to facilitate online peer mentoring among pre-service teachers by providing them with opportunities to reflect on teaching prior to entering full-time employment. While on their practicum, students used social software integrated into the university’s course management system, to share and reflect on their experiences, identify critical incidents, and invite comment on their responses and reactions from peers. Chapter 8 E-Mentoring the Individual Writer within a Global Creative Community ........................................... 98 Linda Venis, UCLA Extension, USA America’s largest continuing education provider of online creative writing and screenwriting courses and services offers individualized feedback and mentoring to 1,000’s of aspiring and practicing writers worldwide. Writing creatively is singularly private and can be isolating; the Writers’ Program’s 220 annually-offered online courses in fiction writing, memoir, personal essay, children’s literature, playwriting, poetry, publishing, feature film writing, and television writing provide access to in-depth instructor/student, student/student, and student/advisor relationships designed to help meet individual writing goals. Chapter 9 Design of an Online Community of Practice to Support an Emerging Doctoral Culture................... 117 James M. Monaghan, California State University, San Bernardino, USA Adults in doctoral programs need a combination of specific course-related instruction, as well as mentoring as they transition into the profession. During the initial accreditation process for California State University, San Bernardino’s new doctorate in educational leadership, the accrediting body presented the institution with a serious concern about a lack of a history of a doctoral culture. Leveraging a track record of creating online communities of practice, one was developed to provide the scaffolding similar to that which occurs in full-time doctoral programs where faculty and students regularly interact in both formal and informal settings. Chapter 10 Writing a Dissertation—University of Phoenix Style......................................................................... 127 Norma J. Turner, University of Phoenix, USA The doctoral program at the School of Advanced Studies at the University of Phoenix provides a process for working adults to earn a doctoral degree. The philosophy of the doctoral program and the program’s continual growth and development are illustrated in this chapter. Information on the people and the processes, both internal and external to the University of Phoenix, involved in the successful completion of the degree program is covered as well.

Chapter 11 Online Tutoring ................................................................................................................................... 136 Christa Ehmann Powers, Smarthinking, Inc., USA Smarthinking provides asynchronous and synchronous online tutoring for several general education courses and degree-specific courses, supporting students enrolled in secondary and post-secondary education 24 hours a day. The firm employs hundreds of professional educators from around the globe. Chapter 12 On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World ......................................................................... 150 John J. Stuppy, TutorVista.com, USA TutorVista.com emerged from seeing the growing need for online tutoring combined with an economical way of delivering this service. With millions of capable educators in India earning only a fraction of what educators make in the United States, TutorVista.com could double salaries and still be far lower than American levels of teacher compensation. Most of its current 1200 employees are based in India, and over the past years it has assisted over a half million students around the world. Chapter 13 Reaching Beyond Bricks and Mortar: How Sylvan Online Expands Learners’ Options ................... 160 Saul Rockman, Rockman et al., USA Lynn Fontana, Sylvan Learning, USA A relatively little-known but growing component of the very large Sylvan Learning company is Sylvan Online, a one-to-one academic assistance program offered to students at home in association with local centers. This Internet-based service provides the same type of individualized academic support as the centers, yet it affords greater flexibility and access. Using proprietary technologies, Sylvan Online makes it possible to reach learners regardless of their geographic area or proximity to a Sylvan Learning center, and helps them receive the kind of academic support necessary to succeed in school. Chapter 14 Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams ................................. 172 Nicholas Bowskill, University of Glasgow, Scotland David McConnell, Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland As mentoring and tutoring online become increasingly common, the need to address cross-cultural pedagogical and communication has arisen. The authors of this chapter on the Sino-UK eLearning Programme consider the processes in the context of globally distributed inter-cultural course teams, and identify the significance of openness, structure, and dialogue as factors that support collaborative reflection. They analyze their own experience of global online teaching and focus on one technique used in collaborative inter-cultural practice involving having tutors maintain and share an online journal with other tutors in the course team.

Chapter 15 Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University............................................ 185 Ramesh C. Sharma, Indira Gandhi National Open University, India Sanjaya Mishra, Indira Gandhi National Open University, India Finally, the way that online tutoring and mentoring is being incorporated worldwide in the enormous mega-universities is considered. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) with more than two million learners nationally has been a leader in the democratization of education. The university has the immense challenge of managing a large number of students spread across the country and for this reason have introduced online tutoring.

Compilation of References .............................................................................................................. 201 About the Contributors ................................................................................................................... 212 Index ................................................................................................................................................... 219

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Foreword

Circumstances and timing have a significant impact on teaching, learning, research, and creative expression in learning focused organizations. In this book, Gary Berg gives us examples and case studies offering different successful approaches to tutoring, mentoring and non-classroom based learning. The array of case examples and the differences among them provide a valuable and diverse understanding of the personal development benefits of tutoring, mentoring and other support services that enhance learning. Berg covers the broad landscape of emerging technology and its intersection with the education world. He does this particularly well through his presentation of carefully-selected case studies. The format of the book has a focus that centers on the applications of emerging technologies to teaching, learning, research and creative expression. Each case study introduces and describes a different method and approach including the particular relevance of a unique approach to education and learning. Many of the examples feature innovative work and offer valuable new insights for those interested in tutorial and mentoring centric education approaches. The cases explained reflect the increasing globalization that continues to affect the way we work, with whom we work, and how we work, collaborate and communicate. Those educational institutions and organizations who do not adapt to the rapidly changing world will find themselves on the sidelines. The growing availability of tools to connect learners and scholars all over the world in new ways is breathtaking. They include online collaborative workspaces, social networking tools, converging mobile devices that do almost anything you wish, and voice over IP and example after example of methods and techniques for transcending traditional learning barriers and fostering teaching and scholarship. Mentoring and tutoring are at the new center. In a sense, Berg helps redefine the “e” in e-learning. Generally thought of as “electronic,” his presentation helps you understand that the “e” actually means; exciting, empirical, empathetic, extra, emerging, energetic, exceptional, early, eloquent, everywhere, ephemeral, extended, effortless, epic, evangelistic, eclectic, engaging, extended learning and more. The point is that e-learning may be individual, tutorial, a significant part of a mentoring process and a tool for personal communication that is not well understood by generations preceding the “digital natives” of our new generation. In short, tutorial techniques and mentoring using e-learning tools provide access to a rainbow of learning opportunities whose “pot of gold” benefits those who have learned how to learn. Peter Drucker, a colleague and cousin by marriage once said to me, “Bernie, we design our objectives, organize our learning experiences into detailed plans. Our students that we teach then take what we offer and they learn any way they can.” I have always remembered Drucker’s exceptional insight. What a tutor and what a mentor he was. Online tutoring, e-mentoring and e-learning in the modern era amplify collective intelligence. These approaches are redefining how we access information. They are reshaping libraries, books and other more traditional ways. New learning tools such as using Google, Yahoo, Facebook, and YouTube are stimulating a grassroots of learning. Today’s learners are intimate and active participants in their experiences.

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The very theme of this book that centers on mentoring and tutoring implies acceptance of the “guide on the side,” as opposed to the more traditional “sage on the stage” method of teaching and learning. The case studies presented underline the fact that one approach need not completely replace the other but more independence and freedom of style are clearly emerging from the diversity. What this work reinforces is the idea that learning how to learn is the key. It also defines and exemplifies the idea of the “scholar/practitioner” and asserts that tutors and mentors who function as scholar practitioners can be very successful with their learners. This timely book makes the case that significant shifts are taking place in the many ways teaching and learning are carried out. It argues that there is a growing need for formal instruction and education for tutors and for mentors so that they have a repertoire of new skills, including information, visual, technological and learning literacy. Tutors are professionals and professional development is being recognized as important. I believe that graduate education programs concentrating on these fields as specialties will emerge. Because of his wide range of examples, Gary Berg gives us a more expansive definition of a category of learning and learners. These case studies might be credited with contributing to the rise of what can be termed “The Learning Class.” The Learning Class, in my view, presently numbers in many millions, and includes all of those in the increasingly successful profit and non-profit distance learning colleges and universities, the increasing number of K-12 home schooling participants and the rapidly migrating online access to the necessary continuing education for licensure programs for physicians, attorneys, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, licensed clinical social workers, school psychologists, mental health counselors and traditional blue collar occupations such as contracting, plumbing, electricians, and so on. Tutoring and mentoring using 21st century tools are fundamental to scholar practitioner growth in these areas whether they be traditional white or blue collar fields. With the increasing requirements for licensure for every trade and profession, this type of learning is growing apace. This is true in areas in which distance learning and e-tutoring were viewed with askance in the past. There are still holdouts, but they are diminishing. Daniel Bell, author and Harvard sociologist, in his book titled, The Coming Post-Industrial Society, first published in 1973, looked back in time. He identified how the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney transformed the farm, forced people into the cities and created the Industrial Revolution. Bell argued that computers and telecommunications, like the cotton gin of an earlier era, were bringing about yet another shift in the economy, or what he called the post-industrial society. Bell’s treatise was a significant literary effort that identified structural changes in society leading to the information age. Now, almost forty years later, we are attempting to define yet another shift in the basic structure of the world’s economy. We know that it is global, and Thomas Friedman of the New York Times has told us, that “the world is flat.” At least we can agree that it is rapidly getting flatter, even though we must recognize that it is a world of worlds with many borders and cultural idiosyncrasies. Current global financial conditions support the proposition of the flattening word, in spades. Therefore, what may be emerging is “The Global Learning Society.” Presently, especially in the United States, the pressures of surging enrollments and diminishing space, advancing technology, globalization and dramatically impacted world economies are making distance education, including tutorial learning, mentoring and other forms of non-classroom based learning increasingly and rapidly acceptable. I think that these pressures will cause a burst of leadership, entrepreneurism and innovation. Many segments of education are booming in the falling economics of 2009. Education is touted as one way out of the dilemma. However, if education is to be the boon that is forecast, it must be for adults who are working and it must be now. Tutoring, mentoring and the use of support services are fundamental to success in addressing this opportunity.

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In addition, the success of the better profit and non-profit universities that employ tutorial and mentoring models and online learning are becoming examples for others to follow. We are entering a Brave New World, as we did with industrialization, the emergence of computer technology and now the birth of a learning society, where those who have learned how to learn will benefit most. Among the new features of our learning society is what has been termed the first generation of “digital natives.” They will transform our politics, culture and structure of our learning institutions forever. Most were born in the 1990s. They are entering adulthood. They are affecting every aspect of modern life. They can do business, learn over greater distances, and immediately understand how to manage one to one situations on the telephone, video conferencing and all manner of methods. They are “born digital.” The case studies in this book highlight how this digital, tutorial era is transforming the ways people live their lives and relate to one another and the world around them. They don’t distinguish between online and offline. They simply live their lives naturally, because this is the form of communication and learning into which they were born. They are constantly connected. They are comfortable in virtual worlds. They collaborate in ways not possible thirty years ago. They have a larger sense of global community. Certainly there is still a digital divide. It has to do with haves and have not’s. And, even though Friedman asserts that the world is flat, what is more accurate is that it is flatter. It is still a world of worlds, of different cultures and the new learning ways are helping to address this situation. The timing of this book is significant. Tutoring, defined by Berg as one-to-one teaching/learning, and mentoring, being guided by an experienced advisor, are subjects that are at the leading edge. Digital technologies and digital natives have converged. Education and learning are rapidly changing. The profit schools and universities have recognized this and are profiting, and the traditional non-profits are dragging their bulky torsos into this area of education. The case studies in this book range from degree-granting institutions to non-profit and for-profit organizations. They represent developments occurring around the world from Greece, India, Australia, China, the United Kingdom and the United States. One-to-one learning in our new digital world is enabling a new way of being. Mentoring, tutoring and new services are the vehicles of progress. This book is an insightful addition in enhancing perspective. It makes the case. It is worth the read.

Dr. Bernard J. Luskin CEO/Provost, Touro University Worldwide

Bernard Luskin is CEO/Provost of Touro University Worldwide. Bernie Luskin is founding president of Coastline Community College, was president of Orange Coast College and is founding Chancellor of Jones International University; the first accredited fully web based university. He served as Executive Vice President and founding Director of the Media Psychology, Media Studies and Community College Leadership Programs at Fielding Graduate University (FGU). He has been a faculty member at Claremont Graduate University, Pepperdine University, CSU, USC, and UCLA. In industry, Luskin was CEO of Jones Education Networks, including Knowledge TV and Mind Extension University. He was founding CEO of Philips Interactive Media and Philips Education and Reference Publishing. He is credited with putting the first 50 movies on CD, producing the first Grolier and Compton’s Encyclopedia on CD, the first Sesame Street CD, and numerous films and television programs and series. He is former Chair and also COO of the American Association of Community Colleges. He is the founder of New Media News, a syndicated cable news program, author of ten books and producer of many TV series and motion pictures. Luskin served as a commissioner on the California Post Secondary Education Commission. A licensed psychotherapist and school psychologist, Bernie Luskin is recipient of annual distinguished leadership awards from the UCLA Doctoral Alumni Association and the University of Florida Center for Higher Education. Luskin is the winner of two Emmys and is recipient of lifetime achievement awards in education and Media from the Irish Government and European Union.

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Preface

One of the most enduring images embodying the essence of learning is that of a teacher on one end of a log and a student on the other. Benjamin Bloom noted in his well-known essay entitled “The 2 Sigma Problem” (1984) that tutoring is twice as effective as conventional instruction. Despite the pervasiveness of large lecture courses found in colleges, the core of learning is one-to-one dialogue between a tutor or mentor and a learner. The challenge has always been to find methods of group instruction that are as effective as these one-to-one learning relationships. The Internet has now made individual learning and mentoring practical and cost effective to a degree never before possible. This book examines the rapidly developing sector of online tutoring and mentoring. In addition to looking at the specific case studies of the adaptation of university-based programs for tutoring and mentoring, it provides real-world examples of what Thomas Malone and Robert Laubacher in a Harvard Business Review article termed the dawn of the “E-Lance Economy,” with both non-profit and for-profit Web firms designed to facilitate online tutoring and mentoring arrangements. This book brings to light the fascinating way that one-to-one relationship facilitation through the Internet is changing how learning, personal and professional development, and knowledge acquisition occurs. Forty-two percent of Americans believe there is a need for tutoring outside school hours, and 30 percent of school-age children receive some sort of tutoring. Private tutoring is a growth industry, with Americans alone spending an estimated four to six billion dollars per year on tutoring for their children. Primarily with services aimed at children, firms such as TutorVista.com, Sylvan Learning Systems, and Smarthinking facilitate tutor relationships by contract. Online tutoring for adults is also expanding rapidly in university-based environments for writing and composition and other disciplines, for the mentoring of doctoral candidates through the dissertation process, and for novice classroom teachers as well. The total investment across all ages in America is approximately $12 billion per year (Gordon, et al, 2007). A highly complex and quickly evolving field like online tutoring and mentoring is diffuse and difficult to readily grasp. Published reports on real-world applications are challenging to locate. This book presents a wide range of case studies that include background information on the organizations with detailed descriptions of how they operate, along with other support materials designed for both applied and college classroom use. One-to-one teaching-learning techniques and pedagogical approaches are discussed in these case studies, as well as how providers execute their business models. Case studies contain examples of ways in which software and administrative practices manage the formation of oneto-one relationships.

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OrganizatiOn Of the BOOk For the purposes of this collection of case studies I define tutoring as one-to-one teaching, and mentoring as an experienced advisor providing guidance. Although tutors may have multiple students they work with (in groups or separately), they are defined by acts of one-to-one communication that makes them function in some sense as a private teacher for the student. However, the definitional lines are not always clear because tutoring can also sometimes involve a broader mentoring role. We begin by looking at a group of dynamic non-profit mentoring organizations. The Electronic Emissary is a Web-based service and resource center that helps teachers and students with Internet connections to locate mentors who are experts in various disciplines, and then plan and engage in curriculum-based learning. In this way, the interaction that occurs among teachers and students face-to-face in the classroom is supplemented and extended by electronic mail, Web forum, chat, and audio/videoconferencing exchanges among participating teachers, students, and volunteer mentors. These project-based online conversations typically range in length from six weeks to a full academic year, as students’ needs and interests dictate. Electronic Emissary serves students and teachers globally, but the majority of its participants thus far have been in North America. MentorNet is dedicated to diversifying the engineering and scientific workforce by providing ementoring to women and underrepresented minorities in colleges and universities. Founded in 1997 by Dr. Carol Muller, it grew out of a pilot online mentoring program at the Dartmouth School of Engineering. Arguing that engineering and science are the engines of progress and economic development, MentorNet strives to get as much talent as possible into the science technology pipelines. The organization partners with over 100 universities including MIT, Stanford, Caltech, Carnegie Mellon, the University of Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and many Ivy League colleges. GEM-SET is one branch of pre-college mentoring provided by the Women in Science and Engineering program at the University of Illinois at Chicago that links volunteer women mentors in the fields of science, engineering and technology to student members from across the United States. More than 1,300 young girls ages 13-18 years old and 200 mentors in graduate school and beyond have participated via online mentoring and face-to-face programming where available. The benefits to the student participants are access to scholarship and internship information, invitations to field trips, career panel discussions and conferences, direct access to successful mentors in non-traditional careers, and tutoring. iMentor is a New York City-based youth mentoring organization that uses guided e-mail communication to enhance in-person youth mentoring and continues to leverage lessons learned to help other groups to start up their own mentoring programs. This case study illustrates how the organization has effectively used technology to add flexibility and structure in its mentoring program, engaging professionals as mentors and mentees from some of the most economically and geographically isolated communities. It also describes how the organization transformed itself to meet a national demand for its programming by developing and licensing its own mentoring technology platform. The authors argue that the sector must be diligent about adhering to the best practices of a good, in-person mentoring program, including screening and monitoring of program participants, as well as providing structure and ongoing assistance. With the high school dropout rate in the United States at epidemic levels and the proportion of guidance counselors decreasing, mentoring programs are an increasingly effective way to reach young people with the college and career guidance they need. icouldbe.org’s online mentoring programs reach young people who do not have access to quality educational resources, using a learning environment to connect them to mentors who offer practical and individualized advice, information and expertise. The organization’s program is grounded on an evidence-based curriculum that is student-paced and

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student-led, placing young people at the center of a community of classroom teachers and adult mentors invested in their futures. At Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece, the authors explore the issues related to electronic distance mentoring of young people in the framework of professional development and support. Individualized mentoring is typically underused because of the high operational cost and the lack of specialized mentors in the country. Nevertheless, mentoring is considered the most effective means of providing career guidance. In this case study, we see that the application of computer-based videoconference systems seems to have successfully bridged geographical distances, improved interaction considerably, and reduced the response time of interventions. The online mentoring of adults for specific professions is another growing area of interest. The Australian Catholic University, a public university funded by the Australian government, added a new dimension to the teaching practicum to facilitate online peer mentoring among pre-service teachers by providing them with opportunities to reflect on teaching prior to entering full-time employment. While on their practicum, students used social software integrated into the university’s course management system, to share and reflect on their experiences, identify critical incidents, and invite comment on their responses and reactions from peers. UCLA Extension Writers’ Program, America’s largest continuing education provider of online creative writing and screenwriting courses and services, offers individualized feedback and mentoring to 1,000’s of aspiring and practicing writers worldwide. Writing creatively is singularly private and can be isolating; the Writers’ Program’s 220 annually-offered online courses in fiction writing, memoir, personal essay, children’s literature, playwriting, poetry, publishing, feature film writing, and television writing provide access to in-depth instructor/student, student/student, and student/advisor relationships designed to help meet individual writing goals. Adults in doctoral programs need a combination of specific course-related instruction, as well as mentoring as they transition into the profession. During the initial accreditation process for California State University, San Bernardino’s new doctorate in educational leadership, the accrediting body presented the institution with a serious concern about a lack of a history of a doctoral culture. Leveraging a track record of creating online communities of practice, one was developed to provide the scaffolding similar to that which occurs in full-time doctoral programs where faculty and students regularly interact in both formal and informal settings. The doctoral program at the School of Advanced Studies at the University of Phoenix provides a process for working adults to earn a doctoral degree. The philosophy of the doctoral program and the program’s continual growth and development are illustrated in this chapter. Information on the people and the processes, both internal and external to the University of Phoenix, involved in the successful completion of the degree program is covered as well. Next we consider a group of rapidly growing for-profit online tutoring groups. Smarthinking provides asynchronous and synchronous online tutoring for several general education courses and degree-specific courses, supporting students enrolled in secondary and post-secondary education 24 hours a day. The firm employs hundreds of professional educators from around the globe. Trends this group identified in the case study include exploring video and voice applications, and using the student archive as a valuable research database for student learning. TutorVista.com emerged from seeing the growing need for online tutoring combined with an economical way of delivering this service. It was started when its founder was traveling in the United States and was inspired by a cartoon in a newspaper showing a child talking to her father saying, “No, you may not outsource your homework to India.” With millions of capable educators in India earning only a fraction of what educators make in the United States, TutorVista.com could double salaries and still be far lower

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than American levels of teacher compensation. Most of its current 1200 employees are based in India, and over the past years it has assisted over a half million students around the world. A relatively little-known but growing component of the very large Sylvan Learning company is Sylvan Online, a one-to-one academic assistance program offered to students at home in association with local centers. This Internet-based service provides the same type of individualized academic support as the centers, yet it affords greater flexibility and access. Using proprietary technologies, Sylvan Online makes it possible to reach learners regardless of their geographic area or proximity to a Sylvan Learning center, and helps them receive the kind of academic support necessary to succeed in school. As mentoring and tutoring online become increasingly common, the need to address cross-cultural pedagogical and communication has arisen. Bowskill and McConnell in the essay on the Sino-UK eLearning Programme consider the processes in the context of globally distributed inter-cultural course teams, and identify the significance of openness, structure, and dialogue as factors that support collaborative reflection. They analyze their own experience of global online teaching and focus on one technique used in collaborative inter-cultural practice involving having tutors maintain and share an online journal with other tutors in the course team. Finally, the way that online tutoring and mentoring is being incorporated worldwide in the enormous mega-universities is considered. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) with more than two million learners nationally has been a leader in the democratization of education. The university has the immense challenge of managing a large number of students spread across the country and for this reason have introduced online tutoring. This chapter discusses the applications of online tutoring in an educational system that has undergone extreme change from the ancient system of Gurukul to online education where the teacher or students interact through Internet technologies only.

COmmOn themes A pattern of consistent themes emerges from the case studies falling into three broad categories: need and effectiveness, pedagogy, and organizational issues. Table 1 summarizes some of the topics noted consistently in the cases on online mentoring and tutoring.

Need and Effectiveness First, regardless of whether it is a for-profit, non-profit, or government agency, the need and purpose for each organization in this book is clear. Mega-university Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has more than two million learners who require low-cost educational services in a vast geographically-dispersed region. According to TutorVista.com, the market for tutoring after school in India alone is approximately $4 billion, affecting 110 million children. In the United States where every nine seconds a high school student drops out of school, TutorVista.com has helped over 500,000 students in 29 countries. Just as with tutoring, online mentoring addresses the issues of cost and limited capacity as well. iMentor believes that the traditional mentoring model ruled out thousands of potential volunteers who did not feel they had the flexibility in their schedule to make the kind of commitment face-to-face tutoring requires. Additionally, the usual model makes it difficult for mentoring programs to thrive in the most underserved and isolated communities, the same communities that could benefit the most from mentoring. Similarly, icouldbe.org recognizes that putting school children and adult professionals in face-to-face relationships is both logistically challenging, as well as a child-safety risk.

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Table 1. Need & Effectiveness

Pedagogy

Organizational

Need is clear

Vast population with different learning styles/cultures to address

Market readily available

Access for underserved populations (women, ethnic groups, etc.)/sectors

Learner-centered, 1:1

Less control by educational institution

Addresses needs of specific sectors (STEM disciplines, etc).

Focus on structuring specific disciplines

Partnership agreements

Create new value out of common everyday experience (mentoring)

Need to find ways of organizing informal knowledge

Process needs to be scalable; Web 2.0

Reduces expense of 1:1 education and mentoring

Traditional models of mentoring/tutoring adapted

Cost structure requires efficiencies

Reduces labor cost

Efficiently managed one-to-one time

Outsourcing, structuring of teaching/mentoring

Increases capacity to provide one-to-one learning and mentoring

Creates either on-demand or scheduled types of experiences

Requires automation of scheduling and arranging of mentor/tutor relationships

Provides opportunity for institutional networking and professional development

Mentoring arrangements need to focus on career development in some cases

Partnership agreements

Better assessment methods enabled

Technology allows for recording of sessions

Need and emphasis on quality control and assessment

Quality maintained

Assessment integrated with learning method

Many types of courses translate well online, as does mentoring

F2f bias can be avoided

Cross-cultural issues need to be addressed

Training needed

Provides new intimacy in learning; 1:1

Qualifications of mentors and tutors checked

Safety/security for young users is crucial

Quality of tutors and mentors key

Evaluation and training of instructors important

Support/resources needed

Employ effective computer-based teaching methods

Whiteboards, sound and other methods beyond text often used

Need technological support/platform

Online mentoring and tutoring assists traditionally underserved and hard-to-serve populations. Rooted in the belief that all young people, regardless of disability, should have access to and experience the benefits of online mentoring, icouldbe.org has recently started a program to reach young people living with disabilities. The impetus for online mentoring also emerges from chronic needs within particular professions. We learn from data tabulated by the National Science Foundation that only 19.5% of those in the engineering field are female, which led to the creation of GEM-SET. In a comparable way concentrating on both women and underrepresented minorities, MentorNet was created with the realization that engineering and science are important for the national and global economy and that they are challenging disciplines. Getting as much talent into science and technology fields creates benefits for all. Online mentoring can also address challenges in sectors such as teacher training, as described in the case on the Australian Catholic University. Many adults find that an advanced degree becomes necessary for credibility and authenticity in certain positions requiring sophisticated writing, consulting, and leadership skills. Yet because of full schedules and multiple responsibilities, working students are unable to enroll in classes in traditional educational institutions. The University of Phoenix provides a means for adults to obtain their doctor-

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ates online. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece attempts to cover the gap existing between big urban centers and peripheral cities of the Greek territory to provide career counseling and professional development. In terms of the effectiveness of online tutoring, TutorVista.com found that over a three-year period with hundreds of thousands of online students that there was no statistical difference in effectiveness. In some cases, students are more open to asking questions and reveal when they don’t understand something in an online environment. According to TutorVista.com, students feel less pressure to “pretend they understand” when they don’t have someone staring them down across the table, and as a result online instruction can be much more thorough. Numerous independent studies and reports from client institutions demonstrated that Smarthinking fostered student achievement in various subject areas and helped improve student retention. At Sylvan Online, extensive studies indicate statistically significant gains in academic performance in both math and reading when compared to a control group. The impact of mentoring can be a little more difficult to assess. According to GEM-SET, a causal relationship between e-mentoring and students’ educational and career futures has not been established because it is nearly impossible to identify and isolate the factors that are most important in career decisions. Yet according to a study, three years after participating in the MentorNet program, 91% of protégés are pursuing or have successfully entered their chosen STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematicis) field. Additionally, findings show that students in icouldbe.org’s mentoring program demonstrate a statistically significant increase in decision-making abilities and self-perception of their abilities to cope in school and life. Online tutoring and mentoring can also bring an intimacy to the oneto-one communication. According to MentorNet, online mentoring has a quality of being both intimate and professional. At UCLA Extension, the isolation that writers can experience often breaks down in online courses and is said to provide a kind of positive intimacy in the back and forth of online critique and rewriting.

Pedagogy The second major pattern found in the profiles presented in this book centers on pedagogical and mentoring techniques. In general, face-to-face tutoring and mentoring forms often translate well online. For example, Sylvan’s individualized assessment model made an easy transition to online. In the same way, the nature of writing workshops, which involve text-based notes on manuscripts, made for easy online adaptation for UCLA Extension Writers’ Program. Teaching creative writing is particularly well-suited for online delivery because it is involves exchanging documents with comments and revision. Similarly, for mentoring organizations, many of the same basic principles utilized during in-person meetings apply to the online environment. One lesson found in the cases is that cross-cultural concerns must be addressed. This point is explicitly made and explored in the chapter on the Sino-UK eLearning Programme where cultural differences in communication styles became apparent. Additionally, TutorVista.com found that teaching across borders brings challenges in terms of both tutor training and public perception. In primarily serving American students, the firm had to provide a way for overseas tutors to become knowledgeable about American K-12 state standards and teaching styles. As a result, TutorVista.com developed comprehensive materials to assist in the training of tutors. Also, teaching methodologies can vary from countries where lecturebased PowerPoint presentations and rote learning predominate, to others where students are accustomed to asking questions and working interactively with the course material. Nevertheless, many of the online mentoring and tutoring organizations mention the attraction and advantage of removing cultural and other

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forms of bias that comes with face-to-face meetings. Online mentoring and tutoring by its nature tends to hinder potential individual bias and provide a positive sense of anonymity. For instance, online writing education at UCLA Extension offers the virtue of relative distance when presenting highly personal creative writing. The anonymity of online tutoring and mentoring keeps the spotlight on the content/ subject itself rather than the in-person distractions of age, race, nationality or gender. Online mentoring and tutoring is often augmented by a curricular structure. One of the features of the icouldbe.org platform is that students create their own paths through a curriculum choosing among tracks that interest them and learning at their own pace. While mentees work through the curricula, mentors provide qualitative support and guidance. iMentor supports student interaction with mentors without direct teacher involvement. These one-to-one mentoring services involve individual students interacting with one mentor each, often discussing topics that are not explored as deeply in school. Others, such as the Electronic Emissary, are designed to assist students’ curriculum-based learning during the school day, typically requiring the direct involvement of teachers. Dr. Harris in the Electronic Emissary piece argues that more frequent and explicit purpose-setting, progress-reporting, and problem-solving communications are typically necessary on-line than in face-to-face interaction. Personalized communication with mentors whose work addresses school curriculum topics directly can help to make school-based learning more relevant for students. Establishing a community of practice online is seen both in pure mentoring programs and those mixed with teaching based in educational programs. At the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program, the online environment gives developing creative writers and screenwriters a range of opportunities to deepen their participation in the writing communities. At the Australian Catholic University, where pre-service teachers use information and communication technologies to facilitate the sharing of ideas, online mentoring within a community of practice framework serves to unify the practicum. By engaging with one another and sharing expertise, they become active members of a community and at the same time critically reflect on their own skills. At California State University, San Bernardino, the online community of practice provides opportunities for on-going formal and informal interaction among full-time doctoral students and faculty. Additionally, non-traditional mentoring roles can be easily formed in the online space. GEM-SET connects young girls in middle school and high school with “near-peer” mentors in undergraduate STEM majors, graduate students pursuing STEM master and doctoral degrees, as well as professional women with established STEM careers. A “near-peer” mentor is a student one or two years older than the mentee and in some cases offers an easier approach than working with adult mentors. Pedagogically, shared critiques and comments on individual work benefit all. At the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program, another distinct advantage that the technology affords is that one-on-one critiques of an individual writer’s work automatically benefit the whole class because they are posted for all to read. In the Sino-UK eLearning Programme, an online journal sharing technique involves having one tutor maintain and share an online journal with the other tutors in the course team. In terms of technology use, those involved in online tutoring emphasize the use of whiteboards and live sound. The TutorVista.com chapter notes the limitations of typing back and forth and the need for a shared live experience wherein the teacher can reinforce and clarify points. Smarthinking customdesigned its whiteboard in order to apply call center and customer service management practices to the delivery of education. Students and tutors can draw equations, plot graphs and curves, or isolate and examine specific passages of text. Specialized tools allow students and tutors to draw symbols used in math and science, and the whiteboard can be saved to a file. Often in tutoring sessions the voice-over and whiteboard features are used in conjunction for real-time instruction. In online mentoring, sound is also used through voice-over Internet protocol or over the traditional phone and is seen as an important

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way to effectively communicate with mentees. Sound excerpts from live classroom incidents at the Australian Catholic University are seen as intensifiers. Indira Gandhi National Open University has adopted a multimedia approach to instruction including self-instructional materials, as well as counseling sessions, face-to-face and via teleconferencing mode. One clear guide that emerges throughout this collection is an emphasis on the careful recruitment, training, and evaluation of tutors and mentors. Quality recruiting and training programs for instructors and mentors are particularly crucial. For example, Smarthinking works with hundreds of online tutors located around the globe, all of whom are professional educators with an average of nine years of teaching experience and advanced degrees. All tutors must successfully complete a ten to fifteen hour online training program that focuses on both technological skill and online instructional practices. Similarly, TutorVista.com hires experienced tutors with advanced degrees as well as teaching experience, and requires them to complete 40 hours of intensive training and pass stringent certification exams. They follow national and state academic standards and curricula and use TutorVista.com’s extensive library of online content, question banks, animations and simulations for maximum student engagement and learning. At Sylvan Online, teachers are state-certified and experienced in working with a range of children. The program employs 1,500 licensed teachers for grades 3-12, most with three or more years of experience. All are required to have at least a bachelor’s degree and many have specialized certification. Sylvan Online teachers receive a series of training sessions to learn how to use the diagnostic/prescriptive system, interact with students online using the available technologies, and accomplish the assigned lessons. Additionally, many of these organizations emphasize on-going training. At Smarthinking, once tutors have passed training, they become a member of an internal listserv for all other tutors from their department and are assigned to a team. TutorVista.com assesses tutors by having experienced teachers act as students and sign up for sessions. Tutoring and mentoring online provides new tools for assessment because of the ability to record and document interactions. For instance, all synchronous and asynchronous whiteboard interactions between tutors and students are archived on the Smarthinking platform thus assuring quality control and the implementation of standards. In this way, the online tutoring and mentoring organizations have an extensive portfolio of online interactions that can be analyzed. Other companies use more traditional forms of assessment. Students who enroll in Sylvan Online are given the Sylvan Skills Assessment®, a pre-test that serves both as a basis for placement and the creation of an individualized prescription. Based on a diagnostic prescription, an individually customized program is built and academic performance closely tracked.

Organizational Issues Third, the cases presented in this book, both of for-profit and non-profit organizations, reveal that efficient business models are very important with online tutoring and mentoring with a special emphasis on reducing labor costs. TutorVista.com’s solution is partly to outsource tutoring to India because of lower compensation rates. Smarthinking focuses on an operational infrastructure similar to that of a call center. The fundamental premise behind Smarthinking and TutorVista.com is that an economic model needs to provide cost-effective tutoring opportunities. They founded these organizations to fill a gap between the clear need for tutoring and the inadequate services existing in the traditional educational institutions. As with all the organizations represented in this collection, Smarthinking’s most critical challenge is to scale with efficiency. In order to meet the demand for productivity, Smarthinking implements numerous

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internal systems such as an integrated call-center scheduling system which helps to manage the tutors, and even integrates reporting tools that allow on-going analysis of those students waiting for help. The system allows Smarthinking to rapidly respond to changes in demand, create schedules on the spot, and notify tutors of changes in schedules. Managing size is a key consideration for online mentoring organization. At GEM-SET, questions concerning quality versus quantity are said to be at the forefront of every decision. For non-profit organizations with limited resources, the business model is a philosophical and ethical question because it involves decisions about access: who is included or excluded? Consequently, effective technology is needed both for communication and the management of tutoring and mentoring relationships. Especially for large-scale operations, the efficient management of scheduling is crucial. The core of MentorNet’s program is a proprietary mentor-protégé algorithm that is described as a “relationship engine.” For its extensive operation, TutorVista.com found it needed a robust scheduling, learning management and teacher monitoring system which the chapter author vividly likens to an airline traffic controller at Chicago O’Hare International airport with hundreds of planes landing and taking off with passengers, while pilots and crew making their way to connecting flights. Most online tutoring services distinguish between instant and scheduled online meetings which brings another level or complexity to the scheduling and management. At TutorVista.com, students can request an instant session called “Connect Now,” or book a session scheduling it for a specific time. Smarthinking enables either synchronous or asynchronous tutoring as well. The development of institutional partnership agreements for online tutoring and mentoring is an important part of the business model for many of the organizations presented in this book. Smarthinking has over 300 direct institutional clients, including schools, universities and libraries. Additionally, students in over 1,000 institutions use Smarthinking via publisher partnerships. As part of its drive to be at the forefront of designing virtual learning environments and online learning experiences, icouldbe. org partnered with UNICEF to manage and implement the Connecting Classrooms program, bringing together students from different countries and cultural backgrounds in a collaborative online space to explore social issues focused on marginalized young people in their communities. TutorVista.com’s Library Advantage Program is designed as a partnership to accommodate the tight budgets of libraries. iMentor Interactive is a comprehensive mentoring solution that enables member organizations throughout the United States to launch and manage effectively high-quality mentoring programs and serve a greater number of volunteers and youth program participants. MentorNet has numerous college partners including most of the Ivy League schools, MIT, Stanford, California Institute of Technology, as well as corporations. MentorNet and others describe a business model that puts their organizations between two markets that desire to connect for mutual advantage. One of the most repeated points heard throughout the cases presented in this book is the strong assertion of the importance of protégé/mentee and tutoring student safety. While there are basic standards for protecting those using online mentoring and tutoring services, the cases here show various specific techniques utilized. For instance, one of the unique features protecting the icouldbe.org community is that mentors and mentees never meet face-to-face—all mentoring exchanges are limited to the proprietary platform. As is true with many of the organizations, communications are filtered and monitored to ensure the safety of both mentee and mentor. Because icouldbe.org deals with children, it also monitors the site to protect against potential bullying. A rigorous content filter flags potentially inappropriate content and messages sent across the system. At TutorVista.com, tutor backgrounds are carefully reviewed and student-tutor exchanges monitored. Parents are also allowed to review recorded online sessions. Finally, there are challenges to the business models of online tutoring and mentoring. At TutorVista.com for instance, the idea of “foreigners” teaching children is sometimes suspect. The author of the chapter

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reported disturbing reactions in schools where special interest groups sometimes disrupt the negotiation of partnership agreements. Additionally, some public policies work against the use of drawing on international online tutoring and mentoring, for instance when requiring physical in-person fingerprinting. Smarthinking caused some controversy when it launched a new venture of credit courses incorporating its online tutorial model called StraighterLine. An article in The Chronicle of Higher Education prompted concerns voiced about the impact of outsourcing such educational services beyond the academy. Although there are clearly common features in the cases, the virtue of a collection such as what follows lies in its variety. Some of what I find most striking in the stories of these firms, organizations, and universities are the features which are unique. While already on the cutting edge, the for-profit firms, non-profit organizations, and universities profiled in this book allude to a number of new directions which may be taken in the future. This may involve new instructional approaches, as well as the use of evolving technologies to provide more impactful mentoring and tutoring interactions. The Internet has broken down boundaries both physical and organizational making one-to-one mentoring and tutoring relationships practical. Although universities possess extraordinary resources in the knowledge of computer technology and pedagogical theory, ironically they have failed to develop effective educational software platforms in general, especially for mentoring and tutoring. Clearly, there is a need for an effort to make important technological advancements that will further open the doors to formal and informal one-toone learning. The world awaits those who will transform how we learn. It is hoped that these profiles of a distinctive collection of online mentoring and tutoring organizations advances more effective uses of technology to form important one-to-one relationships in new and more productive ways.

Gary A. Berg Los Angeles, 2009

referenCes Bloom, B. (1984). The 2 sigma problem: The search for methods of group instruction as effective as one-to-one tutoring. Educational Researcher, 13(6), 4-16. Bridgeland, J., Dilulio, J., & Burke Morison, K. (2006). The silent epidemic: Perspectives of high school dropouts. Washington, DC: Civic Enterprises. Gordon, E.E., Morgan, R.R., O’Malley, C.J., & Ponticell, J. (2007). The tutoring revolution: Applying research for best practices, policy implications, and student achievement. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Education. National Center for Education Statistics. (2004). The condition of education 2004 (NCES 2004–077). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

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Acknowledgment

As this book is a collection of cases the editor must first thank the contributing authors and the organizations they represent and discuss. Additionally, chapters were peer reviewed and the comments used to strengthen them. In this way, the reviewers contributed greatly to the overall quality of this book. The reviewers include Mark Lee, Bernie Luskin, Catherine McLoughlin, Ramesh Sharma and Linda Venis. Finally, the work of the editorial staff at IGI Global was crucial in first supporting the concept for this book and its completion.

Gary A. Berg Los Angeles, 2009

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Chapter 1

Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers Judi Harris College of William & Mary, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY The Electronic Emissary is a Web-based service and resource center that helps teachers and students with Internet access locate mentors who are experts in various disciplines, then plan and engage in curriculum-based learning. In this way, the interaction that occurs among teachers and students face-to-face in the classroom is supplemented and extended by electronic mail, Web forum, chat, and audio/videoconferencing exchanges that occur among participating teachers, students, and volunteer mentors. These project-based online conversations typically range in length from six weeks to a full academic year, as students’ needs and interests dictate. The Electronic Emissary has been online since February 1993 and on the World Wide Web since December 1995. It serves students and teachers globally, but the majority of its participants to date have been in North America. Emissary-related research has focused upon the nature of telementoring interactions in which K-12 students are active inquirers, the motivations and perceptions of their volunteer subject matter mentors, why some teachers choose to persist in integrating telementoring into curricula despite considerable hindrances, effective telementoring facilitation techniques, and what teachers learn as they help their students to participate in curriculum-oriented telementoring projects. Students exploring complex curriculum-based topics need to actively build deep and sophisticated understanding. One of the most effective ways to do this is by engaging in ongoing dialogue with knowledgeable others, as the students form, refine, and expand their knowledge. Classroom teachers typically serve as the subject matter experts with whom students interact in curriculum-based areas of inquiry. Yet when the issues being explored are multi-disciplinary, technically and conceptually sophisticated, or dependent upon current and highly specialized research and theory, additional expertise must be made directly available to students and teachers longitudinally, and on an as-needed basis. This is what telementoring offers to learners and educators today, and what the Electronic Emissary brings to students and teachers worldwide. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch001

Copyright © 2010, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

BaCkgrOUnD Telecommunication tools and resources are providing teachers with new ways to engage their students in learning experiences that reflect how knowledge is built and used in the world outside the school. Today, a teacher no longer needs to be the sole content matter expert in the classroom. It is possible, for example, for students to learn about global warming from researchers studying ecological phenomena in the Antarctic, or to discuss the historical implications of a recently discovered primary source document with a historiographer, using simple telecomputing tools such as electronic mail and Web-based discussion groups. Volunteer subject matter experts, such as the ecological biologists and historians referenced above, can work virtually with students over an extended period of time, developing and sustaining mentor-protégé relationships that contribute to the richness and relevance of curriculum-based learning in elementary, middle-level, and secondary classrooms.

e-mentoring Such online mentoring, also called “e-mentoring” and “telementoring,” holds great potential for both learners and teachers. When it is implemented to benefit elementary, middle-school, or high school-aged students, it “is a caring, structured relationship [that] focuses on the needs of the mentored participants, adds value to the lives of those involved, [and] uses technology to connect people across time and/or distance” (National Mentoring Partnership, 2002, as cited in Harris, 2003, p. 53). E-mentoring for K-12 students typically involves sustained exchanges between mentors and protégés who use electronic mail, discussion forums, chat, texting, and/or audio/ video-conferencing to communicate. It differs from using ask-an-expert Web sites (e.g., the services indexed by the Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education) to answer

2

specific questions in that telementoring generally lasts longer and achieves greater depth than simple question-and-answer communication online. Ementoring for pre-college students can involve one or more mentors and protégés, and can be used as an integral part of school curricula or for an extracurricular exploration of career interests, hobbies, or personal issues.

e-mentoring support Support for online mentoring for K-12 students takes several forms, distinguished primarily by when and about what mentors and their student protégés communicate. Some e-mentoring services—such as Achievement Advocate and iMentor—support students’ interactions with mentors without teachers’ direct involvement. These one-to-one mentoring services involve individual students interacting with one mentor each, often discussing topics that are not explored as deeply (or at all) in school. Others, such as the International Telementor Program and the Electronic Emissary, are designed to assist students’ curriculum-based learning during the school day, typically requiring direct involvement by participating students’ teachers. As such, they can support either individual students or groups in ongoing communication online with one or more mentors.

e-mentoring facilitation The ways and degrees to which students’ communications with their mentors are monitored and/or actively facilitated is another important aspect of online mentoring for K-12 students. The time- and labor-intensive nature of this feature of telementoring has caused many services to decide against providing personalized facilitation of ementoring exchanges. Several, such as icouldbe. org, use text filters to screen for inappropriate language or topics addressed. Others, such as Connecting to Success, require participating stu-

Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

dents’ teachers or parents to monitor all messages exchanged with mentors. Given current concerns about minors’ safety in online interactions, and school districts’ increasingly stringent Acceptable Use Policies for Internet activity, this challenge looms large for both the scalability and security of online mentoring for K-12 students, and concomitantly, the considerable time and resource costs of providing high-quality, safe, yet efficient online mentoring for them.

completed in schools. Until more teachers are familiar and comfortable with integrating telementoring into classroom-based learning activities, active facilitation will be necessary to stem participant attrition and ensure quality learning experiences for students. Given the resourceintensive nature of providing this type of support, combined with shrinking school budgets, high-quality, curriculum-based telementoring is primarily a volunteer-based and grant-funded effort at the present time.

integrating e-mentoring When telementoring is designed to function within a school-based curriculum (as opposed to an extracurricular activity), it can help to bring the subject matter alive in ways not possible within many communities, increasing the depth, breadth, and/or authenticity of students’ curriculum-based learning. Communicating regularly with content specialists with active interest, experience, and expertise in school subjects can intensify students’ engagement and connection with content, due to the highly interactive and personalized nature of telementoring discussions. Integrating regular ementoring discussions into students’ classroom activities, however, presents pedagogical challenges for teachers who are unfamiliar with planning and implementing networked communication as part of students’ schoolwork. To use online mentoring effectively within classroom-based learning, therefore, requires professional support for teachers, provided by educators who are familiar with the logistical realities of planning, instruction, and school contexts, along with the unique requirements of teaching and learning online.

e-mentoring assistance Taken together, the essential characteristics and challenges posed by high-quality telementoring for K-12 students suggest the need for personalized assistance with planning and implementing curriculum-based e-mentoring projects that are

Case DesCriPtiOn One example of grant-funded, school curriculumbased online mentoring that provides the personalized facilitation and oversight necessary to ensure high-quality learning is the focus of this case. The Electronic Emissary, a university-based telementoring service and research effort, brings together volunteer content specialists with K-12 students and their teachers to communicate about school curriculum topics in which the specialists have expertise. The Emissary has been online since the fall of 1992, and on the Web since December 1995. It began in the College of Education at the University of Texas at Austin, then moved (with its director) to the School of Education at the College of William & Mary in fall 2002. To our knowledge, the Emissary is the longestrunning online mentoring service for elementary, middle school, and high school students, and the only one that offers personalized project planning, facilitation, and mentor development. Emissary staff members are graduate students and instructors with both school teaching experience and expertise in facilitating online learning and teaching who facilitate the telementoring projects part-time. Emissary-supported projects address academics primarily, and are planned and implemented with the direct and ongoing involvement of students’ teachers or parents.

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Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

funding To date, the service has supported approximately 900 telementoring projects, with the number of concurrently communicating groups—ranging from just a few to 75 or more—determined by the amount of funding currently available. All telementoring services are provided free of charge. The Electronic Emissary has been supported by grants from the Texas Center for Educational Technology, the J.C. Penney Corporation, the National Science Foundation, the South Central Regional Educational Technology Consortium, the U.S. Office of Naval Research, and the School of Education at the College of William & Mary. Grant funds pay for project facilitators’ and programmers’ time and effort. The Emissary is directed by a university professor of educational technology—the author of this chapter—whose project work helps to meet her employer’s expectations for professional service to the larger educational community. Server space for and online access to the Emissary’s Web site is provided similarly pro bono by the Department of Information Technology at the College of William & Mary.

Additional mentors are requested periodically by posting invitations to academic and professional electronic mail distribution lists, discussion groups, and/or organizational Web sites—though currently, most new mentors are referred to the project by existing volunteers. These postings include directions that the prospective mentors can follow if they would like to add an information form about themselves to the Emissary’s searchable, Webbased database. The information requested of potential mentors is extensive, and is used by the project director to screen the volunteers carefully before determining whether their form can be added to the active part of the mentor database. Employers are contacted to verify potential participants’ responses as necessary. A portion of the information provided—specifically, the mentor’s name, institution, work description, general location, areas of expertise, availability for communication each week, and past experience working with K-12 students—is made searchable and accessible at the Emissary’s web site. All other information (e.g., telephone numbers; email addresses; employment details) is accessible only by Emissary staff members.

teachers mentors The Emissary’s mentor database has included up to approximately 200 mentors, changing in size over time according to the number of currently active and available subject specialist volunteers. Approximately half are scientists; many work for universities or governmental agencies, and a sizable proportion are information technology workers. Lawyers, doctors, businesspeople, artists, and teachers are also included in the database. Most have had prior experience working with elementary, middle school, or high school students, typically through scouting, 4H, religious groups, school-community partnerships, or museum-based extracurricular educational programs. These volunteer content specialists typically work with only one telementoring project at a time.

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The volunteer specialists’ information forms are searched and reviewed by classroom teachers who are considering incorporating online mentoring into some aspect of curriculum-based learning for one or more of their students. (Parents who are seeking individualized mentoring for their children outside of school can also avail themselves of this opportunity.) To request the services of a mentor selected from the database, teachers must complete a similarly detailed information form about themselves, their school, and their students’ learning needs and preferences. They must also describe completely the learning activity/ies into which telementoring will be integrated. An optional interactive project planning tool is available for teachers’ use on the Emissary’s web site to assist with this important planning process.

Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

CUrrent ChaLLenges teachers’ Challenges This last piece of information that teachers must provide has proven to be one of the most important and challenging to specify. Online communication lacks the full spectrum of visual and audible information that we depend upon, often unconsciously, in face-to-face exchange. Therefore, mentoring online requires somewhat different interaction strategies if it is to be used to create maximal educational benefit. For example, more frequent and more explicit purpose-setting, progressreporting, and problem-solving communications are typically necessary on-line than in face-toface interaction (Kimball & Eunice, 1999). The challenge is compounded when teachers attempt to weave online mentoring meaningfully into classroom-based, face-to-face teaching and learning. True mentoring involves relationship-building and communicating regularly for an extended period of time in a focused way. Limited access to Internet-worked computers in schools, strict policies banning online interaction with outsiders during school, pressure to “cover content” quickly in ways that will be reflected in students’ standardized test results, and lack of experience with successfully integrating use of online technologies into curriculum-based learning have discouraged some teachers from pursuing curriculum-based telementoring opportunities for their students.

facilitators’ Challenges The gravity of these challenges—and the typically high attrition rate in organized online projects of all types—helped the Emissary’s staff to recognize the need for customized and personalized facilitation of each e-mentoring project it supports, from initial inquiry, through project planning, mentor selection, relationship-building, students’ and mentors’ online communication, problem-finding

and –solving, and project evaluation. Each telementoring project’s parameters, patterns, and events are unique, because each is designed for a specific student or group of students in particular classroom, school, geographic, cultural, economic, and curriculum contexts. Each teacher’s and mentor’s expectations, assumptions, communication patterns and past experiences are also different. In these complex combinations of variable, local factors lay both the potential power and fragility of any online mentoring interaction. Though online tools can be designed to assist with the customization necessary for online mentoring projects to succeed (as the Electronic Emissary’s Web-based tools do), our experience suggests that direct and personalized facilitation by a knowledgeable educator is necessary for most curriculum-based telementoring projects to inspire truly meaningful, worthwhile learning.

solutions Facilitators What do the Emissary’s online facilitators do? Logistically, they contact mentors whom teachers have selected from the database via email, asking the mentors whether they are available and interested in participating in the online project that the teacher has proposed on behalf of her students. If the mentors agree (as they usually do), the facilitators then request a dedicated email list or discussion forum from the Emissary’s director for the teacher and mentor to use to become acquainted and to plan the specifics of the project that the teacher has proposed. The facilitator participates actively in this online discussion, introducing the teacher and mentor to each other, answering their questions and offering suggestions about how to structure the online mentoring project to students’ best educational advantage. Once project plans are finalized, the facilitator requests one or more lists or discussion from the

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director for the students and teacher to use to communicate with the mentor. The facilitator actively monitors this exchange, messaging participants privately with suggestions and encouragement, or sending gentle reminders if communication lags. The facilitator can also contact participants by telephone, if necessary. When the project is complete—typically in six to ten weeks’ time— the facilitator works with the teacher, mentor, and any available students to create a project summary that is added to the searchable database of Emissary-sponsored projects that is available at the Emissary’s Web site. These summaries are used for inspiration by teachers creating proposals for new telementoring projects. The facilitator also encourages all participants to complete project evaluation forms, the data from which are used by the Emissary’s staff to prompt procedural, policy, or resource changes that will benefit future Emissary participants. Two researchers who studied different aspects of the online mentoring that the Emissary supports summarized the facilitators’ roles as moderator, mediator, and facilitator: •

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More information about this complex and fascinating facilitation process is available in Harris & Figg (2000).

sample telementoring Projects The diversity, customization, and students’ active engagement in the curriculum-based learning that the Electronic Emissary supports are best communicated by examining the projects themselves. Brief summaries of several, selected to demonstrate the range of different topics, grade levels, and types of online interactions that the Emissary has facilitated, follow. •

The facilitator may serve as a moderator during initial contacts as the participants are establishing the framework for the project. As moderator, the facilitator models the language, discussion techniques, and netiquette protocols necessary for quality communication in the online environment. In addition, the facilitator models proper use of the technical framework within which participants operate in order to assure quality communication. The facilitator may serve as a mediator as the project progresses. Tasks such as tracking down resources and materials that enrich the learning experience or providing technological assistance that supports learning goals—such as setting up a real-time chat or videoconference among

teachers/students and mentors—may become part of the facilitation process. And, the facilitator facilitates or engages the teachers/students and mentors in collaborative learning processes by planning with the teacher, monitoring on-line interactions, and providing guiding comments as needed. (McGee & Boyd, 1995, p. 645)

•

High school students in Delaware who were studying Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter communicated with the character Arthur Dimsdale, who was actually an American literature professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. During the following semester, the students communicated with the professor himself about Mark Twain’s Huck Finn, culminating their exchange by creating a newspaper that they called The Mississippi Times, an idea first suggested by the expert. The teacher and the professor shared instructional ideas, resources, and perspectives about Mark Twain’s works and views. Students in the “upper room” of a country school in a rural and mountainous region of northern California (11 students, ranging from 4th to 8th grade in the same

Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

•

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classroom) learned about bones and skeletons by studying their own skeletal systems and the bones found in owl pellets in the woods near their school. Their teacher, along with a biological researcher at Michigan State University, guided the students’ hypothesis formation and testing as they extracted the bones from the pellets, measured them, labeled them, then reconstructed the skeletons, and deduced what kinds of animals the bones supported. Jannah, a 10-year-old student in Connecticut, corresponded frequently with Dr. Eisner, a professor in Arizona. They continued their study of Arthurian legends that begun in the spring semester of 1995 for more than three years. Jannah, Dr. Eisner, their online facilitator, and the Emissary’s director co-authored an article describing their online educational experiences that appeared in the May 1996 issue of the professional journal, Learning and Leading With Technology. An Advanced Placement Spanish Literature class in Ross, California communicated with Bob Fritz, a professor of Spanish at Ball State University. All communication was conducted in Spanish. Topics addressed included the nivolas of Miguel de Unamuno and how these works fit into the cultural and historical contexts of Spain. 19 fourth- and fifth-grade students in McAllen, Texas compared the experiences of their families on the Texas “La Frontera” to colonial life in the original 13 U.S. colonies, with the help of the director of a historic preservation center and museum in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Eight groups of four girls each, studying in an honors science program at a New England high school, communicated with a graduate student at the University of Minnesota about DNA & infantile

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leukemia (the topic of the subject matter expert’s thesis), cancer research & therapy, and professional careers for women in science. The teams discussed both scientific and ethical issues online with the university-based genetics expert. A computer scientist at the State University of New York-Potsdam with interest and expertise in American history posed as a young Union soldier to help gifted and talented fifth-grade students in Omaha, Nebraska learn about the Civil War. He answered the students’ questions in character. The students used what they learned from his responses to write a play about the Civil War, which was performed at their school. Fifth grade students in Council, Idaho who were studying animal behavior – specifically, rats negotiating mazes of different types—received suggestions on how to improve their observation techniques from a primate ethologist working at the Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center. Ninth grade students from San Angelo, Texas corresponded with an anthropologist from Los Angeles, California about civil rights, both as they could be explored with reference to the first Rodney King trial (that was taking place at the time of the exchange) and historically, by examining the struggle for African American rights during the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, with particular emphasis upon the contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Third grade students from San Antonio, Texas communicated with a naval officer and meteorologist stationed at Fort Biloxi, Mississippi about atmospheric physics and atmospheric dynamics, even though, as the subject matter expert indicated, they probably didn’t realize that their questions concerned such complex topics.

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Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

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Sixth grade students in Houston, Texas, who were engaged in multi-disciplinary study of the Middle Ages, posed questions to a medieval history professor who worked at the University of Illinois, addressing her as “Learned Sage.” She, in turn, answered their questions, calling them “Seekers of Knowledge.” Fifth grade students in Amarillo, Texas communicated with a researcher from A, T & T Bell Laboratories about sailing and celestial navigation. The subject matter expert in this team both answered questions and suggested simple experiments for the students to try to help them to understand the information that he was communicating. Eleventh and twelfth grade students in La Crosse, Wisconsin who were working on labs about the scintillation of light, extinction of light, and variable stars, consulted a nearby university-based physicist, who, we soon learned, had known their teacher before the Emissary project “matched” the team. 16-to-18-year-old students from Salmon Arm, British Columbia, who were curious about virtual reality technologies, corresponded with a computer scientist working for Boeing and NASA, later commenting upon his skill in using humor and professional anecdotes to help them to understand technical information. Fourteen gifted high school students from Nacodoches, Texas interacted online with 14 different subject matter experts on topics of individual and mutual interest and research, including: marine biology, blues music, harmony in music, computer graphics, the Elizabethan era, biomechanics, black holes, documentary direction and production, the physics of fire-fighting, the effect of the media on public opinion, genetic engineering, the New Age movement,

reincarnation, and the effect of day care on child development.

Benefits Members of Emissary-supported e-mentoring teams are engaged in in-depth, dynamic exchange. Project evaluation results provided by team members have emphasized the importance of the relationships that have developed among participants. Subject matter “came alive” for students who could interact with someone for whom curriculum content is part of everyday life – and a passionate interest. Many participating teachers develop close, apprentice-like relationships with the mentors, requesting and receiving assistance with content-related concepts, resources and activity design. Mentors often delight in opportunities to revisit and delve deeper into their disciplinary specializations by interacting with interested but less knowledgeable others. Facilitators express fascination with the often challenging, personal and in-depth communication co-created by people who know each other only virtually.

impact Why pursue e-mentoring that is integrated into curriculum-based instruction in schools, especially noting the considerable challenges that it presents? Participating students, mentors, and teachers have shared stories of how deeply and positively these interactions have impacted them—far beyond what even the Emissary’s staff had hoped. Several examples follow here. After serving as a mentor several times, a managing editor for an online magazine decided that teaching was her “true calling:” The experience that I had in helping a group of high school students translate their school newspaper to the Internet inspired me to return to school and become a certified teacher. I will hopefully begin teaching, in New York City, this

Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

fall. I am putting together my resume and want to include the experience that I had with Electronic Emissary. … This experience was really essential to my decision to teach. The marrying of all the things I love—technology, kids and the written word—was so complete in this one project that it taught me what I could someday do in my own classroom. Thank you for the opportunity to learn this valuable lesson. She continues to be listed in the Emissary’s database, now describing her work as a “teacher of literacy for 8th grade.” A teacher in an impoverished urban school sent the following message to her class’ mentor, a software designer at a large technology corporation: It was fascinating to see the kids react to your last suggestions. They came in on Saturday morning so they could work for a couple of hours straight. When you mentioned not understanding question 8, Neil replied that he didn’t understand it either, and he was the one who wrote it. Your answers were awesome, yet some of them made the kids uncomfortable. I’ve come to believe that this is one of the best things you could do for them and I need to do more of it. Let me see if I can explain. Our school has a high poverty rate—approximately 70% of the students receive free or reduced lunch and an equal number are minorities. In fact, all of the students you are e-mailing qualify as minorities in some capacity. Teachers here work so hard to encourage students to perform that maybe we don’t set high enough expectations for our brighter kids. This group of students thought that because they’d come up with an idea, it was good. You challenged them to expand their thinking. They realized that in some cases they needed to abandon ideas and start over. The time they spent getting to those ideas wasn’t spent in vain, but they haven’t realized this yet. They pored over all of your messages again and were deep in thought for quite awhile. The kids had to submit their project … on Saturday, but they are on the verge of their best thinking, so I

want to encourage them to spend a little more time developing their product. You should hear from the kids before the end of the week, but I just wanted to give you a glimpse behind the scenes. Even after your brief encounters with them, they trust what you tell them. They recognize your expertise and they really do think about and discuss what you tell them. It’s really neat to see them grasp what you mean over time. I’ve left the messages in a folder and they take turns reading them aloud and then re-reading them. I’ll be presenting ideas about integrating technology to preservice teachers at a local university next month and will definitely mention the Electronic Emissary Project. You are the best thing that’s happened to us all year and I can never thank you enough. The power and inspiration experienced by all of the participants in this science project, even after only a short time communicating with each other, attests to why it is important to continue to work with teachers, mentors, and students to offer online mentoring as part of curriculum-based work in school, despite the challenges inherent in doing so.

LessOns LearneD In conclusion, please consider the following Electronic Emissary experience, summarized by a past high school student participant with severe cerebral palsy who worked for several years online with a retired journalist with multiple sclerosis. The statement is shared here with her permission. I remember the day I applied for a mentor in the Electronic Emissary program. Midway through my sophomore year in high school, I was summoned from my English class by my academic advisor and another teacher who had connected with me as a fellow bookworm. They knew that, as an accelerated student, I had already surpassed the expectations of the classroom teacher and con-

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Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

sequently, that my proficiency and skills were not developing. I was looking for an enriched experience, and they thought they had located one. On the school’s sole public computer with Internet access, located in the library, they brought up the EE website. For the first time, I was presented with options of what I wanted to study and with which professional I wanted to work. Scanning the list of mentors was like pouring through a college bulletin of course offerings. Even though I was still in high school, where, in the realm of English classes, one size fit all, I could have access to and develop a relationship with any of these dedicated professionals. After serious consideration of my long-term academic and vocational goals, I chose to work with a retired journalist who offered to train me in writing book reviews. This sounded perfect: I would have a mentor to discuss a variety of books with me in depth on a weekly basis, expanding beyond the three-books-a-year curriculum at high school. I imagined that the experience would introduce me to the field of journalism and publishing, helping to solidify my ambitions. The relationship blossomed as we corresponded at great length over the weeks. My mentor and I soon discovered that we shared a few things in common in addition to our love of literature. Although we never met in person, we lived not far from each other, both in rural settings raising animals. What’s more, we both live with severe physical disabilities. For the first time, I had interaction with a role model who had achieved success in my intended field of work. Her accomplishment was a profound inspiration to me, confirming that I could pursue my dreams, despite my physical challenges. Providentially, the nature of the EE program eliminated the obstacles to verbal communication that I face in a crowded classroom. Using e-mail, I could express my questions and observations without time constraints and I was always understood. I received more support and attention on-line than a classroom teacher could offer.

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Although the formal EE mentorship was intended to last the duration of one semester, my mentor and I continued to work together more or less independently for the remainder of my high school years. I made measurable progress in my writing skills and consistently benefited from her extensive feedback; we agreed that it was valuable to maintain the relationship beyond the EE framework. I grew as a writer because my mentor encouraged me to revise each piece based on her suggestions, holding me accountable for my writing. No other instructor at that time demanded that I internalize increasingly mature conventions of grammar and style. My mentor guided me in developing a professional voice: she asked me to identify and consider the needs of the public audience who would be reading my book reviews. She helped me to think critically-reflectively, not reflexively. With her support, I mastered the form of the book review, modeling examples in The New York Times. Even before attending college, I had gained ample experience and skills in my intended profession. Since participating in the EE program, I have graduated from a prestigious university with a degree in English literature. I followed through with the goals that I first identified when enrolling in the EE program. Now I have embarked on a career in editing and publishing, working for a journal. Ironically, my job description also entails developing and managing an on-line mentor program with physically challenged young adults to develop their writing skills. Perhaps more than any other, this story serves as a living example of the tremendously transformative power of connecting motivated, caring individuals with similar interests over time and across geographic distance in personalized ways. The impressive benefits of online mentoring for K-12 students have been clear and demonstrable enough during the Electronic Emissary’s many years linking students, teachers, and volunteer content specialists to warrant addressing and overcoming the challenges inherent in doing so.

Facilitated Telementoring for K-12 Students and Teachers

referenCes Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education. (2009). Ask an expert sites. Retrieved January 26, 2009, from http://www.ciese.org/ askanexpert.html

Kimball, L., & Eunice, A. (1999, November). Zen and the art of facilitating virtual learning communities. Paper presented at the ThinkQuest Teachers’ Summit, Los Angeles, CA.

Colorado Nonprofit Development Center. (2007). International telementor program. Retrieved January 26, 2009, from http://www.telementor.org/

McGee, P. A., & Boyd, V. (1995, March). Computer-mediated communication: Facilitating dialogues. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education, San Antonio, TX.

Harris, J. (2003). Seek strategically, find answers appropriately. Learning & Leading with Technology, 30(6), 50–53.

School of Education. College of William & Mary. (n.d.). Electronic emissary. Retrieved January 26, 2009, from http://emissary.wm.edu/

Harris, J. B., & Figg, C. (2000). Participating from the sidelines, online: Facilitating telementoring projects. ACM Journal of Computer Documentation, 24(4), 227-236. Retrieved from http://portal. acm.org/citation.cfm?id=353927.353934

Student Achievement and Advocacy Services. (2009). Achievement advocate online mentoring community. Retrieved January 26, 2009, from http://www.achievementadvocate.org/default. asp

icouldbe.org inc. (n.d.). icouldbe.org: Mentoring the next generation. Retrieved January 26, 2009, from http://www.icouldbe.org/

The Regents of the University of Minnesota. (2007). Connecting to success: Mentoring through technology to promote student achievement. Retrieved February 19, 2009, from http://ici.umn. edu/ementoring/default.htmlf

iMentor, Inc. (2009). iMentor. Retrieved February 19, 2009, from http://www.imentor.org/

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Chapter 2

The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering David Porush MentorNet, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY MentorNet is dedicated to diversifying the engineering and scientific workforce by providing e-mentoring to students in colleges and universities, with a special focus on underrepresented majors in engineering and science. It was founded in 1997 by Dr. Carol Muller, who led it as its sole President and CEO until 2008.The seeds for MentorNet were sown in 1995 when Muller, then associate dean at Dartmouth’s School of Engineering, initiated a pilot e-mentoring program as part of the campus Women in Science Project, which she had co-founded. Muller’s insight, one that has sustained MentorNet throughout its history, is that engineering and science are the engines of progress and economy in the U.S. and globally, but they are also extraordinarily challenging disciplines, and especially so for underrepresented cohorts who may be the first in their family to aspire to professional careers in engineering and science, or who may still face subtle discrimination because of their gender or ethnicity. Getting as much talent into the science and technology pipelines creates benefits for the global economy, for the institutions who need that talent, and first and foremost, for talented students themselves. Our vision, like our program, is potentially global and paradigm-changing. Our technology is a means to an important end: making and sustaining relationships across barriers of identity, race, class, age gender, ethnicity, and nationality for the benefit of talent development.

BaCkgrOUnD Engineering and science are tough disciplines. They get harder and more competitive as you DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch002

move through them, from that first success in a school science fair or math class through college and university studies to a professional career in a corporation, university, or research lab. They require unusually dedicated commitment from the student and sustained encouragement from the

Copyright © 2010, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

institutions and individuals that need their talent. This is especially daunting in industries that through the 1990s disproportionately favored white males. MentorNet was conceived to help students overcome potential disparities by using the burgeoning power of the Internet to connect people across boundaries of geography, culture and identity. In 1997, Muller formed MentorNet as a 501(c) (3) non-profit corporation in the State of California with the help of an advisory committee from industry and academe and grants from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, IBM and AT&T. In 1998, MentorNet launched its first web site and began matching its first mentors and protégés. Since then MentorNet has grown from 430 protégés and mentors on 15 original campus partners to a community of more than 25,000 members from 200 campuses and mentors representing more than 2000 employers. Every year it supports approximately 6000 protégés and mentors (3000 pairs). While MentorNet was always open to all students on the campuses it served, in 2006, MentorNet explicitly seeks to expand its mission and its solutions by providing e-mentoring to students in new disciplines and to broader cohorts who could benefits from its services and refined methods. These new cohorts include students from underrepresented minorities who often don’t have in their immediate circle the strong cultural advantages or role models in education to inspire them, let alone the engineering and science precedents enjoyed by their peers. Like women, they often see few faces in their classroom or campus milieu or even home culture who are following the path they have set for themselves. Being matched with a mentor drawn from a global pool who can help them discuss and overcome their individual concerns about race, ethnicity or identity is powerful and supportive. MentorNet and its founder have received numerous awards including most notably the 2001 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science,

Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring and the Grand Prize of the Cisco Growing with Technology Awards in 2004. In 2008 it received a grant from the National Science Foundation to extend mentoring to the geosciences and from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the S.D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation, among others, to formulate and execute strategic planning and platform re-engineering.

Case DesCriPtiOn As decades of studies and reports have made abundantly clear, the lack of gender, racial, and ethnic diversity in engineering and science has enormous opportunity costs. Diversity contributes to the robustness of scientific discovery, the speed of technology innovation, the strength of the workforce and economy, the cultural sensitivity of our institutions, disciplines and professions, and even, it might be argued, to the quality—or at least interest and positive challenges—of life itself. In every suggested remedy, mentoring is identified as a key, if not the primary solution to retaining talented individuals, and helping women and minorities to overcome barriers and stay on track to their professional careers. Mentoring also supports the intergenerational transfer of knowledge and practice, enabling continuity and progress, even as individuals cycle through an enterprise. MentorNet offers an array of intertwined Internet products and services, all focused on forging and sustaining a successful one-on-one e-mail relationship between a mentor and a protégé. The core of MentorNet’s program are a proprietary profiling paradigm, matching algorithms, and especially a set of e-mailed prompts to the mentor-protégé pair, MentorNet’s support and guidance to the pair for how to conduct a fruitful, engaging conversation via e-mail. Together, these form a unique and powerful “relationship engine” that most competitors and other mentoring programs lack.

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The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

Email is simple, convenient, private, efficient, ubiquitous, and free. It enables MentorNet mentors and protégés to transcend constraints of geography, time, and synchronous communication. It also has unique qualities that make it excellent for mentoring. On email, you can’t tell how someone looks and what their age, race, or even gender is unless they choose to divulge it, and so it removes most obvious markers of status difference, including those rooted in gender and hierarchy. Students feel less intimidated or hesitant asking questions using email than they might when posing those same questions in person or over the phone. Email also makes it easy to communicate thoughtfully and deliberately. More than the faster, newer emedia like Twitter, IM, chat, and comments on social networks like Facebook, email invites you to compose yourself before hitting “Send.” As email gets pushed to different devices—mobile phones and handhelds—it becomes only more powerful for conducting an anytime, anywhere relationship that remains under the control and at the discretion of the participants. The following lists these client-facing applications and services: Profiles: An application prompting prospective protégés to define and upload their extensive personal and career profile and express their interests and wishes for qualities in a mentor. The profiling is quite sensitive and nuanced without being cumbersome to use. There are basic identity questions and then weighted interest and priority topics that yield lots of information in compact form. Matching Algorithm: The program matches them according to refined weighting algorithms and provides protégés with up to five choices of mentors. Prompts: a guided eight-month sequence of suggestions using low-hurdle mail prompts, timed and automatically delivered to mentors and protégés in specific order. They also are “flavored” into six subsets depending upon the class of the protégé (community college, undergrad, grad,

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postdoc, junior faculty) and the mentor (corporate/ academic). Partner Resource Center (administrative dashboard): for partner representatives to track and account for the participation of their mentors or protégés and download an extensive collection of marketing and outreach material provided to help them recruit protégés and mentors. Library: an extensive library of resources, reports, journal articles, conference papers, conference and workshop presentations, white paper, press releases, research briefings, and press coverage about mentoring, especially for women and underrepresented minority professionals in science and engineering. Communications: broadcast communications about MentorNet’s work, research, and events including a newsletter every two months, as well as evaluation reports, etc. Forum for mentors and protégés to compare and share practices and issues. A résumé database for protégés who are launching their careers, searchable by partner corporations at different levels of access depending on their level of support (fee). MentorNet continually refines three major use cases based on studying our users’ experiences and on changes in the rapidly developing environment for electronic relationships. MentorNet continually refines three major use cases based on studying our users’ experiences and on changes in the rapidly developing environment for electronic relationships: The Protégé, The Mentor, and The Rep. The Protégé: While our target protégé is a woman or underrepresented minority, MentorNet is open to any student, post-doc, or junior faculty member in our partner institutions. The “average” protégé is an undergraduate on a partner campus majoring in engineering or science. 58% are female and 40% identify themselves as one of an underrepresented minority group. Chances are The Protégé heard about MentorNet by word of

The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

mouth. She or he saw one of our posters or flyers in the sponsoring office on campus, or via an electronic message or recruitment fair sponsored by that office, which could be in a School of Engineering or Science, a department, a Career Center, a Women’s or Diversity division or program, or even from an individual faculty member who advocates our program. The Protégé is motivated by the need or desire or dispassionate career advice from someone outside their institution, someone who can not directly affect their immediate career or grades. Protégés also tend to see this as an opportunity to connect to someone in their field who can offer real world perspectives that might be hard to find on a campus academic environment. In an increasingly competitive job market, they also see MentorNet as giving them a chance to build a relationship with a potential employer directly, using a familiar medium—the Internet— to go directly to someone who can help, outside traditional channels of a professor’s office hours, a Career Center, an infrequent job fair, or the impersonal market of a job board. Protégés arrive at the website (www.mentornet.net/protege) where they sign up and fill out the profile, asking them questions about their identity, their career plans,and their major and minor fields of interest from a drop down menu of over 65 disciplines and sub-fields. They also answer a questionnaire about the sorts of advice they are seeking and willing to talk about, and they have the option to add a personal statement. The questionnaire also asks them to select their preferences in a match, including among many other factors the gender and ethnic identity of their mentor, the mentor’s employer, campus or organization, and the mentor’s field. Protégés then see a web page offering them a choice of as many as five mentors, often instantaneously. Our system makes these matches automatically, using a complex algorithm that is always being refined based on our research into successful relationships. Each protégé receives

a choice of up to five mentors, another nuanced contribution to the program’s success: protégés are younger and more likely to have trouble sustaining the relationship with the older more mature mentor. MentorNet puts them in the driver’s seat by giving them their choice, promoting their sense that they “own” the relationship and that their talent and career success is the “prize.” The relationship begins when the mentor and protégé agree via email to be paired. Then our system starts sending them both a series of emailed prompts that set the table by suggesting expectations for their relationship, outlining in broad terms the kinds of information they should exchange. Over the course of eight months they will continue to receive these prompt emails, leading them to discuss topics, the concerns and advice, problems and solutions, questions and answers that will help the protégé find her way through her career. These emails are suggestive, not prescriptive. They do not demand a forced march through a checklist, but rather take the tone of an invitation to engage. Nor is the relationship confined to email. Mentors and protégés are free to take the relationship where they wish, including face to face meetings, professional collaboration and even offers of employment. The protégé will also receive newsletters from MentorNet every two weeks or so, as well as occasional reminders to consult the resources on our website or follow links to articles, interesting websites, and some messages from the MentorNet community. We encourage protégés to submit their resumes to the resume board, especially if they are close to seeking a job or internship, and to join the forum where they can pose questions, seek career advice, seek relationships, and share experiences with a wider community. At the end of the relationship, they fill out a survey about the experience. The Mentor: Mentors come to MentorNet via two routes. About half of our 3000 active mentors every year sign up because they heard about us from our official partners, including cor-

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The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

porations (IBM, Intel, Cisco, Texas Instruments, 3M, Agilent, Adobe, Alcoa, Hewlett Packard, the Mathworks, Medtronic, Thomson-Reuters, Land O’Lakes, Lockheed-Martin Space Systems, NVIDIA, Sun, The Walt Disney Studios, Tyco and others), labs (Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Naval Research Laboratory, and Oak Ridge Laboratory) and organizations (e.g. ACM, AWIS, American Geosciences Union, and more than a dozen others.) The other half of our active mentors sign up as “freelancers”: unaffiliated volunteers who heard of us by reputation or because we are returned first in Google searches for e-mentoring. Mentors must have a reference in order to be qualified, and must fulfill the requirement of having several years ‘professional experience and a degree in an affiliated field. Their motivation may be to lend a helping hand to a student, to build a diverse workforce in their profession, to help their company’s recruitment efforts by targeting specific protégé profiles, to improve their own leadership and communication skills, or some combination of these. Many mentors understand that the experience is bound to be both gratifying and personally engaging and that they are likely to gain new skills in communication and leadership or new perspectives on their own careers and profession. If they don’t recognize these collateral benefits beforehand, many do afterwards, as most of our mentors choose to repeat the experience and more than 95% would recommend MentorNet to a colleague. After receiving an email acknowledging their request to sign up, they fill out a profile that mirrors the one the protégés completed about careers, employer, topics they are willing to engage and discuss, and their preferences in a protégé, as well as a personal statement. Most mentors are matched within three weeks by our matching algorithm. Some wait longer. If they get impatient, they can communicate with our staff via our “Program Box” and we will help them tweak their profile—often by adding or improving their personal statement or by

16

loosening their specifications for a desired protégé match, which broadens the pool of protégés who might see their listing. In certain circumstances, we can match a mentor with a protégé by hand. The experience of the mentor then parallels that of the protégé. Mentors receive prompts over the course of eight months, suggestions for resources on our website, invitations to join our community or forum, newsletters, and at the conclusion of the relationship, a survey about their experiences. The Reps are important members of our community who manage the MentorNet relationship and are the points of contact for our program among our 160 partner campuses, companies and organizations. Our reps come from a broad array of professions. They may be a human resources, diversity, or recruitment leader in a company, a dean or student advocate on a campus, or even an individual champion for MentorNet’s mission. We support reps through a separate stream of emails and notifications, and most importantly, through the MentorNet dashboard or “Partner Resource Center,” (PRC) a secure web portal giving the Rep access to a remarkably robust set of data and resources about their program. The Rep can check in at any time on everything from a summary of the number of matches made, a breakdown of the protégés their mentors have been matched with by campus and, if they are a campus, of the mentors their protégés have been matched with by company. The PRC also reports on the discipline, demographics, gender, year or degree, and a list of the emails of the people from their organization who are participating. These reports are fed by real time data and also include aggregate and year-by-year comparisons. Since year over year 90% of our partners renew their annual relationship with MentorNet, these are helpful windows into the success of our partnership. The PRC provides access to an enormous library of resources, from PDFs of brochures, posters and other collateral to help them drive the program on their site, to whitepapers, references, tips for mentors and reps, links to other sites, ac-

The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

cess to email to all reps, and a place where they can request special data reports from our database. Based on the level of their sponsorship, employers also get access to the Resume Database to help them in their recruitment efforts. Open, flexible, lean, ethical, rational, and disciplined describes our organizational culture. As a non-profit we are continually engaged and focused on serving our mission and building alliances with like-minded philanthropic and social organizations. Our staff is quite small and efficient considering the size of our operation. MentorNet supports 150+ institutional partners, 6000 mentors and protégés (3000 pairs) and 21,000 community members with six staff members, a CEO, and a varying number of consultants and volunteers. This is made possible by the robustness of the MentorNet platform, the number of applications, activities, support functions, and reporting that is automated, and the integration of these with our website, accounting and communications to our constituents. Because of the intimacy of the staff and the clear definition of roles, our organization is non-hierarchical, highly collaborative, and quite dynamic. Initiative and customer service are highly prized, since our company succeeds only through adaptation to changes and response to demands by our “customers”—our mentors, protégés, and the institutions that sponsor them. MentorNet’s roots are in academia, and so we have a strong bias for research-informed decisions and a strong legacy for data gathering, data organization, and data analysis. In part this is kept strong by our grants from entities like the National Science Foundation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and philanthropic grantors that favor strong data-based projects and reports. In part, this is driven and sustained by a culture that reflects our constituencies in the sciences and engineering in academia. But the result has been a strong foundation for success and ongoing initiative, rationality, and curiosity. We also have a strong, involved Board of Directors comprising leaders from industry, academia,

and entrepreneurship. They have ultimate executive and fiduciary responsibility for the company. As a non-profit organization, MentorNet rewards their service with no material benefits but with the satisfaction and gratifications of helping to guide and sharing in our mission. We also enjoy a prominent Advisory Board that meets once a year to plan strategy and includes leaders from industry, academia, government, and the public sphere. MentorNet’s team relies on constant email, live web meetings and phone conferences to bind us together (one staff member lives in another state and our consultants are widely dispersed) and stay in touch with our constituents and prospective partners. Everyone in the organization is highly computer adept. Dr. Carol Muller was the visionary founder of MentorNet and acted as its only President and CEO for the first 11 years of its existence. She envisioned and secured resources to build the technology and team and create the organization. She was also its primary champion, spokesperson and public figure associated with the mission and the company. She was assisted by Stephanie Fox, a brilliant engineer who created executed the technology. Dr. Muller stepped down in 2008 and was succeeded by Dr. David Porush who brought with him to MentorNet successful careers as an author and award-winning teacher, scholar, academic leader, and in the private sector as a Web 2.0 entrepreneur.

technology Everything except the e-forum – a third-party application - is built using vb.net. Our technology runs on MS SQL server 2005 with Windows 2003 server / IIS6 / .Net framework 2.0 as a frontend. We are in the process of moving our entire technology platform, Intranet, and Web services to “the cloud”: to virtualize it which will free us from hardware replacement costs and liabilities

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The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

and also enable us more easily to involve talent from multiple sites to grow and improve our platform. MentorNet’s operational back end is integrated with and powers the user-facing tools on the website. This back end includes: • • •

•

•

•

• •

•

•

18

Fundraising and financial reporting and tracking database Authentication and securities management system A sophisticated, dynamic and robust homegrown customer relations management and event application that tracks all customer events and contacts with staff, links individuals to companies, prompts staff on actions for follow up, reports on customer recruitment, financial, and cohort (mentor or protégé) activities A financial application that automatically takes “pledges,” bills and books revenue and feeds the web with live partnership representations and permissions for access A administrative dashboard that tracks and reports live data on mentor and protégé activity and demographics, accessible by the partner’s program manager (“rep”) A transparent SQL database that enables live queries of data about demographics, activities, matches, community membership based on identifiers, etc. A stored list of hundreds of SQL data queries A live email delivery system enabling us to deliver messages in text and HTML to the entire community or very specific subsets of the community A survey system that enables the team to develop, administer, gather, and analyze data from formal surveys timed during each relationship and also on-the-fly queries that are helpful for quick insights and marketing Testimonials database

• • •

• •

Problem participant tracking and resolution platform Newsletter mailing management A reference and bibliography database on e-mentoring and career success studies in STEM fields Press release archives Board resource center

In the past year we have enabled remote access to our VPN, development and test servers, and other electronic resources in preparation for a huge re-engineering and web redesign initiative that will enable us to deploy talent in a global collaboration. We communicate internally on the same email system that delivers our program of prompts and thus have great potential transparency and means for communicating with our community or segments of it.

CUrrent ChaLLenges We are very small and the margins of our revenues over expenses are also very slim. This makes taking on expanded missions and improvements a matter of applying very strict judgment and is often slower than we would like. Our other major weakness—opportunity costs—flow from this constraint. For instance, our website needs significant improvement and our plan for expansion is also slower than we would like. As a non-profit, extremely vulnerable to and dependent on the economic environment that affects our high tech sponsors, higher education budgets, and philanthropy in general. The dot-com bubble recession in 2001 severely impacted MentorNet’s bottom line and the current economic crisis (2008-2009) is also adversely affecting our revenues, though we took measures early to reduce our expenses and so have weathered what we hope has been the worst of the economic storms. MentorNet’s ambitions are to increase the number and diversity of protégés we serve, led

The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

by suggestions and expressions of interest in the market, special projects supported by foundation support for research and development, evolution in technology and sciences themselves and fueled by our success. For instance, in 2008 an NSF two-year grant is supporting our efforts to grow e-mentoring in geosciences. From our original focus on women, we have added other forms of diversity. We have reached out more vigorously to community colleges and to corporations interested in helping the talents found on those campuses, especially for technical workforce development. Over the years we have expanded the number of disciplines we support (65) to include biosciences and entertainment media, and we have refined the prompts to reflect differences in protégé populations, with distinct “flavors” of our core program for graduate students, junior faculty, 3rd and 4th year students, 1st-2nd year students, and community college students. We also seek to expand the number of our partners and the expertise in marketing and outreach that will build awareness of our programs and its successes. Our strategic roadmap includes technology development and website redesign and re-engineering to deploy more Web 2.0 tools, enabling the growth of our community and enabling personalization, and exposing more of the business logic and tools undergirding our platform for use by our partners. Finally, we have several dramatic new initiatives on our roadmap in 1-4 years that we will test and validate among our community before rolling out to a wider audience.

LessOns LearneD MentorNet is entirely technology-dependent and so our platform is the total record of our technological improvements and ongoing innovations. Our algorithms, content delivery, matching program, and entire platform have been continuously developed and improved incrementally in-house and we have patents pending and copyrights on all intellectual property. In some senses, MentorNet

was a Web 2.0 initiative before the term was even coined—a Web-based marketplace of self-expression and transactions that bind together a special interest community and that fosters relationships and affinities. We continue to work to add tools and services that will promote the mission, and have rolled out groups or positions with other platforms—Facebook, LinkedIn, SecondLife— which represent channels to broaden our audiences and further serve the ones we have. Our organizational strengths include the following: Esprit de corps: The importance of the mission keeps the dedication of our team strong. We see the results of our efforts in very tangible and immediate ways via direct contact with our community and from the successes of the protégés and gratification and growth of the mentors, too. That keeps our motivation high. Community: Further, we are supported by a growing community of mentors, protégés and partners who have directly benefited from our program and thus help us expand our reach. This community includes like-minded sister organizations and individual champions and volunteers for our mission. It is also global in reach. Our corporate sponsors are generally multinationals, and so our mentors come from over 100 countries of origin and represent the entire spectrum of diversity. Technology: Obviously, the creativity, uniqueness, scalability, and strength of our technology, designed specifically to serve this mission, is a material foundation for our success. Brand and market penetration: Those who know our brand recognize its excellence and integrity. We have first mover advantage in serving (penetrating) the higher education market. Our 110+ partner campuses include most of the Ivy League schools, MIT, Stanford, Cal Tech, Carnegie Mellon, Stony Brook, University of Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, and many other of the best public and private institutions of higher education, as well as corporations that lead technology and innovation.

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The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

Business model: We have a strong business model. We sit between two markets that desire the connection with each other’s talents that we provide, so campuses and corporations support us with fees, which in turn enable us to provide our service to end-users - mentors and protégés—for free. We also have a diversified revenue base, including corporations, campuses, organizations and foundations. Success of the program: Satisfaction in the program by both mentors and protégés is greater than 75% year over year. Most protégés express interest in applying for a position in their mentors’ company. All our data show that mentoring significantly helps our protégés stay on track to their professional careers in engineering and science. According to an early small-sample study, three years after participating in the MentorNet program, 91% of protégés are still pursuing or have successfully entered their chosen STEM field. Our “relationship engine,” the combination of matching and guiding the relationships we create and support, makes us unique. MentorNet’s program matches mentors with protégés in a highly personalized and nuanced fashion, developed over a decade of feedback and research into what makes a mentoring relationship successful. At the same time, as an e-mentoring program, this personalization has global reach and scalability. Further, our program doesn’t just create the match, it sustains the relationship with thoughtful, measured, just-right balances between guidance and individual interpretation and activation, and between matchmaking and self-determination. We are also unique in that as a non-profit we are mounting a competitive, Web-based product and service to annual fee-paying customers in the corporate and higher education sectors.

COnCLUsiOn In ancient and traditional cultures, mentoring was a formalized, powerful and even ritualized

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means to bring talent forward and guide it, with roles and responsibilities designed for the benefit of the individuals and the larger tribe, village or society. In our culture, finding a mentor is often haphazard and circumstantial. Formal corporate programs to activate mentor-mentee relationships are often cumbersome and inhibited by concerns about consequences or repercussions for individual careers. Nonetheless, mentoring is a unique, and in our culture an increasingly misunderstood and under-activated relationship. Becoming a mentor is not the same as being a teacher or parent or role model or friend or protector or spiritual advisor or boss, but partakes of aspects of all of these. It is both formal and informal, intimate and professional. MentorNet understands these subtleties and powers in the mentor-protégé relationship and has successfully translated it to a new medium and new globalized culture arising on the Internet. In the special flexibility afforded by email, MentorNet recognizes and seizes on new advantages and ways to evolve the traditional and formal modes of mentoring. So one of the most important aspects of the one-on-one relationship we support is our recognition of the extent to which the medium is the message and the extent to which we have balanced that with the goal of enabling the richness of older, more traditional forms of mentoring to blossom. As a result, everything from the kinds of relevant information on which matches are made, through the timing and composition of the prompts, down to the technology and the data it tracks (and doesn’t track) is aimed at sustaining this balance. Finally, our vision, like our service, is potentially global and paradigm-changing. Our technology is a means to an important end: making and sustaining relationships across barriers of identity, race, class, age gender, ethnicity, and nationality for the benefit of talent development. The tool we’ve invented can be applied to a broader array of social problems and we look forward to having the resources to do so.

The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

aPPenDiX: PrOfiLes Of PrOtégés Karri Haen graduated from Kansas State University with bachelor’s degrees in microbiology and biochemistry and recently began graduate school at North Dakota State University in Fargo. She’s pursuing a master’s degree in genetics through the Department of Plant Sciences there, a decision she made with the help of her mentor, Vidya Pai, a research engineer in the central research and development group at DuPont in Wilmington, Delaware. Vidya signed on with DuPont three years ago after finishing her Ph.D. in chemical engineering at the University of Virginia.”Vidya’s been very helpful in guiding my choices about graduate education. It’s nice to talk with someone’s who gone through the whole process, who knows the tricks of getting into the right place. I already knew where I wanted to study, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go for a master’s degree or a Ph.D.,” Karri says. “I’ve worked in plant genetics for more than three years as a research assistant, and I like it but don’t know if I want to do it for the rest of my life. Vidya advised me to give myself some time to decide whether that’s the area I want a Ph.D. in and helped me decide that a master’s program is best for now.” Karri signed up with MentorNet to increase her understanding of scientific jobs in industry. “In my experience, the more academic-oriented research labs don’t point students towards industry because they’re geared more towards pure science than applied science. So I didn’t have a lot of exposure to industry during my undergraduate years,” she says. “Being paired with a MentorNet mentor as a senior was my chance to become more aware of the scientific issues in industry today without any bias from people in academia. “For example, I’m interested in companies doing genetic engineering, and people have discouraged me from pursuing that career, saying the job stability isn’t there, saying it’s at the same stage as dotcom startups in terms of constant change,” Karri continues. “Vidya doesn’t work in the biotech industry per se, but her job involves biochemical processes, and she’s up to speed on related issues. It was nice to discuss that with her and see that she was wary but optimistic.” Vidya also gave her a broader sense of the day-to-day life of a working scientist, she says. “Another of my concerns about finding a job in industry is that I want to work in an area in which I have a personal interest. As an undergraduate, I spent 40 hours a week in the lab on top of classes-I practically lived there-and I know that if I don’t believe in what I’m doing it will be awful,” Karri says. “Vidya has reassured me about the prospect of finding work I love. She’s showed me how she’s been able to shape her research projects to jibe with her interests, and how after a few years of researching one thing, she was able to change to something else that captured her imagination.” For Vidya, a MentorNet “veteran” of three years who was matched with two protégés last year, mentoring is a natural and gratifying experience. “When I was a graduate student, I hadn’t worked in the U.S. before, and although I tried to connect with people in industry, I found it very hard to make contacts other than alumni from my university. When I did connect with someone, it was hard to keep in touch, and it usually was hit or miss,” she says. “I’m a mentor now because I want to provide that contact for students, and I like the formal program that MentorNet provides. I also wanted to stay in touch with student life in some way to keep my interest in academics alive-I’ve always thought I might like to teach, and this is a way to commit at the moment to the academic world.” When it came to opening a window into industry for Karri, Vidya relied on her own experience. “Ours was a pretty personal relationship, and I learned that even though Karri was often caught up in her lab,

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The E-Mentoring Network for Diversity in Science and Engineering

she also had a good set of friends. She knows my life is like that, too-work hard when you need to, and then have fun,” Vidya says. “Karri didn’t come to me so much for help in solving problems as she did for my input regarding graduate programs, and for checking out her impressions of industry. She’d say, ‘This is what I think industry is like. Is that true?’ and I shared my own experiences, which sometimes corroborated her impressions or refuted them. Even though Karri is more focused on pure science and I’m focused on engineering, I hoped that sharing my experiences might give her a balanced sense of what it’s like to work in industry.” The connection Vidya provided was not only to industry but, importantly, to another female scientist, Karri says. “As a woman scientist, I sometimes feel very alone. I had support from a professor in the biology department at KSU, and if I hadn’t had her to talk to over the last few years, I’d be so dejected right now. It was important to have her as a model and to hear her say about some insensitive professors, ‘They’re just not used to having women in the program. Hang in there,’” Karri says, striking a note familiar to many female science and engineering students. “The main thing about this year with Vidya as my mentor is that I don’t feel so alone. It’s hard to express this, but when I started out in science, I felt that most of the world was ignorant about the world of hard science, but Vidya understands what I’m talking about. She feels like a colleague,” Karri says. “I no longer feel like an outcast, like I’m strange. I can strive to go ahead, and go for more.”

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Chapter 3

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Technology Based at the University of Illinois at Chicago Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program Sarah Shirk University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Veronica Arreola University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Carly Wobig University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Karima Russell University of Illinois at Chicago, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY The Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Technology (GEM-SET) program has been linking volunteer women mentors in the fields of science, engineering and technology to student members from across the U.S. since 2001. More than 1,300 girls ages 13-18 and 200 mentors in graduate school and beyond have participated via on-line mentoring and face-to-face programming where available. The basic benefits to the student participants are a free subscription to the on-line GEM-SET Digest that provides access to scholarships and internships information, invitation to field trips, career panel discussions, and conferences, direct access to successful mentors in non-traditional careers, and tutoring in select schools. GEM-SET is one branch of pre-college mentoring provided by the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch003

Copyright © 2010, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

BaCkgrOUnD History of Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program The Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) is one unit of the Center for Research on Women and Gender, a cross-disciplinary research center established in September 1991 with support from the Illinois Board of Higher Education. UIC faculty researchers and staff advance the center’s mission to promote collaborative, multidisciplinary research related to women and gender, with an emphasis on work, health and culture. The center sponsors or co-sponsors research across a range of disciplines, hosts academic conferences on women’s issues, and develops programs for students and faculty focused on women in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). WISE has a more focused mission than the umbrella research center. Its mission is to increase the number of women students pursuing degrees and graduating in STEM disciplines. It also promotes the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women with academic careers in STEM at UIC and at educational institutions nationwide. The WISE mission mandates that outreach targets the entire student pipeline from k-12 education to post-graduate studies. WISE research staff monitors enrollment and retention data for undergraduate students in the UIC College of Engineering and several departments in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences including biological sciences, chemistry, earth/ environmental sciences, mathematics, computer science, and physics. Tables 1, 2, and 3 below indicate the number and percentage of women in these fields based on data for Fall 2006 provided by the UIC Office of Data Resources and Institutional Analysis. These data show that women are the majority of students in biology, chemistry, earth/environmental science, but continue to be a minority in nontraditional majors for women such as engineer-

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Table 1. UIC Women Undergraduates, College of Engineering, Fall 2006 # of women enrolled

% women enrolled

Bioengineering

68

38

Chemical Engineering

28

24

Civil and Materials Engineering

38

16

Computer Science

22

12

Electrical and Computer Engineering

51

11

Mechanical and Industrial Engineering

36

9

All Engineering Departments

243

15

Department

Table 2. UIC Women Undergraduates, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) STEM Departments, Fall 2006 # of women enrolled

% women enrolled

Biological Sciences

932

60

Chemistry

189

59

Earth & Environmental Sciences

29

54

Mathematics

91

43

Physics

10

18

1212

58

Department

All LAS STEM Departments

Table 3. UIC Women Undergraduates, ALL STEM Departments, Fall 2006 ENGINEERING + LAS DEPARTMENT TOTALS

n=1455

40% women

ing, mathematics, or physics. Approximately 55% of the UIC student body is female, but they comprise only 40% of undergraduate STEM students (DRIA, 2006). At UIC women are 60% of the undergraduate majors in biological sciences and 15% in engineering. These trends are evident at the national level as well as at UIC. Data tabulated by the National Science Foundation for 2006 show

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

that women made up 50.5% of STEM students with the highest concentration in biological sciences (59.8%) and the lowest in engineering (19.5%) (NSF, 2008, Table 11 Women as a percentage of all bachelor’s recipients, by major field group: 1966-2006.). The WISE goal is to continue support programs in order to match or exceed the national norms of 50.5% of UIC women undergraduates selecting STEM majors. The Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Technology (GEM-SET) program is a WISE program designed to increase enrollment rates for women in STEM majors. GEM-SET began in 2001 as part of the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) effort to better prepare the U.S. workforce to fill high skill careers in science, engineering, and technology. With initial funding from the DOL Women’s Bureau, WISE belonged to a team developed by the Region V Women’s Bureau office to launch the pilot program in the Midwest region. After pilot testing in the Midwest region consisting of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, the team ramped up the staffing to expand the outreach effort to all 50 states and later to U.S. students living abroad. Financial constraints and a more focused mission of the WISE management staff have resulted in the GEM-SET program returning to a regional focus for recruitment efforts. After DOL funding ended in 2004, WISE redesigned the GEM-SET outreach efforts to align with the demographics of UIC where approximately 90% of future UIC students reside in Metropolitan Chicago and 71% are based in Cook County (DRIA 2008, New Freshman at UIC Executive Summary, p. i). Although students and mentors from all over the nation are able to continue membership in GEM-SET, since 2004 the vast majority of new GEM-SET members have been from Illinois where UIC marketing efforts are strongest. This regional focus helps GEM-SET thrive with a visible presence in the Chicago Public Schools, the source of approximately 25% of UIC’s first year students (DRIA 2008, Table 10).

Case DesCriPtiOn student services available from Wise E-mentoring is one of many student services available through WISE initiatives. In addition to the GEM-SET focus on pre-college students, WISE supports women undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty in STEM by sponsoring activities that foster a positive educational and professional environment and enable excellence in scholarship, teaching, and service. WISE includes in its mandate the fields of biology, chemistry, earth and environmental science, math, physics, engineering, and technology. Students benefit from participation in all WISE services by expanding networking skills, learning how to effectively mentor and be mentored, and having experiences that increase their commitment to a career in STEM. The WISE initiatives include pre-college outreach for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. This case study focuses on GEM-SET, a program designed to connect young girls in middle school and high school with “near-peer” mentors in undergraduate STEM majors, graduate students pursuing STEM Master and doctoral degrees, as well as professional women with established STEM careers. A “near-peer” mentor is defined as a student one or two years older than the mentee. The advantage of such mentors is that they “offer unique opportunities for sharing, are easier for participants to approach than adult mentors, and typically develop relationships that are longer lasting than those established with adults” (Burgstahler, 2006, p. 5). The near-peer mentors and mentors who are STEM professionals interact with the target mentees via an electronic group mentoring model combined with weekly onsite club meetings that bring mentors face-to-face with target groups in their school settings. This combination of high-tech communication tools available 24/7 with a structured one-on-one meeting for more

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Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

intensive contact time meets the communication styles of most of the participants, with students who are tech-savvy taking advantage of the online community and students who are tech-averse relying on the in-person events. Anecdotally, some students have indicated that they prefer the online convenience, while others prefer the more intensive onsite contact to establish a stronger mentoring relationship. Students who expect to see their mentors each week in the after-school enrichment program have been less likely to utilize the on-line mentoring features than members who do not see mentors regularly due to distance. The majority of GEM-SET on-line questions are sent from students outside of Illinois. GEM-SET clubs within the Illinois schools also have a leadership development component that permits club members to campaign for positions of club president, vice-president, treasurer, and membership chairperson. These club members can utilize the web to campaign for office, disseminate ideas about club activities once elected, and post photos of club activities. This harnessing of the power of the Internet for campaigning is an important civic engagement, especially in national election years when students can view how state and federal campaigns utilize the Internet on a macro level while the GEM-SET club members are learning to utilize it on a micro level. The following discussion describes five other WISE programs that involve aspects of mentoring. WISE Neighbors Outreach Initiative: This mini-grant program provides support to non-profit community groups to strengthen their initiatives for mentoring girls and women for STEM careers. WISE collaborates with the grantees to provide activities on and off the UIC campus. These activities include field trips to local museums, hands-on research activities, and other STEM experiences to educate and prepare young women for a successful STEM career. Once the grants are made, the GEM-SET Digest is utilized to promote

26

participation to GEM-SET club members when appropriate. WISE Wing Living/Learning Community: Each year space in one of the UIC residence halls is dedicated to creating a supportive living and learning community for WISE students. This space increases the opportunities for WISE students to socialize with each other and fosters the positive experiences helpful for meeting the academic and social challenges that accompany study in nontraditional majors. Guest speakers participate in WISE Wing events, enabling students to meet and learn from women who are successfully engaged in STEM careers. This community is a nurturing ground for GEM-SET mentors and tutors. WISE Chic(ago): All UIC undergraduate students are invited to join this student run organization that is dedicated to supporting the needs of STEM women students. It is organized around student-driven initiatives that offer leadership and skill development for the undergraduate members. Once again, this is a capacity building program that nurtures potential mentors and tutors for GEM-SET. WISE Undergraduate Mentoring Program: First-year STEM students seeking mentorship are matched with an upper class UIC WISE student in this mentoring model designed for undergraduate students at UIC. Through these matches, new students learn from experienced near-peer mentors about navigating the bureaucracy at a large state university, selecting classes to ensure graduation within four years, and managing the ups and downs of student life. WISE establishes a cascading mentoring system, meaning that at anytime a student can decide if they want to be a mentor or if they need a mentor. There is an old saying that, “when it is time to learn, a teacher will appear.” This saying holds true for mentoring as well. When a student is most open to being mentored, the programs are in place at WISE so that entry into a mentoring relationship is easily established.

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

WISE Women in Nanotechnology (WIN): WISE WIN is an outreach program targeting community college students and Chicago Public School teachers and students. This program utilizes online mentoring and electronic networking via Facebook, Chicago area field trips, and hands-on science demonstrations to encourage a better understanding of career opportunities in nanotechnology. A common purpose of these WISE program initiatives is to assure equitable access to educational opportunities. Male students are welcome to attend events and participate fully as “WISE guys” in career mentoring services alongside their WISE female peers. WISE program implementation staff utilizes evolving technologies for online social networks to support the sharing of information in a timely, cost effective manner. Although this case study concerns GEM-SET and the 13 to 18 year old target group, much of this online social networking model is being applied to programs involving all ages in the WISE community. Modifications have been made annually based on evolving technologies and feedback from all constituents. Some of the lessons learned from student participants, mentors, and program managers are shared in this case study and have features that are relevant for programs with different populations.

gem-set application Process GEM-SET considers a non-traditional career for women as a field in which women represent less than 25% of the workforce (COD, 2008). The program relies on a three-pronged recruitment process to identify students who have potential to succeed in non-traditional STEM careers. The first prong is outreach to partner organizations that show a commitment to expanding the opportunities for young women to pursue STEM careers. A paid or volunteer liaison completes an online partner application, describing the ways

that the organization will encourage participation in GEM-SET. Frequently the liaison is a woman from one of the targeted non-traditional careers who has first-hand knowledge of the complex issues involved in selecting a course of study that will eventually lead to a STEM career. The majority of GEM-SET partner organizations are grassroots, community based non-profits with paid or volunteer staff serving as the GEM-SET liaison. Executive directors of non-profit organization partners, troop leaders, camp directors, and program coordinators all have served as effective partner liaisons. Appendix A shows the GEMSET partner organizations, listed alphabetically by state. Between 2001 and 2008 one-hundred forty-nine partner organizations joined GEMSET. Almost 20% (n=29) of those organizations are based in Illinois. A complete listing of current GEM-SET partners is available at http://www. uicwise.org/outreach/partners.html. Among the responsibilities of partner organizations, each agrees to a one-year commitment to provide weekly e-mail access for the student members if they do not have Internet access at home. Partners also are expected to provide a safe space and time for weekly participation in the GEM-SET on-line mentoring. Participation logs for students indicate that there is a wide range of engagement, ranging from zero to hundreds of student/mentor interactions per year. The liaison plays a key role in recruiting GEM-SET club members and answering questions for students new to the technology. In addition, the partner organization collects completed student registration forms, communicates regularly with program management staff, and reviews GEM-SET’s weekly email communications. Since 2001, over 200 volunteer GEM-SET mentors have been recruited from corporations, educational institutions, government institutions, and non-profit organizations. The principal recruitment criterion is that the mentor is a woman in a non-traditional career track who has completed an

27

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

undergraduate degree and has advanced significantly in her profession. In addition, the mentor must be willing to allocate at least fifteen minutes per week to read, process, and respond to the GEM-SET Digest, the main on-line communication tool. Appendix B shows the professional affiliations of GEM-SET mentors. A complete listing of current and past mentor biographies is available at http://www.uicwise.org/outreach/ all-mentors/index.php. After the mentor submits an application, she provides a brief biography describing her career achievements and challenges with an optional photograph to be posted on the GEM-SET public web site. Once accepted, mentors are asked to check the online Digest each week and respond to questions and comments that match their field of expertise. Mentors are also invited to GEM-SET events and encouraged to promote internships, scholarships, and job opportunities in their fields. GEM-SET utilizes a group mentoring system so that student participants are exposed to all the mentors and can explore the career tracks that most interest them. One advantage of group mentoring is that often mentors will offer different solutions to the students’ questions offering them multiple viewpoints on a single issue. One example of this was a question from a student concerning the value of starting the college experience in a community college versus starting in a 4-year degree program. A mentor who had an excellent community college experience that saved her significant funds prior to transferring successfully into a 4-year baccalaureate program, highly recommended that path while other mentors, who started and finished in the same 4-year institution advised that as the preferred route to obtaining a degree. The lesson conveyed in that Digest was that no one path is right for everyone. Group mentoring is the ideal setting to show that each problem or inquiry has many solutions or responses. Depending on the availability and interest of mentors, their time commitment ranges from one

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hour to four hours per month. Mentors who select online participation only, contribute about 15 minutes per week. Mentors who desire to participate in face-to-face career mentoring panels, math tutoring, and field trips contribute significantly more time. The third component of the application process is the outreach to the students. All students ages 13 to 18 at the partner organizations are eligible to become club members, but outreach efforts target female teens who show talent and interest in non-traditional career fields. Many of the GEMSET partner institutions have exclusively female participants such as the Girl Scouts, Girls Incorporated, and all-female schools. However, GEMSET recruiters make it clear to co-educational institutions that boys may also participate.

Gender Equity for GEM-SET Based on Title IX Regulations This decision to be inclusive stems from both legal requirements and practical goals. Legally WISE must comply with Title IX of the education amendments that required gender equity for boys and girls in every educational program that receives federal funding. Title IX has had its most visible impact in the sports arena, but athletics is one of several arenas addressed by the law including access to higher education, career education, education for pregnant and parenting students, employment, learning environment, math and science, sexual harassment, standardized testing and technology. There is an expectation that policymakers will step up enforcement of Title IX with regard to STEM disciplines (SWE, 2006), and WISE follows all Title IX requirements as well as advocates for other entities to do the same. GEM-SET applications are reviewed on a rolling admission basis throughout the school year, with the majority of GEM-SET club members joining during fall recruitment drives. Students apply using an online application available at

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

www.uicwise.org or a paper application attached to the program’s information brochure. The parent or guardian must also sign the application of students under eighteen years of age who plan to participate in field trips. After an application is received, the student is sent an electronic welcome message and reminder about reading the GEM-SET communications each week and posting pertinent messages and questions to keep the online social network active. Students are asked to refrain from asking mentors for help with specific homework assignments. In onsite mentoring sessions, Internet etiquette is discussed and a tutorial using the NetSmartz.org curriculum is available to all GEM-SET partners who request it. This tutorial highlights the risks of posting personal information on public web sites, blogs, and virtual communities such as MySpace or FaceBook. GEM-SET mentors are also given privacy guidelines for ensuring the safety of the GEM-SET virtual community. Mentor phone numbers and personal e-mail accounts are kept private unless the mentor chooses to share that information for a special circumstance. The program is designed so that all student mentor interaction is first sent through the Digest editor for review. GEM-SET is committed to protecting student privacy in both the service and research components of the program. All research activities of the program are reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of UIC. Steps to assure student privacy are detailed in the IRB protocol and include keeping all identifiers such as last name, phone numbers, mailing addresses in secure storage; access is available only to approved UIC research staff. IRB protocols demand a clear explanation of the risks and benefits of participating in the research as well as a mandate that all research aspects of the program are optional. Thus, all students participate in the research voluntarily; there are no penalties if they choose not to participate or to withdraw from the research at any time. Currently a research study is underway to examine the impact of GEM-SET on club

members’ high school graduation rates, college admission rates, major selections, participation rates in advanced placement math and science courses, and performance in math a and science courses. Results will be tabulated for a cohort that participated in GEM-SET since 2005 and will be graduating high school in 2009.

Wise management strUCtUre, size, anD strategiC PLan The WISE management team is made up of a WISE Director, a WISEST Director, and a Pre-College Outreach Director. The staff size for these three main branches of the WISE management structure depends on the level of funding from federal grants, state resources, and private foundations. Base staff consists of three full-time directors and 6 part-time graduate students; operations support staff is provided by the Center for Research on Women and Gender. All WISE branches focus on a strategic plan to increase the presence and influence of women in STEM careers. The strategic plan for GEM-SET follows a five-year plan that targets an annual growth of 10% for both funding and participation. Current funding for GEM-SET is received in approximately equal amounts from federal, state, and private foundation sources. WISE grant writers compete strategically for funds in order to increase staffing for the GEM-SET program. The online component of mentoring is not impacted greatly by increasing participation because of its inherent economy of scale. However, the operational budget for face-to-face mentoring increases with an increasing numbers of participants and therefore is contingent on enlarging the amount of grant support.

Organizational Culture The organizational culture at WISE reflects the larger culture of UIC. As a major research uni-

29

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

versity on the west side of Chicago, UIC’s urban setting and international population provides many cross-cultural opportunities for students, faculty, and staff. UIC is the largest university in the Chicago area with 25,000 students, 15 colleges, and annual research expenditures exceeding $332 million. With one of the nation’s most diverse university student bodies, the UIC undergraduate student is approximately 40% White, 24% Asian, 20% Hispanic, 11% African American, 4% Unknown, and 1% Foreign Nationals (DRIA, 2008), thus creating a community of students from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. WISE has established its place in this large and diverse institution with programs such as GEM-SET that builds a sense of community. The GEM-SET volunteer mentors also embody this diversity of racial and ethnic backgrounds. Table 4 shows the race/ethnicity of mentors and female students in the GEM-SET program. Data on race/ethnicity of participants and mentors is relevant because one of the outcomes of the mentoring program is to assist participants in learning how to communicate with GEM-SET community members from different backgrounds, different ages, and different regions. More research needs to be conducted to determine the differences between online mentoring communications and face-to-face communications between mentor and student, particularly in regard to cultural and other biases. The WISE organizational culture fosters diverse viewpoints within its educational setting. This valuing of diversity has permitted the growth of online mentoring for students that brings together people from communities that rarely interact in the non-virtual world. For example, combining middle school and high school students within one mentoring program allows for near-peer mentoring opportunities. A student in eighth grade may read an announcement about a twelfth grade student winning a scholarship, a peer-mentoring

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Table 4. Race/Ethnicity of GEM-SET Mentors and Students Race/Ethnicity

Mentor %

Student %

White/Caucasian, (non-Hispanic)

60%

38%

African American/ Black

9%

18%

Hispanic/Latina

4%

9%

Asian/Pacific Islander

7%

20%

American Indian/Alaskan Native

2%

2%

Unknown/Not Specified

16%

7%

Bi-racial/Multi-racial/Other

2%

6%

Table 5. GEM-SET Student Grades and Ages, 2008 Membership Records Grade

# of students

Age

# of students

6th

6

11

5

7th

51

12

15

8th

62

13

75

9th

138

14

113

10th

200

15

191

11th

188

16

217

12th

150

17

135

18

44

Totals

795

795

opportunity that may plant the seed for that the younger student to submit a scholarship application in the future. Table 5 shows the diversity in grades and ages of the GEM-SET student population. GEM-SET interest peaks in grades 10 and 11 for students 15-16 years of age, then begins to taper off as students enter senior year and prepare for the transition to college. GEM-SET’s Technological ToolsA listserv, webpage, and online survey tools are the primary Internet based technologies used for the GEMSET program. Each component is described in detail below.

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

Listserv Listserv software is provided free of charge to all UIC staff through the university computer center. The listserv allows WISE staff to create email lists, add and delete contact information for members, and send emails to selected lists. The listserv maintained for the GEM-SET Program is currently moderated by two staff members who each hold the password to make updates and send messages. No posting is made without a moderator’s approval. Through the listserv service, a contact email address is provided to the GEM-SET Program that allows staff to send announcements to a private email list tied to this account. The announcement email is known as the “GEM-SET Digest”. A weekly digest listing is sent using the listserv service to reach the students and mentors enrolled in the GEM-SET Program. The digest contains information on programs, scholarships, internships, contests, services, and tutoring schedules targeted to high schools in the Chicago Public School system. The source of this information is originally received through direct email to the Pre-College Outreach Director from either a mentor or student member. A WISE graduate assistant serves as digest editor and finalizes the announcements, compiles this information into an email, and approves the final version of the digest before it is sent out to the entire community.

Online Survey An online survey service offered through http:// freeonlinesurveys.com is utilized by staff members to create the membership applications, surveys, and reservations for current events. The coordinator opens an account to access this service. For example, the staff can create a new survey, obtain a web link for members to participate in the survey, and then the staff can log into the account and access the final survey results in a downloadable spreadsheet format. New students and mentors are

added as “members” to the GEM-SET Program through requests from the online survey or through an email request to [email protected].

Microsoft Excel Software All personal information related to the GEM-SET Program such as a student’s full name, home address, phone number, name of school, and email address, are kept in an Excel file and secured at the WISE office computer with back-up files maintained on secure university servers. Only WISE research staff members have access to these data. The mentors’ information such as name of company, work phone number, mailing address, and email address, are kept in a separate Excel file and are also protected by the same privacy and secure system back-up policies.

Webpage The staff members’ contact information, mentors’ biographies, current events, and announcements pertaining to the GEM-SET Program are posted on the Pre-College Outreach webpage located at www.uicwise.org. Staff members monitor and update this webpage using Joomla open source software. The moderator or staff member logs onto the Joomla account created for the PreCollege Outreach Program to upload pictures, post announcements, mentors’ biographies, and other materials. A copy of the digest that is sent out weekly through the listserv is also available for public viewing on the web site. Many technological advances have occurred in online mentoring during the course of the first seven years of GEM-SET. The proliferation of virtual communities such as Facebook has changed the way students interact online. WISE e-mentoring programs that mentor adult students now utilize Facebook to increase participation beyond the listserv format. These changes have created significant increases in adult student participation in the Women in Nanotechnology

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Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

(WIN) program. However, because GEM-SET targets minors, project management has decided to retain the listserv software and web page as the main technology tools. Nevertheless, it is clear that social networks have tremendous potential for online mentoring. Observations by WISE staff suggest that e-mail technology using a listserv is not the most effective method for reaching the current generation of college students; many prefer text and instant messaging when communicating with friends. Some students prefer social networking such as Facebook and MySpace, instant messaging, and text messaging over e-mail (Olsen, 2007). When GEM-SET minors become adults, they will have the opportunity to participate in the Facebook e-mentoring provided by the WIN program. They also will be offered web safety mentoring as they shift from a moderated to nonmoderated community. Currently the GEM-SET editor removes inappropriate postings or private information that should not be revealed such as a last name or phone number of a minor. In the moderated platform the interaction between students and mentors is channeled through a WISE staff member who makes a judgment on each posting. In FaceBook and other virtual communities, the third party moderator is removed. The partner organizations and liaisons are instrumental in finding the students most likely to benefit from participation in GEM-SET. Project management staff members identify and recruit professionals who have the time, skill, and patience to mentor students with varying levels of ability, some struggling and others at the top of their class. Early in the GEM-SET program, this was the first e-mentoring experience for many of the students and mentors. In fact, some of the students received their first e-mail address when they joined GEMSET. In the current environment, most students already have e-mail addresses and most mentors have had other online mentoring opportunities before they join GEM-SET. This creates a shorter learning curve as all the key players have a sense

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of the capabilities of the online learning environment based on prior experiences.

strengths and Weaknesses of Online mentoring The power of online mentoring has been shown to have far-reaching impact. Computer-mediated communication can be used to sustain both peer to peer and mentor to protégé relationships while alleviating barriers to traditional communications due to time and schedule limitations, physical distances, and disabilities of participants (Burgstahler 1999, p.2). However the question remains, does GEM-SET online mentoring have the power to influence career decisions made by its club members two, five, or ten years into the future? Furthermore, because GEM-SET online mentoring is tied to face-to-face tutoring and mentoring, more research is needed to understand how the various interventions can be used to optimize the outcomes. A causal relationship between e-mentoring and students’ educational and career futures has not been established because it is nearly impossible to identify and isolate the factors that are most important in career decisions. The literature indicates that parents continue to have the strongest influence for young women who choose non-traditional careers (Ciccocioppo, 2002) and parents influence their daughters’ beliefs about women’s position in the world (Hanson, 2000). More longitudinal research is needed to access the impact of GEM-SET on gender equity in non-traditional career tracks.

Broader issues to be addressed Career counseling and career theory provide insight into how and why people choose their careers. The traditional theories often prove problematic for women when counseling for advancement in non-traditional careers (Cook, Heppner & O’Brien, 2002). For example, traditional career

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

development theories suggest that work is the primary role for developing identity, the paid work role can be isolated from other major life roles such as family roles, and career development is progressive and linear (Crozier, 1999). GEMSET management is using e-mentoring to learn about and explore newer career models that are more flexible and that “address the concern that women’s career development is often non-linear, both complemented and frustrated by multiplerole fulfillment, and shaped by the structure of opportunity” (AWE, 2005, p.1). This broader issue of a non-linear career selection process needs to be addressed more directly in GEMSET e-mentoring, drawing on the experiences of mentors who relate the complexity of their career paths. The online format provides an opportunity to learn about alternative career paths and to debunk myths. E-mentoring has the potential to provide information so that participants do not pursue unfulfilling or rigid career paths that offer no time for reflection or redirection.

CUrrent ChaLLenges E-mentoring assists in advancing less rigid career development models by enabling more students to be reached by more mentors, whose mentoring helps to reduce barriers to accessing nontraditional careers. When GEM-SET was launched in 2001, discussion on the digital divide was focused on access barriers and how to overcome them (Young, 2001). Management struggled with many questions. How could GEM-SET reach its target audience despite the clear lack of access in communities that had not bridged the digital divide? How could GEM-SET engage girls with technology without contributing to unhealthy sedentary lifestyles that connected every spare moment to sitting in front of a screen? Others questioned whether the Internet could actually create a sense of community (White 2002). GEM-SET management understood that it was embarking on

an innovative initiative when it decided to build a community using the e-mentoring format. With the benefit of several DOL partners in ten regions, GEM-SET created a national presence involving a spectrum of participants from girls in the inner city dreaming of conducting agricultural research to girls in the Midwest dreaming of being oceanographers. GEM-SET combined human capital with technology—a human moderator and countless volunteer mentors worked 8 to 10 hours per week not only to ensure that the digest was robust with new questions and responses but also to secure the privacy and safety of the girls’ online participation. As GEM-SET continues to evolve with young people’s embrace of online technologies and a focus on Illinois students, it competes for screen time with other engaging communications formats. GEM-SET is not designed to be a full-fledged social network like FaceBook (www.facebook. com) or MySpace (www.myspace.com) or New Moon Girls (www.newmoon.com), but with additional funding for new staff the social networking capabilities can be broadened while maintaining the goal of safety for the minors. However, GEM-SET must always consider the countless forms of digital distractions trying to attract the same target audience of 13-18 year old students. Future media options currently in the incubator stage will no doubt have unpredictable impacts on the GEM-SET strategies.

LessOns LearneD The real challenge in moving GEM-SET forward involves achieving a balance between safe Internet use and the speed and immediacy that today’s users demand. Teenagers today send and receive an average of 31 text messages per day (Samsung Telecommunications America Survey, 2008). Long past are the days when a weekly or even daily GEM-SET digest could attract and sustain the attention of teenage Internet users.

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Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

Time and money are fundamental for any replication of the GEM-SET model. Despite the time-saving effects of the Internet and email, staff time is necessary to create an effective network and structure. Available platforms such as Ning (www.ning.com) can be used to create instant social networks, yet staff time is necessary to train participants for optimal use of these platforms. If the target audience includes minors, additional training is necessary on web safety and awareness of the dangers on online predators. Balancing the advantages and disadvantages of an open versus a closed network is a challenge because the variables are not always clear at the beginning and change over time. GEM-SET staff members continuously monitor the quality and quantity of e-mentoring interactions. Another programmatic challenge is volume. Questions concerning quality versus quantity are at the forefront of every decision. Does expanding the e-mentoring community exponentially impact the quality of the interactions? E-mentoring groups can range from the size of a small seminar to thousands of participants. Should the network be open to anyone who fits the profile or should there be a rigorous application process? Will the network be advertised through schools, community organizations, or through ads in local papers? Should GEM-SET only target the top 10% of a school’s math scholars, the students most likely to continue in STEM majors, or should it continue on its path of wider inclusion in its programs? These questions are both philosophical and ethical as scarce resources for enrichment programs are offered to a limited number of students. Attrition is an ongoing challenge for GEM-SET as students graduate, mentors retire, and partner liaisons leave positions. The loss of continuity from year to year makes the GEM-SET mentoring a time-limited opportunity, an aspect of the program that can be a bane for tracking long-term goals.

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The face-to-face mentoring has approximately an 80% retention rate from year-to-year so follow-up on over 20% of the target population is lost. The risks of starting a mentoring relationship and then having it severed because either the mentor or the student leaves is a real concern for achieving the program goals. GEM-SET staff works hard at maintaining therapeutic terminations (Rhodes, 2002, p.101) so that neither the mentor nor the student is devastated by a change in personnel in the group-mentoring model. One loss that proved especially difficult in one of the GEM-SET clubs was a student member who died of a brain tumor. Mentors were then called upon to provide grief counseling to remaining students who were impacted by the loss of the club member. The lesson learned was simply that mentors must be extremely sensitive and have life experience as well as professional experience in order to handle unexpected situations. GEM-SET seeks to maintain ongoing dialogue with partner liaisons, but information overload continues to be a challenge. Finding a way for GEM-SET to access teachers and community leaders given the glut of electronic messages that they receive continues to limit the effectiveness of e-mentoring tools. When a student or liaison receives an avalanche of e-messages every day, how does GEM-SET assure that its messages are read rather then deleted unread or sent to the spam junk mail box? The answers to these questions require further research. One of the most important features of GEM-SET is its ability to use hightech tools while at the same time generating and sustaining the time-tested benefits of trust and familiarity that have always been the cornerstone of successful mentoring. GEM-SET must retain its significance in both the virtual and real word in order to make the goal of gender equitable career choices more possible for its target audience—our workforce of tomorrow.

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referenCes Assessing Women in Engineering (AWE) Project. (2005). Career development AWE research overviews. Burgstahler, S. (2006). Creating an e-mentoring community. Seattle, WA: University of Washington. Burgstahler, S., & Cronheim, D. (1999). Opening doors through mentoring: One program’s experiences using the Internet. Journal of Information Technology and Disabilities, 6, 1–2. Ciccocioppo, A. L., Stewin, L. L., Madill, H. M., Montgomerie, T. C., Tovell, D. R., Armour, M. A., & Fitzimmons, G. W. (2002). Transitional patterns of adolescent females in non-traditional career paths. Canadian Journal of Counselling, 36(1), 25–37. College of DuPage Career and Workforce Development Office (COD). (2008). Take the career road less traveled: Explore careers for men and women. Glen Ellyn, IL: College of DuPage. Cook, E. P., Heppner, M. J., & O’Brian, M. (2002). Career development of women of color and white women: Assumptions, conceptualizations, and interventions from an ecological perspective. The Career Development Quarterly, 20, 291–305. Crozier, S. (1999). Women’s career development in a “relational context.” . International Journal for the Advancement of Counseling, 21, 231–247. doi:10.1023/A:1005489823722 DRIA. (2008). Student report. Retrieved November 15, 2008, from http://www.dria.uic.edu/ students/pdfs/NFRptWebOutline.pdf Guy, T. (2002). Eric Clearinghouse on adult, career, and vocational education. Columbus, OH: Center on Education and Training for Employment.

Guy, T. (2003). Telementoring: Shaping mentoring relationships for the 21st Century. In C. S. Hansman, V. Mott, & A. D. Ellinger (Eds.), Critical perspectives in mentoring: Trends and issues. Hanson, S. L. (2000). Gender, families, and science: Influence on early science training and career choices. Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering, 6(2), 169–187. National Science Foundation, Division of Science Resources Statistics. (2008). Science and engineering degrees: 1966-2006 (Detailed Statistical Tables NSF 08-321). Arlington, VA. Retrieved from http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/nsf08321/ Olsen, S. (2007, July 18). Kids say e-mail is, like, soooo dead. News.com. Retrieved November 4, 2008, from http://news.com.com/Kids+say +e-mail+is%2C+like%2C+soooo+dead/ 2009-1032_3-6197242.html?tag=item Pieronek, C. F. (2005). Title IX and gender equity in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education: No longer an overlooked application of the law. The Journal of College and University Law, 31(2), 291–350. Ray, B. J. (2007). Reaching the masses: Enewsletters and Facebook in advising. In The mentor. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University. Rhodes, J. (2002). Stand by me: The risks and rewards of mentoring today’s youth. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Samsung Telecommunications America. (2008). Text messaging improves parent-teen relationship. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/ google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=200 80416005240&newsLang=en

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Single, P. B., & Muller, C. B. (1999). Electronic mentoring: Issues to advance research and practice. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Mentoring Association, Atlanta GA. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 439 683) Society of Women Engineers. (2006). SWE general position statement on the application of Title IX to the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Retrieved November 11, 2008, from http://www.swe.org/stellent/ groups/website/@public/documents/webdoc/ swe_004383.pdf

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White, N., & Wade, V. (2002). Case history: Creating connections online-the CGIAR gender & diversity online event spring 2001. Retrieved November 11, 2008, from http://www.fullcirc. com/community/cgiarg&dcasestudy.htm Young, J. (2001). Does ‘digital divide’ rhetoric do more harm than good? The Chronicle of Higher Education, A51.

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aPPenDiX a: gem-set Partner OrganizatiOns 2001-2008* Table 6. STATE

PARTNER ORGANIZATION

Alaska

Youth Opportunity Program

Arizona

Metro Tech High School

Arkansas

Arkansas Post Girls Scout Council, Inc. Little Rock Job Corps Center

California

Chabot Space & Science Center Creating Entrepreneur Opportunities Eastlake High School Korean American Scientists and Engineers Association Korean Youth Community Center National Council of Negro Women, Inc. (NCNW) San Diego Section New Economics for Women San Diego Science Alliance Be Wise Sunny Hills High School University of California, San Diego OASIS Women in Non-Traditional Employment Roles

Colorado

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. (Denver Alumnae Chapter) Girl Scouts Mile Hi Council Girl Scouts Mountain Prairie Council Technically Speaking, LLC

Connecticut

Connecticut Girls & Technology Networks Connecticut Valley Girl Scout Council John Winthrop School McGee Middle School Roosevelt School

District of Columbia

Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital

Florida

Florida Commission on the Status of Women Korean American Scientists and Engineers Association (KSEA)

Georgia

Christian Council of Metro Atlanta YWCA of Greater Atlanta

Hawaii

Maui Economic Development Board, Inc.

Illinois

American Association of University Women (AAUW)- IL Gender Equity Fund Asian Social Network ASPIRA-Mirta Ramirez Computer Science Charter School Centers of Higher Development-Lake Grove Village Chinese American Service League (CASL) Chinese Mutual Aid (CMA) El Valor Farragut Career Academy

37

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

STATE

PARTNER ORGANIZATION Gannon Center for Women and Leadership, Loyola University Chicago Girl Scouts of Centrillio Council Girl Scouts of Chicago Girl Scouts of DuPage County Girl Scouts Fox Valley Council Illinois Office of Educational Services Korean American Scientists and Engineers Association (KSEA) LakeView High School Maria High School Midtown Educational Foundation Mujeres Latinas En Accion Neighborhood Technology Resource Center Perspectives Charter School Project Exploration Shoretech Computer Center Simeon Career Academy South East Asia Center Umoja Corporation Vietnamese Association of Illinois YWCA Lake County Young Women’s Leadership Charter School

Indiana

Girl Scouts of Hoosier Capital Council Women in Hi Tech

Kansas

Chanute Christian Academy Galesburg Elementary School Kansas State University Women in Engineering and Science Program

Kentucky

Bourbon County Middle School University of Kentucky Woodford Co. Middle School Young Women in Science

Louisiana

U Go Girl

Maine

Penobscot Job Corps

Maryland

Girl Scouts of Central Maryland

Massachusetts

Barnstable High School Girl Scouts of Spar and Spindle Council Mary McLeod Bethune Institute Patriots’ Trail Girl Scout Council Worcester Polytechnic Institute Camp REACH

Michigan

Girl Scouts of Michigan Trails Michigan Women’s Commission

Minnesota

38

Lakes Country Service Cooperative

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

STATE

PARTNER ORGANIZATION Northwest Technical College Bemidji

Missouri

American Association of University Women-Raytown Branch Central High School Girl Scouts Cotton Boll Area Council Girl Scouts Troop 1043 Mt. Vernon Baptist Church Youth Department Paseo Academy of Fine & Performing Arts Saint Teresa’s Academy Summit Technology Academy UMKC High School Science, Mathematics and Technology Institute

Montana

Girl Scouts Treasure Trails Council

New Hampshire

Girl Scouts of Swift Water Council New Hampshire Commission on Status of Women

New Jersey

High Point Regional High School Women in Learning and Leadership Program

New Mexico

American Indian Science & Engineering Society Boys & Girls Clubs of Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Old Town Unit Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute

New York

Bronx Collaborative High School for Technology and Humanities Bronx Leadership Academy II Circulo de la Hispanidad Economic Opportunity Commission of Nassau County Girls Incorporated of the Greater Capital Region Job Corps Lower East Side Preparatory High School Million Woman Community Development of Long Island YWCA, NYC Center for Girls Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center

Ohio

Girl Scouts of Erie Shores

Pennsylvania

Girl Scouts of Southwestern PA New Choices/New Options North Hills School District Pennsylvania College of Technology Schenley High School YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh

Rhode Island

Girl Scouts of Rhode Island

Tennessee

Tennessee Economic Council on Women Women in Technology Tennessee

Texas

Communities in Schools Dallas Region, Inc. David L. Carrasco job Corps Center Episcopal School of Dallas

39

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

STATE

PARTNER ORGANIZATION Girls Incorporated of Metropolitan Dallas Girls Incorporated of Tarrant County Jeffries Street Learning Center Korean American Scientists and Engineers Association (KSEA) North Texas Chapter Social & Cultural Research Development Institute Southern Methodist University Institute for Engineering Education Vietnamese Culture & Science Association

Vermont

Vermont Institutes, Northern New England Trades Women Vermont Institute for Science, Math and Technology

Washington

Ballard High School Bothell High School Camas High School Chief Leschi School Cleveland High School Federal Way School District Franklin High School Inspiring Girls Now In Technology Evolution (IGNITE) Inglemoor High School Ingraham High School Puyallup High School Roosevelt High School Sealth High School Sea Tac Occupational Skills Center Seattle Public Schools, Department of School to Work Thomas Jefferson High School West Seattle High School Woodenville High School

Wisconsin

Girl Scouts, Great Blue Heron Council

Wyoming

Girl Scout Council of Wyoming

aPPenDiX B: gem-set mentOr PrOfessiOnaL affiLiatiOns 2001-2008* Table 7. Corporate Affiliations Agilent Technologies

AQUA Technologies, Inc.

Ball of Gold Corporation

BitWise Solutions, Inc.

Blue Sky Design, Inc.

The Boeing Company

Booz Allen Hamilton

C&E Trumble

Cabot Global Engineering

Chapin & Huang, LLC

Cisco Systems

CAN Life

Colorado Springs Technology Incubator

Concrete Quality Consulting Inc.

CP Hall Company

Cruz Computer Learning Center

Cummins, Inc.

Curtis H. Stout, Inc.

D2 Consulting, LLC

Dede & Associates, LLC

Deloitte & Touche

Denham Blythe Company

E. I. Dupont de Nemour & Co.

Eastman Kodak Co.

40

Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

Eli Lilly & Co

Full Circle Associates

General Atomes

Harpeth Network Solutions, Inc.

Helicon, Inc.

Hewlett-Packard Co.

IBM

Internet Business Applications Group

IQ Inc.

ISIS Pharmaceuticals

ISM Services, Inc.

Jennings and Associates Communications Inc.

Lawson Software

Lexmark International Inc.

Lifescan, Johnson & Johnson

Little House Animal Hospital

Lockheed Martin Astronautics

LocoNotion Inc.

Lucent Technologies

Marconi Communications

Mason & Hanger Group, Inc.

Medical Device Auditing & Consulting

Merck & Co., Inc.

Metso Minerals Inc.

Microsoft Corporation

Midwest Research Institute

Mofaux Graphix

NetCom Solutions International

New Bold Enterprises

Northrop Grumman Corporation

Ocean and Coastal Consultants, Inc.

Orion Design Technologies

Paradym Technologies, Inc.

Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc.

Partners Through Change, Inc.

PCL Construction Services, Inc.

Petro Data Source, Inc.

Plymouth Rock Assurance Corp.

Quest Diagnostics, Inc.

Raytheon Systems Company

Research and Development Institute

Scanlon Consulting Services

Science Applications International Corp.

Seagate Technology

Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services

SNC Lavalin Constructors, Inc.

Social & Cultural RDI

Southern Import Research Center

Stemcell Technologies

Telecommunications World Com

Texas Instruments, Inc.

Titan Technology Partners

UMM Electronics, Inc.

United Space Alliance

Viewlocity, Inc.

WebMD

Westinghouse Electric Co.

Wheelabrator Westchester

Wyman-Gordon, Co.

Table 8. Educational Institution Affiliations Brown University

Buffalo State College

College of New Jersey

Harvard University

Houston Independent School District

Indiana University School of Nursing

Indiana University/Purdue University, Indianapolis

Kansas State University

Letcher High School

Magoggin County High School

Manalapan-Englishtown Regional Schools

Math and Science Tutorial Program, UCSD

Oasis Thurgood Marshall College, UCSD

PISCES Project/SDSU Foundation

Pritzker School of Medicine at the University of Chicago

Saint Frances University

San Diego State University

Seattle Public Schools

Shawnee Mission South High School

University of California, Berkeley

University of California, San Diego

University of California, San Francisco

University of Chicago

University of Houston

University of Illinois at Chicago

University of Kentucky

University of Southern Indiana

University of Southern Maine

University of Texas-M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Vanderbilt University

Weill Cornell Medical College

Western Michigan University

Table 9. Government Agency Affiliations Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department

City of Houston

Department of Defense, Department of Navy

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Fermi National Accelerator Lab

Kansas Department of Transportation

Los Alamos National Laboratory

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

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Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science

Oneonta Job Corps Academy

Port Authority of Allegheny County

Sandia National Laboratories

U.S. Department of Agriculture

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

U.S. Department of Labor

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

West Virginia Division of Highways

Table 10. Non-Profit Organization Affiliations Creating Entrepreneur Opportunities

Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Douglass Project for Women in Math and Science

Hook’s Discovery & Learning Center

Leatherwoods Home for Children

Mammoth Site of Hot Springs South Dakota, Inc.

Mercy Family Health Association

National Society of Black Engineers

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, UCSD

Texas Children’s Hospital

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Chapter 4

Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap Caroline Kim Oh iMentor, USA Theresa Stroisch iMentor, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY This chapter introduces the history and evolution of iMentor, a NYC-based youth mentoring organization that pioneered the use of guided e-mail communication to enhance the in-person youth mentoring model, and continues to leverage its model and lessons learned to help other groups improve or start up their own mentoring programs. It illustrates how the organization has effectively used technology to add flexibility and structure in its NYC Mentoring Program, engaging a new “class” of program participants: “busy” professionals as mentors and mentees from some of the most economically and geographically isolated communities. It also describes how the organization transformed itself to meet a national demand for its programming by developing and licensing its own mentoring technology platform, iMentor Interactive. The author hopes that by reviewing the experience of iMentor, more mentoring and youth organizations at- large would embrace a thoughtful infusion of technology to positively impact the lives of people they serve. The author, however, strongly believes that the sector must be diligent about adhering to many of the best practices of a good, in-person mentoring program, including screening and monitoring of program participants, providing structure and ongoing assistance.

BaCkgrOUnD In 1999, John Griffin, a hedge fund manager in New York City (NYC), was looking at the impact of technology and how access to information was bringing tremendous wealth and opportunities. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch004

He was also thinking about the growing segment of population that was being left out because they didn’t have access to technology. Around the same time, he had been providing scholarships to students in the South Bronx, a community he could literally see as he looked outside of his offices in Midtown Manhattan, and he began to think how close, yet far away the two neighborhoods were. Not wanting

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Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

to be just a donor, he was informally mentoring the students he was sponsoring for scholarships, and he was finding himself not able to visit as often as he wanted. To compensate for in-person interactions, he began to email his mentees from his blackberry to check in. Griffin is over six feet tall, impeccably dressed in dress shirts and suits. Students looked and talked differently from him, but he found that over email they were less intimidated. He also noticed that it was easier to talk online about things that were awkward to discuss in person. They could carry on a conversation in a thoughtful, ongoing manner, over time, as in discussions on college and career plans. He began to see that email communication, if carefully structured and monitored, could become a powerful youth development tool. Griffin recruited and funded two public interest lawyers, Richard Buery and Matt Klein, to create a pilot program to test his theory about the potential of online mentoring. iMentor first began operation with 49 students at a single school in the South Bronx. Over the last nine years, iMentor has grown to serve more than 1,000 new students annually and has matched and supported over 6,000 mentor-mentee pairs (12,000 participants), partnering with more than thirty schools and after-school programs located in some of the most underserved communities of New York City. In 2004, ongoing program evaluations of iMentor’s NYC program proved that its mentoring model had the same positive impact on program participants as traditional mentoring models, with additional impact on students with regards to academic and career success. With a waiting list of mentors and schools interested in joining the program, iMentor was ready to grow to scale in New York City. At the same time, iMentor was receiving frequent requests from organizations around the country looking to add iMentor’s innovative mentoring model to their programming. iMentor had no effective way of responding to these requests for technical assistance and began

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to investigate how it could best serve the national mentoring field. To address the national need for technical resources specific to mentoring and to support its NYC growth, iMentor rebuilt the web-based tools that were originally created for the local program, including the front-end communication tools used by mentor-mentee pairs to structure their relationships and the extensive tools for the staff to effectively manage the program on the back-end. The result was an online platform that is informed by all of the expertise iMentor developed over its first five years, incorporates the best-of web-innovations, and allows any organization to have its own independent, safe and secure mentoring network, providing all the tools and resources needed to run a mentoring program, instantly. iMentor Interactive was launched as a national initiative in September 2007.

Case DesCriPtiOn Founded in 1999, iMentor developed a new kind of mentoring model, combining mentoring best practices and technology to add flexibility and structure to mentoring relationships. This model allows iMentor to engage a new class of mentors and bring mentoring to the young people who need mentoring the most: those living in isolated, socioeconomically underserved communities. iMentor runs two signature programs: a direct-service one-to-one mentoring program in New York City (iMentor NYC) and a national technical assistance program, iMentor Interactive (iMi.) iMentor’s two programs empower each other, providing mutual benefits: 1) iMentor NYC is the laboratory of best practices, as iMentor continues to innovate 2) iMi facilitates the expansion of quality mentoring programs nationally. iMentor continues to deepen its program offerings, develop new curricula and create new support structures in NYC. The best of these practices and resources (after being proven effective in post program

Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

evaluations) are built into the iMi platform and become available for member organizations. Together, two programs are beginning to close the mentoring gap. Description of NYC Mentoring Program— iMentor connects New York City high-school students one-to-one with a caring adult mentor while providing comprehensive support for the cultivation of strong mentoring relationships. Mentor-mentee pairs build their relationship through a combination of weekly email communication that take advantage of iMentor writing prompts and monthly in-person meetings that are events iMentor plans staffs, and funds. The iMentor model incorporates all of the same best practices of traditional mentoring programs, including: • •

• •

One-to-one, same gender matches Comprehensive screening and training for volunteers (the majority of partner sites enroll between 50-100 students) Regular, weekly communication between mentors and mentees Staff members responsible for overseeing relationship development for all

•

•

mentor-mentee pairs; iMentor Program Coordinators are directly responsible for 100 mentor-mentee pairs Matches lasting a minimum of one schoolyear in length; 70% of all matches are multi-year relationships (2-4 years) All pairs have the option of enrolling as Alumni Pairs after graduating from the program

One of the key differences between the iMentor model and traditional mentoring program is: iMentor enrolls mentees who may not self-select for mentoring. iMentor believes the youth who need mentoring the most may be the least likely to opt into formal mentoring programs. iMentor creates partnerships with schools or after school programs to enroll a cohort of students in the program1 and to ensure mentees have the tools necessary for program participation. Working with a cohort of students allows mentees to share their experiences, creating an environment where they feel more comfortable embracing a mentor and tapping into the vast array of opportunities provided through the iMentor program.

Figure 1.

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Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

Another important distinction is iMentor’s curriculum offerings, designed to support mentormentee pairs as they develop their relationship over email. The curriculum facilitates email communication by providing weekly writing/ discussion prompts for both mentors and mentees. These prompts elevate email correspondence from a convenient mode of communication to a valuable tool for the development of mentor-mentee relationships and a meaningful vehicle for youth development. iMentor has a portfolio of hundreds of prompts, including topics such as: Is Voting Important?; Networking 101; and College Dollars & Sense.

Description of imentor interactive iMentor Interactive (iMi) is a comprehensive mentoring solution that provides any organization (non-profit organizations, schools, etc.) with a comprehensive mentoring solution, including all of the tools, resources and support needed to run a quality mentoring program. Informed by iMentor’s nine years of experience in NYC, iMi provides each organization with their own safe and secure mentoring network that includes all the resources staff need to help mentor-mentee pairs build their relationship and to manage their programs. Launched as a pilot in 2007, iMi will have supported over 7,500 users by end of 2009. iMentor Interactive (iMi) enables member organizations throughout the U.S. to effectively launch and manage high-quality mentoring programs and serve a greater number of volunteers and youth program participants. In addition to extensive support and best practices provided by iMi staff, including assistance with the development of a program modeled after iMentor’s program in NYC as described above, iMi provides each member organization with its own inclusive and secure web-based mentoring network, including a unique website URL and customized log-in page. Organizations use the network to connect their

46

program participants, monitor relationships, and evaluate the effectiveness of the programs. Customizable features, including email writing prompts and pre and post-program evaluations, allow the platform to serve any organization, whether the goal of the mentoring relationship is to increase high school graduation rates, build career skills, or get more students into and through college. For the effective management of quality mentoring programs, iMi provides tools for: • • • • • • • • • • • • •

• •

Online intake applications Volunteer screening management Automated match queries Secure/safe email system Administrative controlled address books Integrated curriculum Automated tracking and monitoring tools Online calendaring Event creation and monitoring Online RSVP and attendance tracking Program management tools Unique case management profiles for all participants Curriculum management (access to iMentor’s curriculum and ability to add new customized curricula) Customizable pre and post-program evaluations with automated (real-time) reporting Training and ongoing consulting by iMentor Interactive staff

imi Onboarding and Pricing To become an iMi member, interested organizations first fill out a simple web-based form. An iMi Partnership Manager then contacts the organization for more detailed information about the organization and consults on how they might best use the tools to engage their potential mentor and mentee pool. Based on the organization’s budget and number of users, iMi prepares a quote which includes a one-time startup fee and the first year’s

Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

per user fee. While most organizations in the pilot year paid for iMi with funds from their mentoring program or general operating budget, iMentor also partners with iMi members to solicit outside funding, including corporate and government funding. iMi is becoming a facilitator for interesting nonprofit, for-profit and public partnerships. For example, at least one public school district has successfully solicited a corporate partnership to provide volunteers and iMi membership fees for their mentoring program in coordination with iMentor. For each member organization iMentor creates a unique URL with the member organization’s own logo and content, and creates iMi accounts for their mentors, mentees and staff members. Each organization is required to provide a staff person who receives iMi training and ongoing support from the iMi staff as well as for technical support and mentoring program advice. iMi members have access to iMentor NYC’s email curricula and have the ability to add their own curricula to fit their mentoring program focus. Evaluation tools are also built into the iMi system for pre and post program surveys of program participants. iMi staff works with each organization to help determine their own goals for the mentoring program, and provides iMentor NYC’s evaluation questions as a sample if requested. While iMi was originally created for the purpose of youth mentoring, a number of members have adopted iMi effectively for mentoring a different segment that also needs mentoring. One example is Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Women Initiative, which provides Goldman Sachs employees as mentors to women entrepreneurs in developing nations world-wide. To encourage innovative uses of iMi and to continue to stretch the possibilities of e-mentoring, iMentor plans on reserving a small percentage of iMi membership slots for non-youth organizations that imagine creative and constructive use for the platform. For-profit organizations such as Goldman Sachs pay higher fees in order

to subsidize low membership fees paid by small nonprofit organizations.

imi Pricing model iMi member organizations pay annual subscription fees for their iMi network. Priced for a nonprofit audience, the pricing structure is designed to be 1) affordable for both smaller and large organizations and 2) provide each individual member organization with a cost-effective way to grow their network to scale. iMi offers: • •

Four different pricing levels (based on the size of each organization’s annual budget) Decreases in the cost-per-pair, as members increase enrollment in their network.

iMi’s pricing matrix ensures that iMi membership fee makes up less than 10% of the perparticipant cost any organization spends on their clients.

imentor Leadership Currently iMentor has a $3,000,000 operating budget. This fast growing organization is led by a dedicated team of for-profit and non-profit leaders. iMentor is governed by the Board of Directors, chaired by John Griffin of Blue Ridge Capital, and receives additional support from its Young Executive Board, and Advisory Boards for both its New York City and iMentor Interactive programs. Reporting directly to the Board are iMentor’s President, Caroline Kim Oh, and CEO, Mike O’Brien. Both executives have a long history of proven success and dedication at iMentor. Caroline served as its first director of programs and second executive director, and Mike worked closely with Caroline in every department of iMentor, and led iMentor’s national expansion. Caroline’s work is now focused on board, leadership and organizational development issues and Mike takes

47

Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

the lead on strategic planning, fundraising and programs. iMentor’s full time staff of 29 (as of February 2009) is led and supported by its senior leadership team, which includes the President, CEO, COO, Managing Director of NYC Programs, Managing Director of iMi and Managing Director of Development. Under each Managing Director is a localized network of middle managers and front line program coordinators who execute programming. Financial and operations staff and consultants report to the COO. iMentor’s management also benefits from iMentor’s culture of mentoring by providing comprehensive training and support to it program coordinators, who are responsible for overseeing development of strong mentor mentee relationships (iMentor NYC) and direct support of member organizations (iMi). Program coordinators undergo an intensive on-boarding process, and receive constant support through bi-weekly meetings with senior staff and weekly informal meetings with all Program Coordinators. Many of iMentor’s current senior staff, including its CEO Mike O’Brien, worked their way up from various entry level positions within the organization. All members of the iMentor team are dedicated to assuring iMentor’s success in executing all aspects of growth over the next five years and go through several days of intensive orientation to fully incorporate into the iMentor team. In 2007, iMentor’s Senior Leadership Team created a five-year growth plan which outlines organization-wide goals and strategies. iMentor’s strategy for closing the national mentoring gap calls for scaling both its NYC and national programs. Over the next five years, iMentor plans to scale its model to support nearly 300,000 mentor-mentee pairs nationwide. This includes making and supporting 10,000 mentor-mentee relationships in NYC and bringing mentoring to 220 organizations and 260,000 mentor-mentee pairs through iMi. At the end of the five-year period, iMentor will have dramatically reduced

48

its reliance on traditional philanthropy through iMi’s fee-for-service model.

Culture As iMentor’s CEO and President began to build out a larger team including its first senior leadership team to prepare for growth, the two had a unique opportunity to think through the qualities that made iMentor a successful organization, and to create a strong culture that promoted them: professionalism; vibrant and energetic office; accountability and obsession with quality. To do this, the Senior Leadership Team now works with the rest of the staff to implement several initiatives around human resources, inter-departmental collaboration/ communications and data and systems. iMentor’s hiring practice is very intense. iMentor recruits through several hiring engines, staff referrals and social networks such as facebook and linkedin. Once resumes are vetted by the department staff where the job opening is, each candidate is interviewed by three different individuals, including the supervisor, departmental head and the CEO or President. All final candidates for coordinator level positions must take a writing test and give a presentation to all staff. This thorough practice makes hiring a time consuming process but pays off in the long run. This is evidenced by iMentor’s long practice of promoting from within. As it was earlier mentioned both iMentor’s CEO, a former teacher, started as iMentor’s program coordinator in the NYC Mentoring Program,and President who was first hired by the organization’s founders as iMentor’s first Program Director worked their way up in the organization. Many other managers and directors have worked in multiple positions and departments through their careers at iMentor. To systematically encourage synergy between iMi and NYC, as well as across all departments and positions, it is important that all of iMentor’s staff know the goal and job description of every position in every department. iMentor has a clear

Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

job description and a detailed annual staff plan for each position, which is reviewed by all staff at its annual retreat. In addition, iMi team members are required to staff a certain number of mentor-mentee events for the NYC Mentoring Program and the NYC Program staff help develop resource materials for the iMi member organizations (i.e. Mentor Training Guide). iMi staff also host a monthly brown bag lunch that presents a case study of an iMi member and how iMi is used. Lastly, iMentor has developed a culture of systematic collection and review of program data to ensure program qualitiy. iMentor Interactive (iMi) allows iMentor staff to evaluate its NYC program data in real-time and address any issues as they occur. For example, program coordinators are checking for quantity and quality of emails of the pairs under their charge on a daily basis, and review the statistics with the entire program staff to address potential problems (i.e. pairs that do not email frequently, or schools with low event attendance) as early as possible. By tracking communication between pairs and regularly conducting evaluation, iMentor staff is able to monitor growth and progress towards goals, giving it the ability to assess the effectiveness of its program at any time. This results in continually improving iMentor’s program. iMi’s affordability, user friendliness and continuous user support from iMi staff will make it easy for iMi member organizations to replicate iMentor’s Real-Time Program Analysis management techniques.

role of technology in mentoring Nonprofit organizations work to accomplish what at times can seem impossible. They are charged with delivering high quality programs that are innovative and create a measurable impact while managing a limited capacity of human and financial resources. In the mentoring space this translates to providing a mentoring experience for mentor and mentee pairs that is meaningful while having the resources to match pairs, track pair

interaction, monitor communication, and report this data to key stakeholders so that additional resources can be garnered to make the program and organization sustainable. Traditionally mentoring relationships have been structured around scheduled in-person meetings between the mentor and mentee. iMentor recognized early on that technology can help to minimize the distance between communities, enrich relationships, and automate much of the resource intensive activities such as matching, tracking, monitoring and reporting. Because mentoring has as a hallmark safe interactions between adults and youth, existing technologies did not lend themselves to meeting the desired outcomes that iMentor sought to achieve. The selected technology needed to be one that would allow for a space where communities could be developed in a safe way. Additionally the technology had to be flexible enough to allow for the integration of program specific guidance throughout the communication. All of this communication had to be tracked in a way that could be easily monitored and tracked. This would allow for program staff to quickly generate reports based on the communication that was taking place, whether it was parsed per site, per person, per pair, or any combination that would reflect the benchmarks of the program. One of the most labor-intensive activities that mentoring programs perform is matching mentors with mentees. When iMentor considered the possibilities around this automated matching seemed like something that would give them a leg up on the process. This automated matching needed to be one that would produce high quality matches so that program staff could spend their valuable time on applying critical thinking to the process. All of the aforementioned features were developed on a proprietary mentoring platform called iMentor Interactive. It is a web-based platform that leverages all of the Web 2.0 technologies, functioning as an ASP (Application Service Provider) offering an on-demand, we-based software

49

Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

solution to member organizations. iMi is designed to work on both Macs and PC’s and all major browsers. For the best user experience we recommend using iMi on Windows XP or higher or Mac OS X or higher. For quality purposes, Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher are our recommended browsers. Since it was launched, the platform has evolved to include more tracking capabilities based on needs of the users, cutting edge web technologies for ease of communication as well as diversity in communication, a resource database that allows organizations to share ideas in a central location, enhanced reporting, and improved usability. Technology is at the core of iMentor’s programs. Email (messaging in a closed network) is a major component of the relationship building process for our mentor-mentee pairs, and critical to our program management and evaluation is iMentor Interactive’s data collection, screening and matching capabilities. iMi provides our staff as well as iMi member organizations with easy to use tools to manage online mentor application, volunteer screening, automated mentor-mentee pair matching, user profiles and case management, automated evaluation and reporting, and also provides an online resource database and an interactive online calendar. Oversight of the internal iMentor network, including network integrity and functionality, is ensured on-site by the Operations staff. iMentor’s internal file network is backed up daily on-site on our servers, and eweekly offoste by our outsourced IT provider, NPower NY. Our information technology is monitored and regularly updated by NPower NY, and hardware updates usually occur on a three to five year life cycle. What are our strengths? Many of iMentor’s strengths come from a well developed and supported staff. In order to have a depth of talent within organization in the time of fast growth, creation of a senior staff management team proved to be key to iMentor’s recent success. Senior managers with diverse experiences, personalities and work

50

styles have enriched iMentor’s strategies and anchored its efforts to build out a strong team in every department. Their leadership makes it possible for iMentor to attract, retain and continue to develop iMentor’s people talent, both in full-time staff and its army of volunteers. • • • • • •

Caroline Kim Oh, President (8.5 years with the organization) Mike O’Brien, CEO (5.5 years) Susanne James, COO (9 months) Kimberley Ednie, Managing Director of Programs (3.5 years) Theresa Stroisch, Managing Director of iMentor Interactive (1 year) Cleo Brooks, Managing Director of Development (1.5 years)

iMentor has a very strong and active board of directors that provide a stable leadership for the organization, focusing on high level, strategic support. Seven founding board members as well as three founders (John Griffin, Matt Klein and Rich Buery) are still active members of the Board, providing continuity in iMentor’s vision and mission through organization changing new initiatives. New members have infused fresh perspectives, new ideas and networks (see http:// www.imentor.org/about/team.php#bod for bios of iMentor’s board members). iMentor’s NYC Mentoring Program provides a real life testing ground for technological and mentoring innovations, and iMi becomes the outlet for national impact. iMi provides earned income and provides a rationale for the best technologies and resources for the organization. Most importantly, iMentor’s biggest strength lies in its program model. It is unique, it is timely, and it works. iMentor’s program model continues to inspire existing and new staff, volunteers and funders. While most mentoring organizations suffer from lack of mentors, iMentor has to carefully plan out its recruitment season each year not to over-recruit. The model clearly speaks to potential mentors

Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

who could not volunteer with young people in a meaningful way outside of this model, and reaches population that most need mentors.

more than 15 MM young people still waiting for mentors. Three factors contribute to this gap. 1.

CUrrent ChaLLenges iMentor’s biggest challenge right now might be continuing to maintain iMentor’s signature quality, while executing its ambitious growth plan. iMentor will have to pay special attention to continue to recruit and retain top talent, and to prevent staff burnout through this growth phase. iMentor’s staff and board are committed, however, to only grow if it can be done without sacrificing program quality or jeopardizing the organization’s long term health. This means iMentor plans on executing the full growth plan if the full $10,000,000 needed can be secured. The current economy will make fundraising such amount even more challenging than anticipated, and the growth plan may need to be adjusted. Another challenge is that iMentor NYC is still affected by the perception by some funders that the program is not substantial or that it is entirely online, an “email pen pal thing.” Lack of in-house PR resources has made it difficult for iMentor to overcome this challenge. Perhaps more important is the challenge facing the youth development field today. Major national studies (such as The National Mentoring Partnership—“Mentoring in America 2005: Snapshot of the Current State of Mentoring”) have shown that mentoring is one of the most comprehensive and effective youth development strategies ever developed, yet more than 15 million underserved young people in the United States have no access to formal mentors. The challenge facing the mentoring community is not how to make mentoring work, but rather how to scale mentoring programs. While 17.6 million youth are considered high need for mentoring, only 2.5 million adults are currently able to volunteer as mentors, creating a national “mentoring gap” of

2.

3.

Type of commitment: The traditional mentoring model that requires mentors to travel to the mentees; home communities rules out potential volunteers whose work and personal obligations prevent them from committing to meet their mentee “every Tuesday at 4pm”. Hard to reach communities: Mentees in “need” often come from the most isolated or underserved communities, the neighborhoods to which potential mentors are least able or willing to travel. Traditional mentoring model, for this reason, can work to keep mentors from the communities that need it the most. Scalability & scope: Vast majority of community-based mentoring programs are small in operations, both in budget (under $500K) and staff size. The localized nature of the programs makes it hard for them to scale to new location or share what works for them with other groups interested in replicating mentoring in their communities. Youth organizations and schools that want to “add” a mentoring component to their menu of services have difficulty running a quality mentoring program, due to a lack of expertise and resources (i.e. how do we enroll, screen and train mentors; how do we match pairs; how do we keep it safe and secure; how do we manage quality control and evaluate our impact?)

iMentor is dedicated to drastically reduce this gap. In New York City, iMentor plans to increase annual enrollment organically over the next five years, reaching 3,000 pairs by year 5 annually (not including alumni pairs), and making iMentor NYC the largest mentoring presence in any single city in the U.S. This concentrated engagement will prove that a new level of scale is possible for

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Bridging the 15 Million Person Mentoring Gap

mentoring in a single city and position iMentor as an advocate in public policy and youth development discussions. Over the next five years, iMi plans on bringing mentoring to more than 220 organizations and make and support 260,000 mentor–mentee matches, reaching an annual enrollment of 113,000 matches by year five. The program will generate $20MM in earned revenue over the next five years, growing membership fees from $136,000 this year to $9MM in year five.

LessOns LearneD We’ve learned that many of the same “rules” as inperson one-to-one relationships apply to the online environment, and sometimes even more vigilance is needed. Web-based programs must cultivate these relationships by carefully screening their volunteers for safety and qualitifications, matching program participants based on compatibility, and providing structure, and ongoing support. Tools for supervision may be different (for example, someone sitting in the room and watching them vs. iMentor staff monitoring email exchange)

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and support may look different (pairs watching a movie together or following curriculum and email prompts for communication), but one-toone relationships rarely work if pairs are merely introduced and left to fend for themselves. E-mentoring may be a more “flexible” commitment, but should not be considered an “easy” commitment. iMentor has had to combat for years “one-liner emails” from mentors who thought iMentor was a “cool, easy way to help a kid,” but was not fully ready to take on all of the challenges of being a young person’s mentor. More screening, training and program coordinator support were put in place to minimize such cases. Organizations hosting mentoring programs, whether e-mail based or in-person, must be well aware of the seriousness and sensitivity of working with young people, and take care to design and recruit for e-mentoring programs. Poorly executed mentoring programs may prove to be harmful to the very young people they aim to help. E-mentoring can be high impact but it has to be carefully structured and supported. Also, organizations must alleviate concerns for potential abuse through thorough screening, training and monitoring, just like in the face-to-face services.

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Chapter 5

Mentoring the Next Generation Kate Schrauth icouldbe.org, USA Elie Losleben icouldbe.org, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY With the high school dropout rate in the United States at epidemic levels and the proportion of guidance counselors decreasing, mentoring programs are an increasingly effective way to reach young people with the college and career guidance they need. icouldbe.org’s online mentoring programs reach young people who do not have access to quality educational resources, using a dynamic virtual learning environment to connect them to mentors who offer practical and individualized advice, information and expertise. The organization’s award-winning program is grounded on an evidence-based curriculum that is student-paced and student-led, placing young people at the center of a community of classroom teachers and adult mentors invested in the their futures. icouldbe.org puts child safety first and monitors mentor-mentee relationships in a controlled and accountable environment. Evidence indicates that icouldbe.org’s e-mentoring program has many of the benefits of face-to-face mentoring—an exciting find as educators turn to mentoring as a classroom intervention.

BaCkgrOUnD Every nine seconds, a high school student in the United States drops out of school. Approximately one-third of high school students in public school will not graduate (Bridgeland, 2006). Add another challenge, like being an ethnic minority, coming from a low-income neighborhood, having a DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch005

disability—even living in a city—and the odds of finishing school are even slimmer (NCES, 2002). To make matters worse, the proportion of guidance counselors throughout the public school system is steadily decreasing, with one guidance counselor often responsible for over 500 students (McDonough, 2005). Students cite a lack of adult concern and involvement in their lives, as well as school seeming irrelevant, as key reasons for dropping out (Lehr, 2004). Even if they do graduate,

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Mentoring the Next Generation

studies show that ethnic minorities and students from low-income families continue to face barriers to college access (Cabrera and La Nasa, 2000). Experts agree that education is the cornerstone of young people’s futures and a crucial step in breaking a cycle of poverty that can impact generations. How do we reach at-risk young people with the support and encouragement they need, not just to stay in school, but to work towards a better future? With the United States high school dropout rate at epidemic proportions, Adam Aberman, an educator with a history of working with atrisk youth in challenging situations, knew that something needed to be done. He saw firsthand the disparities between high- and low-income students’ access to educational opportunities and professional direction and sought to innovate a way to connect young people with committed adults who could provide them with career and college guidance. He wanted to create a scalable solution that would give them the support they need. Aberman recognized that at-risk young people are missing the role models and mentors that would inform and encourage them to make strong decisions about their futures. He believed that young people need experienced adults to help steer them towards their dreams. In low-income neighborhoods where one or both parents often work long hours and may have no college experience themselves, an outside adult can be crucial in raising young people’s expectations of themselves, setting life goals, and helping them to learn and practice the skills to achieve them. Connecting young people to mentors, Aberman realized, was the ideal solution. According to the National Dropout Prevention Center, mentoring programs are consistently correlated with improved school achievement, increased graduation rates, self-esteem and school attendance, a decrease in discipline referrals and early pregnancy rates, and even associated with an increase in the rate that young people secure entry-level jobs and perform community service. One study finds

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that students from low-income communities that show poor achievement and low self-expectations can potentially benefit the most from mentoring programs (Myers and Schrim, 1999). Traditionally, mentoring programs have connected students and adults in environments where they meet regularly at a specific place and time. But putting school children and adult professionals in face-to-face relationships is both logistically challenging and a child protection risk. Although success stories across the United States are plentiful, traditional mentoring programs demand high levels of outside supervision and intense program administration. There is also the challenge of sourcing available and motivated mentors from the local area. For these reasons, bringing existing programs to scale is expensive and demands a large on-the-ground program staff. Traditionally, the benefits of mentoring carry a heavy administrative and personnel cost that often slow its growth as a scalable educational intervention. Aberman was already serving as the Brooklyn Field Representative for the New York City Board of Education and had worked as a bilingual teacher in Los Angeles and a volunteer in Boston’s inner-city charter schools. He knew that traditional mentoring programs are logistically challenging and expensive to implement. He was convinced that mentoring programs could keep young people focused on their goals, but knew there must be a better way to implement them. By 2000, the Internet was already revolutionizing social interactions and learning spaces. Aberman wanted to bring that reach to the rapidly growing field of mentoring. What if the Internet could become the platform where students and their mentors connected? That way, young people could get the most out of potential mentors and pick someone that suited their unique goals and needs—not just someone who was available to meet them after school in their neighborhood once a week. Mentees and mentors could even live on opposite sides of the country—it wouldn’t matter. Even better, an online program could be

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effectively managed and brought to scale with strong leadership and a good team. The organization’s goals were far-reaching yet focused. icouldbe.org’s online mentoring programs would provide the college and career direction young people needed to make strong decisions about their future. Adult professionals would volunteer online to mentor young people in public schools under the guidance of their classroom teachers. The program would help to combat the loss of career and educational guidance programs in American public schools, especially in neighborhoods where young people were already at-risk for violent behavior, low academic achievement and truancy—the same factors that contribute to a young person not finishing school. In 2000, Aberman and a Board committed to education founded icouldbe.org, eager to apply the principles of traditional mentoring to an online environment. Early pilot projects showed promise, and by 2005 the organization was ready to scale up to national programs. A new Executive Director, Kate Schrauth, was brought in to institute substantial changes. Through its early projects, icouldbe.org had learned that online relationships need context to succeed, so she developed a curriculum together with the newly-hired Director of Education, a position she had created to guide icouldbe.org’s program development. In addition to assisting in quality management and assurance, the new curriculum also aided in evaluation of program efficiency and effectiveness. They learned that online mentoring tends to remove not just geographical barriers, but individual biases and the effects of age differences between mentors and mentees. Developing a curriculum that was driven by the young person made a substantial difference to empowering their students. In the early years, icouldbe.org learned that a student-led curriculum gave young people autonomy and power in their mentor-mentee relationships. The online mentoring program that the organization’s new leadership developed was student-paced and student-led. icouldbe.org’s pro-

grams put the young people in-need at the center of a community of classroom teachers and adult mentors invested in their futures. Not only could students pick their mentors, but they could also select the curriculum track they would follow throughout the school year, focusing on areas of their own interests. Almost ten years since its beginnings, icouldbe. org continues its mission to mitigate the American dropout crisis through its online mentoring programs, scaling up to reach young people in school districts across the country. The program platform places child safety first, monitoring relationships in a controlled and accountable environment. Every interaction between mentor and mentee takes place within the icouldbe.org environment, allowing for careful filtering of potentially inappropriate information and tight program management. By mentoring the next generation through the Internet, icouldbe.org leads young people out of their immediate context and encourages them to imagine a larger world of possibilities. Then, their mentors—people from hundreds of different careers from all over the country—encourage them to take steps towards the careers and futures they had only imagined.

Case DesCriPtiOn Mentoring programs have been so successful at raising the bar for college attendance and career achievement that many states in America have made them mandatory components of their more experimental takes on secondary education. At career-themed academy high schools in California, one-year mentoring programs are part of the curriculum. Michigan’s state government runs a public program that supports more than 200 local mentoring organizations, with Governor’s Service Awards that recognize outstanding service each year. In 2007, mentoring took center stage on the national agenda as a powerful way to support young people struggling in school, at home and

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in life. Mentoring programs across public school districts, supported by Boards of Education, are on the rise, yet few are tapping into the potential of online mentoring as a cost-effective and viable way to reach large populations of young people with quality mentoring programs. Can the Internet mediate a mentor-mentee relationship with similar outcomes to traditional mentoring? One of the issues icoulbe.org sees at face-toface mentoring programs is that they require a high number of program staff, something that isn’t necessary for online mentoring. In each location a face-to-face mentoring program is implemented, the program needs people present to recruit and train mentors, match them to mentees, and to monitor and follow-up on how mentoring relationships are doing. While worthwhile, face-to-face mentoring programs are complicated, costly and can only reach a limited capacity. icouldbe.org circumvents many of these challenges. Online volunteers don’t have to travel far distances to neighborhoods outside their comfort zone. They can mentor from their home or office at any time. Online, icouldbe.org connects young people to mentors that match their career and academic interests, no matter where they live. In underserved or rural areas, icouldbe.org’s program is at a definite advantage. Social science researchers at Drexel University in Philadelphia have been monitoring icouldbe. org’s mentoring programs for over two years, evaluating their efficacy and effectiveness according to a carefully developed set of criteria. Drexel researchers used pre- and post-survey data from students, weighing responses using previously validated, multi-item scales of key outcomes including general self-efficacy and satisfaction, frequency of interaction and students’ relationship with their online mentors. Transcripts of mentor-mentee communications, including curriculum posts and email interactions, are coded and analyzed. Qualitative analysis focuses on measuring changes in students’ locus of control in making decisions that affect their current and

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future academic and personal lives. The findings show that students in icouldbe.org’s mentoring program demonstrate a statistically significant increase in decision-making abilities and selfperception of their abilities to cope in school and life. As the locus of control shifts from external to internal control, students find new confidence in themselves and in using learned techniques and tools to reach academic, career and personal goals. Skills gained from learning to advocate for themselves, plan for high school success and graduation, and explore and plan for college and careers become an internal and ongoing learning process for icouldbe.org students. This evidence indicates that icouldbe.org’s e-mentoring programs have many of the benefits of face-to-face mentoring—an exciting find as educators turn to mentoring as a classroom intervention. What the Drexel researchers are beginning to confirm is that, like face-to-face mentors, online mentors share personal experiences, offer professional and career advice, and support their students. As in traditional mentoring relationships, the benefits a young person gains depend on the strength and consistency of the mentor-mentee relationship: the more that students engage with their online mentors, the better their ability to cope with and succeed in school and life. More than two-thirds of students surveyed by Drexel University said their participation in the icouldbe. org program helped them during the academic year and that they would participate again in the future. So, what is online mentoring all about?

mentors and mentees on icouldbe.org icouldbe.org’s award-winning program is grounded on an evidence-based curriculum that connects young people to mentors from hundreds of professional fields, helping mentees to set career and educational goals. Whether you’re a classroom teacher using the icouldbe.org curriculum, a student mentee or an adult mentor, all

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of icouldbe.org’s programs are accessed through a unique online platform that requires a username and password to enter. One of the unique features protecting the icouldbe.org community is that mentors and mentees never meet face-to-face—all mentoring exchanges are limited to the icouldbe. org platform. All communications are filtered and monitored to ensure the safety of both mentee and mentor. This ensures a protected environment where students can connect with their mentors, focus on their dreams and set life goals. In addition, mentoring is asynchronous—mentors and mentees do not need to be online at the same time, allowing for a diverse pool of mentors to volunteer when it suits their schedules. Recognized as a leader in the field of online child safety, in 2008 icouldbe.org was invited to present to the Internet Safety and Technology Task Force at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School. icouldbe. org recognizes the importance of creating an environment where there is both absolute privacy and absolute accountability. icouldbe.org screens potential mentors, filtering content, and monitoring and regulating all users. The organization also monitors young people’s relationships on the site to protect against potential cyber-bullying. Learning how to interact and present themselves online in a protected community has a ripple effect on other sites the mentees visit. icouldbe.org reaches young people who do not have access to quality educational resources, using a dynamic virtual learning environment to connect them to people who offer practical and individualized advice, information and expertise. Young people select the mentors who interest them most and then choose the focus they would like their mentoring experience to have, including career exploration, college preparedness and financial literacy. Mentors participate in the year-long, customized learning experience of their mentees, aiding them in the completion of important documents, in collaborative exercises and in site-wide competitions. Online mentors

give direction and motivation to students who are otherwise disempowered by their educational experience. Students who feel like they have no control over what they study in school respond well to the curriculum. From a teacher’s perspective, icouldbe.org provides an opportunity for educators to give their students an outside perspective on career and college without ever leaving the safety of the classroom. Once a school partners with the icouldbe.org program, students work through their online curricula at least one class period per week over the course of an academic year. Reminders are emailed to the classroom teacher, the young person and their mentors if the mentee isn’t keeping up with their work and at any time, teachers can check on the progress of their students and keep an eye on exactly what they’re doing. A San Diego principal at a school icouldbe.org serves speaks to the program’s success, saying, ”I have firsthand knowledge that because of the mentoring program, our students have a far better sense of themselves as human beings, students and future workers.” Mentees access icouldbe.org through classrooms in partner schools. An innovative curriculum allows students to create a customized set of self-paced activities reflecting their individual college and career interests while providing for constant, open dialogue and debate with their mentors through collaborative educational activities, personal emails and community discussion boards. The curriculum is designed for middle through high school students and includes modules on career planning, college preparation, financial literacy and community service. As students grow, the curriculum follows their development and delivers activities to prepare them for a successful transition to college or work. Marilyn, an icouldbe.org mentee, writes, “I am 16 years old and will be the first person in my family to attend college. There is no doubt that icouldbe. org changed my life!”

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Mentors log on to icouldbe.org on their own time for at least an hour per week to review their mentee’s activities and give them in-depth feedback. Because e-mentoring is asynchronous and virtual, they can access the site whenever is most convenient. Becoming a mentor involves registering with icouldbe.org and undergoing a series of criminal and sex offender background checks to protect the safety of the online community. Before getting started, mentors are trained online to better understand how to navigate the site, how to communicate with their mentees, and how to best use icouldbe.org’s customized curriculum to guide and support their students. Mentors act as year-long mentors or ad hoc mentors. As a year-long mentor, they work with mentees for the duration of the school year as the young people progress through the icouldbe. org curriculum, communicating with them using icouldbe.org’s email system and discussion boards. As an ad hoc mentor, they answer questions and carry on impromptu conversations with other mentees. Mentors connect with their mentees in different ways. Allowing mentors to choose whether to work one-on-one directly with their students or connect with a larger group of young people in a community setting lets them decide where they can be most effective. The volunteer mentors on icouldbe.org bring a wealth of diverse perspectives and dynamic voices to the relationships they forge with their students. “I’m a Weapons Systems Officer working for the U.S. Air Force,” writes Jen 00, an icouldbe.org mentor. “I joined icouldbe.org because I grew up in a low-income household with a single mother and understood early that education could send me places. I think making it from HUD housing to being an officer and fighter pilot in the U.S. Air Force helps me understand where students in need come from.”

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Life at icouldbe.org For a program that reaches almost 2,500 students a year, icouldbe.org is a small organization that depends on the versatility and wide skill sets of its team. The organization employs six program staff led by Executive Director Kate Schrauth, a former Board Member and leader in the non-profit sector. The organization’s modest size enables icouldbe. org to easily adapt to advances in the educational and technology sectors. In many ways, the staff’s adaptability and versatility mirror the online environment in which they work. As icouldbe. org begins a process of long-term strategic planning, the organization’s management practices have become all the more important. Every staff member is required to have a strong voice and the organization is reliant on their experiences and vision to make good management decisions. During weekly meetings, staff members discuss their projects, troubleshoot challenges and innovate solutions.

e-mentoring in a Changing World In the last few years, Web 2.0 technologies have revolutionized the Internet, changing the way people interact through social networking platforms and wiki-based dynamic content. Their potential applications to the field of education are immense, but as they optimize the learning experience, they also bring with them added challenges of ensuring online safety amidst changing parameters. The icouldbe.org site is a complex, dynamic and conditional website that uses a social networking platform and four distinct user interfaces. Mentors, mentees, teachers and icouldbe.org staff each have their own individualized area designed and styled to meet their unique needs. Mentors and mentees have their own customizable homepages

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Figure 1. icouldbe.org’s Curriculum Map

and interactive classroom activity areas. Mentees and their mentors spend about 80% of their time working through the curriculum, and students gain access to more social areas of the site by complet-

ing assigned tasks. Threaded discussion boards and email functionalities increase the diversity of communications methods. On community discussion boards, mentors and mentees problem

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solve about school, the icouldbe.org curriculum, careers and college, and personal issues. There is also a mentor-only space where adults can share their mentoring experiences and discuss how to best engage their students. One-on-one emails help mentors and mentees develop and build their relationship.

Online safety A leader in online safety, icouldbe.org fully complies with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. Safety is the single most important element of one-to-one relationship facilitation on the icouldbe.org platform. Connecting adult volunteers with young people in a safe, respectful environment feeds the community and encourages it to thrive. The security of icouldbe.org’s online community is paramount, and the first principle behind any and all upgrades to the system. To ensure safe, anonymous and accountable communications between student mentees and adult mentors, icouldbe.org uses proprietary algorithms to monitor all communications. A rigorous content filter flags potentially inappropriate content and messages, such as email or physical addresses, phone numbers, last names or profanity, for personal review by icouldbe.org staff members. Although security and safety issues are uncommon, protocols for disciplinary action for both mentors and mentees are in place, should the situation require. Mentors on the icouldbe.org platform undergo identity verification and criminal and sex-offender background checks before they are accepted into the program. All communications between mentors and mentees occur internally within the icouldbe.org system and are subject to filters and monitored by program staff. Mentors and mentees utilize user names to protect their identities and do not communicate via their personal email addresses or identify the user’s name or place of residence. A dynamic filter catches potentially

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inappropriate communications, which are then checked by program staff and followed up with mentees and their teachers. Mentors and mentees are also required to notify icouldbe.org of any inappropriate or worrisome communications. If a mentee confides that he or she is the victim of sexual, emotional or physical abuse the mentor is required to notify icouldbe. org immediately so icouldbe.org can contact the proper authorities. The same protocol applies if a mentee tells the mentor of their involvement in any illegal activity. icouldbe.org’s filtering and monitoring system works as a series of safety nets. If there is an incident, a mentor emails the classroom teacher and program staff while a filter simultaneously flags inappropriate content in the system. Program staff speak with the teacher and school principal to prompt an immediate school-based intervention. In many cases, young people experiencing stress and violence have no one to turn to but their mentors, and icouldbe.org’s programs have been a vital part of getting them the help that they need. The platform provides a safe space for them and functions as an added layer of protection in their lives. Icouldbe.org does not disguise the role surveillance plays in its programs. Teachers have access to the front end of the site and can see what their students see, but they also benefit from a customized administrative area that highlights information about their students so they can summarize progress at a glance. This level of monitoring ensures that teachers can supervise their students effectively and observe their progress through the curriculum. The ease with which this information is available enables teachers to participate, manage and evaluate students on all of their online interactions. Teachers give program staff feedback about how much they like this part of the site. It allows them to evaluate their class’s progress and monitor individual students’ performance without going too deep into the system.

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One of the unique features of the icouldbe.org platform is that students create their own pathways through a dynamic and conditional curriculum. Students choose between tracks that interest them and learn at their own pace. While mentees work through their chosen curricula, mentors provide qualitative support and guidance on their progress, encouraging them and sharing their own professional and personal experiences. Mentors approve students’ progression into subsequent modules after giving feedback and commenting about their mentees’ work. Teachers are notified at various points in the process, and also have access to their students’ progress through a purposed interface designed specifically for their needs on the platform.

Working through the Curriculum In order to best monitor and track young people’s progress as they work through the curriculum, icouldbe.org created a system of automatic notifications. The program reacts dynamically to the level of participation and progress of individual users—both mentors and mentees. It records their level of activity and sets clear benchmarks of progress for community members. Depending on how dedicated the mentors and mentees are— how often they interact online and how well the mentee is working through the curriculum—the program reacts and targets them with unique communications. Built-in protocols automate the majority of these communications, ensuring consistency and quality in mentor-mentee relationships. Students’ progress on the site is rewarded with additional user permissions, for example the ability to change their profile or post more liberally on the discussion boards, a popular place for young people to interact. Motivated mentors can monitor discussion boards and many of icouldbe. org’s future features will focus on expanding the role of the online mentor. The site’s top-level administrative area provides an overview of all users’ communications

and progress through the curriculum. To ensure online relationships are developing, special administrative portals allow for in-depth reporting and analysis. Program staff review meta-level data on schools and students, noting patterns and problem solving issues as they arise. Queries, to see who’s doing well and who needs help, are sorted by levels and frequencies of participation and are available to administrators to continuously provide partners, teachers, funders and mentors with valuable information on program progress and impact. icouldbe.org is also able to generate several sub-site portals based on one code base, which allows them to serve multiple populations with tailored and highly flexible curricula and to individually brand sponsor sites. Sub-site portals for schools or corporate volunteer programs can be highly customized to suit users’ needs, another feature that enables adaptability for maximum impact.

CUrrent ChaLLenges Virtual learning environments like icouldbe.org’s are constantly evolving with subsequent iterations, adapting to optimize both mentee and mentor experiences. At times, it’s difficult to keep up. New technologies demand intense programming to adapt them to our platform’s high-level security requirements. Still, constant upgrades to icouldbe. org’s platform ensure that Web 2.0 functionalities and social networking capabilities begin to appear on the site. Each of these new additions creates a potential security issue, however. Any social networking functionalities that icouldbe.org integrates need to work with the organization’s highly customized and constantly evolving filter, as would any dynamic or wiki-based page they might want to add. The challenge of keeping pace with online development comes second to icouldbe.org’s commitment to the safety of young people on the site. If their programs simply sought to deliver content

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or encourage the community to interact on the site, they could use one of the open-source content management systems available. However, most new virtual learning environments are purposed for classroom use and don’t take into account an outside user, for example, an adult mentor who could pose a risk to a young person from within the system. icouldbe.org is working with technology and creative experts representing Microsoft, PIXAR, Goldman Sachs and MIT to innovate new applications for their secure virtual learning environment. Currently, a full-scale upgrade is underway to revision the entire platform and incorporate Web 2.0 tools and technologies.

LessOns LearneD Growing icouldbe.org’s programs is a natural extension of the organization’s mission to reach underprivileged youth with the career and educational guidance they need. As icouldbe.org has grown to serve students all over the United States, the organization has expanded its focus to include reaching students with special interests and needs around the world. Students with disabilities continue to be marginalized by the traditional educational system and are in need of special support and guidance. School districts in low-income neighborhoods often do no have the resources to devote to students especially interested in math and science, so icouldbe.org and its partners are connecting them with focused mentor resources to encourage their interest and prepare them to pursue math and science professions. Youth organizations, affinity groups and alumni networks are also benefiting from mentoring programs within their social networks, connecting experienced adults with younger members in need of guidance and support. As part of their drive to be at the forefront of designing virtual learning environments and online learning experiences, icouldbe.org partnered with UNICEF to manage and implement

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the Connecting Classrooms program. The initiative brings students from different countries and cultural backgrounds together in a collaborative online space where they explore social issues, focusing on marginalized young people in their communities. One of the unexpected benefits of the Connecting Classrooms program was that it linked icouldbe.org to hard-working students and teachers in Kampala, Uganda. There are plans to implement a second round of the program, focusing on civic rights and democracy building within their local communities. The particular success of the Connecting Classroom program prompted UNICEF to bring it to a dozen new sub-Sahara African countries in the coming years, and icoulbe. org will continue to have a prominent role in the design, implementation and management of these online programs. Serving young people with disabilities is an important priority as the organization expands its reach. With a firm belief that all young people, regardless of disability, should have access to and experience the benefits of online mentoring, icouldbe.org has recently started a program to reach young people living with disabilities. As a first step, the organization is expanding to include blind and visually impaired students as mentees while reaching out to a broad mentor community that includes adults who have navigated similar challenges. During the pilot stage, icouldbe.org is working with post-graduate institutions, public school systems and transitional organizations that serve New York City’s blind and visually impaired community, customizing their platform and curriculum to function through screen readers and other adaptive technologies. Students interested in pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math need specialized support and guidance, especially in low-income neighborhoods where adults may not have careers or experience in the field. Together with partners from Drexel University, The Philadelphia Academies and the Science Center, icouldbe.org is building content, curricula and

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activities for students in science and math-themed middle and high schools. Employing Web 2.0 functionality and cutting edge technology, the new virtual learning environment gives students the opportunity to explore and participate in research and activities that prepare them for careers in science and math fields. For youth organizations, affinity groups and alumni networks, connecting youth with experienced mentors reinforces social networks and grows organizations. Graduates or program participants share their guidance with younger or less experienced members, creating long-lasting and collaborative connections. Members access the site through a branded and independent portal, which program administrators will monitor and manage to maximize the site’s usability and youth’s progress. As icouldbe.org moves forward, the organization remains firmly rooted in its mission to reach underserved students and its commitment to give young people the opportunities to make better futures for themselves. The guidance and support that mentoring offers them influences their professional and academic choices. As icouldbe. org readies its programs to reach an increasing number of young people in the United States and abroad, the future looks bright.

Cabrera, A. F., & La Nasa, S. M. (Eds.). (2000). Understanding the college choice of disadvantaged students. New directions for institutional research. Number 107. San Francisco, CA: JosseyBass Publishers. Lehr, C., Johnson, D., Bremer, C., Cosio, A., & Thompson, M. (2004). Essential tools: Increasing rates of school completion: Moving from policy and research to practice: A Manual for policymakers, administrators, and educators. National Center on Secondary Education and Transition. Minneapolis, MN: ICI Publications Office. McDonough, P. (2005). Counseling and college counseling in America’s high schools. Alexandria, VA: National Association for College Admission Counseling. Myers, D., & Schrimm, A. A. (1999). The impacts of upward bound: Final report for phase I of the national evaluation. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Planning and Evaluation Services. National Dropout Prevention Center/ Network. (n.d.). Mentoring. Retrieved October 23, 2008, from http://www.dropoutprevention.org/ effstrat/mentoring_tutoring/overview.htm U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2004). The condition of education 2004 (NCES 2004–077). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

referenCes Bridgeland, J., Dilulio, J., & Burke Morison, K. (2006). The silent epidemic: Perspectives of high school dropouts. Washington, DC: Civic Enterprises.

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Chapter 6

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System Vassilis Syrris Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece Fenia Tsobanopoulou Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY The individualized mentoring is a process unexploited and problematic in Greece because of its high operational cost and the lack of specialized scientists. In general practice though, it is considered as the most effective means in order to support a person and guide him/her at the crucial and important decisions of his/her life. More than ever, through the immense technological advancements, online distance mentoring has evolved as a clearly anthropocentric method, having that is, as center of its interest, the person and his/her personal needs as opposed to the mere execution of a predetermined training program. The present study explores and analyses the issues related to electronic distance mentoring of young persons in the framework of professional orientation, business spirit development, personal training and psychological support. The particularity of this project stems from the application of advanced videoconference systems that eliminated the need for people transfer, bridged geographical distances, improved interaction considerably and reduced the response time of intervention.

BaCkgrOUnD The educational system of a country co-operates with and is co-formulated by the social, political, technological and economic system, affecting the quality and the level of life of each citizen. A school unit, as the structural module of most educational systems, constitutes the field of expression of funDOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch006

damental educational policy; moreover, it represents the primary receiver of the tendencies, the target of the priorities and the mirror of the contemporary needs reflected by societies. In this theoretical framework, if someone attempts to determine the role of contemporary school, s/he is forced to deal with subjects such as: What is the role of a school operating within a rapidly changing environment that is affected by global economy? To what extent does it collaborate with

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Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

social structures or run in a parallel mode or away from the social body evolution? Is school effective? (and what could this mean?) Which would be the criteria employed in order to measure the quality of the educational services? Regarding the institutional role of school as one forming active and sophisticated citizens, one needs to presuppose an educational reality where school, adopting an attentive attitude, is capable of absorbing and feeling the needs of its surrounding environment, and mainly, those expressed by/in the neighborhood itself; this information must be analyzed, transformed and instilled to knowledge which could aid the timely response of the educational unit towards its adaptation to general educational policy. In simple words, contemporary school has to be open to the society, able to connect the knowledge with its applications, to handle technology as a necessary tool of everyday practice, to facilitate cooperation, group thinking and communication, factors that contribute to successful human co-existence and development. The present case study describes the action of an urban Greek high-school willing to approach the Greek periphery, thus making an extroverted step in order to meet local communities and transfer pieces of valuable expertise. Its philosophy, that changes result primarily from proper use of human capital and that constant specialized training and personal growth are key notions in education, led to the designing and implementation on behalf of the school, of an electronic distance mentoring system, suitable for young people residing in the rural area. Our involvement in this project as coordinators provided us with certain experience, the parameters of which, the problems encountered and the benefits acquired, we expose in the following sections.

Online Distance mentoring Mentoring is a learning procedure, mainly interactive, consisting in a series of sessions (often includ-

ing dialogic transactions) involving at least two agents: the mentor and the mentee/s (protégé/s). The concept of mentoring is met in ancient Greek literature (Homer)1 and is associated with activities such as teaching, counseling, guidance, training, coaching, all providing orientation, while focusing on the personal needs of a single (individualized attendance) or more persons (group session). In education, Heller and Sindelar (1991) describe a mentor as an experienced teacher who acts as a guide, role model, counselor and friend. Space and time are two determinants critical in identifying and distinguishing distance mentoring from conventional face-to-face approach. Recent advances in Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) permits the conduction of a mentoring session in cases where the participants are situated in different locations (continents, countries, cities, buildings, rooms), in synchronous mode (distant meeting at the same time) or asynchronous mode (requests and responses run at different moments). Browsing the literature, we realize that electronic mail is widely presented as the most predominant form of distant communication (Abbott, 2004; Ensher et al., 2003; O’Neill & Harris, 2004). Besides serving everyday or professional communication, electronic mail has been recorded as a preferred type of distance mentoring, based in part on the obliquity and growth of e-mail usage (Flanagin, 2005). Other commonly opted paths also follow the world-wide web service, such as content management platforms and data-ondemand electronic environments (the data could be video files, documents, presentations, etc), and video-conference technology (online mentoring). An important clarification to be made is that authors, scientists and practitioners employ various terms to characterize the same concept: the terms electronic mentoring (e-mentoring), virtual mentoring, remote mentoring and telementoring are all equivalent to the concept of distance mentoring.

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A successful distance mentoring project presupposes positive relationships between mentors and mentees. Social exchange theory posits that both the mentor and the protégé must gain benefits in order for them to engage in the relationship and for the relationship to last over an extended period of time (Ensher et al., 2003; Johnson-Bailey & Cervero, 2004). Also, the amount of time mentors and protégés invest in their relationship is a key factor to determining the success of the mentoring relationship; for instance, both the mentor and the protégé must devote time in order to build mutual trust within their relationship (Johnson-Bailey & Cervero, 2004). The frequency of contact and the availability of both the mentor and the mentee must be clearly defined from the beginning (Peterson, 1996). During the mentoring sessions, there is continuous and prosperous information sharing between the participants. The most active one in this process is the mentor who advises, stimulates, suggests, raises points, enlightens, updates and supports. The mentee asks, provokes, claims and exhibits him/ herself. Both are aware or learn to listen during the course; they transfer to each other experience, knowledge, expertise, and stimuli for discussion and thinking. In this study we focus on individualized mentoring, the most flexible, creative and potentially more effective consulting approach. Flexible because the time when the session is conducted results from mutual agreement and arrangements are made directly between the two participants. Creative because the mentee’s needs determine entirely the aims and the actions of the mentoring process, the mentoring progress follows his/her personal pace (rhythm), the specialized material and training are customized upon the mentee and in general, the mentor’s attention is exclusively upon him/her. For all these reasons it is potentially the most effective approach. The e-mentoring project was implemented by a private high-school in Thessaloniki, Greece,

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one of the city’s oldest schools (founded in the late nineteenth century). Its student population rises approximately to one thousand, ages range from twelve to eighteen. Its syllabus, approved by and according to the guidelines of the national Ministry of Education, is constantly enriched with programs and actions focusing on culture and cooperation with other European educational organizations through collaboration networks (interconnectivity), technological advancements and professional orientation consulting. The school’s practice is characterized by innovation, flexibility and adaptability. Its primary goal is the provision of specialized, anthropocentric services which equip young people with all the necessary qualities in order for them to effectively confront the contemporary, quick-shifting socio-economic environment. The organizational philosophy supports equal opportunities in learning, in experience acquisition and in guidance. One of its strategic aims—related to this case study— is its expansion in the field of adolescents’ and young adults’ systematic mentoring concerning their professional and personal life. The school had the chance to participate in a large European program (2003/055–435, approved by the Directorate General of Enlargement of the European Commission) between the years 2003 and 2005. The action undertaken by the school was the experimentation with electronic distance mentoring approaches in professional orientation and business spirit development. The experience gained from this project led the school to continue by itself and implement an integrated electronic mentoring system which addresses the subject of professional orientation and personal growth of young people (aged 18-35) and students (17-18). This case study carries the practices, the considerations, the conditions and the implications of the running program during the years 2005-2006.

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

Case DesCriPtiOn

Project goals

The project involved three neighboring areas in northern Greece, situated in central Macedonia. The city of Thessaloniki, where we are located, was the managerial and coordination centre. The target locations were the Administrative Departments of Serres and Drama (see Figure 1). The inspiration and reasoning behind the action taken was three-fold: First, we attempted to resolve the aforementioned lack of experts in the target areas. It is essential for the reader to know that from the middle of the previous century on, large populations progressively moved from the Greek periphery towards the two biggest cities, that is, Athens (the Greek capital) and Thessaloniki. Today, these cities have become the two economic/ technological poles of the country, consolidating experts and scientists from diverse fields. Second, we intended to test how individualized mentoring sessions could take place through technological/ mechanical means. In Greece, despite the fact that individualized consulting is recognized as an effective approach for qualitative guidance, it remains highly expensive, and thus, not so preferable. Moreover, successful individualized sessions postulate a firm, direct and substantial relationship between the participants; such commitment along with devoting the necessary time are not ordinary norms for young people nor are they always easy to achieve. Finally, we tried to partially resolve the gap between those people who are able to benefit from digital technology and those who are not (usually located in the countryside). The above mentioned factors were the drive wheel for us to investigate how the technological tools permit the realization of distance mentoring by the overcoming of high operational costs and problematic human contacts (due to the intrinsic nature of distant communication).

The project goals had to be specific and to reflect the context and tensions deriving from the strategy adopted by international organizations, countries or state federations. For instance, the manifest of OECD (2001a, b) posted challenging priorities, such as: • • •

•

• • •

The facilitation of diffusion of ICTs. The promotion of innovation. The facilitation of acquisition of highquality dexterities directly linked with the industry and market needs. The investment in human capital and potential through appropriate education and training programs. The promotion of knowledge flow from research stage to the enterprising ground. The link between school and job market. The adaptation of labor market in the rapidly evolving environment.

Similarly, the directions of e-Europe 2005 stated that the member states in collaboration with the European Committee had to support the spread of ICTs in sub-developed regions by utilizing structural resources and/or economic motives. Particular attention should be given henceforth to distant regions. Additionally, our experience deriving from the long period occupation with school professional orientation indicated certain general principles, that is: •

•

Social cohesion can be intensified through the development of management dexterities and the constant exploitation of ICTs. Future citizens will not only be regarded as independent users of the ICTs tools, but they are expected to know how to achieve more complex intellectual works, based on new forms of collaboration and collectiveness.

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Figure 1. The map shows the three areas involved

•

Economically disadvantaged urban areas and peripheral districts tend to fall further behind in human resource development as well as in economic progress and political participation.

3.

4. In this framework, we set some explicit and feasible project goals: 1.

2.

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Introduction to the basic principles dominating the business world and the free market regime. Notions from management (decision-making, creativity, operational control, results evaluation), enterprising (self-activity, risk), financial transactions (budget, funding sources, expenses control) etc. were considered valuable tools for young people who wish to undertake action and participate in productive process on equal terms. Promotion of team work merit and common action. Development of social dexterities

such as communication, collaboration and stimulation ability. Emphasis on personal qualities like responsibility, flexibility, consistency, stress resistance and self-growth. Familiarization with digital devices and technological tools. A young employee is expected to hold a minimum set of elementary notions about a personal computer and Internet. Regularly, these notions include: hardware (processor power, memory, storage units), software (operating system, data & programs), internet services (email, www, newsgroups, chat channels, real-time communication) and information searching (search engines, digital libraries, etc).

areas of interest The target areas were two border provinces of the Greek periphery:

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

Serres (population more than 200,000): The prefecture borders northwards with Bulgaria and FYROM, eastwards with the prefecture of Drama and westwards with the prefectures of Thessaloniki and Kilkis. Administratively, it belongs to the Region of Central Macedonia. Its local economy is based mainly on agriculture: it produces rice, barley, maize, smoke, sugar beets, cotton, sesame, groundnut and wheat. Other important sector is livestock-farming: it produces big beef quantities, pork, chicken meat and secondary products such as excellent quality cheeses. Its industrial level is of low-medium size manufacturing products and sub-products of milk, tomato, sugar, cotton, wood, pastries and sweets. There exist also some factories for boilers, evaporations, structural materials and ready clothing. Drama (population more than 100,000): The prefecture of Drama is found in north-eastern utmost of the Greek domination, in the borders with Bulgaria. Administratively it is governed by the Region of Eastern Macedonia-Thrace. The prefecture is substantially rural. The products that are cultivated are mainly cereal, cotton, industrial tomato, smoke, wine, fruits and vegetables. Important place has the livestock-farming, where small familial exploitation of traditional form dominates; they used to raise sheep, cattle and pork. As in the case of Serres, modern industrial units produce exceptional quality cheese-supplying products. The region allocates the richest forests in Greece, a fact that boosted the local industries of timber. The bigger, however, economic interest presents in the sector of marble, constituting one major factor of Drama growth. Units of excavation and processing of marble have installed in the region presenting significant export activity to Europe, USA, Japan and some Arabic countries. The tourism sector in these two regions promises great opportunities and viable development, due to the entrance in EU of Bulgaria and Romania and also due to Egnatia, the new commercial road (670km length- it is still under construction) that stretches from the western part (Thesprotia prefecture) to the

eastern part of Greece (Evros prefecture) linked through nine major vertical axes with the borders of Albania, FYROM, Bulgaria and Turkey. In closing we mention that the distance between Thessaloniki and Serres is 80Km and between Thessaloniki and Drama is 150Km. The new high-way roads that link the capitals of the three regions are still under construction.

the e-mentoring approach Distance mentoring (or learning in the more general case) is an excellent method of reaching the adult trainee. Because of the competing priorities of work, home and other personal activities, adult trainees desire a high degree of flexibility in terms of time-scheduling, qualification material and place of conference. In order to preserve all the advantages of a face-to-face course, we selected the video-conference approach (see ICTs section). We could imagine the scene where two persons, located in different places, stand in front of a screen, watch one another’s face and communicate verbally; this is a typical distance mentoring session. The stages we employed into during a conference are demonstrated in Figure 2. We mention that not all the steps took place in every meeting. For instance, step 4 is realized only in the first acquaintance, while steps 1-3 required at least one to three iterations. Steps 5-9 constitute the core mentoring corpus; they must be carried out in each session, executed with discretion and interchanged according to the working conditions. Finally, step 10 provides the necessary information for the project assessment. Typically, the mentee completed a questionnaire right after the end of his/her last session. On the contrary, the mentors were obliged to fill their assessment sheet after the end of each session; this contributed to the incremental improvement of the mentor’s communication ability. One disadvantage of online distance mentoring compared to conventional approach is that computer-mediated interaction excludes considerably

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Figure 2. Successive steps in applied distance mentoring session

the non-verbal communication (body language) and the impulsive responses, reducing thus, the quantity of information available for inferences. The mentor is to improve the communication process, following methods and attitudes as shown below:

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•

• •

Ensuing rigorous and circular use of the actions: openings, encouragement, questions and silence. Do not interrupt; showing care for proper discussion flow. Triggering the mentee to participate when presenting passive.

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

• • • •

Expressing continuous and undiminished interest. Counterbalancing between objectivity, compassion and sympathy. Keeping notes. Making extensive use of examples and case studies.

Additionally, the mentor should not pretend to have listened to everything if, in fact, s/he has not; instead s/he must ask the mentee to repeat his speech, from the point s/he had lost track. Also, if the mentor does not know a certain subject well, s/he must ask for another meeting in order to have the chance to look up the specific information. In conclusion, the mentor’s effort is primarily focused on the endeavor to convince the mentee of the benefits that can change his/her behavior, way of thinking and perceiving things and situations. It employs hard, strenuous effort because a person’s feelings and attitudes usually change rather slowly and people are not easily influenced through advice or teaching, even less, through pressure; instead, trial and error seem to lead their behavior.

e-mentoring teaching material Appearance of new forms of information concentration and distribution goes along with new cultural practices, as well as political and social changes. Improvement of personal skills, comprehension of markets ruling system and the level of a person’s technological aptitude are closely linked with active participation in the working environment. Thus, we decided to move along three teaching axes, those of human potential treatment, entrepreneurial dexterity and technology. Each unit was compatible with the cognitive level of each trainee:

2.

3.

in personal creativity/inspiration, weaknesses and virtues recognition, promotion of collaboration idea and teamwork value, time management, target setting and goal accomplishment. Business dexterities: We worked on the hypothesis that the development of entrepreneurial skills concerns the trainee’s attitude/mentality towards his/her daily life and labor activities. We followed the plan in Table 1: ICTs dexterities: Basic notions on Internet usage (information searching, newsgroups, e-mail/mailing lists, digital libraries, knowledge & semantic databases), on multimedia usage (CD/DVDs, graphical environments, electronic presentations) and networking.

The above subjects contain both theoretical and practical aspects. In order for us to achieve a high comprehension level, we adopted and applied several methodologies, always depending on the mentee’s background, acceptance attitude and learning capability. We experimented interchangeably with the following methodologies: Simulation (game and role playing), Socratic method, problem solving, case studies analysis, thinking ‘aloud’ and brainstorming. In their off-line time, mentors either strived to seek specific information (for instance, alternative funding sources, seeking of already tested plans, methodologies adaptation etc.), or studied the session files (written notes, video recordings) in order to make a more sound needs diagnosis. We avoided asking mentees to make any special preparation in order for them to attend a session; this would remind them of a typical school approach and might lead to aversion and lack of participation.

Profiles (mentees—mentors) 1.

Personal dexterities: Self-confidence building, perception abilities stimulation, failure fear handling, curiosity provocation, faith

Effective distance learning is person-centered learning; hence, knowing the characteristics and

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Table 1. Aims and objectives of the qualification program for business dexterities Enterprise

The trainee learns about the basic corporate operations and conceptualizes the place of an enterprise (obligations, commitments and benefits) within its wider environment

• Definition-Mission-Social role • Production factors-Transformation-Products/Services • Effectiveness-Productivity • Operational cost-Pricing • Market-Transactions-Economy equilibrium • Competition-Collaborations-Alliances • Risk-Opportunities-Profit • Internal & External Environment

Self

The trainee recognizes his/her place within the economic system

• Entrepreneur- Producer- Consumer • Qualifications • Introducing and promoting oneself

Personal skills and Interests

The trainee identifies his/her capabilities and their correspondence to interests (candidate occupations)

• Professions • Careers • Self-occupation • Public/Private sector • Advantages/Disadvantages

Work searching

The trainee finds out the available sources for searching for a job

• Searching the media (newspapers, tv, radio, internet) • Local Labor Syndicates • Organizations for Occupations Support & Promotion • Commercial Chambers • Application forms completion • Funded programs for work experience

Labor dexterities

The trainee is informed about some basic skill requirements that an organization could ask for

• Technical-Technological notions • Recognized Certifications • CV preparation-Interview • Communication: foreign languages, technical terminology, socializing

demographics of the distance learners helps us understand the potential barriers to learning. The target group was young people aged 18-35 and students aged 17-18, that is, people situated just before entering production or older, yet still in the beginning of their professional course. The main focus was on unemployed persons, without excluding people already employed. Besides, a sophisticated mentoring program has to cover for instances where the mentee desires to move on to a different professional or personal direction, even in cases where s/he has already established a well-grounded life status. The best distance education practices depend on creative, well-informed instructors (Greenberg, 1998). The mentor’s selection is the most crucial matter for the realization of successful mentoring. Guidance encompasses a number of virtues: responsibility, consistency, enlightening, versatility and ability to comprehend, positive attitude and

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great expertise in the subject domain, to name a few. The combination of all those traits cannot be found in a single person that easily. During the project execution, five experts were occupied systematically and two in certain exceptional situations. Out of five main mentors, two had acquired specialized qualification before starting the program in order to get full information in all cognitive fields incorporated in the mentoring program. The remaining three were: one psychologist, one economist and one professional orientation consultant. The two “external” fellows were one attorney and one specialist on sex equality issues. The mentors’ ages ranged between 28 and 40; it was a common decision and desire of the project supporters to employ experts who would be felt close and use the same communication code with the target group members. In order for learning approaches to be effective, well-maintained technology infrastructures must

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

also support the project (Yepes-Baraya, 2001). A workable e-mentoring session postulates constant technical support. For this reason, we decided to set, at each location, specialized personnel (ICT technicians) for technical support, computers maintenance, damage detection and network checking and adjustment. We point out that the technician operated in stand-by mode: s/he prepared the equipment before the session kickoff, s/he waited in another room during the session (s/ he was not permitted to watch the mentoring procedure), s/he intervened only whenever a problem occurred, and finally, s/he terminated the function of the devices after the sessions’ end.

information & Communication technology (iCt) During the last decades, there has been an enormous growth of infrastructure for telecommunications and information technology. The paramount concept of interconnection is translated into fast transfer of information including tangible and intangible goods, such as services, products, trends, viewpoints and ideas. The most significant fact is that it takes place within a social, cultural, educational and economic framework, and at the same time, it reshapes this environment providing new dynamics. The beneficial traits granted by modern networks are observed in territorial reformations, contributing to the decentralization of economic activities and the capital redistribution. In addition, they offer significant cost savings and a rich variety of functionalities. Yet, condition for the successful exploitation of new technologies is the human capital, that is, the highly qualified employee (or more trivially, the technology familiarized employee) who is capable of making an extensive and creative use of ICTs potential.

Desktop Video-Conference The video-conference is a service of concurrent transfer of picture (video), sound (audio) and other

information that is used above a network that connects various appliances such as computers, routers, bridges, optical appliances (TV, VCR) etc. Using video-conference, two or more individuals can discuss simultaneously, seeing and hearing each other and utilizing jointly applications and programs. The term desktop conferencing is employed in order to give emphasis on the computer usage as the primary interconnection mediation tool and differs from video-conferencing dedicated devices. The communication of conference participants is direct, fast and enriched with quite enough supportive material. Some beneficial traits includes easy face-to-face communication, cost savings, distance shrinking, productivity augmentation, collaborative decision-making and fast and easy sharing of files (texts, videos, audios, images) and applications (office automation programs, whiteboard, etc).

Preliminary research Before selecting the most suitable technological means for our case, we studied several statistical researches concerning the ICTs usage in Greek territory. Some indicative statistical variables are presented concisely right below: •

•

•

While mobile telephony penetrated the Greek users (it allocated the 76% of Greek households), the computer and Internet usage was still very low (see Figure 3). The households that had access to the Internet from their residence amounted in the 16.5%. The preferable type of connection was telephone line at 72% (PSTN or ISDN). In percentage 51.31% of the individuals that used computer are graduates of secondary education, while the graduates of academic education amounted in 36.63%. With regard to their occupation, the employees (wages earner, self-employing, assistants in the family enterprise, etc) were

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Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

Figure 3. Computer & Internet usage (source: GSNSSG, 2005)

in the first place with percentage 63.61% and the students followed with percentage 28.81%. In general the profile of the individual that employed computer and Internet was “aged 16-34, secondary education graduate and employee”.

was based on systems supporting primarily ISDN connection-directly (peer-to-peer) and secondary, Internet connection via an Internet Service Provider.

standards and Considerations

The low Internet penetration among the residents of the Greek periphery and the dominance of ISDN connection led us to the following selections:

At a basic effectiveness level, the video-conference system had to comply with several practical and educational standards. Some issues considered are listed below:

1.

•

2.

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We did not address the target group directly at their residence. Instead, in both prefectures we installed the technological equipment, selecting a few central locations which presented easy access and had the necessary communication infrastructure (Local Labor Syndicates and Institutes for Adults’ Education). The telecommunications backbone supported ISDN connection even in distant regions of the Greek territory. Furthermore, ISDN ensures guaranteed output 128Kbits. For these reasons, the video-conference

• •

Enhancement of learning experience presupposes easy and extensive multimedia utilization, that is, the system had to support file exchanging like presentations, documents, images, audio files etc. Support of completely bidirectional communication. The system had to be user-friendly, consisting of a few simple operations. Elevated technological notions were not expected from the user side. From the technician’s point of view, the system had to be easy to install, configure and manage.

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

Figure 4. The system topology

Desktop personal computer

Desktop personal computer

•

•

•

•

•

Application sharing such as electronic whiteboard facilitates uniquely the process of interactive learning. Support of well-established models and communication protocols2 such as H.320, H.323 and T.120 (see Internet source: http://www.protocols.com). Provision of a secure mechanism that retains the confidence in data exchange was an inextricable system module. Encryption (the function of scrambling data so that only the intended receiver can read it), authentication (the process of verifying the sender to the receiver) and integrity (ensures that the data has not been tampered during transmission) were of high priority functions. The system had to be scalable, that is, it could be expanded easily to accommodate a bigger number of participants. Flexible peripheral equipment was necessary in order for an intimate atmosphere

•

between the participants to be created and remind a conventional room session. Thus, a choice of a camera capable of browsing the mentor movement and the utilization of wireless microphones were rated very important. The system budget could not exceed some specific limits. Purchase, parameterization, maintenance, upgrade, licenses were the costs for being controlled.

Additionally to the video-conference approach, in order to enrich the interactive environment and provide as many communication channels as possible, we made use of some typical collaborative electronic tools, such as discussion forums and chat sessions. With the aim of avoiding access costs, we selected some already built, free-access web software solutions.

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system architecture The system architecture affects many designing and structuring factors such as functionality, effectiveness, reliability, maintenance and extension. Sound design considerations save time and cost, facilitating the manipulation of system complexity. The system topology is displayed in Figure 4. The system components were: •

The terminal stations: ◦ The desktop personal computers were the video-conference nodes. The least required computational features were one processor of class Pentium, 64 MB RAM, 2GB HDD, 8MB Graphics Card, with Microsoft Windows as operating system (versions 98/NT/2000/XP). A specialized PCI video-conference card was installed on each computer, at which the connected cable brought either ISDN line signal directly or signals above Internet. Additionally, high-resolution cameras, wireless microphones and speakers constituted supplementary input/output equipment for video & audio signals reproduction. ◦ The laptops had at least one processor of class Pentium II, 128 MB RAM, 2GB HDD, 8MB Graphics Card, with Microsoft Windows as operating system (versions 98/NT/2000/XP). The video-conference was realized through a portable external appliance linked with laptop via USB interface, containing video camera, speaker and microphone.

The cameras could focus enough on the participants’ faces. Moreover, the camera installed on the mentor’s computer supported auto-tracking motion, that is, it could follow the mentor while

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s/he moved within the video-conference room, without altering excessively the picture size. •

The administration center was the primary control unit. It consisted of: ◦ A Multipoint Control Unit (MCUsometimes referred to as a “bridge”) which was responsible for connecting multiple endpoints into a single conference, providing through a user-friendly interface distant management and parameters adjustment (network, video, audio parameters). It was capable of eight simultaneous connections, while under the prospect of upgrade, it could permit the participation in the video-conference of up to 40 endpoints. ◦ Media eXchange Manager (MXM) was a software-based solution which made the centralized management of video-conference and units configuration possible. It performed call forwarding, call transferring and user authentication verifying. ◦ MCU included a built-in H.323 gateway for translating (user names into IP addresses) the characteristics of an H.323 endpoint to a non-H.323 endpoint and vice versa. ◦ A router which allowed the connection of multiple devices to a single network (Internet, Wide Area Network or Local Area Network) connection. ◦ A firewall which was a software tool capable of monitoring network traffic and protecting the system integrity.

Apart from the hardware equipment, conference server dedicated software (MeetingPoint) was installed at the terminals which supported H.320, H.323 and T.120 protocols, application sharing (there was no need for the applications to be installed at all terminals), connection among

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

Figure 5. Peer-to-peer ISDN connection

different video-conference software clients (CUSeeMe, NetMeeting etc), distant administration via web browser and multicasting technology. The meeting server could automatically adjust the network speed of those trying to connect with it. The advantages of the proposed connection model are summarized in the following: • • •

•

•

Low cost compared to high-quality service. Direct and reliable transmission of information. Open architecture that permits interconnection with different types of systems and multiple protocols. Support of data sharing, file transfer (video, music, sounds, images, documents, speeches, lectures, presentations) and whiteboard functions. No need for specialized notions in order for the system to be competently used.

Different interconnection scenarios During the project running, we used the distance mentoring system in multiple fashions:

1.

2.

Peer-to-peer ISDN interconnection (see Figure 5): this model connects only two endpoints; it runs upon the public ISDN network using protocol H.320; the potential bandwidth rates from 64Kbits (one ISDN line and one B channel3: very low image refresh rate) to 384Kbits (three ISDN lines and 3x2B channels: video flow similar to TV transmission). In this case bandwidth is guaranteed, that is, during video-conference there were not data transmission fluctuations. In average, we used the 128Kbits connection (one ISDN line and two B channels) in order to keep communication level cost low. Furthermore, there was no need for extra costs, like for an intermediate provider as in the Internet case. This type of interconnection was used in most mentoring sessions. Via Internet: communication through MBONE4 network, TCP/IP and H.323 protocol. Each endpoint connects to Internet by means of an Internet Service Provider (ISP); the mentor’s system was connected by using an ADSL line while the mentee’s computer was connected through either an ISDN or an ADSL line (depending on the availability). The advantage of this scenario is the relatively low cost (granted to the

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3.

Internet mediation), and hence, it is recommended for long-time mentoring sessions. The shortcoming was the bandwidth variation and the low data transfer rate (between 64 and 128Kbits – average communication availability in year 2005). This communication model is used a few times, in cases where the mentee was in his/her residence during the session and s/he employed his/ her own computer system and ISDN/ADSL line. A combination of H.320 and H.323 interconnection. In the above cases there was no need for an intermediate administration unit, because the interconnection model supported only two endpoints. However, sometimes we proceeded to a multiple points conference when: a) there was need for a simultaneous intervention of other experts, b) we applied peer consulting practice where one or more mentees transferred their knowledge or experience upon a specific domain to other mentees, under the mentor’s supervision. We tested connection till four different communication nodes with satisfactory data transmission quality.

a session in Practice A typical distance mentoring session consisted in the following steps: 1.

2.

3.

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Meeting arrangement or confirmation: The mentor informed the mentee by sending a message through e-mail or mobile phone SMS or simply by phone calling him/her. About an hour before the conference, the respective technicians at both distant locations checked, controlled and tested the equipment. Mentor started video-conference software and made a call to the mentee (by using the phone number in case of a direct ISDN connection, or the IP address in case of Internet)

4.

5. 6.

and respectively, the mentee accepted the call. The session began. Stages in Figure 2 were on. The session constituted mainly of discussion, but also, digital material and applications were together worked and exchanged. Interconnection model in Figure 4 was utilized in case of multiple participants. New meeting arrangement. The session was ended.

Mentors and mentees met at least once a week for about one hour. In the beginning, emphasis was given on the familiarization of mentors and mentees with the use of the technological equipment. With the mentee’s permission, the session was recorded and stored in a video repository. At any time, the candidate could have exclusive access to his/her video material via Internet File Transfer Protocol (FTP) service. In a similar way, the mentor could recall a video recording related to a particular session in order to study and analyze better the candidate attitude and behavior. In each session, only two persons were involved in the transaction (except in cases where there was need for a third part intervention or in peer learning sessions); it is generally accepted that the mentees might not feel comfortable when someone else watches them while they are in a session. During this course, the mentor was responsible for creating a climate of friendship and collaboration, for predicting and eliminating any factor that could cause dissatisfaction to the mentee. Sometimes, the mentor had to move around the conference room (s/he was walking, going to preparing coffee etc.) in order for the mentee to feel comfortable. In those cases, as we have previously mentioned, an auto-tracking camera was required to cover the mentor’s entire moving area. Finally, the mentor was trained to watch for any of the mentee’s facial grimaces, gestures and reactions in order to gather more information about the mentee’s personality, emotional state, thoughts and needs.

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

CUrrent ChaLLenges Evaluation of the program provides information concerning each participant’s degree of overall satisfaction, any occurrence of technical problems or manipulation difficulties, the suitability of qualification material etc. It helped us identify the project abnormalities and plan/set future objectives. The assessment was realized via filling-in successive questionnaires, aimed for the mentees (and their immediate relatives), the mentors and the sponsorship/administrative staff. The questions addressed issues such as method suitability, pedagogic approaches, program organization and administration, information fitness, expectations and benefits. The specific action provided us with deep knowledge and invaluable experience. The key points can be summarized as follows:

social, academic and career goals. Yet, constraints imposed by time, distance, or other, personal problems make mentoring bond difficult to initiate and sustain. Distance mentoring environments can, however, constitute a reliable and consistent means for the development of long relationships.

micro-Level View •

•

general aspects •

•

•

•

ICTs use aided bilateral contact promoting the acquisition of new types of knowledge, managing thus, to bridge the geographical distances and provide an alternative to the marginalization and exclusion of rural areas by allowing for certain access to centers of decision making and economic development. Technology evolves rapidly. Not everyone could have expected individuals or organizations to financially afford high-end technological tools and equipment or, most importantly, to aim at and achieve such effective application. The digital platform presented smoothes expertise transfer and reinforces the scale economy. Full exploitation of ICTs promotes collaboration, critical thinking and exchange of opinions. It leads to the creation of a new, active citizen generation able to upgrade the quality of life. Mentors’ support helps mentees make proper use of their potential and reach their

•

•

•

The school had specialized at providing secondary level education. It was the first time for the school to get involved in a different sector, that of professional occupation, and focus on providing orientation and guidance in order to support young people in their pursuit for professional settlement. School employees had the opportunity to communicate and cooperate systematically with young people from two peripheral areas, to exchange views and opinions, to speculate on common subjects of interest and most importantly, to share thoughts and concerns about their future place (in local society and world economic reality). Mentors develop their own personal style in sharing their skills and knowledge via electronic communication (Burgstahler & Cronheim, 2001). Similar mentoring mechanisms are employed within the framework of our students’ professional orientation and support of our alumni. The technological infrastructure used for the project purposes can serve similarly well the more expanded aspects of the elearning sector, a very challenging and promising field. We experiment with virtual classes, where the electronic lessons become enriched with valuable interventions by experts, qualified practitioners and students from other/different-type schools. The system is employed also for parent

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Table 2. Number of mentees

56

Sex

37 female 19 male

Age

17-18 (3) 18-30 (46) 30-40 (5) >40 (2)

Education level

University (31) After school professional training (6) School graduates (16) School students (3)

Meetings

Just one (9 persons) 2-4 (13 persons) 5-8 (29 persons) >8 (7 persons)

Program duration

10 months

Some findings General: About e-mentoring:

Seeking of permanent position in public domain; relatively big denial for private sector Little knowledge about the market demands Conservative & cautious attitude about changes; difficulty to adapt quickly More interest displayed by women - intense desire for job market entry - confusion as to their role(s) (career, family etc) Relatively high level of mentors’ specialized knowledge Not easy collaboration of the mentees; personal exposition resilience; face-to-face acquaintance must precede e-mentoring Lack of coziness in front of the computer monitor; awkwardness

school, where the students’ parents relish the opportunity to discuss with psychologists, teachers and parents from other geographical areas and resolve issues concerning their children.

In general, the experimentation resulted in positive responses acting as a high motive for us in order to continue our efforts towards improving our distance mentoring approach. A few statistics:

impressions of Participants We mention some indicative remarks concerning the results of the applied distance mentoring approach:

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Mentee A (male, age 28): “I went to only two sessions. It was not what I had expected. I had hoped that through the program, I would find a job. They told me that the program aimed at helping me select what would be suitable for me. Yet, in my condition, I didn’t have the luxury to decide, neither the free time to reflect. Finding a job, any job, just to survive, this was my only care. I realized I had knocked on the ‘wrong door’… and I just quit the program.” Mentee B (female, age 19): “My first impression was not that positive. After I sat in front of the computer, a person unknown to me (I saw him for the first time then) started talking to me from inside the screen, explaining some things about the program, the distance mentoring method and the equipment usage (…I felt a bit bored…). In the next couple of sessions, I felt rather uncomfortable because he asked me things about

Implementation of an Online Distance Mentoring System

myself, my personal life. However, afterwards, I felt more relaxed; I became more talkative. All these discussions gradually made me see things differently…” Mentee C (female, age 23):“I was in my final year of studies in the University when I entered e-mentoring. Up to that point, although I had been given stimuli and opportunities, I felt perplexed, at a loss facing the multitude of possible career prospects. Working with my mentor I managed to assess the parameters involved, place priorities and feasible objectives, to plan my professional future.” Mentee D (female, age 32):“Ever since my childhood I had been dreaming of traveling abroad, maybe live and work in a foreign country, experience life to the full. But growing up in a small town of the periphery, can often narrow down one’s horizons and prospects. I had settled for an unfulfilling, mediocre job until I joined this project. Almost from the beginning I felt that it could help me clarify things inside me, find the courage to claim my dream and fight for it. Really, to give me the ‘push’ I needed. And luckily for me, it did!! (big smile…)” Mentee E (male, age 24): “I had a very specific plan about my professional life. I wanted to open my own small business but I lacked the know-how and had no connections to pursue my plan. Through the e-mentoring my intentions were reconfirmed and I was given the necessary guidance. I feel grateful to the mentors for their help. They filled a gap left by the State authorities.”

future Directions Future work plan consists of: •

Increase in the number of the already installed communication stations at other locations of the Greek territory and neighboring countries such as Bulgaria. This would permit a broader investigation and diagnosis of young people needs.

• •

•

•

•

Deepening of the mentors’ training. Cost reduction through broadband communication, ADSL/Internet based platform and decrease in the number of the technical staff. Extensive use of simultaneous discussion among more than two persons. This action will give us the chance to study better the results of peer learning -experience transfer among people from different environments, yet with social, professional or agerelated similarities. Extension of mentor’s supervision length -continuation of mentoring process concerning the same person for a period longer than ten months. New type of equipment employment in order to cover general distance learning objectives.

LessOns LearneD This study presents an experimental project of an urban high school which, already possessing long experience in student professional orientation made an opening to the periphery and worked with issues such as equal opportunities in information access and qualitative upgrading of career prospects for young people, inhabitants of those distant border areas. The means for the realization of this creative intervention was application of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs), and more specifically, video-conference tools based on computers and several interconnection models. The training programs used, designed to amplify entrepreneurial skills and provide guidance along professional paths, focused on enhancing initiatives, innovative ideas and fresh life attitudes. The final result was the development of an open learning environment which smoothes the initiation of young people to the concept of life-long learning.

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referenCes Abbott, L. D. (2004). Novice teacher’s experiences with telementoring as learner-centered professional development (UMI No. 3116026). Dissertation Abstracts International, 64(12), 4331A. Baker, R. K. (2003). A framework for design and evaluation of Internet-based distance learning courses phase one—framework justification, design and evaluation. Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, 6(2). Burgstahler, S., & Cronheim, D. (2001). Supporting peer-peer and mentor-protégé relationships on the Internet. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 34(1), 59–74. Ensher, E. A., Heun, C., & Blanchard, A. (2003). Online mentoring and computer-mediated communication: New directions in research. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 63(2), 264–288. doi:10.1016/S0001-8791(03)00044-7 Flanagin, A. (2005). IM online: Instant messaging use among college students. Communication Research Reports, 22(3), 175–187. doi:10.1080/00036810500206966 Galusha, J. M. (1997). Barriers to learning in distance education. Interpersonal Computing and Technology: An Electronic Journal for the 21st Century, 5(3-4), 6-14. Retrieved April 28, 2007, from http://www.emoderators.com/ipct-j/1997/ n4/galusha.html General Secretariat of National Statistical Service of Greece. (2005). Ministry of economy and finance. Research of information technologies and communication. Retrieved from http://www. statistics.gr Greenberg, G. (1998). Distance education technologies: Best practices for K-12 settings. IEEE Technology and Society Magazine, 17(4), 36–40. doi:10.1109/44.735862

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Hara, N., & Kling, R. (1999). Students’ frustrations with a Web-based distance education course. First Monday, 4(12), 5. Retrieved April 28, 2007, from http://wotan.liu.edu/dois/data/Articles/ doifirmony:1999:v:4:i:12:p:5.html Heller, M. P., & Sindelar, N. W. (1991). Developing an effective teacher mentor program. Fastback 319. Bloomington, IN: Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation. Johnson-Bailey, J., & Cervero, R. M. (2004). Mentoring in black and white: The intricacies of crosscultural mentoring. Mentoring & Tutoring, 12(1), 7–21. doi:10.1080/1361126042000183075 O’Neill, D. K., & Harris, J. B. (2004). Bridging the perspectives and developmental needs of all participants in curriculum-based telementoring programs. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 37(2), 111–128. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2001a). Measuring ICT Capital. Paris. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2001b). Beyond the hype. Paris: The OECD Growth Project. Peterson, R. (1996). Mentor teacher’s handbook. Retrieved November 25, 2002, from http://www. gse.uci.edu/doehome/EdResource/Publications/ MentorTeacher/Contents.html Sweet, R. (1986). Student dropout in distance education: An application of Tinto’s model. Distance Education, 7(2), 201–213. doi:10.1080/0158791860070204 Yepes-Baraya, M. (2001). Technology integration: Assessing the impact of technology. In J. Johnston & L. Toms Barker (Eds.), Teaching and learning: A sourcebook for evaluators. Ann Arbor, MI: Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan.

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enDnOtes 1

2

In Homer’s Odyssey, a wise and learned man named Mentor is entrusted with the education of Odysseus’ son Telemachus. Mentor was more than a teacher. He was half-man and half-god, the union of both goal and path, wisdom personified (Peterson, 1996). Communication protocol is a set of standards which place constant rules in order for the communication to be achieved (at logical level) among different systems. More specifically, this conventions set determines the fashion in which the transmission and the

3

4

reception of data and messages take place. Some examples are information coding, error-checking during the data transfer, as well as control of data flow. An ISDN line is constituted by two channels B of speed 64kbps and a channel D of speed 16kbps. The two B channels can transfer sound and picture and they can be combined reaching a speed of 128kbps; each channel is independent from the other. The MBONE (Multicasting Backbone) is a technology that allows the transit and access of multimedia in real time through Internet.

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Chapter 7

Supporting Peer-to-Peer E-Mentoring of Novice Teachers Using Social Software Mark J. W. Lee Charles Sturt University, Australia Catherine McLoughlin Australian Catholic University, Australia

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY Organizational Context The Australian Catholic University (ACU National at www.acu.edu.au) is a public university funded by the Australian Government. There are six campuses across the country, located in Brisbane, Queensland; North Sydney, New South Wales; Strathfield, New South Wales; Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (ACT); Ballarat, Victoria; and Melbourne, Victoria. The university serves a total of approximately 27,000 students, including both full- and part-time students, and those enrolled in undergraduate and postgraduate studies. Through fostering and advancing knowledge in education, health, commerce, the humanities, science and technology, and the creative arts, ACU National seeks to make specific and targeted contributions to its local, national, and international communities. The university explicitly engages the social, ethical, and religious dimensions of the questions it faces in teaching, research, and service. In its endeavors, it is guided by a fundamental concern for social justice, equity, and inclusivity. The university is open to all, irrespective of religious belief or background. ACU National opened its doors in 1991 following the amalgamation of four Catholic tertiary institutions in eastern Australia. The institutions that merged to form the university had their origins in the mid-17th century when religious orders and institutes became involved in the preparation of teachers for Catholic schools and, later, nurses for Catholic hospitals. As a result of a series of amalgamations, relocations, transfers of responsibilities, and diocesan initiatives, more than twenty historical entities have contributed to the creation of ACU National. Today, ACU National operates within a rapidly changing educational and industrial context. Student numbers are increasing, areas of teaching and learning have changed and expanded, DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch007

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Supporting Peer-to-Peer E-Mentoring of Novice Teachers Using Social Software

e-learning plays an important role, and there is greater emphasis on research. In its 2005–2009 Strategic Plan, the university commits to the adoption of quality teaching, an internationalized curriculum, as well as the cultivation of generic skills in students, to meet the challenges of the dynamic university and information environment (ACU National, 2008). The Graduate Diploma of Education (Secondary) Program at ACU Canberra Situated in Australia’s capital city, the Canberra campus is one of the smallest campuses of ACU National, where there are approximately 800 undergraduate and 200 postgraduate students studying to be primary or secondary school teachers through the School of Education (ACT). Other programs offered at this campus include nursing, theology, social work, arts, and religious education. A new model of pre-service secondary teacher education commenced with the introduction of the Graduate Diploma of Education (Secondary) program at this campus in 2005. It marked an innovative collaboration between the university and a cohort of experienced secondary school teachers in the ACT and its surrounding region. This partnership was forged to allow student teachers undertaking the program to be inducted into the teaching profession with the cooperation of leading practitioners from schools in and around the ACT. In the preparation of novices for the teaching profession, an enduring challenge is to create learning experiences capable of transforming practice, and to instill in the novices an array of professional skills, attributes, and competencies (Putnam & Borko, 2000). Another dimension of the beginning teacher experience is the need to bridge theory and practice, and to apply pedagogical content knowledge in real-life classroom practice. During the one-year Graduate Diploma program, the student teachers undertake two four-week block practicum placements, during which they have the opportunity to observe exemplary lessons, as well as to commence teaching. The goals of the practicum include improving participants’ access to innovative pedagogy and educational theory, helping them situate their own prior knowledge regarding pedagogy, and assisting them in reflecting on and evaluating their own practice. Each student teacher is paired with a more experienced teacher based at the school where he/she is placed, who serves as a supervisor and mentor. In 2007, a new dimension to the teaching practicum was added to facilitate online peer mentoring among the pre-service teachers at the Canberra campus of ACU National, and provide them with opportunities to reflect on teaching prior to entering full-time employment at a school. The creation of an online community to facilitate this mentorship and professional development process forms the context for the present case study. While on their practicum, students used social software in the form of collaborative web logging (blogging) and threaded voice discussion tools that were integrated into the university’s course management system (CMS), to share and reflect on their experiences, identify critical incidents, and invite comment on their responses and reactions from peers.

BaCkgrOUnD e-mentoring of Pre-service and Beginning teachers Primary and secondary school teachers have the onerous and daunting task of enabling students to develop the knowledge and skills needed for further

education, employment, and life at large. Beginning teachers are particularly vulnerable because they lack experience in instructing and managing large groups of learners, while simultaneously coping with assessment demands, curriculum changes, lesson planning, and being responsible to multiple stakeholder groups (parents, students, the community, school administration, etc.). The

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alarmingly high attrition rates of newly appointed teachers worldwide (Moskowitz & Stephens, 1997; DePaul, 2000; Williams & Prestage, 2000; Department of Education, Science and Training, 2003) may be at least partially attributed to these difficulties, which are compounded by the lack of availability of appropriate and effective induction and support (Ingersoll, 2001; Fideler & Haselkorn, 1999; McCormack, 2007). Research has shown that successful mentoring experiences can lead to beginning teachers’ increased contentment with and proficiency in teaching, which in turn can have an influence on whether or not they continue on to pursue a long-term career in teaching (Darling-Hammond, 2003; Livengood & Moon Merchant, 2004; Smith & Ingersoll, 2004; Brady & Schuck, 2005). For beginning teachers, mentoring relationships can offer support and feedback, and prepare them for successful entry into the “real world” of the school and classroom. In a review of the literature by Carter and Francis (2001), such mentoring arrangements are also presented as a process that “mitigates teacher isolation, promotes the concept of an educative workplace and … leads to the creation of understanding of consensual norms in a school, faculty or grade team” (p. 250). The authors conclude that contextualized learning that is mediated by mentors in the workplace can be effective in the development of a body of practical, professional knowledge for beginning teachers. With increased pressures of accountability, now and in the future, developing new teachers into effective educators committed to the profession is a major focus for universities and their partners, such as local, state, and national education departments and agencies. In most contemporary initial teacher education programs, pre-service teachers typically complete a series of field practicum experiences before they become qualified. It is during the practicum, when they are separated from their university teachers and classmates for the first time in their program and expected to work independently, that they are most in need

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of emotional support, as well as access to advice and feedback on their professional competencies. For many, the sense of isolation experienced while on practicum contrasts sharply with the supportive environment they have experienced at university. During this critical period, time and place constraints often act as an impediment to the maintenance of successful mentoring relationships (Watson, 2006). Online or e-mentoring can help overcome these constraints while fostering the development of open and supportive relationships and friendships that transcend the walls of the classroom or institution. In recent years, much attention has been devoted to the use of mentors during the induction phase for beginning teachers, and to the development of online forums and websites to support these teachers in the first few years of their career (see for example, Herrington, Herrington, Kervin, & Ferry, 2006; Klecka, Clift, & Thomas, 2002; Ontario Teachers’ Federation, 2007). Reports on productive mentoring strategies in pre-service teacher training, and on the use of e-mentoring in this area, are nevertheless relatively sparse (Bierema & Merriam, 2002). In one successful initiative, Watson (2006) describes an e-mentoring program that involved the pairing of pre-service teachers and practicing teachers in the southeastern United States. The program provided “rich” field experiences for the student teachers without the problems that face-to-face mentoring would normally entail. Despite some technical difficulties, students found the project to be an effective means of support in “issues pertaining to socialization, learning environments, assessment/evaluation and paperwork, classroom management/discipline, curriculum/ resource materials, time management, teaching strategies, certification, legal concerns, special needs, students, new teachers and [discipline/ subject area] specific content” (p. 175). Professional development and learning for teachers is, in reality, a lifelong, career wide, context-specific enterprise that is guided by mentors at various stages, grounded in practice and

Supporting Peer-to-Peer E-Mentoring of Novice Teachers Using Social Software

focused on continuous learning that is both reflective and experiential. Schlager and Fusco (2004) describe it as “a process of learning how to put knowledge into practice through engagement in practice within a community of practitioners” (p. 205, authors’ emphasis). In other words, professional growth requires engagement and dialogue with a community of like-minded peers, and entails social and self-critical processes. Lave and Wenger (1991) argue that learning is situated in social contexts and is achieved through interaction and practice with others with similar professional interests (i.e., communities). The term “legitimate peripheral participation” refers to the way in which newcomers become part of a community of practice (CoP) through apprenticeship, or learning from others with greater expertise. This socially-based theory of professional learning implies that individuals learn by engaging with and contributing to their communities. Existing community members learn and refine their own practice through interaction and sharing with one another, as well by offering apprenticeships to newcomers. This is congruent with the research on mentoring, which shows that the process is mutually beneficial for mentors and protégés (Huang & Lynch, 1995; Freiberg, Zbikowski, & Ganser, 1996; David, 2000; Holloway, 2001).

Peer mentoring and Communities of Practice in teacher training In a typical mentoring relationship in teacher training, a veteran or experienced teacher is paired with a novice or beginning teacher and the former acts a role model, coach, and adviser. However, there are now competing and varying definitions of mentoring that include lateral, hierarchical, and group mentoring. As contexts vary and the world of work becomes increasingly diversified, individuals may be involved in several kinds of mentoring relationships or networks of support, with mentors performing different roles. An alternative to the traditional, asymmetric mentoring approach is a

peer-based approach, in which there are partners of equal status (Colvin, 2007). In this form of mentoring, peers are matched equally in terms of age, experience, and/or power to provide task support, counseling, and friendship. As such, peer mentoring may be viewed as “a helping relationship in which two individuals of similar age and/ or experience come together … in the pursuit of fulfilling some combination of functions that are career related (e.g., information sharing, career strategizing) and psychosocial (e.g., confirmation, emotional support, personal feedback, friendship)” (Terrion & Leonard, 2007, p. 150). For the purposes of this case study, we define peer mentoring as “the acquisition of knowledge and skill through active helping and supporting among status equals or matched companions” (Topping, 2005, p. 631). Studies have found that the forms of interactions that occur between peers are qualitatively different from those that occur between an expert and a novice, or a teacher and a student. More recent research indicates that peer learning and mentoring relationships, in which the cognitive capabilities of participants are similar, can offer both cognitive challenges as well as support, because both parties are more likely to engage in mutual dialogue and shared activities. Essentially, in a peer mentoring relationship, participants negotiate working arrangements for communication and reciprocity, which may involve meetings, phone calls, e-mail, and/or other means of facilitating the exchange of ideas and the provision of feedback and support. For both parties this is a developmental relationship with the purpose of supporting the individuals to achieve a goal, in this case, to learn more about the teaching profession, and in particular, to develop their skills as teachers. In recognition of the dearth of peer-to-peer support and feedback mechanisms for novice and student teachers completing their field practicum, the present project aimed to create a technologysupported learning community among a selected group of graduate students completing a one-year,

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entry-level teaching qualification. The approach involved the creation of a supportive community where participants co-mentored one another within the context of an off-campus professional development program. Researchers commonly adopt the phrase “participation in a community of practice” as the key factor and defining quality of professional development, as networking with other practitioners is often a catalyst for change, performance improvement, and professional growth. The most fundamental point, however, is that a CoP is not a synonym for a group, team, or random collection of individuals. Mitchell (2002) defines CoPs as “… groups of staff bound together by common interests and a passion for a cause, and who continually interact … [to facilitate] the development of members’ capabilities and the building and exchange of ideas” (p. 5). The key ingredients of a CoP are mutual engagement, a joint enterprise, and a shared repertoire (Wenger, 1998). As part of their enculturation into schools, early-career teachers encounter many new and unfamiliar challenges, and they must find or negotiate their place within the school culture (Herbert & Worthy, 2001). They need to communicate and share ideas as they become part of the school “learning community.” It is a complex and multifaceted interaction of a range of personal and situational factors that enables them to form a professional identity and construct professional practice to serve as a platform for further professional growth (Feinman-Nemser, 2001). These goals are realized through dialogue, a common focus, and sustained interaction, and are achievable through a peer mentoring process in which dyads communicate, share ideas, and support each other through reciprocity and the offering of feedback and advice. Thus, the framework of a community of practice was deemed to be an appropriate basis for the peer-to-peer e-mentoring project at ACU National, as the project sought to develop and support student learning, peer collaboration, and reflective dialogue, while enabling social support for teacher professional development.

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Case DesCriPtiOn Participants and tasks As stated earlier, the project involved a restricted network of pre-service teachers enrolled in a graduate program in teacher education, who used asynchronous web-based communication and networking tools for purposeful dialogue during their student teaching experience (the practicum). The peer mentoring exercise was carried out entirely online, as although the participants were familiar with one another, having previously attended face-to-face classes together, their assignment to geographically dispersed schools made it impractical for them to meet in person during the course of the practicum. There were 19 student teachers in the cohort, whose ages ranged from 22 to 43 years. Some of the participants had already had teaching experience, and their technical skill and comfort levels varied from those with adequate experience and comfort using the Internet for communication to those who were highly proficient and felt very comfortable with technology, using a variety of web-based and other telecommunications tools on a daily basis. Over the duration of their four-week practicum, each participant was required to reflect and report on a total of three critical incidents that occurred in his/her classroom, in both text and voice formats. Each week, the participants were asked to write a 200–300 word report about a significant critical classroom incident, issue, or problem, as well as to produce a 90-second voice recording containing different content to the written report. The report and voice recording were to include a description of the context of the incident, as well as an account of both the actions of the students in the class and the student teacher. In addition, the participants had to identify questions or areas in which he/she required advice or assistance, inviting his/her peers to respond. On a weekly basis, each participant was additionally asked to respond to at least one

Supporting Peer-to-Peer E-Mentoring of Novice Teachers Using Social Software

other student teacher in writing as well as orally, commenting constructively on his/her posts and providing helpful comments and support. The author of the original post in each case was also expected to respond to the feedback received. Two instructors, including the coordinator of the practicum unit, provided a limited amount of input into the discussion, particularly during the early stages of the exercise. At the conclusion of the practicum, the participants completed a capstone task in which they each created a twominute podcast recording to be shared with the rest of the student teacher cohort, reflecting on the highlights and challenges of the practicum experience. These summative recordings were played for all participants and their instructors to hear at a face-to-face debriefing session.

Learning Community framework A social framework for learning is achieved through dialogue and participation in a community where there is mutual accountability, as members attempt to share views and seek new meanings. Wenger (1998) formalizes the dynamics of a CoP by describing a number of defining properties and characteristics, which may be used to design and/ or evaluate professional learning environments. Table 1 shows how these defining characteristics were embedded in the design of the online learning community for the novice teachers involved in the present case study.

technology Components For the text-based components of the learning experience, the participants used a blogging facility within the Blackboard (2009) online learning environment. Although blogs were originally designed to allow individuals to maintain their own personal journals or diaries and make them available for public viewing, shared or multiauthor group blogs have found numerous uses as computer-mediated communication (CMC)

tools to support learning. Such blogs can serve as powerful collaborative and shared publishing applications for generating dialogue and promoting the sharing of ideas (Lee, 2005). To facilitate voice-based peer-to-peer interaction, the students used the Wimba Voice Board (Wimba, 2008) tool. This tool allows the creation of threaded, asynchronous audio discussions that are also integrated into the Blackboard environment. A major advantage of the Wimba Voice Board is that apart from standard voice recording and playback equipment (sound cards, headsets or speakers, and microphones), it requires no specialized software other than a Java-enabled web browser. It also simplifies the process for users by providing an easy-to-use, browser-based recording and playback interface that eliminates the technical overhead of having to use separate applications to record, edit, and upload/download the audio content.

management and Organizational Practices and Concerns The project was made possible by an ACU Teaching and Learning Development grant, which provided funding for equipment, training of students in use of the technology, and administrative support. The project was of particular interest to the university because of its alignment with the overall institutional strategy of technology integration in teaching. It also incorporated one of the underutilized features of the university’s Blackboard installation, namely the Wimba Voice Board. Immediately prior to the start of the practicum, the students were issued with headsets with builtin microphones, for use with the Wimba Voice Board in their respective schools or at home. A one-hour, face-to-face training session was held to assist them in becoming familiar with how to use the web-based tools and equipment to participate in the activity. The session was conducted by a university information technology support officer, who was also responsible for setting up

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Table 1. Wenger’s CoP framework as applied to the design of the learning community Dimension 1. Mutuality

Design question

Implementation

Will the system support the required mutuality?

Interaction and mutual exchange are facilitated through blogging and voice recording facilities

Will the system support the desired competencies among participants?

Blogging and voice recording tools enable sharing, communication, and reflective discourse

3. Continuity

Does the system support continuity?

Blog posts and voice recordings generated by participants can be sustained beyond the duration of the practicum

4. Reflection

Does the system allow reflection among participants?

Blogging and voice recording tools allow participants to reflect and review their own and others’ ideas

5. Exploration

Does the system allow the exploration of ideas?

In combination with appropriate instructional scaffolding, blogging and voice recording tools can be used to allow students to explore convergent and divergent ideas

6. Coordination

Does the system support the desired coordination to enable the community to function?

Web-based tools within the context of a course management system (CMS) enable feedback, communications, storage, and retrieval of ideas and messages

7. Jurisdiction

Does the environment allow for control, moderation, and evaluation?

The online environment allows for mediation, joint control, and monitoring by instructors

2. Competence

the tools within Blackboard, as well as overseeing the technical facets of the project in general. Hard copy materials were also given to the students to take away; these contained step-by-step instructions and memory aids on how to use the various functions of the system. Two academic staff members from the School of Education were present at the training session to provide advice to the students on how to plan and structure their written reports and recordings. The learning processes and tasks that students accomplished, i.e. creation and recording of critical incidents, were integrated into their course, and formed part of the course assessment / grading system. Throughout the project, instructors were available to offer technical advice and support and to discuss concerns with students. They monitored the blog and voice board, but generally avoided intervening directly in the discussion. A primary focus of the peer mentoring process was to encourage students to create and share their experiences using a combination of modalities and tools, as familiarity with technology is also expected in school settings. Students were paired and each was asked to provide feedback and commentary to one other student, in order

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to limit the number of interactions and time taken to engage in the peer mentoring process. The tasks set were therefore intended to serve multiple goals: to encourage reflection on the practicum experience, to foster peer discussion and supportive feedback with dyads, to extend students’ digital literacy skills, and to offer an off-campus professional development experience that would enhance professional learning. These multiple goals were understood and supported by the university instructors involved, and their role was to monitor progress and offer advice on a needs basis. For students, the main challenge was that there was much less visibility of “experts” during their practicum; instead, they had to rely on the school community and on peers. The implementation of the project required advance planning, training of participants in use of the technology, and ensuring that they had a face-toface encounter with their peer mentor prior to the practicum commencing.

Project evaluation and Outcomes The results of a formal evaluation exercise incorporating questionnaires and focus group in-

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terviews, as well as anecdotal feedback received from students and staff, attested strongly to the relevance and effectiveness of the adopted approach to e-mentoring. The use of the university’s Blackboard-based CMS as a platform for the exercise proved successful as it provided participants with both text and voice-based CMC and social software tools embedded within an environment that was perceived as safe and familiar to them. More importantly, the creation of a sense of community for students when on practicum was deemed to be worthwhile and positive by all participants. The support, mentorship, and sharing of ideas and experiences with peers on the issues and problems they faced created strong bonds between the student teachers, a sense of belonging to a wider group, and opportunities to share critical, often humorous moments. Without these human elements, the practicum would have proven a lonely, isolating, and perhaps intimidating experience for many of the participants. In particular, the participants found the sharing of voice-recorded episodes of classroom incidents while on teaching practicum to be very motivating, reassuring, and supportive. The critical success factors were the ease of accessing the voice recordings, the sense of immediacy and social presence (Rourke, Anderson, Garrison, & Archer, 1999) conveyed by the recordings, and the opportunities for reflection on critical episodes that were exchanged. The fact that the voice-based discussion was threaded and asynchronous lent itself very well to the distribution of participants across numerous, geographically dispersed schools, and their inability to hold real-time meetings. As novice teachers, the participants gained an appreciation of how the reality of school teaching means that classroom management issues are commonplace yet complex, often unpredictable and unexpected, and that they need to possess the skills and confidence to deal with these issues as they arise. In addition, by sharing these experiences they also reflected deeply on their own practice and emerging competencies in an open, honest,

and unashamed manner, knowing that their peers had also undergone difficulties as a natural part of the learning process. Skills in self-refection and critical self-appraisal are essential in many professions, and the authors of the present case believe that open learning environments in which social software tools are used to connect students, enable communication, and encourage dialogue can be used in extremely powerful ways to create learning communities in which these processes occur spontaneously.

CUrrent ChaLLenges The establishment and maintenance of online communities and mentoring relationships are becoming increasingly relevant strategies for peer support, information sharing, and the development of professional identity in the age of the knowledge economy and networked society. Applied to the present project, where pre-service teachers exchanged ideas and used information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facilitate sharing of ideas, e-mentoring within a community of practice framework served to unify the main foci of the practicum whereby student teachers engage in practice, meaning making, and identity formation. By engaging with one another, tuning in to each other’s experiences, and sharing expertise, they become active members of and contributors to a community, and at the same time critically reflect on and refine their own skills. It is hoped that these relationships will continue to endure well beyond the duration of the practicum and provide the foundation of lifelong professional networks. Universities and their respective colleges and schools of education, in partnership with schools and school systems, should become more involved in the induction process of beginning teachers to ensure a smooth transition of teacher education graduates into the workplace, as the changeover from being a student teacher in a university cli-

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mate of peer support and encouragement to being an inexperienced graduate teacher alone in a classroom can be a harsh and unexpected “reality shock” (Herrington et al., 2006). Such partnerships have the potential to extend and enrich the ideas encountered in pre-service education, providing a more coherent form of professional growth (Feinman-Nemser, 2001).

future Directions While the participants in the project at ACU National’s Canberra campus rated the voice-based aspects of the activity very highly, they were less excited about the use of the blog, which they had to use to produce written accounts of the critical incidents. In this sense, they felt there was overlap in the activities, and some did not fully understand the distinction between the blogging and voice recording components. The purpose of the blogging component was to write a 200–300 word report, while the voice board was to be used to create a 90-second recording containing different content to the written report, but on a significant incident, issue, or problem that occurred during the relevant week. In future iterations of the project, the facilitators would consider a similar structure for describing the teaching incidents on the audio recordings, but focus on critical reflection in the blog posts, together with links to theories that could be applied to classroom management. Furthermore, each student teacher had to identify questions or areas in which he/she required advice or assistance, inviting his/her peers to respond. Not all participants asked questions of others, but some did so using the blog. Each participant was initially paired with another student teacher and asked to liaise with and provide feedback to this one individual, but participants chose to reply to more than one person, according to their level of interest in the matter. This situation was in fact more productive than the paired responses that had originally been planned, and generated a larger volume of posts and comments. The students

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appeared to be quite open and ready to respond to one another, particularly when they had had similar experiences. For this reason, set pairing of students is not a feature that the facilitators are likely to include in future project iterations. It was hoped that the participants would comment constructively on one another’s posts and provide helpful comments and support. This presented a major challenge, as it called for them to consider theoretical aspects of classroom management prior to providing informed advice. Many of the participants had limited success in achieving this goal. They admitted that they were not always able to provide helpful comments, but most of them displayed empathy in their posts. In order to ensure better outcomes in this area the next time the project is run, the project facilitators may intervene to ensure that the quality of feedback goes beyond expressions of sympathy to critical application of theory to practice. This would require instructors to monitor the discussion more frequently and provide better scaffolding in the form of hints and prompts on the voice board and blog. The discussion areas (voice board and blog) themselves could also be better organized by incorporating some structure to assist participants in documenting and sharing their thoughts and experiences. In their debriefing meeting, members of the project team unanimously agreed that it would be valuable to involve more experienced teachers as expert e-mentors in future runs of the activity. In addition to the support provided by the participants’ peers and school-based mentors, the expert mentors could provide specialist, objective advice to the novice teachers in a non-confrontational manner. Herrington et al. (2006) report on the design of the BEST (Beginning and Establishing Successful Teachers) website, which provides an authentic learning environment in which beginning teachers investigate and receive support for problems and issues that have been identified as being critical for the success of beginning teaching. A mentor who is an “exemplary teacher” as

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recognized by the Australian College of Educators (2007) is assigned for each major issue. A similar strategy could be adopted for the project at ACU National, whereby topical areas such as classroom and behavior management, teaching and learning, assessment and reporting, special needs, professional responsibilities, and parent relations could be used as “opening threads” (Gutke & Albion, 2008) for the voice and text-based discussions. Subsequent topics would then emerge as the participants add to the online discussions on the blog and voice board. Specific training and development opportunities, both face-to-face and online, could also be arranged according to the needs arising out of the discussions. Last but not least, in the future, the project team members plan to investigate the use of other tools such as user-generated video (through vodcasts or video sharing/streaming applications) (cf. Lee & Wu, 2006; Wu & Kao, 2008) and social networking sites such as Facebook (cf. English & DuncanHowell, 2008), with a view to further enhancing and expanding the technology framework used to support the e-mentoring exercise.

LessOns LearneD The case study has implications for tertiary educators responsible for facilitating industry or field practicum placements as part of a program of study, irrespective of the academic discipline. Today, careers are no longer well defined and predictable, and demand a range of generic abilities and socio-communicative competencies. Collaborating, giving and receiving peer feedback, and engaging in constructive commentary on others’ performance are skills that are required in many professions including law, business, and management (Finlay-Jones & Ross, 2006; Whiting & de Janasz, 2004; de Janasz, Ensher, & Heun, 2008). The peer mentoring relationships that operated in the present case honed participants’ self-awareness and reflective and collaborative/communicative

skills, while developing a range of digital literacies. The increased importance of personal and professional digital connectivity is evident in the organizational learning and recruitment strategies being adopted in many businesses and institutions, with flexible, technology-mediated solutions continually growing in popularity. The use of social software tools enables improved communication, creation of peer networks, and scope for reflection on professional experience. For educators wishing to implement a similar type of peer-to-peer learning or e-mentoring exercise, it is recommended that participants are trained well in advance, that the goals and expectations are made explicit to them from the outset, and that an environment is established where there is clearly a need for mutual support and interdependence. Participants must be empowered to take responsibility for their own learning, as well as being encouraged to play an active role in others’ learning trajectories. Unless they are given a stake in and ownership of the community, their interactions may not progress beyond socialization and superficial conversation to result in the types of peer support, reflective dialogue, and collaborative knowledge building that are desired. Peer-to-peer e-mentoring can facilitate professional learning and networking without the limitations of space, time, or geographic location, as well as enabling connectivity with local and global communities. In addition, the asynchronous dimension of online communication can foster thoughtful and reflective interaction, which is essential to the development of professional expertise. However, with respect to personal contact, there are some limitations of the online medium. For instance, mentees and novices learn from experts and peers by observing and modeling behaviors, and by receiving immediate feedback on their performance. In e-mentoring contexts, role modeling is a dimension that is often lacking, although there are compensatory aspects. For example, as there are few visual cues in text and voice-based online communication, people

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are likely to have more equal status, and less bias as they are not making judgments based on age, race, or physical appearance. As ongoing and sustained interaction is needed to maintain a successful e-mentoring relationship, communication must be frequent and structured, with clear goals and outcomes, as exemplified in the present case study. Remaining challenges for the future include extending the experience to larger cohorts of novice teachers within and across campuses of ACU National, establishing informal learning links between schools and the university, and creating wider community ties that enable students to have access to a broad range of expertise and multiple perspectives. In addition, participants need to continue to expand their confidence in the use of digital tools, especially the nascent applications and services of the Web 2.0 (O’Reilly, 2005a, 2005b) era such as blogs, wikis, podcasting, social networking sites, and virtual worlds, both in order to develop their ICT competencies and classroom technology integration skills as beginning teachers, as well as to continue to engage with local, national, and international communities within the profession. There is growing evidence that CMC and social software tools, in combination with appropriate strategies and techniques, can do a great deal to enhance community building and provide not only a virtual space for a community to function, but also an enduring record of knowledge and group experience. Though technology alone cannot sustain a community of practice, it can provide affordances that enhance the communicative and collaborative endeavors of the members of such a community. In combination with careful planning and a thorough understanding of the dynamics of these affordances, technology-mediated peer mentoring holds much potential to support participants’ formation of identity and reflection on practice, in situ within authentic professional settings.

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Schlager, M. S., & Fusco, J. (2004). Teacher professional development, technology and communities of practice: Are we putting the cart before the horse? In S. A. Barab, R. Kling, & J. H. Gray (Eds.), Designing for virtual communities in the service of learning (pp. 120-153). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Smith, T. M., & Ingersoll, R. M. (2004). What are the effects of induction and mentoring on beginning teacher turnover? American Educational Research Journal, 41(3), 681–714. doi:10.3102/00028312041003681 Terrion, J. L., & Leonard, D. (2007). A taxonomy of the characteristics of student peer mentors in higher education: Findings from a literature review. Mentoring & Tutoring, 15(2), 149–164. doi:10.1080/13611260601086311 Topping, K. J. (2005). Trends in peer learning. Educational Psychology, 25(6), 631–645. doi:10.1080/01443410500345172 Watson, S. (2006). Virtual mentoring in higher education: Teacher education and cyber-connections. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 18(3), 168–179. Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Whiting, V. R., & de Janasz, S. C. (2004). Mentoring in the 21st century: Using the Internet to build skills and networks. Journal of Management Education, 28(3), 275–293. doi:10.1177/1052562903252639 Williams, A., & Prestage, S. (2000). Still in at the deep end? Developing strategies for the induction of new teachers. London: Association of Teachers and Lecturers. Wimba. (2008). Wimba voice. Retrieved November 24, 2008, from http://www.wimba.com/ products/wimba_voice/

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Wu, C.-C., & Kao, H.-C. (2008). Streaming videos in peer assessment to support training pre-service teachers. Educational Technology and Society, 11(1), 45–55.

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Chapter 8

E-Mentoring the Individual Writer within a Global Creative Community Linda Venis UCLA Extension, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY This chapter presents a case study of how the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program, which is America’s largest continuing education provider of online creative writing and screenwriting courses and services, offers individualized feedback and mentoring to 1,000’s of aspiring and practicing writers worldwide. Writing creatively is singularly private and can be isolating; the Writers’ Program’s 220 annually-offered online courses in fiction writing, memoir, personal essay, children’s literature, playwriting, poetry, publishing, feature film writing, and television writing provide access to in-depth instructor/student, student/student, and student/advisor relationships designed to help meet individual writing goals. Writing education is particularly well-suited for online delivery because writers write: students submit their work in writing; the teacher and fellow students give their feedback in writing. For students, the act of learning to write online reinforces their accountability to create in a disciplined way and allows time to absorb and respond to critiques with reflection. For teachers, e-mentoring requires unusual rigor and preciseness in order to give thoughtful feedback on each piece of creative work, and the 80 professional writers who teach the Writers’ Program online courses employ a range of pedagogical strategies to do so. In addition, the Writers’ Program provides personalized guidance and advice on writing online through its student advisors as well as an array of services, including one-on-one manuscript and script consultations; feature film mentorships for which students sign up monthly and receive “on demand” guidance on their projects; and a first-of-its-kind course limited to six advanced students in which they hold virtual internships at production companies and studios as script readers. The chapter begins with an overview of UCLA Extension and the Writers’ Program’s history, mission, products, services, and managerial structure, and then describes the origins and current status of the Writers’ Program’s online curriculum and educational services. The ways in which writing education comprises a near-perfect match for a virtual delivery system are explored, followed by a discussion of what makes Writers’ Program’s DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch008

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E-Mentoring the Individual Writer within a Global Creative Community

products and services uniquely suited to deliver e-mentoring for a global, mostly post-baccalaureate student body who puts a high premium on results and quality of interaction. The chapter next outlines how clear expectations, course design, lectures and critiquing guidelines ensure successful response to creative work (instructor/student and student/peers), and then focuses on “best practices” techniques and strategies that online Writers’ Program instructors use to shape and deliver critiques, including a common critiquing vocabulary and methodology, use of technological tools to provide sustained, personalized feedback, and ways to cultivate the individual writer’s sense of place in the global literary and entertainment communities. The chapter concludes by addressing technological, pedagogical, and economic challenges and future directions of e-mentoring aspiring creative writers and screenwriters.

BaCkgrOUnD UCLa extension: history, mission, Products/services, and role in the Community Serving students in Southern California since 1917, UCLA Extension is one of America’s largest and most comprehensive continuing higher education providers and is the community outreach arm of University of California at Los Angeles. Each year, UCLA Extension provides 4,500 primarily post-baccalaureate courses, conferences, and programs to 60,000 adult learners who seek career development and personal growth. The institution possesses an unusual profile among university-based continuing education programs: it is completely self-sustaining and receives no state funds; 95% of its offerings carry only continuing education credit and are therefore not UCLAtransferrable; and it does not grant degrees. Driven by the mission to “provide knowledge and connections to help people achieve their personal and professional goals,” UCLA Extension’s business model is “entrepreneurial education,” offering UCLAAcademic Senate-approved courses designed to meet the needs of “education consumers” who want to improve job prospects, change careers, acquire new knowledge and skills, and explore their creative sides. A recent analysis by a group of MBA students from Pepperdine

University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management sought to measure UCLA Extension’s impact on the Los Angeles economy, and using a conservative formula, calculated that the institution contributes $250 million annually, primarily through increased earning power of its students. Accordingly, the viability of many of the courses and programs reflect current economic, business, and social realities. When the real estate market boomed, so did interior design, landscape architecture, and real estate certificate programs; when the technology bubble burst, enrollments in technology-related engineering and business courses fell. After the attacks of 9/11, students sought out arts courses to find meaningful modes of self-expression. During tight economic times, UCLA Extension traditionally sees an uptick in enrollments in UCLA degree-transferrable courses and hot-button areas which offer new career opportunities. Most courses are held in the evenings and weekends at UCLA, satellite locations in Westwood and downtown Los Angeles, and online to accommodate adult learners’ schedules. A pioneer in distance learning, UCLA Extension carried 1,040 online courses with 18,148 enrollments in 2008, which comprised 22.35% of the institution’s total enrollments. UCLA Extension online students come from all 50 states, and in 2008, from 43 countries internationally. Currently, 23 certificate programs are available online.

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UCLa extension Writers’ Program history UCLA Extension offered its first creative writing class in 1918 and the Writers’ Program was formally established as an academic unit in 1964. Today, it is the largest university-related creative writing and screenwriting continuing education writing program in the United States and generates $2.75 million in enrollment income annually. The Writers’ Program is one of five academic units within the UCLA Extension Department of the Arts.

Products and Services The UCLA Extension Writers’ Program offers 530 open-enrollment courses onsite and online annually in novel writing, short fiction, personal essay, memoir, poetry, playwriting, writing for the youth market, publishing, screenwriting, and television writing. Every year, the Writers’ Program trains upwards of 4,000 creative writers and screenwriters at all levels of development whose aspirations range from personal enrichment to professional publication and production. At the core of the design of the curricula and related services is the awareness that writing is a highly individualistic, artistic act and that connecting students to their writing aspirations requires, first and foremost, that courses guide students to conceptualize, generate, shape, and refine their writing projects. To this end, the Writers’ Program offers a curricula of considerable scope, depth, and flexibility (students can enroll in a single one-day course or a full load) and provides broad access (open enrollment; onsite and online delivery options; classes available in the evenings, on weekends, and daytime), which allow writers at all levels to customize a course of study to meet their abilities, needs, goals, and lifestyles. Consistent with most of UCLA Extension offerings, all of the Writers’ Program courses are approved by the UCLAAcademic Senate for continuing education

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credit, but only three specific introductory courses in playwriting, poetry, and short fiction writing carry UCLA-transferrable credit. In addition to individual courses at the beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels, the Writers’ Program offers certificate programs in creative writing, screenwriting, and television writing; a four-day intensive Writers Studio which attracts participants worldwide; nine-month master classes in novel writing and feature film writing; script and manuscript consultation services; literary and screenplay competitions; and free public events such as Writers Faire, ArtsDay LA, and Publication Party, which allow aspiring writers to extend their writing education and network with the literary and entertainment communities. In all aspects of the Writers’ Program, the goal is to provide post-baccalaureate students, for whom the premium is on what they learn, with high quality writing education and services that help them fulfill specific writing goals. Critical to this enterprise is an instructor roster of 250 part-time teachers, all of whom are professional writers or who work in writing-allied fields such as publishing, literary management, and film and television development. In addition to Los Angeles-based instructors, the Writers’ Program engages writers from around the country to teach in its virtual classrooms. All instructors receive several kinds of practical training before their first class. New onsite instructors observe at least one evening of a class similar to the one they will be teaching; enroll in UCLA Extension Instructor Development workshops, which cover topics such as creating syllabi and course materials, evaluation practices, and communication techniques; and attend one or more new instructor orientations. For online teachers, the UCLA Extension Distance Learning Unit provides a five-week training course which trains them to use Blackboard and guides them to adapt their materials to the online environment. New online hires also observe in session classes and receive written guidelines for effective, efficient virtual

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teaching of creative writing and screenwriting. As with all UCLA Extension instructors, none have tenure and most work full-time in their fields, sharing their expertise virtually and in brick and mortar classrooms after their own work day has ended.

Management Structure Institutionally, the Writers’ Program sits within the Department of the Arts. The Program Director of the Writers’ Program holds a dual appointment as the Director of the Arts; an administrative assistant supports both positions. With an annual income of approximately $10 million, the Arts is composed of six academic units: Architecture & Interior Design, Entertainment Studies & Performing Arts, Landscape Architecture, Visual Arts, and Writers’ Program. The Director reports to the Dean of UCLA Extension, who in turn reports to the Executive Vice Chancellor of UCLA. The Program Director is responsible for all academic planning, instructor recruitment, evaluation of courses and teachers, fiscal viability, and marketing. The Program Manager oversees the unit’s budgets, marketing materials, website, and community partnerships, and supervises a staff of six, who are charged with implementing the Program’s numerous courses and events, providing administrative support for teachers, and advising students. Within the context of these roles, the Writers’ Program employs a strong team approach to achieving academic and financial success. Because writing is a creative and intimate act, it requires “high touch” management on the macro and micro levels: between staff and students, between teachers and students, between teachers and staff, and among staff members themselves. In the management of online courses specifically, the Distance Learning unit employs Course Managers with strong customer service skills who work with students and staff to resolve any technological difficulties.

Case DesCriPtiOn Origins and Current status of Writers’ Program Online Curriculum and services In 1995, the Writers’ Program launched its first online course: Fiction Fundamentals. Eight intrepid students and an adventurous, tech-savvy writerteacher e-mailed Microsoft Word attachments back and forth from their personal e-mail accounts. There were various technical glitches—and no editing capabilities, mechanisms for sharing work, or live chats—in short, no real way to replicate the live classroom. Since the Writers’ Program was an early provider and no other programs at UCLA Extension offered online courses, there existed few models and no institutional support services. Despite this rather existential beginning, the Writers’ Program administration intuited that the online delivery system held tremendous power for the future of education, and that the Program’s open enrollment, large-scale, and in-depth creative writing and screenwriting curriculum had a place in it. The leadership anticipated that technology could create a broadly accessible way to study all fields of creative writing and screenwriting so that aspiring and practicing writers would no longer be restricted by geographical location, physical health, or family and work responsibilities. Finally, a virtual classroom devoid of rental fees and the cost of AV, copying, delivery charges, and instructor parking—plus the overhead on these expenses—held real fiscal attraction. Thirteen years later, the Writers’ Program offers approximately 220 online creative writing and screenwriting courses annually, as well as an array of other online programs and services, including certificate programs in fiction, creative non-fiction, and feature film writing which provide a structured course of study and benefits such as free online one-week courses and manuscript and script consultations upon completion of coursework; a new online screenwriting mentor-

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ship service for which a student can sign up one month at a time to receive one-on-one guidance on his/her individual project; a first-of-its-kind course limited to six advanced students in which they virtually intern at production companies and studios as script readers; manuscript and script consultation services which pair the advanced student writer with full draft in hand with a professional writer who provides detailed notations and verbal feedback on the work; eligibility for the UCLA Extension Screenplay Competition and James Kirkwood Literary Prize; and the opportunity to participate in Cyberhouse, a virtual open house. The technical requirements are, by design, modest. Students only need a PC or Macintosh computer and a reliable Internet connection. UCLA Extension’s Course Manager Wayne Wong says, “Students do not have to be a tech wizard to take an online course; however, online students do need to feel comfortable with the technology of email, the Web, and opening and sending file attachments.” Except for teachers who incorporate live chat, the online class format is asynchronous, so students can participate at any time of day or night. Writers’ Program student Rebecca from Boston, MA, notes that logging in at will is an advantage: “As a working professional in film and TV, this is a fantastic way for me to take classes on a hectic schedule. Being able to check an online board and correspond via postings is great to fit in at odd hours of the day.” A recent and somewhat surprising twist is that Writers’ Program receives over 30% of online enrollments from Los Angeles County. Clearly, in addition to allowing students to avoid the city’s legendary traffic and save money on gas and parking, the real pluses of online learning are prompting increasing numbers to migrate to cyberspace.

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“Writers Write”: Unique suitability of Writing education to the Online Delivery system To write is a deeply internal, solitary act of the individual imagination. With the exception of those who serve on staff of television shows, writers spend most of their time alone, in front of a computer, creating and controlling whole fictional worlds. It is can be exhilarating but also lonely, hard, and isolating, calling to mind Gene Fowler’s quotation: “Writing is easy. All you do is stare at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” For people who aspire to write—and many practicing writers too—writing courses offer support, a community of like-minded peers, and most importantly, specific feedback on one’s work. Writing education is particularly well-suited for online delivery because the process is also the subject matter: students submit their work in writing; the teacher and fellow students give their feedback in writing. As well, the act of learning to write online reinforces accountability to oneself to create in a disciplined way. For the instructors’ part, the online format requires them to offer thoughtful, in-depth critiques. According to screenwriting instructor Karl Iglesias, “The biggest advantage when it comes to [online] critiquing is that it is more thorough and permanent.” The asynchronous nature of the class allows time for students to absorb and respond to these critiques with reflection, and they can also save all the written lectures and feedback and delve into them at will. By comparison, the onsite experience can be more ephemeral as students listen to on-thespot critiques, which often cannot be processed as effectively, especially when they are taking notes simultaneously. As Writers’ Program student Julia of the Netherlands puts it: “People tend to formulate their questions well and the teacher has

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more time to respond to those questions. There’s less rushing through material and more in-depth study and discussion.” Online writing education also offers the virtue of relative anonymity, which often enhances one-on-one relational interactions. Not only with genres that deal with overtly autobiographical material such as memoir writing and the personal essay but, indeed, with all forms of creative work, critiques mediated by time and physical distance are often more direct and honest. Writers’ Program student Craig from Raleigh, North Carolina notes: “I feel the anonymity to be a positive thing. Conversations and comments feel more frank than one might encounter in a face-to-face classroom setting…Online we’re brought together without pretenses so there’s no need to feel nervous or uncomfortable.” Julia adds, “The anonymity of the virtual classroom makes habitually shy writers braver; we dare to ask questions, to write things we may normally keep to ourselves, and critique in a more honest way.” Fiction writing instructor David Borofka describes another advantage of the absence of face-to-face critiquing: “…the instructor and student do not have to deal with the awkward social dynamic that can accompany honest criticism or praise of a student’s work. Especially in the context of a more extreme assessment (when a story is truly bad or really, really good) the student may be able to remain a little more anonymous or objective regarding his or her own work.” Moreover, the anonymity of online writing education keeps the spotlight on the work itself; there exist far fewer—however unconscious— distractions of age, race, gender, or physical condition. Writers’ Program student Susan practiced corporate law until forced to retire due to worsening multiple sclerosis. Now a published poet, Susan started taking creative writing classes online because the unpredictability of her disease made it impossible to know when she might feel strong and mobile enough to attend a regularlyscheduled brick-and-mortar class. While she opted

for the online format out of a health necessity, its pure focus on the writing provided an unexpected advantage: “No one draws conclusions by the older man’s wrinkled suit, rumpled hair, and scuffed shoes, or the woman in the power wheelchair who can’t type fast.” For Lia of Van Nuys, California, it ensures a merit-based critique: “The writing is judged on its own merits, the way that a publisher or reader judges it, and not based on the looks, charm, education (or lack of it!) of the writer.” For creative writers and screenwriters, access to new worlds of ideas and approaches enhances the perspective and quality of their own. Writers’ Program student and Nova Scotia native Pamela, who recently took online screenwriting courses during an extensive motor tour of North America, says, “Besides gaining insight into the workings of film industries around the globe, the melding of cultures and experiences enriches the classroom dynamics. Often we see ‘story’ the same, but through different lenses. In a culturally diverse environment there is an opportunity to take this interaction a step further since participants come from varied backgrounds, societies and ways of life.” Television writing instructor Bill Taub deliberately designs his Writing the Television Pilot course to cross borders and welcome international students: “I distilled it down to a process that would apply anywhere, whether you’re writing for Bollywood or Hollywood …I encourage my students to write for their own culture, their own society.” Beyond its positive impact on the creative work produced and the broad perspectives it embraces, the online learning environment engenders its own kind of intimacy. The isolation that writers can experience through life circumstances as well as the nature of the discipline itself often breaks down. Whereas, as Susan puts it, “We’re writers, so it makes perfect sense that we hone our skills in words alone,” having an intelligent, nurturing worldwide network of professional writer/instructors and peers just a click away can be a lifeline— for those in need of feedback on a particular

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metaphor or simply an encouraging word. Despite being alone when one writes, online access can fulfill many writing students’ “high touch” needs. Writers’ Program student Eric began taking online screenwriting courses while in Bosnia with the 28th Infantry Division at the local education center. Eric continued taking classes when he served in Iraq: “…the locals rigged us up to the Internet, think Gilligan’s Island. It went down all the time and logging on to Yahoo could take ten minutes easy, but the Iraqis did their best under horrible circumstances and we were all grateful…Life was hard over there; simple things, like keeping clean, just didn’t happen. My Extension classes were the only thing I had to look forward to.”

multiple resources and the individual Writer: Writers’ Program’s Online Products and services Scope and Depth of Curriculum The 220 annual course offerings and related services result from a process of managed growth. Enrollment patterns, student and instructor feedback, and industry market and economic trends are monitored and assessed continuously via the Program’s core mission, which in turn drives the creative process of designing and updating courses and programs. Although at first counter-intuitive, the Writers’ Program’s scale facilitates its granular, tailored online creative writing and screenwriting education in several key ways. Writers’ Program’s most heavily enrolled online courses are fiction writing (short form and novel) and feature film writing, and the critical mass of enrollments in those areas support beginning, intermediate, and advanced classes which take students through the entire process of creating, revising, and polishing their novels, short fiction collections, and movie scripts. In response to ever-more targeted needs of advanced fiction writers, recent Writers’ Program curricular options include a 20-week “works-inprogress” novel writing workshop (as opposed

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to the standard 10-week format) and an MFA preparation course in which short fiction writers polish their work, prepare submission materials, and meet virtually with creative writing department chairs across the country. Offering more than 50 online courses per quarter, four times a year, for an average of 2,500 annual enrollments, the Writers’ Program complements its core curriculum with a range of special topic, genre, and theme-based courses which allow students to focus on their discreet writing interests and needs. In winter 2009, for example, they could devote themselves to writing the science fiction and fantasy short story, creating the graphic novel, structuring the picture book, writing “the poetry of luminous things,” crafting the spec television pilot, or revising their feature-length screenplay to increase its emotional impact. Rounding out the Writers’ Program’s curriculum with the goal of meeting a wide spectrum of individual student needs are one-week online “mini-courses,” which provide an efficient, information-heavy, and relatively inexpensive learning experience. Featuring in-depth lectures and Q&A on targeted writing and publishing topics, mini-courses serve as a low-risk introduction to the format.

Beyond the Virtual Classroom: E-Mentoring Services and Programs For a global audience of creative writers and screenwriters who want their work to be the singular focus of an instructor’s review and comment, and whose work is approaching publishable or producible form, the Writers’ Program offers Manuscript and Script Consultation Services. Students can request a specific instructor-mentor with whom to study; otherwise, an advisor matches the student with a mentor based on the former’s project and goals. The mentor reads the work and provides four to eight single-spaced pages of notes, followed by a phone conference in which he/she elaborates on the notes and answers any questions.

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Several recently-launched programs extend the Writers’ Program’s strategies for offering personalized guidance to its constituency. The first is a fully-online internship for those who want to work in the profession of story analysis, wherein writers provide coverage (synopses, comments, and development notes on screenplays and other literary projects) to studio, networks, and agencies. Even though analysts now e-mail their coverage as PDF files to production companies, gaining initial exposure and attention to get that first job is still difficult for those who live outside of Los Angeles. This internship trains advanced students working from anywhere in the world to write coverage for a Hollywood story department and receive one-on-one feedback from its editors and the instructor—and therefore make those allimportant inroads into the industry. The second is a Screenwriting Mentorship Program, in which an instructor customizes a month-long course of study tailored to the individual student’s new project and its particular challenges. With continuous access to the instructor Monday through Friday for four weeks, the student develops an idea for a featurelength script, conducts research, creates character biographies, and produces a scene list.

Access to Instructor Corp of 80 Professional Writers An instructor roster of 80 professional writers teach the Writers’ Program’s 220 annual online courses in fiction writing, memoir, personal essay, children’s literature, playwriting, poetry, publishing, feature film writing, and television writing. Because online teachers are recruited nationally and internationally, students gain access to a range of expertise otherwise unavailable to them. While many instructors hold advanced degrees, the primary basis upon which they are hired is their body of published and produced work. This is a key factor for sophisticated aspiring writers signing up for Writers’ Program courses: they want feedback from professionals with “real

world” expertise. A sampling of current Writers’ Program’s online instructor credits include many dozens of novels, prose collections, and children’s books published by HarperCollins, St. Martin’s, Simon and Schuster, Ballantine, Random House, et al; short fiction, creative non-fiction, and poetry published in hundreds of magazines and literary journals, from The New Yorker, Harper’s, and Granta to The New Republic, Glimmer Train, and Tin House; prizes and acknowledgements including the American Book Award, the Hugo Award, the Walt Whitman Award, the New York Times “Notable” list, and the London Times bestseller list, among many others; and major studio releases and network television shows such as I Am Sam, Asylum, In the Mix, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation—again, to name a few. At the same time, as noted previously, all online creative writing and screenwriting teachers undergo training on the technical and pedagogical aspects of using Blackboard and observe online courses similar to those which they will be teaching prior to entering the virtual classroom. Their course syllabi are vetted by the Writers’ Program’s academic staff and approved by the chair of the UCLA Department of English or the UCLA Department of Theater, Film, and Television. The goal is for this cadre of professional writers to provide students with in-depth, one-on-one instructor/student, student/student, and student/ advisor relationships designed to help aspiring writers meet their individual writing goals.

Global, Educated, and Diverse Community of Peers Regardless of their level of writing experience, those who enroll in online Writers’ Program courses automatically join a unique, worldwide group of fellow educated adult learners from whom to draw feedback and support. Vancouver-based fiction writing instructor Alyx Dellamonica says, “I work with and know a lot of writers, naturally enough, and finding a local face to face is an

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ongoing challenge for many. The online community demolishes that barrier by allowing people from across the world to come together and make those connections, which I believe are critical to a writer’s development, particularly in the early stages of their career.” Creative nonfiction and fiction writing instructor Daniel M. Jaffe observes: “I’ve had students from several other countries and domestic rural areas where such workshops are difficult or impossible to find. This very quarter, I’ve one student living in Singapore, another in St. Thomas, and another in a small Alaskan village (population 380). Online education serves populations that would otherwise go unserved.” Most already hold BA degrees; over 30% have advanced degrees and come from many walks of professional life: medicine, education, the arts, law, finance, engineering, the entertainment industry. They are taking creative and screenwriting classes because they want to; they are internally, not externally, driven. As Mr. Borofka puts it, “They are interested and interesting people, they have stories to tell, and you will be amazed at the variety of their experience. Some have been waiting their entire lives for this opportunity: to do something they’ve always wanted to do, which is to write fiction or poetry or the narrative of their own experience.” Bringing high expectations of their classes, teachers, peers, and themselves, they place a priority on outcomes, regardless of whether they seek personal enrichment and a creative outlet or have as their ultimate goal publication or production. Instructors characterize their online students, on a whole, as more dedicated and disciplined than their onsite counterparts, largely because they must conduct all communication, assignments, and peer critiques in writing. Student Craig concurs, “You have to be disciplined and proactive to take an online class since it is up to the individual to really set aside their own time to participate. So for that reason I feel the classmates are more eager about their work and giving feedback and participating.” Thus armed with real life experience, an international perspec-

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tive, education, motivation, and the willingness to share, online students add another layer of tailored, thoughtful and informed responses to their peers’ work.

Writer-to-Writer Resources: Personalized Advisement and “High Touch” Website and Blog To return to an earlier theme: writing is a radically individual pursuit and each writer brings his/her own sources of inspiration, talents, weaknesses, ambitions, and fears to the learning process. Writers’ Program’s advisors, all of whom write themselves, possess an informed and empathetic approach to assisting students. Their priority is understanding what the aspiring writer brings to the table and what he or she wants and needs, and then do their best to match them to the appropriate courses, services, and instructors—as well as answering 100’s of non-course related questions weekly ranging from the relative value of MFA programs and how to overcome writer’s block to how to acquire literary rights and get an agent. If the Writers’ Program doesn’t offer what the students want, the advisors try to help them locate who or what entity does. In addition, the Writers’ Program’s website (www.uclaextension.edu/writers) simultaneously reinforces the global community and the individual writer’s place in it: “You are here, you are taking courses, and this can be your success story—you can have your work published or produced; you can win awards and competitions.” Updated several times a week, the website reiterates— through timely articles on writing-related issues, Q and A’s with instructors, links to course listings, instructors’ biographies and teaching statements, links to the many free events the Program hosts or attends throughout the year, writing tips, and ongoing instructor and student success stories— that the person facing the computer screen alone in a room is, in fact, part of a thriving, engaged community who does get its work into the world.

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The website celebrates first publications in small journals alongside “high visibility” accomplishments such as the feature films Australia and Pirates of the Caribbean written by alumnus Stuart Beattie and Twilight adapted by alumna Melissa Rosenberg, thus reminding writers that they are part of a worldwide continuum of creative growth, training, and process, and that their inevitable frustrations can be punctuated by moments of success. Moreover, the Writers’ Program blog continues the conversation and engagement at www. uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com.

key strategies for e-mentoring the Creative Writer and screenwriter Clarity of Expectations, Course Design, Lectures, and Critiquing Guidelines All the positive features of studying creative writing and screenwriting online—the wealth of well-considered feedback, flexibility to complete work within any given week, the 24/7, worldwide feedback loop and community, and the benefits of relative anonymity—must be built on a strong foundation which keeps students organized, responsible, and secure. There exists a delicate, conscientiously-monitored balancing act at the heart of online writing classes, part of which involves the students understanding that Writers’ Program teachers are, first and foremost, professional writers, and while their generosity as teachers is considerable, it cannot be boundless. To support its teachers’ need to maintain boundaries, the Writers’ Program’s administration advises them to use the various facets of Blackboard to communicate with their students or to open an email account limited to the course’s duration instead of conferring via their personal and office emails and phones. The other part of this balancing act is that instructors are expected to and want to give students generous ongoing attention. As practitioners, Writers’ Program instructors understand the per-

sonal risk-taking involved in expressing oneself creatively, and that without regular guidance and support—particularly in the online environment— neophytes can grow discouraged and fade away. Moreover, for all the positives of written feedback and discussions, teachers can neither use nor read facial expression, tone of voice, and other nonverbal clues; thus, when students don’t respond, it is not always clear if they are confused, shy, or just not paying attention. Fiction writing teacher Alyx Dellamonica describes the central challenge and key to approaching the e-mentorship of those engaged in creative work: “It sounds basic, but ‘listening’ is still the number one skill required for student-teacher relationships on the Internet. What are the students saying? What aren’t they saying? They won’t always be able to articulate their needs as well as one might hope, and misunderstandings can be hard to sort out after the fact. Studies have shown that Internet use encourages multitasking, which in turn encourages an inattention of sorts. Ensuring that you read each message, question and assignment carefully—and then deal with it in a thoughtful and complete manner—is the best way to see that each student trusts what you are saying.” Given these advantages, demands, and limitations, how is the successful e-mentoring of the creative writer and screenwriter achieved? First, teachers must establish clear expectations and procedures on the course site as well as regular communication channels so that students know what to expect and can keep their creative lives on track. Screenwriting instructor Scott Myers advises stating information on the course site in various ways: “Provide your official e-mail address on the syllabus and the course site Staff Information page. Post your schedule for responding to e-mails and providing assignment comments in Announcements and [in] the course syllabus. Lay out the concept of constructive criticism as a Discussion Board Week 1 thread-starter and as an Announcement. Some students read everything, while others do not—don’t hesitate to reiterate in-

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formation.” Additionally, teachers must be explicit about when they post lectures and comments on writing assignments (typically within four to seven days of the assignment due date, depending on its complexity); grading criteria; requirements for attendance and participation; which assignments are mandatory and which are optional; and their policies on the relative stringency of due dates for assignments, peer feedback, and exercises. Most instructors believe that adherence to deadlines, especially for assignments, is critical for the advancement of the individual writer’s skills. Not only do deadlines keep the writer on task with his/ her own writing, but also ensures that he/she will receive teacher and peer feedback on a regular schedule. To reinforce that they are present and involved, teachers usually send at least one e-mail per week, even if it’s as simple as a reminder of the week’s assignments. The Discussion Board constitutes the most vibrant means of both managing and fulfilling the course expectations. In addition to being the place where students post their written work and give feedback on their peers’ work, the Discussion Board contains any number of other forums which teachers create to keep their students informed, stimulated, educated, and engaged. Some forums are designed to spark exchanges around weekly quotations or current literary and film topics; some provide a place to ask questions about craft-related issues that bubble up throughout the week. Still others are used for circumscribed weekly assignments. Whatever their forums’ design and intent, teachers best serve their students and themselves when they spell out the manner in which they will interact and how often—with the minimum requirement being every 48 hours to ensure instructor presence and involvement. On her Writing the Intermediate Short Story syllabus, for instance, fiction writing instructor Corrina Wycoff states: “I will log in to the classroom at least 2-3 times a day, 6 days a week (I’m not online on Sundays). I will always try to check in every morning, afternoon and night, and I will let you

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know, via announcement, if minor changes occur. I will read all posts on the discussion boards and respond whenever appropriate; however, if I see a good conversation going on between classmates, I may not join in because it can sometimes stifle the process.” Second, a detailed syllabus is critical to educating online creative writers and screenwriters successfully—they need to see their learning trajectory from Week One to Week Ten. Teachers plan and upload their courses in advance, though most post their lectures, readings, and assignments weekly; this prevents students from working ahead, which some instructors believe undermines their natural progress, and impels them to check the site regularly—which in turn helps to sustain their involvement. Reading and writing assignments are laid out for each week of the class with dates attached, and as noted above, it is optimal for the teacher to provide those assignments in multiple ways—not only on the syllabus, but also by announcements on the front page of the course site and via weekly e-mail reminders. Mr. Borofka says, “Remember: the more specific you can be, the more likely you are to get back the kind of student response you’re hoping to see.” Third, written lectures form an essential component of the e-mentoring experience, and even the most charismatic teachers cannot escape the necessity of writing out their presentations so that they complement the workshops and any assigned texts. These lecture materials serve as a permanent record and point of reference for students as they undertake the process of developing their own projects; they can reflect on the material in a way that is impossible from notes written on-the-spot in an onsite classroom. And because instructors can track who reads the lectures, they are able to assess whether students are confused because they haven’t done the reading or because they don’t grasp the concepts—and therefore offer more personal assistance. While it might seem natural for writing teachers to write out their lecture material, doing so often comprises the most burdensome

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part of online teaching for them. Mr. Borofka advises envisioning online lectures as if they were “talks you’ve been asked to give in some sort of public forum.” Mr. Myers tells online writing teachers that their lectures “must represent a clear and organized articulation of how you approach the subject matter at hand. In addition, you want to make the pages as readable as possible – feel free to use underlining, bold, and italics to make your points! Finally, you want your lectures to be entertaining—that’s right, the same effect you try to achieve when you write your own scripts. All of this takes time. Make sure you give yourself plenty of it.” Finally, new creative writers and screenwriters need precise guidelines for delivering and receiving feedback so that they learn to respond constructively and productively to their peers’ work as well as to their own. Mr. Myers notes, “This is especially important in an online class where, once a student clicks on the Reply button, whatever comments they write are posted in black-and-white for all to see and for posterity (unless you choose to remove them).” Because the quality and intent of feedback a student gives and takes within the workshop community wields a huge impact on his/her evolution as a writer, the more exacting critical tools students acquire, the better. For example, screenwriting instructor Andrew Osborne states in his Rewriting the Screenplay syllabus that “developing a vocabulary to discuss the flaws and strengths of another student’s material will improve your ability to honestly judge the relative merits of your own work.” Other techniques Writers’ Program instructors recommend include focusing on the technical aspects of the work and not an evaluation of the psychology of the writer (“address the work, not the writer”); assuming the stance of a careful and interested reader whose suggestions the writer can use for the next draft or into other pieces; and when identifying flaws, search for some concrete ways to address them. Such guidelines are especially important for those with little

writing or critiquing experience—particularly in the online environment, where the downside of anonymity and purely written communication can be tactlessness and misinterpretation of a given comment. Mr. Osborne tells his students that “the class only really works if we’re all willing to learn from each other in a civil, open and supportive environment. That means everyone must be willing to submit their work in a timely manner and give (and RECEIVE) constructive criticism.”

Best Practices: Developing a Common Critiquing Vocabulary and Methodology To guarantee that each student’s work receives equal and even-handed attention, teachers may use a standardized format for their feedback as well as develop a common critiquing vocabulary for students to use. Intermediate and even advanced students benefit from reviewing the fundamentals of their chosen genre and adopting the same basic criteria for commenting on their peers’ submissions. When teaching her specialty, science fiction and fantasy writing, Ms. Dellamonica uses the Turkey City Lexicon, a well-established critiquing tool which helps students be aware of common writing pitfalls made in the speculative fiction genres. When shaping and delivering the critiques, it is a best practice to employ a predictable methodology—the specifics of which vary among instructors. Mr. Jaffe first summarizes the piece so that the student can see what he regards as its focus: “If the student intends to write about “life”, but I read the piece as about “death”, the student better know this difference in perception, which will color all my comments.” He points out its strengths, followed by noting what could be improved and possible alternatives, but “always leaving the ultimate decision to the student writer.” Mr. Taub follows a similar process and requires that his students do the same when giving notes to their peers: “I insist that the feedback be geared to helping the student create the work THEY want to

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create, not steer them in the direction of executing it the way I or any of the other students would execute the same premise or concept.” Alternatively, screenwriting instructor Chrys Balis delivers her feedback primarily through a series of questions which she characterizes as a “somewhat Socratic approach” aimed at leading students to arrive at their own answers: “They are the questions a professional screenwriter asks herself when sitting down to address material. I ask them [the students] these questions not only to get them thinking of the answer but to get them accustomed to asking questions of that ilk on their own.” Further, Ms. Balis uses phrases such as “I suggest” and “in my opinion” and “consider this food for thought” in conjunction with “constructive notes that spare nothing in terms of analysis.” Such an approach defuses possible defensiveness while at the same time honing in on what needs work.

Best Practices: Strategies and Techniques for Critiquing the Individual Writer’s Creative Work To ensure that each student receives the highest quality analysis of his/her work, online creative writing and screenwriting teachers adapt traditional strategies or develop new ones to accommodate the medium. It is particularly important to find ways to counteract the loss of nuance of tone of voice, physical gestures, and eye contact to help keep students tethered to the critiquing experience—to not let the anonymity of the online classroom be an excuse for students to disengage when their work is review. Mr. Jaffe uses the simple and effective technique of calling the student by name every single time he addresses him/her online: “This avoids confusion as to whom I’m addressing, and also personalizes my response. I attempt to use a conversational tone in my writing so as to counter the formality and distance inherent in online communication.” Teachers also remind the class of the medium’s limitations and reinforce the need for mutual respect and specific-

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ity. Ms. Wycoff tells her students: “…please bear in mind that in working online we aren’t able to communicate the way we do in person (through voice intonation, facial expression, and gestures), so it’s important to make an extra effort to be polite and respectful. Comments and critiques should be between 125-300 words, but I do look for more than simple responses like, ‘Great job!’ or ‘I enjoyed this.’” Students new to the critiquing process are best served by notes delivered in a clear, digestible way. Ms. Balis says, “I liken it to Legos—there are two kinds: the ones that have small pieces and allow for very intricate assemblies and those made for littler hands that are bigger, simpler and are able to build a finished product in a more simplified way.” Of course, the tools of technology give online writing teachers exceedingly discipline appropriate ways to formulate and maximize individual critiques, both for line-editing and other forms of more granular feedback as well as for overall assessment of a piece. Ms. Dellamonica is among the instructors who incorporate close reading into their critiques: “I do a HTML ‘mark-up’ of a few paragraphs of each student story, where I’ll highlight some phrases with bold text and cross out others using the strikeout font, as a means of graphically displaying the weaknesses and strengths of their prose.” Teachers also engage the “Comments” and “Track Changes” functions in Word for marginal notes and in-text editing, and it is common practice to respond to specific passages by cutting-and-pasting a section of student work, and then addressing it in the space below. Other teachers avoid embedding responses by pedagogical design. Notes Mr. Taub, “I much more believe in what I call ‘top sheet’ notes—where I encourage an overall discussion of plot, character, dialogue, whatever—wanting the student to come up with the fix for it once they understand the problem.” Likewise, Mr. Jaffe provides summaries, only occasionally quoting from the text or referring to discreet passages: “My approach to critiquing in an academic setting differs from my approach when

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editing in a publishing setting. My goal as teacher is to encourage student self-expression without imposing my own voice. I guide them toward their strengths and away from their weaknesses, which generally means that my comments are conceptual in nature (e.g., how about more fully exploring this aspect of that character?). I rarely line edit except for the most advanced students in the most advanced courses, i.e., for work that is nearly publishable.” External links and hyperlinks are excellent ways to refer the individual writer to resources that can speak directly and instantaneously to their personal writing challenges and aspirations. Ms. Dellamonica sometimes embeds “a hotlink to a useful and relevant article within a critique.” Links can also simultaneously advance a writer’s piece and extend his/her knowledge of the canon. Mr. Borofka says, “One of the great benefits of responding to a writer electronically is that I can also include hyperlinks to other examples within my response. So, if something within a student’s story reminds me of ‘The Yellow Wallpaper,’ I can provide a link to that story somewhere on the web.” Mr. Taub points out that another advantage of giving online students targeted external links is that it encourages them to “try various executions for the same concept—since they are usually so much faster—they have the time for more ‘trialand-error’ experimentation and can get feedback on it during the course of the week.” Because Mr. Taub teaches a television pilot writing class which presumes a solid grasp of the one-hour dramatic and half-hour comedy formats, he uses external links in another way—to get those who aren’t quite up to speed to do so by their own initiative: “…I have uploaded the basics required in terms of formatting, and sample pilots to read, wanting them to try and come up to speed through their own due diligence.” Another distinct advantage that the technology affords is that one-on-one critiques of an individual writer’s work automatically benefit the whole class because they are posted for all

to read—and to reread. Mr. Iglesias observes, “I feel this benefits each student in that they not only learn from their mistakes but from other students’ as well.” The generally superior quality of online feedback to advance the individual writer’s artistic growth cannot be underestimated. Ms. Balis, who like Mr. Iglesias teaches both virtually and on the UCLA campus, stresses that online teaching offers teachers “the luxury of time…Time to craft a clear description of what needs work and some suggestions for change. In a real-time in-person setting you certainly do your best to provide this level of instruction to the student but you can’t be guaranteed of your clarity and eloquence and thoroughness off-the-cuff.” Ms. Balis also notes that, “If emotions get in the way of really absorbing the notes, they have a written text to come back to when they are ready to face the script revision needs.” Moreover, technology provides the means by which the online creative writing and screenwriting students can engage in an unusually sustained way with the written feedback they receive from their instructors and peers as they rewrite or expand their pieces. Mr. Jaffe points out, “students gain experience sifting through potentially opposing critiques, and implementing feedback, stretching themselves.” Another boon to budding writers is that, through observing and working with a wide range of feedback and perceptions, they cultivate analytical skills that can be used throughout their writing lives. Mr. Jaffe says, “That’s why it’s so important for students to be able to see everyone’s critiques of everyone else’s work—to see various critiquing approaches, to recognize the potential (mis)readings of any given text, and to learn strategies for strengthening work other than one’s own.” In a similar vein, Mr. Borofka posts all of his end comments for the full workshop to see, but does reserve “marginalia and in-text comments, which are much more sentence-level or immediate-reaction specific,” for the writer him/herself.

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Online instructors often contextualize comments they make on an individual writer’s piece as widely shared writing challenges and therefore reassure them that facing these challenges are a normal part of their artistic growth. Ms. Dellamonica says, “There are a number of writing weaknesses common to beginners, things I point out repeatedly over the course of a class, and I refer to these in a consistent way. An example would be ‘Scene, not summary,’ a phrase I’ll use when encouraging a writer to turn a few sentences of summarized action into a real scene.” Ms. Balis finds that most students learn a great deal from the feedback given to others, but if it becomes clear that students aren’t grasping a certain craft point or concept, she writes a mini-lecture and posts it in a discussion forum. Ms. Balis might also post relevant articles or movies in the community forum, which she then analyzes in order to illuminate the points of her mini-lecture and notes. Many online creative writing teachers use discussions of published fiction, essays, memoirs, and poetry as a common focal point, which in turn help students externalize and practice critiquing skills they can apply to their own work.

Best Practices: Beyond the Boundaries of Critique: The Individual Writer in the World The online environment gives developing creative writers and screenwriters a range of opportunities to deepen their knowledge of and participation in the literary and film and television communities as well as explore their identity as writers. To this end, Ms. Dellamonica posts “current writing-related links as I come across them in my day-to-day surfing, to help build student awareness of the wider writing community and the resources available to them.” She also says, “I always initiate a thread in the “lounge” area of my electronic classroom called “Ask the Writer,” where I specifically invite students to ask me about my artistic and commercial practices. Certain questions come

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up every term, and I create FAQ documents to address those, and move the discussions forward. This has been an extremely successful strategy.” Fiction and poetry writing instructor Liz Gonzalez sets up a separate thread on the Discussion Board she calls “The Writers’ Salon,” in which students can post personal conversations. Mr. Jaffe explores topics such as living a writer’s life and writer’s block as part of some of the online courses he teaches, and posts questions based on reading other writers’ works on these topics. He observes, “The anonymity of the online environment might actually promote greater self-expression and willingness to share private things that students need to express.” At the same time, Mr. Jaffe cautions, online teachers must work to “focus any personal disclosures back onto the student’s written work—how is it relevant? How can the student’s personal tragedies be put to better artistic use? This is a particular challenge in personal essay classes which are based on personal experience. The line between therapist and writing guide is a fine one.” In addition to fulfilling a desire that many students possess to interact in real time, live chats can constitute powerful links to a plethora of inside information and networking. Generally treated as a virtual office hour conducted weekly (at either a set day and hour or varying hours to accommodate those in different time zones), these sessions often provide an opportunity for students to ask (very frequent!) questions about the business end of writing as well as discuss a myriad of writing-related topics—from graduate school (“How valuable is an MFA and how do you maximize your chances of getting into a good program?”), to the challenges they face in their own work, to the relative merits of the latest bestsellers and blockbusters. In addition, guest speakers sometimes join these Writers’ Program chat sessions. Recently, students enjoyed “in person” interactions with Pulitzer Prize winning author Jane Smiley (A Thousand Acres), first-time Random House novelist Alex Espinoza (Still Wa-

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ter Saints), widely-published short fiction writer Elizabeth Crane (All this Heavenly Glory), and New York-based literary agent Katharine Sands. These chats are archived as transcripts, so even if students can’t or don’t wish to participate, they can read what went on.

technology and e-mentoring: Writers’ Program status report UCLA Extension adopted Blackboard as its universal platform in the early 2000’s and focused on its text-based capabilities until winter quarter 2009. At that point, the institution added Wimba, which offers voice, video, podcasting, instant messaging, application sharing, polling, and white boarding options—at this writing, UCLA Extension instructors have had access to it for only two weeks. A handful of Writers’ Program instructors worked ahead of the institutional curve and incorporated Wimba, as well as Camtasia and Captivate to create screen video captures and record accompanying narration, and report that these features enhance their courses’ visual appeal and educational toolkit. To date, however, the only measurable data available is on text-based online learning. In that regard, most Writers’ Program teachers see Blackboard as an effective means to the end of providing personalized creative writing and screenwriting education; most are not yet versed in other formats or advanced applications. They reiterate the natural match for writing courses (from Mr. Taub: “I’d have to re-emphasize I think the online technology is perfect for a writing course, since its organic form of communication is writing”), and its worldwide reach (from Mr. Iglesias: “I love Blackboard and I have found it useful in teaching students outside Los Angeles.”) They also identify a fairly common set of the advantages Blackboard offers for teaching writing: the Discussion Board, ability to post materials in a variety of formats and in advance, the archiving function which allows students to save and review critiques, and the live chat function. Ms. Balis sums

up the general conclusion: “Blackboard is (or at least has been) a very comfortable software with which to work. I am able to give all the guidance I have to give within its parameters.” Those problems which do exist are fairly basic and not usually rooted in Blackboard itself: computers with insufficient RAM, older versions of browsers, dial-up instead of broadband, and computer skills too rudimentary to deal with these challenges, even with Blackboard and UCLA Extension support. In January 2009, the institution upgraded to Blackboard 8.0; despite bugs still being worked out, the functionality is improved for writing classes. For example, Ms. Dellamonica notes that “the updated discussion groups in Blackboard have made it easier for these students to access the discussion boards even when there are a lot of posts to catch up on.” Mr. Jaffe points out that prior to the recent upgrade, “the Blackboard system did not retain word-processing formatting—no paragraph indentations, no italics, no bold. The less experienced the student, the more concerned they were with this absence of formatting; they erroneously believed that such formatting elements were at the core of their prose, so they often worried about it and sometimes attributed certain critiques to the absence of the formatting. (e.g., if only you’d seen the italics, you’d have understood my character.) Advanced students tend to realize that such elements are bells and whistles except in the most experimental of pieces, which are a rarity in an academic setting.”

CUrrent ChaLLenges To preface the description of drawbacks engendered by the text-only format: as already noted, Wimba should go a long way in ameliorating the heretofore lack of aural and visual connection— while enhancing, not diminishing, the power of the written critique. Ironically, the biggest advantage of written critiques—that they are all

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text-based—comprises its biggest challenge for teachers. First, the act of composing critiques, especially because they are posted for all students to see and kept “in perpetuity,” is much more time consuming than verbalizing them. Second, as Mr. Iglesias describes, “the student doesn’t enjoy the benefit of hearing the critique in person—eye to eye contact, sensing voice tone and pitch in understanding your feelings about the work. I find myself adding a lot of ‘emoticons’ in my critiques to make sure the student doesn’t misunderstand my feelings about the work.” In addition, while anonymity often engenders constructive honesty and feedback at a level generally superior to onsite classes, it can give rein to tactless responses by students who either lack finesse or simply choose not to exercise it when commenting on their peers’ work. As Ms. Balis notes, “While I have certainly encountered friction between students in the on-campus classroom, I think that social mores prevent all but the most outspoken students from being confrontational. A few snippy comments, here and there, requires the instructor to deftly step in to re-direct things towards a less tense discussion, but you don’t often encounter the all-out ‘You know what your problem is, Bob? Your problem is that you don’t know what the hell you’re talking about’ sorts of postings that crop up, say, every two classes or so in my experience.” Accordingly, managing purely written asynchronous critiques—without the teacher’s and classmates’ immediate ability to intervene and redirect when a student begins to take a less than constructive approach—requires extreme vigilance, deftness, and time. Ms. Balis describes: “In the online forum I have found that you have to walk the line between instructing Student A on how to provide constructive commentary and why it’s an important skill in the professional world AND instructing Student B on how to develop a thick skin since, let’s face it, it’s common to work with highly antagonistic people in the professional world…I have also found it helpful to privately

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email a student and say that, ‘I’ve spoken to Joe about delivery of commentary and will step in again if I feel it has crossed a line’…there is a spectrum of delivery allowed in a creative forum and if it proves distracting to your process you always have the option of simply not clicking on that person’s post. That’s the beauty of the online experience.” The inability to conduct fully realized discussions is another limitation of the text-only online environment. Ms. Dellamonica says, “In a face to face setting, it is distinctly easier to expand a discussion that’s going slowly, simply by asking a few careful questions and gently encouraging people to speak up. The anonymity of the online classroom—the lack of eye contact and personal interaction, essentially—can allow students to sit back and participate minimally.” Ms. Balis further points out, “In the classroom, I can let my tone and expression soften the words so that they’re best heard, while in the written form of online work I have to really focus on how I craft the wording to indicate the same thing. I can ‘force’ a student to come up with some new ideas by putting them gently on the spot, hashing things out in as quick a time as it takes to say the words. There’s creative momentum to be mined in that approach.” Mr. Borofka poses another challenge of virtual discussions: “The difficult question for me has always been the following: How does the instructor best move the online classroom from a series of dyadic conversations (instructor posing a question, each student responding directly to the instructor) to a collective conversation?” In the context of technology and its curriculum, the Writers’ Program has successfully translated every genre of its onsite offerings—with one glaring exception: half-hour comedy writing. The main reason lies in the fact that situation comedies are created collaboratively by the show’s staff— referred to as being “in the room”—where writers develop each episode as a group, fleshing out plot lines, character development, pacing, jokes, and gags. Moreover, writing funny is difficult

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under the best of circumstances, so without an in-person audience by which to gauge response to the work—among other things, laughing or not laughing—online situation comedy classes tended to fall flat. However, Writers’ Program is set to tackle this challenge anew using Wimba, and has scheduled Beginning Writing for the Half-Hour Comedy: Building Story and Outline online for spring 2009.

LessOns LearneD The Writers’ Program has been called, with affection, the “world’s largest boutique writing program,” an oxymoron that acknowledges its hand-crafted courses aimed at helping each writer to do his/her best work carried out on a fairly massive scale. As repeated surveys of why students take courses with the Writers’Program confirm, the two pillars upon which its enrollments and reputation rest are the scope and depth of its curriculum and the excellence and currency of its instructors. The ongoing goal, therefore, is to maintain the highest quality and standards for both, which the Program accomplishes in two ways: first, through continuous curriculum review; evaluations on every course and instructor; selective recruiting and extensive interviewing; and mid-terms evaluations for all new teachers; and second, through providing professional development, excellent support, and a community of peers which it actively fosters. Besides the training and high touch staff involvement described above, the Writers’ Program strives to create a sense of belonging and loyalty in various ways, including acknowledging their artistic achievements on the Program’s website, tapping them to judge the UCLA Extension Screenplay Competition and the James Kirkwood Literary Awards, and hosting an online Instructor Forum where teachers can share tips, ask questions of their colleagues, discuss problems they are encountering; as increasing numbers of onsite courses are becoming web-enhanced, the

involvement of both online and onsite instructors in the Forum should strengthen an overall sense of identity. Unfortunately, the Writers’ Program long-standing annual events which physically bring teachers together, including the Instructor Retreat and Publication Party, accommodate only those who reside within driving distance. However, with Wimba and other technologies now available, the next generation of these traditional events could include online teachers from around the globe, thus adding a fresh dimension to the Program’s rich community. Beyond factors within the Program’s control, challenges include shrinking discretionary dollars for non-degree arts education programs during a recession—though remarkably, enrollments remain fairly solid; the anticipated “trickle down” effect of the permanent cuts in state budget for the University of California on extended education statewide; and to a lesser extent, competition for enrollments and teaching talent from a growing number of low-residency MFA programs. To remain competitive in the marketplace, the Writers’ Program continues to offer consistently strong, quality programming which responds to its clients’ needs and current trends; for example, in 2007-2008 alone, the Program added 22 new online creative writing courses and 11 new online screenwriting courses to its curriculum, including such specialized topics as writing constraint-based poetry and the mystery novel marketplace, and hired 10 new online instructors. In 2009-10, the Writers’ Program will offer, for the first time, its nine-month Master Class in Novel Writing online. By expanding this opportunity to the global student audience, which includes a four-day residency and consideration of the eight participants’ work by an established literary agent, the Writers’ Program once again demonstrates how it keeps a competitive edge with its products and services Moreover, within the strictures of a self-sustaining educational program’s marketing budget, the Writers’ Program maximizes its exposure through its website and blog, the former of which attracts an

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average of 5,000 unique visitors a month, as well as benefits from UCLA Extension institutional marketing and the brand recognition of UCLA. One of the Writers’Program’s innovations aimed at generating visibility and income—and as always, guided by the mission “to provide knowledge and connections to help people meet their personal and professional goals”—is Cyberhouse: An Online Open House. This first of its kind virtual annual open house debuted in 2007, and provided four days of free access to approximately 35 online instructors, who answered questions about their specific classes and general questions about the art, craft, and business of writing. Virtual attendees could also receive personalized guidance on their writing goals from Writers’ Program advisors, and interact with former online students who recently enjoyed successes in the literary and film industry fields. Within its four-day time frame, Cyberhouse generated 20,214 hits, 661 postings, and 288 enrollments worldwide for a total income of $42,627.00. Its subsequent outing in 2008 surpassed these statistics. The origin and growth of the Writers’ Program online curriculum and services embodies, at least in part, the same creative process—a journey of

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inspiration, experimentation, revision, maturation, and collaboration—that it strives to provide aspiring creative writers and screenwriters through individualized interaction and feedback. “Each of us is at a different place on the same road, and each of us has more to learn,” Ms. Dellamonica tells her students, and that is the spirit with which the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program has moved forward in developing its e-mentoring capabilities. For creative writing and screenwriting educators who seek to forge successful one-to-one relationships with their students online, the importance of establishing clear expectations, materials, and feedback guidelines is critical. Even more importantly, teachers should strive to model the power and preciseness of the written word in all their interactions with developing writers in ways that are tailored to each student’s personality and ability. Writers write, and in many voices; online creative writing and screenwriting teachers must mobilize their core skills to reach across the expanse of cyberspace as they e-mentor new generations of talent worldwide.\

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Chapter 9

Design of an Online Community of Practice to Support an Emerging Doctoral Culture James M. Monaghan California State University, San Bernardino, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY During the initial accreditation process for California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB)’s new doctorate in educational leadership, the accrediting body, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), presented the institution with a serious concern. Reviewers of CSUSB’s proposal to offer their first doctorate indicated that the institution did not have a history of a doctoral culture. The challenge was how to acculturate students into a doctoral culture in the absence of an established doctoral culture? The university proposed to leverage their track record creating and nurturing departmental online communities of practice by creating and nurturing a similar community of practice for scholars in the doctoral program. This online community of practice was intended to provide scaffolding which was similar to that which occurs in full-time doctoral programs where faculty and students regularly interact in both formal and informal settings. In designing the online community of practice, the Office of Distributed Learning built upon the expertise developed in the successful implementation of similar communities of practice for numerous departments across the campus.

BaCkgrOUnD During the initial accreditation process for California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB)’s new doctorate in educational leadership, our accrediting body, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), presented our institution with a DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch009

serious concern. Reviewers of our proposal to offer our first doctorate indicated that the institution did not have a history of a doctoral culture. We were dismayed by this concern, as it was clear that the university did indeed have a doctoral culture among the graduate professors. However, WASC clarified that they were not concerned about the doctoral culture among the graduate professors, but rather, the absence of a doctoral culture among the pro-

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spective students. Thus, our institution was faced with a challenge. The challenge was how do we acculturate students into a doctoral culture in the absence of an established doctoral culture? The Office of Distributed Learning at Cal State, San Bernardino, charged with support of online teaching and learning at the University, presented an idea for a solution to the problem. We proposed to leverage our track record creating and nurturing departmental online communities of practice by creating and nurturing a similar community of practice for scholars in the doctoral program. Initially, we needed a way to enculturate new students into the doctoral culture. Our colleagues at the central California State University Chancellor’s office were excited about the prospect of an online community. This proposal was well received by our accrediting body as well. Therefore, working in collaboration with the CSU Chancellor’s office, we created an online community of practice to provide a social structure to support the emerging doctoral culture. This online community of practice was intended to provide scaffolding which was similar to that which occurs in full-time doctoral programs where faculty and students regularly interact in both formal and informal settings. In designing the online community of practice, the Office of Distributed Learning built upon the expertise developed in the successful implementation of similar communities of practice for numerous departments across the campus. We have constructed over twenty such environments for academic departments including online communities in the departments of sociology, world languages, teacher credentialing, elementary teaching, secondary teaching, and special education. We employed social constructivist perspective in the design of the communities. Some of the communities have been executed in the Moodle learning management system; others have been executed in the Blackboard learning management system. In this chapter, I discuss the design and deployment of the Blackboard-based doctoral online community of practice.

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Literature review Many have shown how difficult it is to complete the doctorate. Among hypotheses for how to increase the completion rate, the establishment of cohorts of students has been shown to be efficacious in assisting timely completion (Stock & Siegfried, 2006). It is hypothesized that this is due to the camaraderie and support that is offered by students who are encountering the same challenges in close proximal order. Many have suggested that electronic communities of practice may serve the same acculturating function as physical communities of practice (see, for instance, Peterson, Herrington, Konza, Tzvetkova-Arsova, & Stefanov. 2008). In designing our electronic community of practice for doctoral students, we considered work on the design of physical communities and social constructivism. Building upon the work of Vygotsky (1930), we designed a structure in which students could learn the “tools of the trade” through participation in a community led by professors. In our design of the virtual community of practice, the Vygotskian “zone of proximal development” for individual students would be the space between their professional lives at entry and the level of professional scholarship expected before being awarded the doctorate. We also drew heavily upon the groundbreaking work of Lave & Wenger (1990), in which “legitimate peripheral participation” is emphasized as an effective means of acculturation into a professional community. In our design of the online community we sought to create an environment that was conducive to Brown, Collins and Duguid’s “cognitive apprenticeship” (Brown, Collins, & Duguid. (1989). Also very influential was the work of Slotta (2002a, 2002b, 2004) and Slotta & Linn (2000) who developed the Web-based Integrated Science Environment (WISE). The WISE project established social networks of middle-school science students working toward common goals such as how to eradicate malaria. In the WISE project,

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students reflected on their data and on their learning in a collaborative fashion via discussion postings. This project was intended to simulate enculturation into the community of scientists by conducting actual science in an area where scientists and engineers have not yet discovered clear solutions. Thus, students are enculturated into the discipline by doing science, by legitimate peripheral participation. In related work, Kadirire (2007) has shown positive results via the use of instant messaging on mobile devices. Peterson, et al. (2008) have shown the viability of a Moodle course management system-based virtual community of practice for the acculturation of special education teachers. Based on these theoretical underpinnings we believed that it would be possible to enculturate doctoral students into the discipline by engagement in a robust online community of practice.

Case DesCriPtiOn Design of the Online Community of Practice We wished to create an online community of practice that would provide a social structure to support the emerging doctoral culture. This online community of practice was intended to provide an environment in which faculty and students regularly interact in both formal and informal settings. In designing the community, we recall the experience of many full-time doctoral students in a residential doctoral program. For many residential doctoral students, office space is provided near their mentor professors. The students and the professors work together in both formal and informal environments. Similarly, fellow graduate students often have the opportunity in this type of environment to interact both formally and informally. In the design of this electronic community of practice, we endeavored to use the unique capa-

bilities made available by the Blackboard learning management system to allow for the same quality of formal and informal interactions that occur for graduate students who are residential and physically co-located. However, we endeavored to go beyond stimulating physical interactions to enhancing the experience of the students in ways that could not be done without the use of these interactive Web 2.0 tools. The purpose of the online community of practice is to provide a comprehensive set of Internet-based tools through which students can connect with one another, CSUSB faculty, school partners, other experts in areas of study in the program, the substantial number of library and additional scholarly resources (e.g., electronic journals, databases) that have been developed for the program, and current professional resources available from other sources. This environment leverages the strength of the cohort to allow these discussions to occur in a holistic, organic fashion in both formal and informal ways. The CSUSB Ed.D. Online Learning Community supports a doctoral culture among the fulltime professional doctoral students and facilitates their enculturation into the discipline, particularly its research dimensions. Specific objectives are to foster: • • • • • • • • •

Connection to the professional research community Professional growth and networking Peer-to-peer sharing and mentoring Collaboration and cohort bonding Development of contacts with similar challenges Facilitation of access to information and resources Ongoing communication Reflection and analysis Program input and feedback

Our intention is to integrate conference proceedings, conference attendance, professional

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organizational memberships and electronic communications, focused interaction on conference presentations, brownbag discussions and practice talks before conference presentations into the overall design. In the implementation of the design it was expected that the community of practice would be moderated by faculty members. It was expected that guests would be integrated who represented expertise in the discipline. We also expected to implement an area to share research project ideas and a related area where students could receive feedback on proposals which would include feedback on their thesis ideas as well as conference presentations and papers. This design also allowed us to set up virtual student conferences. We relied on successful experiences designing and implementing other electronic communities of practice. In the past five years, we had facilitated the design and implementation of several learning communities to support students in departmental programs. The first one, “Coyote Nurses”, was initially implemented in 2004 to support the hybrid online RN (Registered Nurse) to BSN (Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing) program. One critical component of the design was the “coffee shop”, where students could meet to discuss nonacademic issues among peers in their cohort. Based on our experience with other online communities of practice such as the “Coyote Nurses” online community, several functions were deemed critical for the effective design of the doctoral online community. Key functions for the design of the online community included the following: • • • • •

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welcoming area for students to gather coffeeshop for discussion of nonacademic matters area for students to get information from official sources area to share professional experiences area to meet professors

• •

area that allows for enculturation into the community of professional practice area to maintain an e-portfolio

In the design of the community, it was also clear to us that we needed to use technology that would be familiar to students and faculty so that they could focus to be on the interactions of the community and not on the technology itself. By using the Blackboard course management system, which is used by the majority of students at our institution, we were able to provide a robust solution which was relatively ubiquitous for students. We then combined the familiar Blackboard interface with the established MERLOT (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching) interface to provide access to the larger scholarly community. As many have shown, (see, for instance Farooq, Schank, Harris, Fusco, & Schlager, 2007), this type of electronic community can be a challenge to sustain. Many have spoken about the need to make a website “sticky”, i.e. a website which users will frequently return to. This was one of our design challenges for this community. In order to make this a “sticky” website, we constructed an environment where administrative materials were readily available for the students. This was to encourage students to come to the site often as the resource for navigating their way through the bureaucratic hurdles that can be encountered in a doctoral program. Students could go to the site in order to get “official” information from administration and would also have the opportunity to interact with their mentors and their peers. In our design, we recognized that several constituent groups would need communication structures to enable an effective online community of practice. Our online community was designed to facilitate rich interactions between key constituent groups—faculty, the institution, doctoral students, and the larger scholarly community. Professors are a unique group in this environment, and may

Design of an Online Community of Practice to Support an Emerging Doctoral Culture

fill multiple roles. Professors may serve as mentors or as the designated faculty advisor for an individual student. The diagram below demonstrates the communication structure that is built into the online community of practice. In the diagram, the student is shown at the center of the communication processes. Arrows represent communication between groups. Each of the arrows is shown to be either unidirectional or bidirectional based on the direction of communication. Four distinct groups are represented in the diagram. Communication processes occur between the student and the groups. The communication within the social network was intended to enculturate the student into the doctoral community. Each of the groups was seen as an important contributor to the enculturation process for the doctoral students. However, we believe that the interactions between the professors and students

were particularly important. It was professors who would serve as the experienced members of the community and the students would be apprentices in the community. This doctoral program leverages the strengths of professors from the College of Education and other colleges. By design, in the community, professors from multiple disciplines were involved. The design features online tools that have been used effectively in creating discipline-based learning communities through the past decade of MERLOT development. Examples of the tools and their uses are: •

Structured online conferences recorded on a designated web site –Informal online conferencing among students—Listserv utilization by individual and multiple co-

Figure 1.

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Figure 2.

• • • • • • • •

horts—Focused interaction via discussion groups and forums; Online brown bags and other flexible opportunities for exchange; Electronic portfolios for assembling and sharing student work; Discussion groups moderated by faculty members; Scheduled interaction and ongoing access to guest experts from the discipline; Discussion groups for sharing research issues and progress; Web posting in order to obtain feedback on dissertations; Virtual library of web resources and Connections to professional organizations

In the external links area, the library plays a prominent role. Having library databases and other resources integrated into the community of practice allowed students to access one area for all of their scholarly pursuits. This resource is available 24 hours a day, integrating all campus resources necessary for doctoral work. Over 12,000 discrete students currently utilize the Blackboard Internet course management system each year in over 450 classes taught by over 250 professors each quarter. Professors in the College of Education offer a wide variety of these courses, with Blackboard components enhancing

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their courses. These tools will be utilized in many of the doctoral courses to allow for student and faculty networking, even while off campus. Our Blackboard system is a 10 server system composed of two identical five-server clusters to provide for 100% redundancy and the ability to test new software releases prior to implementation on a campus scale. Technical personnel dedicated to the system include a system administrator and a technical server specialist. Additionally, instructional designers and multimedia developers support the teaching and learning process, providing training, consulting and instructional materials development support for doctoral faculty. Thus, we anticipated a level of comfort with the Blackboard course management technology. Below, we describe the layout of the community and describe our rationale for the design. In this screen snapshot you can see various components of a Blackboard course. We slightly modified the standard Blackboard buttons to more closely align with the needs of this electronic community. Through the Blackboard screen, students were able to quickly navigate to the following areas: • • • • •

announcements faculty courses advising/mentoring meeting area

Design of an Online Community of Practice to Support an Emerging Doctoral Culture

• • •

career development Library Merlot community

Clicking on the courses button shows the catalog description of all of the doctoral courses. Clicking on the advising/mentoring button opens a page with links to groups set up for each of the advisors in the program. Clicking on the meeting area button opens the discussion board area. In this area four different forums were set up for student and faculty engagement. These forums were: • • • •

official business progress and products introductions student lounge

The introductions were a required part of the program. The student lounge was not required. As can be seen in the screen snapshot, there was quite a bit of activity in the student lounge area. However, two forums were not utilized—the official business nor and the progress of products areas have been utilized. Clicking on the Library tab reveals several resources that are germane for a graduate student. The online library instruction experience is a multimedia tutorial produced by the library that guides graduate students through the process of research. CSUSB library databases: education link takes students to the online databases that directly apply to education, such as the ERIC database. The citation resources hyperlink takes students to information concerning proper APA formatting. The dissertation templates hyperlink was designed to take students to a sample properly formatted dissertation. Clicking on the MERLOT community button brings the user to the following screen: Through this portal, students could connect with peers and faculty from across the CSU system and potentially, throughout the world.

CUrrent ChaLLenges In addition to the theoretical and technical underpinnings of the community, implementation of the community required us to consider the following social factors: • • •

procedures for maintaining camaraderie in the environment support for the environment ongoing implementation of the environment

Prior to introduction of the online community, meetings were conducted with the program coordinator, roundtable meetings with faculty were conducted and a presentation was made by the director of the Office of Distributed Learning to the cohort during a class. Subsequent to the kickoff, we engaged in a process of “seeding” the community. In this process, students and faculty were encouraged to respond to threads that we posted in the discussion area. Within the discussion board implementation, several challenges were evident. One was the nature of the discussions that would be conducted in Blackboard. Another was the ability and the determination of the students and the ability and the determination of the professors to utilize the discussion board components of Blackboard to engage in these discussions. In the initial implementation of this online doctoral community of practice, we found that several professors have interacted, on their own volition, with the cohort of students. This occurred independent of the courses that were being taught. Thus, professors who were currently teaching the students as well as professors who teach later in the program were involved. This was regardless of whether those professors were designated faculty advisors for the students. However, lack of technology proficiency on the part of some faculty became an issue. Several faculty were not well versed in the discussion board components of Blackboard. Additionally, another challenge was

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Design of an Online Community of Practice to Support an Emerging Doctoral Culture

Figure 3.

Figure 4.

Figure 5.

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Design of an Online Community of Practice to Support an Emerging Doctoral Culture

Figure 6.

how to require participation in the community of practice by the students. Lack of institutional history and lack of institutional selection of an e-portfolio system hampered implementation of an e-portfolio solution. We also found the technical environment to be shifting. During the first year, one of our products of choice for e-portfolios—the KEEP toolkit, lost its sponsor, the Carnegie foundation, and appeared to no longer be supported. Also within the first year, Epsilen was purchased by the New York Times and their pricing model became expensive for this smaller scale effort. At the time of this writing, we are augmenting the environment with a version of the Adobe Acrobat digital portfolio. Our hope is that this augmentation will solidify the use of the environment. In the initial implementation of the community, a key concern was who would be in charge of the environment. While we espouse the principles that allow for self-directed learning, we also knew that it was important for the faculty to be guiding and scaffolding this process. We found, in the initial implementation of the community, that there was some concern by the faculty that the students were dictating the nature of the emerging community

LessOns LearneD As stated above, in this community of practice, our objectives were: to enculturate students into the doctoral discipline—particularly its research dimensions, to connect to the professional research community, to connect to professional growth opportunities—including jobs, to provide opportunities for mentoring, to allow for camaraderie and networking among students, to allow for peer and professor feedback on student artifacts, and to provide a portal where all aspects of professional doctoral study, including extensive library resources, were available. At this point in the evolution of this community of practice, the majority of these goals have been implemented. The biggest remaining challenge will be to continue to foster in-depth mentoring and connection to the scholarly community. Overall, consistent with the vision for enabling a robust community of practice, this online community of practice has served a purpose of providing invaluable assistance with the establishment of a burgeoning and thriving doctoral culture among our first doctoral students. While challenges in infrastructure, enculturation and implementation continue to be present, significant progress has been achieved in the implementation of this tool for fostering a burgeoning doctoral culture.

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referenCes Brown, J. S., Collins, A., & Duguid, P. (1989). Situated cognition and the culture of learning. Educational Researcher, 18(1), 32–41. Farooq, U., Schank, P., Harris, A., Fusco, J., & Schlager, M. (2007). Sustaining a community computing infrastructure for online teacher professional development: A case study of designing Tapped In. Computer Supported Cooperative Work: The Journal of Collaborative Computing, 16(4/5), 397–429. doi:10.1007/s10606-0079049-0

Peterson, R., Herrington, J., Konza, D., Tzvetkova-Arsova, M., & Stefanov, K. (2008). Assisting Bulgarian special educators with competency development online. CampusWide Information Systems, 25(4), 197–208. doi:10.1108/10650740810900649 Slotta, J. (2002). Designing the Web-based inquiry science environment (WISE). Educational Technology, 42(5), 15–20. Slotta, J. D. (2002). Partnerships in the Web-based inquiry science environment (WISE). Cognitive Studies, 9(3), 351–361.

Guldberg, K. (2008). Adult learners and professional development: Peer-to-peer learning in a networked community. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 27(1), 35–49. doi:10.1080/02601370701803591

Slotta, J. D. (2004). Web-Based Inquiry Science Environment. In M. C. Linn, E. A. Davis, & P. Bell (Eds.), Internet environments for science education (pp. 203-231). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Kadirire, J. (2007). Instant messaging for creating interactive and collaborative m-learning environments. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 8(2), 1–14.

Slotta, J. D., & Linn, M. C. (2000). The knowledge integration environment: Helping students use the Internet effectively. In M. J. Jacobson & R. Kozma (Eds.), Learning the sciences of the 21st century (pp. 193-226). Hilldale, NJ: LEA.

Kaplan, J. (2008). The national writing project: Creating a professional learning community that supports the teaching of writing. Theory into Practice, 47(4), 336–344. doi:10.1080/00405840802329391

Stock, W. A., & Siegfried, J. (2006). Time-todegree for economics Ph.D.s. American Economic Review Papers and Proceedings, 96(2), 467–476.

Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1990). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

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Vygotsky, L. (1930). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes.

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Chapter 10

Writing a Dissertation— University of Phoenix Style Norma J. Turner University of Phoenix, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY This chapter presents an overview of the doctoral program at the School of Advanced Studies at the University of Phoenix. By providing the program and process involved in obtaining a doctorate at the University of Phoenix, both active and potential students would have knowledge about the general requirements and courses. They would also gain insight into the philosophy of the doctoral program and understanding of the program’s continual growth and development. This chapter includes information on the people and the processes, both internal and external to the University of Phoenix, involved in the successful completion of the degree program.

BaCkgrOUnD That the University of Phoenix would begin its doctoral programs as a means of rounding out its educational offerings to adult learners should surprise no one. Having been in business since 1976, the University of Phoenix (UOPX) has become one of the megaliths of adult learning institutions in the United States, reaching out to various markets on an international level. I remember the faculty meeting in the late 1980s when Bill Gibbs, who was the accountant then, announced that the university had DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch010

finally made a profit. UOPX was small then. The Phoenix faculty comprised 127 members. Today, the Phoenix faculty, one of 43 campuses throughout the world, consists of 1700+ members. The growth of UOPX resulted from hard work, trial and error, and a commitment to the adult philosophy of learning. Such growth could lead to depersonalization of the educational process, but that has not happened—at least, in the doctoral program. In a small garage in San Jose, California, a professor from San Jose State University began classes for adult learners in his garage. The professor, Dr. John Sperling, was conducting field-based research in adult education and believed that adult learners

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Writing a Dissertation—University of Phoenix Style

deserved the opportunity to learn in an academic environment suited to their experiences and work responsibilities (Apollo Group, 2004). The learners came from various backgrounds, all seeking a bachelor’s degree. However, their schedules would not allow them to sign up for courses at the local colleges or universities. From this simple beginning grew the roots of the largest for-profit adult learning institution in the United States. The vision of this school was to help adults earn degrees without having to give up their responsibilities as parents and wage earners. This vision requires a school that is dedicated to adult learning principles and a program that adjusts to the needs of working adults. The infrastructure of the school must be adapted to the working adult’s lifestyle. That means counselors and staff members work into the evening when adults need them; there are no fees for sports or extracurricular activities. Classes are scheduled in the evenings and weekends; the students take one class at a time, arranged for them in advance, in professional-looking buildings equipped with the latest technology. Classes are delivered on ground campus with online support or on an online campus, offering total flexibility for adult learners. The UOPX has forged ahead, creating an adult learning model that has been copied and adapted by many other schools. As The UOPX educators have worked and learned by trial and error, investing their resources and energy into programs and courses, adopting and adapting curricula to develop programs that would meet the objectives set forth during those first years. They never changed, even as the global environment changed. Perhaps the most fundamental challenge facing UOPX as well as any for-profit educational institution is the dual goal of providing quality education and earning a profit. Trying to achieve these two goals became more of an issue when UOPX went public in 1990. Over the 25 years of its history, UOPX had established a marketable product which has been expanded into several

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states. The educational goals of the school often seemed to be weighed against the financial need to produce a profit. Despite the perceptions, the students excelled in the studies, faculty members continued to grow and develop in their teaching ability, and stockholders marveled at the financial growth. Even during times of crisis and stress, the belief in UOPX’s ability to rebound and continue to grow never faltered.

Philosophy of UOPX adult education in Practice The School of Advanced Studies (SAS) in the UOPX began in 1999 with its Doctor of Management in Organizational Leadership program. Today students can choose from two business degrees, four education degrees, a health administration degree, a degree in industrial and organizational psychology, and a degree in information systems and technology. All the doctoral programs are specializations under the leadership studies degree. Therefore, the thread of leadership must run through each dissertation. One of the criteria for admission to an UOPX undergraduate program had always been that the individual must be a working adult, bringing to the learning experience his or her experience from the workplace. The learning culture, therefore, is one where the students and faculty learn together, sharing in discussion their experiences and research to work toward emergent knowledge. Who learns in this environment? Everyone. UOPX has no entrance or qualifying exams because its philosophy encourages an open doorway for any student; it considers itself an open opportunity school. Any student with a master’s degree, three letters of recommendation, a laptop, and membership in a research library can walk through the door toward the doctoral degree; it is up to the student to meet the challenges along the way. Of course, this creates a new set of issues: how to provide the services needed for students to succeed in a program designed for students who

Writing a Dissertation—University of Phoenix Style

have not necessarily always been at the top of their class but are striving to climb the academic ladder of success? The SAS students often represent those at the top of their profession—executive vice presidents, college presidents, independent consultants, heads of agencies—who want the doctoral degree for personal or professional reasons and sometimes both. For most, their lives are intensely busy, filled with responsibilities, meetings, travel, and the ongoing dilemmas of high office. For most of these students, going to school to earn a doctorate is not a possibility. However, the SAS has provided a program that allows students to work on a doctoral degree using Internet technology along the UOPX model. The advantages over other non-traditional graduate programs lie in the intensity of the classes which are completed in six weeks and in the integration of residencies and coursework with the doctoral courses, which allows the students to work on their dissertations throughout the duration of their programs. While distance learning has been a part of the educational environment for a very long time, Internet technology has allowed the delivery of online learning to become a vital part of the learning experience today. SAS takes full advantage of the Internet technology by offering its classes via asynchronous classes which students and faculty will claim are far more demanding of time and energy than any on-campus class. While SAS classes provide convenience and flexibility, the trade-off involves participation in substantive discussions three days a week. Students and faculty know that responsible interaction with other class members requires participation on more days each week than the required number. Because of the number of students enrolled in the program, students may or may not know their peers in each class, allowing for maximum learning opportunities in each class session. For SAS students, as for all online students, their computer is the classroom. In my 24 years with UOPX and 14 years with UOPX Online, I

have experienced four changes of educational platforms. Each change was initiated to accommodate advances in technology such as speed of transmission, increased enrollment and larger classes, and changes in educational technology.

Case DesCriPtiOn school of advanced studies: the Process of it in action From the very beginning of their programs, UOPX doctoral students are introduced to their cohorts. Because the School of Advanced Studies is an online program, the students are brought into the program in their first residency. Residencies are conducted throughout the country by fulltime faculty members who provide workshops and opportunities for one-on-one conversations and question-and-answer sessions. Meeting and associating with peers and faculty members become primary methods of demythologizing the doctoral process. At the residencies, students are acquainted with the people who will provide their most important support during their programs. Those people include their academic counselor and some of the faculty members they will encounter in their classes. The residencies also serve the purpose of helping students begin the process of self-identification as a doctoral student. Distance learning students sometimes have a difficult time seeing themselves as doctoral students. The residencies help them with that process. The student’s mentor and committee members will also provide the structure that reminds the student throughout his or her program that this program is different from any other program because all the learning must culminate in a dissertation. Having been a mentor for three years, I can share my experiences working with students who represent all points on the range of students from those who are well-organized, on target, and wellprepared for doctoral studies to those who still need

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some remediation work before they can write a dissertation. The UOPX model of the committee is fully functional—which allows the faculty to work together to the advantage of the student. The student is advised to select a committee comprising someone who is a content matter expert, someone who has experience in the methodology to be used, and someone who has expertise in APA format. That is the ideal team. However, finding faculty members who are available is sometimes more important than faculty members who have certain areas of expertise. Would that students had so many faculty from whom to choose! Technically, the mentor is responsible for teaching the dissertation courses, which are taught oneon-one, and for guiding the mentee from start to finish throughout the doctoral program on matters regarding the dissertation. Being a mentor involves a 2-3-year commitment to a student. The committee mentors are required to read the document at least twice during the mentee’s doctoral program, usually just prior to submission of the proposal to the ARB/IRB and prior to the submission of the dissertation to the dean. Any committee member will tell you, however, that his or her involvement is far more extensive than two readings. At the student’s side is the academic counselor, advising the student on courses to take, academic timelines, administrative requirements—in general, ensuring the student meets all the deadlines and processes all the paperwork needed to remain in good standing in the program. To support the mentors and committee members, UOPX has established a set of newsgroups or forums within which to interact. In addition to the Faculty Lounge, there are forums for each of the dissertation courses and residencies and forums for each of the departments. Forums exist for the different areas of the country so that colleagues can interact on local issues. Finally, each doctoral program has its own forum: DBA, DHA DM, EDD, HEA, and I/O. Each forum is dedicated to discussion on the subject of interest and is facilitated by someone from the SAS staff. Questions can

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be asked and answered. Issues can be discussed, changes can be suggested, and best practices can be shared. These forums allow for up-to-the-minute communication from the SAS staff to all faculty members and also afford a mechanism for faculty members to discuss, collaborate, and seek support for events and circumstances. For instance, faculty can put forward ideas for handling topics of study or seek suggestions for ideas and research on developing a particular topic in a course. The benefits of such collaboration become apparent repeatedly within the online forums. Chit-chat is reserved for the Faculty Lounge. Keeping up with the exchanges in the Faculty Lounge presents a challenge that only a few can attempt. I, for one, pop into the Lounge periodically to see the topics of conversation, learn the current issues of the day, and add my two cents, if I think it worthwhile. Next to the forums are the labs for students: Statistics, Accounting, Critical Thinking, Finance, Marketing, Economics, and Writing. Each lab is facilitated by a faculty member and provides a location for students to ask questions and work out problems. UOPX students follow two threads while pursuing their program of study. Students take both content courses and dissertation courses. The dissertation courses are eight weeks in length compared to the content courses which last six weeks. Students begin their programs with their content courses. In addition, each year, the students attend a week-long residency where they focus on their dissertations. During the residencies, the students plan their dissertations, putting in place their committee and clarifying their ideas which serve as a scaffold for the remainder of their content courses. As the students complete their content courses, they obtain more of the research needed for their dissertation. In between the content classes and, if possible, during the classes, the students work with their mentors to refine the problem statement and purpose statement, and then begin work on chapter 1. By the time the student begins the first dissertation

Writing a Dissertation—University of Phoenix Style

class, DOC722, the first chapter is completed, and during the course, the student works on the second chapter, the literature review. That is the goal. The student then attends two more content courses while working on chapter 3. Then the student enters the second dissertation class, DOC733, with chapters 1, 2 and 3 drafted, ready to be refined and submitted to the Academic Review Board and the Institutional Review Board (ARB/IRB). Once the Proposal is approved by the ARB/IRB, the student then begins collecting the data. Once the data have been collected and analyzed, chapters 4 and 5 can be written. With chapters 4 and 5 completed, the student signs up for the third and final dissertation class DOC734. During this class, the student plans for the oral defense, which is typically conducted by telephone conference. Following a successful oral defense and attention to any recommendations or suggestions by the committee, the dissertation is submitted to the dean where the ultimate in quality control occurs. The goal is to receive approval from the dean’s office before the end of DOC734. If all progresses as planned, graduation will be the next step. If the student does not receive ARB/IRB approval for the proposal before the end of DOC733, then the student must take an additional course or two (DOC733A, DOC733B) until approval is given. If the student does not receive the dean’s approval for the dissertation before the end of DOC734, then the student must take an additional course or two (DOC734A, DOC734B) until approval is given. The program is set up for students to complete their degree work in 3-4 years. All doctoral work must be completed in 5 years.

significant Others: an integration of support The Student’s Role As with any doctoral program, the student is fully responsible for the completion of all the

requirements of the program in compliance with the policies and procedures of the school. To accommodate students, all relevant information is provided on the student web site for reference. In addition, to their e-mail inboxes, online bulletins are published periodically to serve as reminders and e-newsletters convey any upcoming events, deadlines, and changes that students need to know. As any working parent knows, keeping up with daily schedules is a challenge. The school’s ability to communicate upcoming events provides an invaluable service to harried doctoral students whose lives are so full that their frustration levels can impede their learning experience. The more SAS does to lower those frustration levels, the more successful the students may be. Students will say that their primary responsibility is to pay for courses, but a serious response would focus on their coursework and research. The program of courses and variety of faculty members provide the breadth and depth of relevant courses within their area of study to provide the foundation for emergent learning in a dissertation. Because the courses are taught on the doctoral level, many of the students, taking advantage of the open opportunity philosophy of UOPX, struggle with some of the formal aspects of the courses. Many students need to learn academic writing and logical thinking skills which are needed for completing their courses and writing their dissertation. To this end, the UOPX has provided ongoing writing and critical thinking labs to help students develop these skills. Faculty members are also trained to assist students in learning these skills. If the student has specific needs, then it is his or her responsibility to do what is necessary to meet those needs. While UOPX follows all ADA policies, there are always individual needs and concerns that require attention. Early in the doctoral program, the student begins the selection of a doctoral committee which consists of the mentor and two committee members. The doctoral committee works with the student throughout the course of the student’s program. The student

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attempts to select a mentor with whom he or she has established a relationship or who will provide those qualities that the student believes will be most helpful in achieving the final goal. Most students never meet their mentors until graduation, if then, but the relationship between them will grow over a period of at least 2-3 years.

The Mentor’s Role Mentors are faculty members who go through a special training to become mentors. The role of the mentor is to guide the student through the dissertation process, specifically through the teaching of the three dissertation courses DOC722, DOC733, and DOC734. The mentor’s role is a relational one comprising director, cheerleader, coach, and disciplinarian. As anyone who has been through the process knows, a great deal of self-discipline is required to continue working on a lengthy paper despite the events of life and idiosyncrasies of daily living. Mentors, who know the process of writing the paper, the policies and program of UOPX, and the personality of the student, strive to pull the students through the process, capitalizing upon the students’ strengths and helping the students to compensate for their weaknesses. The mentor reads the multiple drafts of the proposal as it morphs through its first tentative phases to the final dissertation. The primary benefit of being a mentor consists in watching the growth of the students through the process of independent learning as they experience emergent knowledge. In reality, the mentor will spend hours upon hours reading drafts, talking to the student, researching information for the student in preparation for the next communication, and experiencing emotions ranging from great joy and pride to frustration and anger.

The Committee Member’s Role The committee member has a far less responsible role on the dissertation committee, consisting of

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reading the document at least twice before approving the document for submission. However, any committee member knows that his or her work becomes far more involved as the student approaches submission time and seeks that approval. Committee members are aware that their signatures on the approval lines represent their reputation. Whether they know the students or not, committee members take their responsibilities seriously, providing as much feedback as possible with each review.

The Academic Counselor’s Role Just as involved in the doctoral student’s life is the academic counselor whose responsibility is to ensure that the student remains compliant with school policies and procedures. Especially important are the deadlines associated with enrolling in classes in a timely manner consistent with financial aid requirements. The academic counselor also watches the GPA and serves as an alternative sounding board when the student is considering issues of home, school, or work. The academic counselor is also able to help when the student might be experiencing problems with any member of the dissertation committee. Generally, the dissertation committee and the academic counselor serve as a team with the student to support the student in his or her process of earning a doctorate.

ideas taking shape Every degree-granting institution has a different approach to the development of the dissertation. UOPX SAS students begin the process of writing their dissertations from the beginning of their doctoral programs. While the students might not have a defined doctoral thesis, they do begin thinking about possible topics and parameters from their initial residency. That idea forms, evolves, and sometimes evaporates, only to generate a different idea or the idea continues to evolve, serving

Writing a Dissertation—University of Phoenix Style

as a scaffold with which to approach, understand, and enrich the learning gleaned from the content courses which students take.

Dissertation Content Courses Students sign up for a degree program consisting of a number of content courses. Each class is taught online for six weeks, encompassing an intense course of study in a specific area of learning. The courses are asynchronous and include the learning teams that are characteristic of the UOPX learning model. The curricula for the courses are written by teams of curriculum experts in a centralized curriculum department in Phoenix, Arizona. The faculty members who teach the courses add their background experience and research insights to the courses to adapt the courses to the students’ interests and needs. In each course, however, there are questions that are intended to turn the students’ attention to the dissertation. The School of Advanced Studies has adopted the symbol of the DNA helix “to emphasize the integration of critical information regarding scholarship, practice, and leadership in all of our doctoral course work at SAS” (T. A. Delicath, personal communication, December, 22, 2008). This integration of course content and doctoral work rests upon the overall framework of the 3-year SAS program. Into each course, DNA discussion questions in week five of the course ask the student to reflect upon the content in terms of the dissertation being written. Delicath continued, The DNA DQs differ from course to course and from year to year throughout the learner’s program. The year one DQs stress items like topic refinement, problem statement, and purpose statement, while year two might stress research methods and designs, and year three would discuss data analysis and interpretation. Each DNA DQ is also focused on the specific course topics and the course objectives as these content topics

might have relevance to a particular aspect of the learner’s developing research skills. UOPX SAS students find themselves reflecting upon their dissertations continually as they progress through their content courses.

residencies The doctoral process consists of three residencies when students come together for three days in small groups to review their progress and receive feedback and insights from other students and faculty on their dissertation process. The first residency culminates in a prospectus which includes the dissertation problem and purpose statement, research question(s), population and sample, and possible research method. The students also understand the role of the doctoral dissertation committee so they can begin putting one together. The second residency focuses on researching the literature. In the third residency, the student assesses his or her progress and focuses on the last stage: chapters 4 and 5 of the dissertation, the oral defense, and final submission of the document.

Dissertation Courses Each residency precedes a dissertation course so that the student enters the eight-week long courses fully prepared to take advantage of the course. In DOC722, the student uses the prospectus from the first and second residencies to create chapters one and two of the proposal. After the course, the student continues working on the proposal while taking content courses. The goal is for the student to begin DOC733 with a solid draft of the proposal. During DOC733, the first three chapters are finalized and submitted to the ARB/ IRB. If approval of the ARB/IRB is obtained, data gathering can begin. When the data have been gathered and analyzed, the student completes chapters four and five. The committee members must approve the

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dissertation before the student prepares the oral defense. Once the student passes the oral defense, he or she then finalizes dissertation and submits it to the Dean. The Dean acts as the quality control officer of the SAS. Reviewing all the dissertations also allows the Dean to read the pulse of the program, keeping him or her apprised of the strengths and weaknesses of student achievement.

help along the Way The achievement of a doctoral degree must be accomplished by the students themselves. The school of open opportunity at some point must provide the support for all students to fill the gaps of their previous learning, regardless of the educational programs from which they came. Students seeking admission come from all types of programs: academic, professional, and technical, but all accredited. However, some students need assistance in academic writing and critical thinking. The UOPX has instituted the Center for Writing Excellence, an outstanding example of an online writing lab which also offers online writing services. A writing tutor reviews a student’s paper as a service to the student, offering suggestions on improving the paper. An upgraded grammar check is also available to all students, along with a plethora of writing aids, including an electronic program which helps the student develop a thesis statement and outline for a paper. All these aids are included in the price of tuition. The UOPX also offers Writing Workshops for students on a regular basis, allowing student to interact in online classes with writing instructors who assist students with their specific problems. Students come from various programs and courses to seek clarification for writing problems and assistance in overcoming bad habits. Students also are told about the usefulness of hired editors and hired statisticians prior to submission. Some editors review the paper for grammatical errors, stylistic discrepancies, and problems with format, leaving the bulk of the corrections for the

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student. Other editors work more closely with the student and his or her mentor to help the student craft the dissertation to meet the expectations of the department through skill building and critical reorganization. To assist students in avoiding plagiarism, UOPX provides students with the opportunity to submit their papers through a software program that checks for plagiarism. The school’s strict boundaries on plagiarism along with the oral defense prevent any ghost writing that might occur. The synchronicity of services designed to help all UOPX students can help improve the foundational skills needed by some students to pursue their doctoral studies. The attention paid by all instructors to students’ skills in academic writing, logic, critical thinking, and research throughout their programs provide the feedback loop which students need to improve on a continual basis. Because many faculty members are mentors and committee members, the faculty works as a team, doing what we can to help all students to achieve their goals.

CUrrent ChaLLenges The leaders of UOPX, with its history of educational inventiveness and progressiveness, have stood ready to rationalize and defend its programs of education to anyone who would listen or challenge them. Since its inception, the founders of UOPX have had to make their presence known in the world of formal education. From their simple beginnings in the Sperling garage to the multicampus complex in Phoenix, Arizona, which now serves as the corporate center 30 years later, the founders of the UOPX have struggled for recognition and acceptance. The move to Phoenix in the late 1970s positioned UOPX as the first for-profit educational institution to take on the traditional universities for its existence. Having won a place within the state of Arizona, UOPX then sought accreditation with the regional accrediting body

Writing a Dissertation—University of Phoenix Style

of North Central and received it. At this time, UOPX has also achieved additional professional accreditations for its nursing, counseling, and business programs. As the largest private school for adults in the United States, UOPX is able to present the concepts of year ‘round education for adults using five or six-week sessions per course, one course at a time, to those agencies and departments, state and federal, which operate according to the traditional university model. Often facing major lawsuits with the headlines that accompany them, the UOPX has weathered these storms and moved on, forging the path for smaller schools who benefit from the changes that occur because of the strength of the UOPX presence. An example of a specific change would include Title IV funding procedures for student loans. The semester system does not describe the academic programs of students who attend classes throughout the year. This innovation has now become an accepted mode of operation for many online adult education programs.

LessOns LearneD The contemporary environment is characterized by intercultural communication, virtual networking, and global intra-organizational operations. Adults returning to school for advanced degrees are seeking to position themselves at the apex of achievement for any number of personal and organizational reasons. Providing programs that are needed and wanted by adult learners continually challenges the financial and organizational resources of the school. Programs need to be updated and reframed to adapt to a world of adaptation and imploding theoretical models. While the One-Minute Manager is being chased by the Flight of the Buffalo, to learn the Art of Stress-Free Productivity in hopes of finding The Black Swan, curriculum designers for courses for adult learners eagerly try to forecast the winds of change to have the classes in place to meet their consumer needs. For those who seek the apex of

academic achievement in their area of industry, the educational institution of adult learning must reflect the imaginings of the future. The UOPX is only one of many schools now offering doctoral programs online. Having once been the educational maverick, UOPX has carved the path through the forest and is now enjoying the reputation of being the largest private educational institution in the United States. Yet other schools have followed UOPX down that path through the forest and now stand alongside, looking for applicants to their classes. Does UOPX face intense competition? In a way, it does; yet each educational institution has a different philosophy, a different delivery system, a different type of product. Students often discover these differences only after taking a couple of courses. Yet, once the doctoral student becomes invested in a doctoral program, it becomes quite costly to transfer to another school. The challenge of UOPX or any school is to promote its vision and culture so that the students who enroll in its programs complete their program. That is the goal of any institution with integrity. That is the goal of the University of Phoenix.

referenCes Apollo Group. (2004). History of Apollo Group. Retrieved January 8, 2009, from http://www. apollogrp.edu/History.aspx Belasco, J., & Stayer, R. C. (1994). Flight of the buffalo: Soaring to excellence, learning to let employees lead. Watertown, MA: Grand Central Publishing. Blanchard, K. H., & Johnson, S. (1982). The oneminute manager. New York: William Morrow. David, A. (2001). Getting things done (art of stress-free productivity). New York: Viking. Taleb, N. N. (2007). The black swan: The impact of the highly improbable. New York: Random House. 135

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Chapter 11

Online Tutoring Christa Ehmann Powers Smarthinking, Inc., USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY This chapter presents a detailed case study of a leading United States-based online learning center, Smarthinking, Inc. Conducting business in an entirely online setting, Smarthinking provides asynchronous and synchronous online tutoring for several general education courses and degree-specific courses, supporting students enrolled in secondary and post-secondary education 24 hours a day, seven days a week throughout the calendar year. Smarthinking employs hundreds of professional educators from around the globe. With an operational infrastructure similar to that of a call center, Smarthinking focuses on educational transactions rather than customer support for cell phones or credit cards. The purpose of this chapter is to provide insight into Smarthinking’s services and its online training and management practices, which have been substantiated by research from various professional fields. This chapter discusses the early development plans, technology infrastructure, organizational systems, and product delivery elements of the organization. Highlighting design and implementation principles, four primary areas are addressed: • • •

Smarthinking’s Background: The chapter begins with a review of Smarthinking’s background, products, and services, and the organizational culture of its large remote team of online tutors. Strategic developments within the organization are also discussed. Technology & Challenges: Highlighting Smarthinking’s key technology platform, this chapter puts into context some of the challenges encountered with product delivery. Proof of Concept and Online Training: Having provided fundamental background on Smarthinking, this section presents evidence on the efficacy of the company’s educational programs, research-based quality control mechanisms for the product, and internal management and operations practices.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch011

Copyright © 2010, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

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•

Future Trends and Directions: This section considers future trends in the field of online teaching and learning relative to the aforementioned principles. Within the context of an ever-changing technology landscape, such trends include exploring video and voice applications, using the student archive as a research valuable research database for student learning, and particular platform customizations.

BaCkgrOUnD A Washington, D.C.-based privately held corporation, Smarthinking, Inc., (www.smarthinking. com) provides synchronous and asynchronous online tutoring to secondary and post-secondary students within the United States and abroad. The service is a 24/7 virtual “call center for education” where online tutors are available to address “dropin” academic questions from students who log-in to Smarthinking’s website. In July 1999, co-founders Burck Smith and Christopher Gergen started Smarthinking with the premise that professional instructors could deliver educational services via the Internet, particularly at non-traditional times. This fundamental premise behind Smarthinking has its roots in Smith’s previous research on economic and organizational challenges facing higher education (Smith, 1997, 1999). Set within the context of a consortium of Massachusetts community colleges, Smith argued that given the competition between public and private institutions, increasing prices, and state budget cuts, the expansion of multi-institution distance education options via the Internet could (a) increase student access and the variety of course offerings, (b) improve the quality of course offerings, and (c) decrease delivery costs (Smith, 1997, p. 23). The creation of Smarthinking was a logical extension of this position as the organization leverages a virtual workforce of educators; since Smarthinking is not limited by its geographic area, the organization is able to choose the most highly-qualified professionals to efficiently deliver services across various educational institutions while fostering equal or greater quality than individually run services from any

one single institution or program (Chediak, 2005; Ehmann Powers & Hewett, 2008; Jaschik, 2005; Maeroff, 2003; Paley, 2006; Smith, 1999)

Products & services Smarthinking offers students asynchronous and synchronous tutorial sessions. In synchronous tutorials, students connect with online tutors via a whiteboard and interact with their tutors in real-time. For asynchronous tutorials, students have a choice of asking offline questions or submitting essay drafts for a tutor critique. Students may access online tutoring services at home, at school, at a library, or from another location with access to the Internet. At some schools, students are able to access Smarthinking from within their online course. Smarthinking has over 300 direct institutional clients, including schools, college, universities, and libraries; in addition, students in over 1,000 institutions use Smarthinking via publisher partnerships. Online tutoring is offered for more than 25 subject areas, which include high enrollment and core courses in both high school and higher education. Committed to the provision of high-quality, pedagogically-sound education, Smarthinking rejects the “answer service” or “homework service” approach, opting instead to use tutorial sessions to provide the necessary skills to allow students to discover their own answers. Smarthinking primarily works through colleges, universities, textbook publishers, and public departments of education. Students who use Smarthinking’s service originate from a variety of schools, primarily United States-based four year colleges, community colleges, for-profit universities, textbook publishers, and other distance

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education programs to include community college systems in various states, Boston University, Pearson, Inc, and Cengage (formerly Thomson Learning). International clients are located in various countries including Australia and Canada. Smarthinking works with hundreds of online tutors located around the globe. All tutors are professional educators who have an average of nine years of teaching and/or tutoring experience and 90% of whom have PhDs or MAs in their given field. All synchronous and asynchronous whiteboard interactions between tutors and students as well as essay critiques are saved and archived on the Smarthinking platform. This data permits the Education Department within Smarthinking to assure quality control, implement standards, and develop improvements. To that end, the archive is uniquely comprised of an extensive portfolio of online teaching and learning interactions that can be researched and analyzed in relation to online teaching, student learning, operational metrics associated with Internet-based instructional delivery, and other relevant education, sociological, economic, and political issues. Smarthinking maintains archives of every tutoring interaction that occurs on the platform. From the company’s first semester of tutoring in January 2000 through December 2007, approximately 1.2 million online one-to-one tutoring sessions have been captured. In these cases, online tutors and students worked in real-time to address a variety of academic activities and projects. Students asked for assistance with homework, test preparation, essay writing, and practice problems among other topics in Mathematics (Basic Math Skills, Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Calculus), Statistics, Biology, Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology, Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physics, Accounting and Finance, Economics, Spanish, and Writing. Students also submitted offline questions as well as essays, reports, and other writing assignments from a variety of composition and writing-intensive courses. Tutors provided written feedback and instruction on those

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essays. In addition to the archives themselves, student demographic information, school, and usage exists along with data from student exit surveys implemented in September 2006. This information is used in client assessment of the service and student experience as well as internal quality control for tutors. Once logged on, students are taken directly to the Smarthinking home page where they have access to synchronous and asynchronous online tutoring, archives of their previous tutoring sessions, and other academic resources. From there, students can connect with online tutors by selecting a subject from a subject list. A message on the Smarthinking whiteboard prompts students to type and submit a question. When ready to work in real-time with their tutors, students click “Submit Question.” If a particular student chooses not to work with a tutor in real-time, the student can also submit a question asynchronously for a tutor to review. To access the Online Writing Lab’s Essay Center, students complete an online form, which will allow tutors to view the course title, the assignment description, the students’ selected areas of assistance, and any essay-specific requests. Students choose either a “first available” tutor or a specialist (English as a Second Language, Business/Technical Writing, and Creative Writing.) The student then uploads a writing assignment in .doc, .rtf, or .txt format and receives confirmation that the essay has been submitted in the same browser window. Essays are typically critiqued and returned to the student’s inbox within 24 hours. Archives of all live sessions, asynchronous sessions, and essay critiques are accessed via the student homepage. Designated administrators and faculty also have access to aggregate and individual user reports. In a synchronous tutoring session, the tutor provides assistance per the student’s articulated question/problem or request for assistance. Using the online tools provided, the tutor and student discuss, draw, and exchange comments with an eye towards resolution of the problem. Tutors do not

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complete the work for the student but are trained to ask questions and review examples that lead the student to the correct answer or procedure. The tutor may also demonstrate the relevant concepts by drawing or outlining the relevant concepts using a parallel example and/or help students with research the solution to a particular problem or issue. At the end of the tutoring session, the students complete a brief survey evaluating the experience. These surveys rate tutor experience, technology, and other items related to students’ learning. The findings from these surveys inform tutor evaluations and technology upgrades. Smarthinking management is comprised of an internal, primarily Washington D.C.-based team of Technology, Sales, and Education. Within the Education Department, Academic Directors and Coordinators manage the external workforce of online instructors. As of Fall 2008, Smarthinking works with over 800 remote online instructors. Given the size of the Smarthinking’s tutoring team, various client demands, and annual usage patterns and growth, the total number of tutors can vary significantly day to day and month to month. Approximately 50% of tutors are English/ Language Arts specialists, 40% are Mathematics/Statistics specialists and 10% are comprised of Science tutors. Smarthinking’s exact staffing levels per hour are based on multi-year historical usage calculations, which include analysis by hour, day, and month. Metrics regarding capacity utilization and student wait times are also used in all staffing calculations.

strategic Planning Strategically, Smarthinking has expanded its services to include the delivery of online courses via a new educational arm called “StraighterLine”. StraighterLine (www.straighterline.com) “combines the currently available online (Smarthinking) tutoring services with various educational products—such as electronic content and textbooks from publishers, course management systems,

and assessment tests—to create a set of general education courses that are more affordable, better supported, and more flexible than other online courses. Regionally-accredited partner colleges award credit for students who successfully pass StraighterLine courses” (Smith, 2008, p. 1). The courses cost in the range of $300 to $400 in addition to the cost of a required textbook. Students buy the self-paced courses individually and can start or stop the course at will. Courses are primarily sold to individual students and secondarily to colleges, universities, and high schools. StraighterLine launched in April 2008 with courses in College Algebra, Composition I, Accounting I, and Introduction to Macroeconomics. Additional courses include a suite of Fundamentals Math and Writing courses, Composition II, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, Accounting II, Microeconomics, and potentially science courses. The decision to deploy general education courses was prompted by the fact that Smarthinking currently provides tutoring in these subject areas. As Smarthinking’s tutoring support expands into other subject areas, so too will Straighterline courses. Unlike traditional online college courses which organize individual sections overseen by one instructor, StraighterLine students access online tutors from Smarthinking on a 24/7 basis to help them with assignments, practice exercises, and other course requirements. The student to tutor ratio for StraighterLine, therefore, is 1:1. Working with this group of on-demand tutors, students are likely to have more 1-1 instruction than they receive in other online course formats. To start, StraighterLine uses fully-developed online courses built by McGraw-Hill and other respected publishers and hosted on the Blackboard LMS, all providers being highly regarded for academic quality. StraighterLine has modified each course to accommodate the non-traditional, multi-instructor format to include student deliverables, such as problem sets or graded essays. As of Fall 2008, StraighterLine has partnered with six regionally accredited colleges with the aim of partnering

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with additional institutions. All partner colleges have vetted StraighterLine courses as well as the accompanying online tutoring for academic rigor, quality, and validity. Having satisfied an array of criteria, each partner now awards credit to students who pass a StraighterLine course. Key elements of StraighterLine’s business model have already been shown as efficacious. Internet and direct marketing attract students, and students have proven their willingness to take credit-bearing courses online. Further, the combination of StraighterLine’s service levels, 1:1 student attention, and instructional qualifications is unique in the online course education space. With that said, StraighterLine has not launched without some controversy. A profile in The Wired Campus section of The Chronicle of Higher Education prompted follow-up commentary about both the positives and negatives of the initiative with some posters voicing concerns about a trend towards outsourcing (Young, 2008). However, StraighterLine does not intend to provide nonintroductory courses. Rather, StraighterLine is “simply another option for prospective students to consider when studying their introductory coursework” and may be instrumental in driving more students to traditional “brick and mortar” institutions for higher level courses (Busch, 2008). Given that many “brick and mortar” institutions offer introductory-level courses in a lecture hall environment where there is limited individualized attention given to students, there is an increased risk that students will not understand the essential concepts, do poorly within one or more courses, and eventually leave academia. With StraighterLine’s unique 1:1 tutor to student ratio, students are able to access on-demand assistance from qualified professionals to better understand core concepts and likely perform better within the classroom. This early success will give students the opportunity to attend a “brick and mortar” institution with the core knowledge to succeed in their chosen degrees.

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Organizational Culture While the internal Washington D.C. based staff reflect a more traditional corporate organizational culture, Smarthinking’s external workforce comprised of hundreds of remote individuals is distinguished by the elements of “association” (Buber, 1923) that draws employees together despite a lack of geographic unity (Hewett & Ehmann, 2003). Moreover, this “association” describes an individual’s need to work “in connection” with others (Ehmann Powers & Hewett, 2008). These “cyber-associations” are grounded in a transactional or business purpose—employees developing professional relationships with one another within the context of working toward a shared company mission or goal (Hewett & Ehmann, 2003). Cyber-associations help build a “facilitator network” (Renwick, 2001) that is similar to the various special-interest group listservs or expanded networks such as the Box Hill Learning Network which offers a “’playground’ for experimentation and practice” (p. 5) and allows for scheduled conferences or more impromptu avenues for discussion. Smarthinking facilitates these networks throughout a tutor’s employment. Within the context of every employee’s initial training course, for example, all new trainees are paired with veteran online tutor trainers. The trainers not only see them through each of the substantive components of their orientation but also provides important “insider information” about policies, procedures and expectations that cannot necessarily be conveyed via a manual or movie. Once tutors have passed training, they become a member of an internal listserv for all other tutors from their department and, in larger programs, assigned to a “sub-team” where the team leader of the sub-team then shepherds his/her group through each semester of work. Listserv correspondence is an opportunity to discuss problems, successes, questions, and other policy issues that arise during any given

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period. These types of mechanisms along with instant message communications help individuals create relationships with administrators and fellow tutors around the “cyber-water cooler” (Hewett & Ehmann, 2003, pp. 18-19).

technology Smarthinking’s primary technological tool is its proprietary virtual whiteboard—an interactive graphical chat tool designed to allow students and tutors to communicate complex concepts in real-time and asynchronously. Having licensed a whiteboard application from a third party vendor during the initial years, Smarthinking created and launched its own whiteboard in 2005. The whiteboard is a robust platform with built-in call center management and single line queuing technology. Smarthinking custom-designed the whiteboard in order to apply call center and customer service management practices to the delivery of education. Students and tutors can draw equations, plot graphs and curves, or isolate and examine specific passages of text. Specialized pallets of tools allow students and tutors to draw specialized symbols used in math, science, statistics, and various languages. The whiteboard includes screen capture, file transfer, and upload capability as well as paste text functionality. The whiteboard offers Smarthinking tutors the option of using a prior session to start a new one and the ability to save a whiteboard for later use. For asynchronous essay reviews, students submit documents and receive returned critiques via a document upload and download process. Since Smarthinking’s inception, a primary concern has been to keep end-user technology requirements to a minimum. Hence, in order to access online tutoring, students need a computer, 56K connection speed, a recent version of Internet Explorer or Firefox, and the most recent version of Adobe Flash Player. No additional equipment or hardware is needed. Another primary concern has been the database maintenance of all student

and tutor archives. This is important not only for student review but also internal quality control measures, which will be described in a later section of this chapter. New designs and significant upgrades have been made to Smarthinking’s whiteboard as well as adding the back-end queuing structure, which is critical to customer service efficiency. In early 2008, Smarthinking launched VoIP sessions in the Spanish language with plans for expansion in other subjects to accommodate a variety of student learning styles and abilities. Additionally, Smarthinking continues to bring its platform into compliance with industry standards for accessibility, the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Accessibility Initiative Standards (W3C WAIS), and the newly released Section 508 guidelines of the Rehabilitation Act (ITAW, IT Accessibility & Workforce Division Office of Government-wide Policy U.S. General Services Administration). Specifically, the Smarthinking online tutoring platform consists of a general web site for account administration and archiving of tutoring sessions, a form-based online writing lab, online study resources, and synchronous and asynchronous tutoring via a whiteboard system. In 2001 and 2005, Smarthinking released updated versions of its online tutoring platform. Accessibility enhancements for this version included the following items: all system images have alt tags; framesets were eliminated; data tables were optimized for use with screen readers by adding attributes to associate column headings with table content; data input fields are identified with alt tags; tab order was set to ensure that forms function in a logical fashion; and URL links were set up with tab functions, enabling alt-key navigation. While most other features of the Smarthinking site are 508 compliant, Smarthinking’s whiteboard is not currently readable by commonly used screen readers. Smarthinking has been investigating how to provide accessibility features for our whiteboard technology. Current versions of JAWS for Windows work with many of the advanced HTML

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features that Smarthinking uses. Newer versions of Jaws support frames, forms, JavaScript alert boxes, graphics (via alt tags), and multi-columned tables. Versions of JAWS 3.5 and up are optimized to take advantage of newer accessibility features in Internet Explorer 5.5. Visually-impaired students can avail themselves to Smarthinking’s general web site, study resources, and online writing lab using screen readers; however, using any of the services that involve use of the whiteboard (e.g. real-time tutoring) may prove to be difficult. In addition to developing a sensible solution for our whiteboard accessibility issues, Smarthinking is continuing to research and evaluate additional assistive technology optimization, including alternate interfaces and user-level accessibility customization. The organization is committed to building software in line with the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Accessibility Initiative Standards (W3C WAIS). Indeed, despite the breadth of access, there are still students that Smarthinking has, to date, yet to reach. An obvious challenge, Smarthinking aims to address these access issues in the future.

Case DesCriPtiOn Proof of Concept Although much more research is needed into the ways in which and the extent to which students learn in online tutoring environments and, in particular, Smarthinking’s online learning environment, empirical evidence supports the position that using Smarthinking enhances student learning. Numerous independent studies and reports from client institutions demonstrated that Smarthinking fostered student achievement in various subject areas and helped improve student retention (see, for example, BCC, 2005; Langer, 2008). Calfee (2007) also reported that students earned significantly higher grades as a result of using the service. Similarly, in a trial study conducted in the Fall of

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2007, researchers at Open Universities Australia concluded that students using the online tutoring service experienced higher success rates and course completions (DeFazio & Deden, 2008). Individual scholars have also shown the efficacy of Smarthinking services, as in Hewett’s (2006) process-based analytic study of a sample of high school and college students who used Smarthinking’s asynchronous online writing tutoring. Specifically, Hewett found that students used approximately 40% of the advice that tutors provided to them to improve their writing, as shown through textual iteration and presupposition analysis. Forty percent was reported to be statistically significant given that students also (a) used their classroom teacher’s advice, and (b) had access to peer advice in peer review workshops. Seeming to apply their own authority in subsequent revisions, students decided which advice to implement and which advice to neglect. This was a relevant finding for those instructors who fear that critiquing students’ writing via text is simply another method of rewriting a paper for a student. Hewett also found that students tended to be “non-responsive” to certain types of comments that, interestingly, the online tutors themselves reported may have been problematic and difficult to understand. After evaluating the most challenging kinds of tutor statements, Hewett concluded that online writing tutors (and by extension online writing instructors) needed specific training targeting the phraseology and construction of their written commentary. In a similar study of synchronous online interactions, Hewett (2004-2005) reported that two thirds of student and online tutor talk were directly tied to revision in subsequent student writing. The kinds of revisions, however, differed significantly from revisions tied to asynchronous interaction. Linguistic analysis of student draft changes determined that students used such synchronous instruction for broader, more global changes to their writing. Asynchronous interactions yielded more local revisions. Noteworthy of these studies is that these were the first published empirical

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studies in the rhetoric and composition field to prove that student writing can improve through online writing instruction. Internally, research has also been undertaken on tutoring interactions. For example, analyzing Spanish archives from February 2002 to the present, Douglas (2007) identified the most common problems that students in Spanish 1 and 2 encounter in the archives and then made recommendations about Spanish curriculum, presentation, and recycling of teaching material. Operational metrics of the call center-style delivery of an online instructional program have also been explored. Although not directly related to teaching and learning practices, this initial analysis yielded interesting patterns of student usage, wait-time tolerance, and student “spillage”.

Online training and Professional Development The success of Smarthinking’s instructional practice is grounded in the organization’s shared understanding of the company’s mission: connecting students with online instructors in ways that promote and encourage substantive learning. Key to the success of Smarthinking is not necessarily the technology but rather the people who are using it. Although our whiteboard and document exchange technology is important, we are a business of relational associations and transactions. To that end, it has been of utmost importance that Smarthinking’s technology accommodates our pedagogical approach. At the heart of our pedagogy is the goal of assisting students as whole learners. With a strong base of content knowledge, tutors are encouraged to use various pedagogical strategies to include fostering student-centered, active learning; facilitating student ownership of content; exercising flexibility and creativity; producing an enduring study aid; and employing encouragement and praise. Indeed, these are the most important elements of one-to-one relationship facilitation that Smarthinking offers.

Given the “student-centeredness” of this goal, there is a commitment to the training and quality of the instructors who deliver Smarthinking’s online tutoring service. One of the primary responsibilities of the supervisors within Smarthinking’s Education Department is to ensure the quality of the company’s instructional/tutoring workforce. Each tutoring program is lead by a subject expert supervisor, typically a PhD trained academic who has significant classroom and research experience. To select and then guarantee the quality of the tutoring team, Smarthinking’s Education Department supervisors implement rigorous screening and training procedures. These methodologies were developed and refined over the company’s history. At the inception of Smarthinking, for example, we envisioned that our online tutors would be working from around the world to provide the service and connect from any location with computer and Internet access. Although particular management positions were conceived as face-to-face, more than 95% of the workforce would be interfacing with each other and clients remotely and online. Further, at the company’s start, no tutors were expected to have online work experience. Within this context, the development of approaches and procedures for online training and on-going professional development were essential to building out our team of tutors (Ehmann, 2000, 2001; Ehmann, Heywood, & Higgison, 2000). We also saw that for employees the transition from face-to-face to online contexts was complex. Acclimating to a text-based mode of asynchronous and synchronous communication in and establishing virtual rapport was not a straightforward process (Ehmann, 2000, 2001; Ehmann et al., 2000). Employees could not directly transfer their understandings, strategies, and skills about their work from face-to-face to online employment environments. Doing so would affect their work product and their relationships with co-workers and clients. It did not make sense educationally, therefore, to have trainees undergo exercises in one physical location. Rather, the training that we

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developed reflected very closely the online duties that employees would perform when working with online clients. These specific challenges and complexities have been documented in various publications (e.g. Ehmann Powers, n.d.a; Ehmann Powers, n.d.b; Ehmann Powers & Hewett, 2008; Hewett & Ehmann Powers, 2005, 2007). The extent to which training for a particular service was delivered efficiently and within operational parameters of Smarthinking’s particular business model also influenced the decision to conduct training online or via some other nonface-to-face medium. Costs of travel and facilities would be prohibitively high, for example. Additionally, we recruited individuals on a rolling basis according to the demand for our service; the composition of our team was never static. As such, defining particular times for employees to engage in face-to-face training simply was not feasible. Further, as the business grew, we expected that employees would continue to work from across the globe, and certain business processes would be changeable. Long term, therefore, we needed to implement a system that could accommodate an entirely remote workforce as well as the on-going advances of the business. Hence, set within a seven principle educational framework (Hewett and Ehmann 2003), we developed an online infrastructure in which tutors are supervised and mentored by Smarthinking’s management and subject matter expert team. All tutors must successfully complete a ten to fifteen hour real-time, online training program that focuses on both technological skill and online instructional practices. Smarthinking’s tutor training is standardized and administered uniformly to all tutor trainees; however, the training does account for subject specific differences across programs. Occurring entirely in Smarthinking’s online learning environment, tutor training is built around a “train the trainer” model where administrators and tutor-mentors oversee the training of all new tutors. Each trainee must complete modules and real time tests to confirm their understanding

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of Smarthinking’s technology. The technology modules typically take 1 to 2 hours. The core of training, taking another 10 to 13 hours, involves a combination of self-paced online modules and instruction that teach the pedagogical values that drive the company’s practice. Trainees must read subject-specific online tutoring manuals and then complete various real-time and/or asynchronous subject-specific exercises. The exercises, often occurring on the whiteboard, are supervised by a veteran tutor or “trainer”. Trainers typically have more than 16 months of standard Smarthinking tutoring experience and have completed a certification program that confirms their ability to train and mentor new tutors. Simulated tutorial exercises represent diverse situations and student needs that typically are encountered (for example, scenarios involving English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), non-traditional students, and students with varying learning styles). In each exercise the trainee must take on the role of the tutor and is critiqued by the mentor. Hence, the exercises continue to confirm a trainee’s content knowledge as well as their ability to instruct in the online tutoring environment. Upon successful completion of the training program, tutors must demonstrate competence in specific content areas, competence in online communication and instruction, and an understanding of the values that drive Smarthinking’s practice. The results of each component of training are transmitted to the academic director. The academic director then makes a final determination of pass or failure for the trainee. If a trainee does not pass the training program, they will not be assigned to the live student queue. A detailed description of Smarthinking’s training program is found in various publications (see, for example, Hewett and Ehmann 2003). Tutors are also engaged in ongoing evaluation and professional development exercises. Tutor performance is assessed by reviewing the actual archives of tutor work during a given time period. Every tutoring session that occurs on the Smar-

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thinking platform is saved and archived. These archives serve as enduring records of tutor and student behavior. Academic directors and subject expert evaluators regularly review a sampling of archives for quality and consistency. The archive, therefore, serves as a valuable tool in all quality control measures. The academic directors of each program complete formal term evaluations of tutor performance followed by debriefing sessions, as well as less formal, daily monitoring of tutorial activities. These reviews focus on the specific challenges and complexities of working with a diverse student population in an online learning environment. These evaluations also articulate the tutors’ strengths, identify areas of required improvement, and offer suggestions for tutoring development. If a given tutor’s work is unsatisfactory, immediate retraining will occur and, depending on the degree of the deficiency, the tutor may be removed from service. Moreover, tutors communicate with one another regularly via listserv and instant messaging functions; lead tutors and academic directors moderate these discussions. This communication provides opportunities for tutors to engage in on-going conversations about their practice and to build a sense of association with their colleagues.

Operations and management Practices Within the context of strong instructional practice, a core focus of Smarthinking is the provision of services that accommodate diverse student needs about when and where they need help. Online tutoring services are available 24/7 to meet the demands of today’s traditional and non-traditional students. While Smarthinking’s whiteboard is arguably the industry standard for virtual whiteboards, perhaps the most distinguishing feature of the organization and the main product as a whole lies in its ability to manage and maintain quality instructional services at scale. Specifically, Smarthinking provides high-quality online tutorial support while

meeting operational service levels informed by relevant call center industry principles. Given the number of clients, Smarthinking generates a high volume of users across and within schools, states, and vendors. With adequate forecasting and analysis performed on past data, Smarthinking is then able to keep consistent the time that users can expect to wait to connect with an online tutor in any given subject while still reaching a high utilization of tutor time (the total time spent serving the customer divided by the total time staffed). Such level of precision with operational metrics cannot be achieved with smaller user volumes; similarly, the data management ability of Smarthinking cannot be easily replicated on a smaller scale. Additionally, Smarthinking works with faculty to market the service within a give curriculum; like a personalized case manager, Smarthinking keeps records and communicates information by student.

CUrrent ChaLLenges As the education landscape changes to meet the needs and demands of a diverse population of student learners in a global economy, Smarthinking and its StraighterLine arm are well positioned to expand. With that in mind, one of Smarthinking’s most critical charges is to scale with efficiency. We have, therefore, implemented numerous internal systems such as an integrated call-center scheduling system which helps us manage our core asset— the large, skilled online tutoring team. Integrated reporting tools allow hour-by-hour analysis of queue status from a centralized location. Software provides a centralized method for accurately forecasting, scheduling, and monitoring to meet the growing demand for our services, dramatically reducing the complexity of outdated spreadsheet-based schedule systems. Further, change management tools improve Smarthinking’s ability to monitor and increase efficiency when responding to high volumes of day-to-day

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and semester-to-semester schedule changes as well as changes in student demand. Rather than employ manually-generated email correspondence, webbased communication software ensures accurate communication of both initial scheduling requirements and demand for rapid schedule changes while accurately maintaining a master record of staffing. This also provides a centralized source of all key employee information, which was formerly stored in multiple sources, and provides a data repository for all historic transaction data from the Smarthinking tutoring platform. Moreover, the system helps to inform our comprehensive forecasting and modeling tools required to produce accurate determinations of tutoring requirements for each specialty group and to test various scheduling scenarios to further improve tutor utilization. Via a web-based interface, the online scheduling allows tutors access to a variety of tools that are critical to efficient management of the tutor team. Web-based tutor tools include access to existing schedules, access to schedules available for bid, tools to request a replacement for a specific shift, tools to notify tutors of replacement requests made by other tutors, and the ability to receive e-mail notifications of change requirements and to quickly access requests for changes (for example, increasing or decreasing daily or weekly hours due to student demand). Using near “real-team” data integration with the Smarthinking tutoring environment (automatic updates at 30 minute intervals), the system allows coordinators to rapidly respond to changes in demand and use the software tools to both forecast new requirements, create new schedules, and notify tutors of changes in schedules created by changes in demand. As Smarthinking’s tutor team and student demand continue to grow, the implementation of other such systems will be vital. From an educational perspective, there are still numerous questions to address that can advance Smarthinking’s pedagogical practices and “product development”. With that in mind, Smarthinking intends to explore latest iterations of key technol-

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ogy such as voice and video to enhance the effectiveness of real-time tutorial sessions. Of equal importance, Smarthinking will use its extensive database of student and tutor interactions for future research initiatives. Investigations will focus on, for example, teaching and learning in online instructional situations and one-to-one tutoring/ conferencing, student learning, online instructor training, online professional development, and institutional implementation and management. Given the size of the database, which contains over a million archives, statistical analysis will also be conducted. Discipline-specific investigations related to, for example, broader questions about math or science education and student learning; writing or language acquisition may also be explored. Findings from such research will be helpful not only to Smarthinking but others in the education community interested in deepening an understanding of online teaching and learning. Specific research questions include the following (Ehmann Powers, 2008): •

•

What can be learned from the nature of student questions/difficulties/successes in the archives? ◦ What are students’ most common writing difficulties, and how do those difficulties manifest themselves across whiteboard sessions and essays and across students? ▪ What implications does this have for national standards associated with the teaching of writing? ▪ What relationships, if any, exist between these patterns and student demographic information including institution type? What are the most common difficulties in other subject areas, and how are these difficulties demonstrated across archives? ◦ What implications does this have for approaches to teaching, teacher

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•

•

•

•

• •

education, faculty development, and possibly testing in various disciplines? ◦ What relationships, if any, exist between these patterns and student demographic information including institution type? What can be learned about student usage patterns from the archives and what patterns emerge, if any, related to these questions/ difficulties/successes? What demographic of student seems most successful in the online environment and which students struggle? ◦ What implications does this have in relation to access and student and instructor preparation for online environments? What are the pedagogical implications of “teaching-in-text”? ◦ What evidence exists for student understanding and progress when learning online? ▪ How do students indicate understanding or confusion in an online environment? ▪ What are the commonalities and differences across subjects? ▪ What instructional behaviors, if any, can be tied to evidence of student understanding? ▪ What patterns emerge in onetime and multi-user students? What pedagogical strategies are employed in an online environment within and across subject areas? ◦ What teaching and learning strategies, if any, are distinctive to the online environment? How are space, fonts, and formatting used in synchronous and asynchronous sessions? How is the affective dimension of student learning in an online environment accounted for?

•

•

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What traditional, face-to-face instructional strategies, if any, are appropriate for online learning environments? ◦ How can those traditional strategies be applied to an online environment? ◦ What strategies, if any, are distinctive to discipline and/or modality? What are the implications of the delivery of such services to students from multicultural sources? What are students in higher education writing about, and have there been measurable changes over time? ◦ What does writing reveal about student attitudes toward, for example, certain current events, politics, social issues, certain products etc? ▪ What can be learned about topics selected, topics imposed, and political views? ▪ What can be learned by looking at these dimensions of writing during time periods or years?

LessOns LearneD The case of Smarthinking has demonstrated both the successes and challenges of combining such standards of quality and efficiency within the context of online educational service delivery. As the population of “21st century” online learners grows and as technology advances such that access to human-to-human education via the Internet becomes even more prevalent, opportunities for both non-profit and for-profit entities to enter the e-learning and e-mentoring space will abound. Regardless of technological developments, however, such online programs will only be as the good as the live educators who deliver the service. As such, online entities need to focus on the quality of the tutors, e-mentors, and instructors who they employ. Organizations need to focus on individuals’ ability to teach in the

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online environment and put in place training and professional development programs that address the pedagogy of online learning. Further, given the archival quality online learning, educators have a unique opportunity to partake in ongoing study and analysis of online teaching and learning that is less readily available in, for example, face to face environments. The extent to which an institution can respond to the insights gained from such analysis will also bolster success and efficacy of online programs. Finally, emphasis on the pedagogical components of online learning, must go hand in hand with an emphasis on the operational efficiencies and service levels required to address learners’ increasing need for 24/7 access and financial viability of an institution. Such recommendations apply to both for-profit and non-profit entities in the online learning market space.

referenCes BCC. (2005). Does tutoring help? A comparison of Smarthinking-tutored and non-tutored students’ grades college-wide. Fort Lauderdale, FL: Broward Community College. Buber, M. (1923). I and thou (W. Kaufmann, Trans.). New York: Scribner. Busch, R. (2008). The Chronicle of Higher Education notices StraighterLine. Retrieved June 18, 2008, from http://www.mmimarketing.com/ blog/the-chronicle-of-higher-education-noticesstraighterline Calfee, J. (2007). Online tutoring and student success in developmental writing courses. Journal of Applied Research in the Community College, 15(1), 77–80. Chediak, M. (2005, August 16). Online tutoring part of growing trend: Market for Web education matures. The Washington Post, p. 4.

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DeFazio, T., & Deden, A. (2008). Highlights of 2007 SMARTHINKING trial at Open Universities Australia. Paper presented at the Open Universities Australia. Ehmann, C. (2000). Training online tutors. Paper presented at the OTiS e-Workshop, Scotland. Ehmann, C. (2001). Exploring new territory: Developing a research agenda for online tutoring and instruction. Journal of the National Tutoring Association - Inaugural Edition, (Spring), 69-86. Ehmann, C., Heywood, I., & Higgison, C. A. (2000). Quality assurance. In C. A. Higgison (Ed.), Online tutoring e-book. Edinburgh, UK: Heriot-Watt University and The Robert Gordon University. Ehmann Powers, C. (2008). SMARTHINKING, Inc.: Exploring potential research collaboration. Paper presented at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research: Education Policy Studies. Ehmann Powers, C. (n.d.a). Online writing instruction and faculty attitudes: Influences on theory and practice (in progress). Ehmann Powers, C. (n.d.b). A study of online writing instructor perceptions (manuscript under review). In B. L. Hewett (Ed.), Teaching through text: Conferencing with students in online settings. Ehmann Powers, C., & Hewett, B. (2008). Building online training programs for virtual workplaces. In P. Zemliansky & K. St. Amant (Eds.), Handbook of research on virtual workplaces and the new nature of business practices. Hershey, PA: Idea Group, Inc. Hewett, B. L. (2006). Synchronous online conference-based instruction: A study of whiteboard interactions and student writing. Computers and Composition, 23(1), 4–31. doi:10.1016/j.compcom.2005.12.004

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Hewett, B. L. (2004-2005). Asynchronous online instructional commentary: A study of student revision. Readerly/Writerly Texts: Essays in Literary, Composition, and Pedagogical Theory, (11 & 12.1 &2), 47-67.

Langer, G. (2008). New study indicates positive student feedback for SMARTHINKING Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System students show overwhelming support for online tutoring program. St. Paul, MN.

Hewett, B. L., & Ehmann, C. (2003). Preparing educators for online writing instruction: Principles and processes. Urbana, IL: NCTE.

Maeroff, G. I. (2003). A classroom of one. New York: Palgrave MacMillan.

Hewett, B. L., & Ehmann Powers, C. (2005). How do you ground your training: Sharing the principles and processes of preparing educators for online writing instruction. Kairos, 10(1 Fall). Hewett, B. L., & Ehmann Powers, C. (2007). Editor’s introduction: Online teaching and learning: Preparation, development, and organizational communication. Technical Communication Quarterly: Special Issue, 16(1), 1–11. ITAW. (n.d.). (IT Accessibility & Workforce Division Office of Governmentwide Policy U.S. General Services Administration). Section 508. Retrieved August 29, 2008, from http://www. section508.gov/ Jaschik, S. (2005). Outsourced grading [Electronic Version]. Inside Higher Ed, September 22. Retrieved from http://insidehighered.com/ news/2005/09/22/outsource

Paley, A. (2006, May 15). Homework help, from a world away. The Washington Post, p. 1. Renwick, K. (2001). Learning to learn online: Box Hill learning network. Paper presented at the Australian Vocational Education and Training Research Association (AVETRA) Conference, Australia. Smith, B. (1997). A management plan to integrate site based distance learning into the institutions comprising the Massachusetts Distance Education Consortium. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Smith, B. (1999). Higher education: The vision [2015]. Converge Magazine. Smith, B. (2008). StraighterLine background. Washington, DC: SMARTHINKING, Inc. Young, J. (2008). Who needs a professor when there’s a tutor available? The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved June 18, 2008, from http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/index.php?id=3095&utm_source=wc&utm_ medium=en

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On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World John J. Stuppy TutorVista.com, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY The early groundwork for online tutoring was laid when the author led a team at Sylvan Learning Centers in the mid 1990s to find ways to increase the availability of tutors for the students who need them and make tutoring more convenient. The author invented and patented a ground-breaking tutoring platform and system that enabled a student with a home computer to work interactively with a tutor hundreds or thousands of miles away. The student and tutor talk using computer-based voice-over internet protocol (VoIP) Internet phone technology, and share diagrams and work problems on-screen through software known as a virtual whiteboard. Students and teachers can also use instant-messaging text chat to type notes and copy and paste information to share. Sylvan implemented this service launching the eSylvan business (now called Educate Online) for students to work with tutors for skill-gap tutoring all over the United States. Over the years, a number of companies also entered the online tutoring market to provide homework help or skill-gap tutoring. Most focused on homework help using an on-screen whiteboard and typed text chat.

BaCkgrOUnD TutorVista.com. was started in 2005 by K. Ganesh, an Indian entrepreneur, when he was traveling in the United States and was inspired by a cartoon in a newspaper showing a child talking to her father saying, “No, you may NOT outsource your homeDOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch012

work to India.” Ganesh realized that there are millions of smart, passionate and capable educators in India earning only a fraction of what educators are earning in the United States and commuting long hours. TutorVista.com could as much as double this salary and still be far lower than American levels of teacher compensation. TutorVista.com was born out of seeing the growing need for online tutoring combined with an economical way of delivering

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On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World

and securing this service. TutorVista.com’s mission is to provide world-class scheduled and ondemand tutoring along with high-quality content to students around the world. Most of the 1200 employees, which include tutors, are based in India. I joined TutorVista.com as its president in 2006 and we’ve grown very rapidly especially in the last two years, helping over 500,000 students in 29 countries. The main business operation is the online tutoring service, TutorVista.com, but a secondary component of the operation is Edurite, a digital and print-based content creator for the online service, and a growing network of brick-and-mortar learning centers in India. The learning centers in India make more sense than offering online services there because of the lack of personal computer and Internet service penetration at this time. The market for what is called “tuition,” or test-preparation tutoring after school, in India is approximately $4 billion affecting 110 million children. TutorVista.com took the technology platform that had been refined, proven and enhanced for several years and added global education resources to make quality tutoring affordable. Students and tutors talk with each other, share problems, work solutions, conduct hands-on assessments, explain their work, and thoroughly probe concepts and applications.

Case DesCriPtiOn teaching to standards Clearly for the service we had in mind at TutorVista.com, serving primarily American students, we had to provide a way for overseas tutors to become knowledgeable about United States K-12 state standards and teaching styles. As a result, we developed comprehensive materials to assist the tutors. For example, if you are a child from Connecticut in the seventh grade, our tutors will

know what the state standards for math by grade level are and then teach according to that. Also, teaching methodologies are very different in India where lecture-based approaches would be reduced to one-way PowerPoint presentations and rote learning would otherwise prevail. American students are accustomed to asking questions, trying things out as they learn, working interactively, analyzing data and applying skills in new ways for problem solving and deep understanding. Using features such as two-way voice interaction, the online whiteboard, and an interactive style are very important in our method to get students actively involved in learning.

Proprietary instructional Delivery and session management Platform Rather than use large, cumbersome commercial software applications for the virtual whiteboard and voice communication, we felt it important to develop our own proprietary platform. Our platform requires no big download or installation making it much easier for students and teachers to get right to work. Also, our platform extended beyond just the communication concerns—we required a robust scheduling, learning management and teacher monitoring system. Think of an airline traffic controller at Chicago O’Hare International airport where you have hundreds of planes landing and taking off and passengers, pilots and crew making their way to connecting flights at any given time. At TutorVista.com, we have hundreds of teachers and students connecting at any given time. If we have 500 students showing up online at five in the afternoon, we better have the right number of tutors in the right mix of subjects scheduled to work. We have to make sure they show up and are technically able to successfully take the student “on the next flight.” TutorVista.com also needs to allocate a certain number of tutors for instant on-demand tutoring in each subject, and manage teacher no-shows or technical obstacles. If a tutor isn’t in place at

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his or her computer and ready to go before the session is supposed to start, we have automated systems that see if the tutor will make it in time, and if not, will assign a substitute tutor—all in real time. The software also needs to make tutors working with new students know where the previous tutor left off and what to do next. All this together meant the software platform had to be proprietary and scale up to the large number of students and tutors we accommodate 24 hours a day. We are delivering over 1,000,000 hours of tutoring this year. Many assume that for this online business to scale, the biggest problem is finding sufficient numbers of tutors. But while tutors are necessary, they are not sufficient in themselves for our growth and success. Successful online tutoring organizations need to have a platform that can handle the high volume, peaks, scheduling challenges, traffic, technical outages and occasional no shows that will occur. For instance, if the Internet connection drops then you want the software to try and reconnect, but if it drops repeatedly then you want the system to look for another tutor with a better connection and connect the student to the new tutor. This helps ensure customer satisfaction and operational efficiency. The proprietary TutorVista.com platform is custom made for our needs and has a built-in virtual whiteboard, voice-over internet protocol and text chat. We’ve had students in the backseat of the family car who are doing two-way interactive TutorVista.com tutoring with their battery-powered laptop computer and using wireless broadband Internet connection while driving to visit Grandma on summer vacation. They are riding on the highway and getting tutored by an expert tutor over 8,000 miles away! Or children traveling with their parents in Europe can use a laptop and a hotel’s Internet connection to get regular tutoring with their usual tutor. You can have a military family, and when they are relocated from one base—or even country—to another they can still have the same tutor.

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The voice interaction is a key part of the delivery platform. A student online could ask, “Why is this part of the figure an obtuse angle, and that an acute angle?” “This” and “that” are only meaningful in context—seeing a whole sentence come through in a single text chat entry with “this” and “that” or “here” and “there” doesn’t provide the interactivity, visual cues and clarity that the combination of voice conversation and a virtual whiteboard does. Typing back and forth is fine until you need a shared experience wherein the teacher can point, circle, underline, and write in the margin while talking to reinforce and clarify. If a tutor gives a student a diagnostic test or asks challenging problems to check for understanding, it’s important the student has adequate opportunity to explain things, apply what he knows and walk and talk his way through the solution. People can talk up to five times faster than they can type, so voice interaction ensures both teacher and student can express their thoughts and questions without cumbersome typing and reading delays. The TutorVista.com platform was designed to give students and tutors the interactivity and open communication they need.

academic Platform It’s critical in face-to-face or online education to know what the student has understood and hasn’t understood. We need to provide good examples and exercises so the tutor can quickly get his or her hands on them and display them for the student. We don’t want the tutor to have to come up with things on the spot. We want to give each student a solid, positive, standard experience with great examples and exercises in each session. If a student is having trouble understanding the equation of a line and the slope and intercept terms, for instance, the system provides some figures and examples the tutor and student can discuss. And tutors can pull up simulations, animations, virtual experiments and videos to give students even more engaging, lively hands-on work.

On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World

methodologies People come to us to catch up, keep up, or get ahead. Some parents say that they want their child to get ahead. She is doing well, but they want the student to get more practice and knowledge in certain areas. Students also come to us wanting homework help so that they can do assigned problems properly and don’t get stuck before they go to school. Some students want more traditional tutoring, and we can administer diagnostic tests, identify specific skill gaps and we’ll fill them. The fourth thing people might want is classroom test and quiz preparation. For example, a student could have a chapter test tomorrow, chapter four in his physics book. He needs someone to walk him through it, quiz him, and explain things that he doesn’t have quite right. This is a great way to review material and make sure he’s ready for the test. We do writing coaching as well. We don’t just take your essay and mark it up and say “Make these edits,” we will workshop the process. We might say, “In the first paragraph there were two introductory sentences where you should have used a comma. You did it wrong and here’s the rule. Now in paragraph three, four and five you have four more of those things. See if you can find those, point out if you did the rule correctly, and if not, fix them using what I’ve taught you.” TutorVista.com offers tutoring across the educational span from kindergarten to college. Our main business is concentrated on tutoring in math, English, science, and writing. We also have small numbers of adults who want to learn specialty topics such as foreign languages like Spanish, French or Chinese and students of all ages who come to us to learn English. As long as there is someone in the world with a learning need and someone with the knowledge to tutor, we can match the two with our online platform and “they’re in business!” Each tutor is tagged by us with their particular expertise by grade level and subjects. We also do test preparation for highstakes tests like the SAT and ACT. It is all done

one-on-one rather than in a small or large group. All students may get the same number of hours of help, but we will administer diagnostic tests to pinpoint specific areas where we can customize a program to help each student maximize his or her scores. Students have two different choices in how they use our service. They can get an instant session we call “Connect Now,” which means no matter what time it is, I need help now and didn’t plan in advance for it. I might click the button that says “Math” and select my grade level in school and I’m assigned a great tutor with experience and knowledge in that subject and grade. The other thing I can do is book a session scheduling it so that I know for instance that at ten o’clock on Saturday morning I’m working on math. The advantage of instant sessions is that you can get it anytime, 24/7, without planning ahead. The advantage of the scheduled session is that I can book a session with my favorite tutor. You can identify preferred tutors and the system will tell the user which preferred tutors are available for which time slots. Most online tutoring services are on-demand only with a different tutor each time, but we also do scheduling of tutors so that students can get that continuity with someone they like and who knows their needs, strengths and preferred learning style.

how effective is Online tutoring? We do multimodal learning using voice, typing, writing—the interaction is very rich. When I started out in this business I was supporting face-to-face mastery learning to fill skill gaps, following a specific plan for teaching a specific skill. When I created the first online tutoring system, I adapted a face-to-face program and environment for online world. We were curious as to whether or not students could learn to the same level in an online environment. You could argue that an online environment would certainly be more convenient because of not having to drive

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a student to a learning center and then home, but we weren’t sure if it was as effective as face-toface tutoring. We were delighted to find over a three-year period with hundreds of thousands of students, some getting face-to-face and some getting online tutoring, there was no statistical difference in effectiveness between the two groups. Face-to-face and online student enjoyed similar gains in standardized testing. It makes sense—if you use the same pedagogy teaching face-to-face and online you can see the same results.

Can Online tutoring be more effective than faceto-face tutoring? In the online world, we have an opportunity to engage students with a radically different approach to problem & solution presentation, problem solving and student hands-on discovery. In person I can give you a piece of paper with three lines on it and ask how the slope varies. But now, online, I can give you a simulation environment. You’ll see a line on a set of X-Y axes and I can ask you to drag that line and drop it anywhere—with the line sloping up, down, or sideways—whatever you want. When you’re done, we can both look at your line, see what that equation is and talk about why what we see is represented in the equation. That’s your line, not one out of a book. Suppose you position your line and it ends up being represented by the equation Y = 2X + 5. We can talk about what “2X” means and where the “5” comes into play. Now we can have some fun! I can ask you what will happen to your line if I make the equation Y= 4X+5. You predict, you change the “2” to a “4” and see what happens. Did you predict the resulting graph correctly? What if I make it “-2X” or “0X?” What happens with Y=2X+7? Or you can move the line in some way and predict what will happen to the equation. There’s no question a computer-based simulation can provide rich learning opportunities and help students make deep connections. You can get

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into a completely different interactive style on a computer that you could never do with pencil and paper. Additionally, students are more open to asking questions and revealing when they don’t understand something in an online environment. Students feel less pressure to “pretend they understand” when they don’t have someone staring them down across the table, and as a result online instruction can be much more thorough. I’ve worked with enough students and run enough data to know online tutoring is as effective as face-to-face tutoring when teachers follow a typical instructional delivery process. But I’m more excited that computer-based learning objects, virtual experiments, and videos have the potential to transform learning and turn it into something really exciting. Edurite is the content creating entity within TutorVista.com and creates learning objects for some of the largest companies including publishers in the world. It brings learning to life with content and simulations. For example, students can use a photosynthesis simulation and see by just changing the hours of daylight, light intensity or temperature how the amount of oxygen released and photosynthesis activity changes as a result. Students can play, engage and test themselves with this as opposed to just reading a sentence out of a book or having a tutor tell them about it.

tutorVista.com tutor Qualifications TutorVista.com hires experienced tutors, most with a masters or doctoral degree as well as 5-10 years teaching experience. Tutors complete 40 hours of intensive training and must pass stringent certification exams. They follow national and state academic standards and curricula and use TutorVista.com’s extensive library of online content, question banks, animations and simulations for maximum student engagement and learning. They are taught standards, technical tools, how to use the whiteboard and voice-over IP, launching sessions, housekeeping, and the style of teaching that helps

On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World

students thrive. There are also refresher courses and advanced courses beyond that initial training. We monitor tutors regularly by observing learning sessions against best practice standards, and we do mystery shopping too. Mystery shopping is where we have experienced teachers sign up for scheduled and on-demand sessions and pretend to be students. They can put a tutor through his or her paces by responding in specific ways or asking certain questions. This is like pilots working through various scenarios like in a flight simulator. The difference is our tutors won’t know it’s a test. To them this is a real tutoring session and we can see how they will handle important situations. I want to control the things tutor trainees face and ensure they have a chance to show their stuff and not wait and hope it will naturally come up in typical tutoring sessions.

models for schools and institutions TutorVista.com allows students to access tutoring services from school and home. Schools can implement this two ways: By-The-Tutor-Hour, or By-The-Student. In the By-The-Tutor-Hour model, the school designates lab, media center, library or other computers for tutoring at certain times. We staff a remote, online tutor for each computer and hour of operation. This model is priced by the tutor hour and there is no limit to the number of students you can work in during these hours. Tutoring is available for any of TutorVista.com’s standard subjects before, during or after school as long as the school has scheduled a tutor at that time. Tutoring is freely available to students during the assigned hours of operation. This can be done flexibly to accommodate various subjects and grade levels. Schools may set up regularly scheduled tutoring but vary subjects and grades by computer systems, times and days students may be assigned or drop in. For example Mondays from 9AM to 12PM may have 30 English tutors available, while from 1PM to 3PM 15 Biology tutors and 15 Algebra I tutors

are available, with a different subject/grade mix of tutors available Tuesdays. It is advisable to block hours of the same grade/subject to reduce transition time between tutoring sessions. Also, if individual classes will be accessing the service at regular times, tutor continuity among students can often be maintained, and teachers will have a designated tutor pool supporting their class. In the By-The-Student model, the school arranges for specific or all students to have access to unlimited tutoring covering all TutorVista.com subjects anytime and from anywhere. Schools can also make unlimited tutoring available to all students for a very low flat monthly per-student fee which is then adjusted based on actual utilization. Every student in the school can access TutorVista.com in school or outside school, 24x7. TutorVista.com provides various options for interaction between school administrators, teachers, and students and TutorVista.com tutors. There are several available approaches to ensure TutorVista.com tutoring is supporting and augmenting classroom instruction. •

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Teacher/Tutor Conferencing: Teachers and tutors can schedule regular online conferences using the TutorVista.com’s online classroom VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol or “Internet phone”) platform to speak and have regular exchanges concerning student needs and share performance information. As long as students from particular classrooms will be accessing the service at regular times, tutors can be earmarked for certain classes. Teachers can talk to tutors supporting their classrooms individually or as a group. To ensure tutor availability for meetings, we recommend teachers and tutors meet at regularly scheduled times convenient both for teachers and tutors once or twice each week. Syllabus and Curriculum Alignment: If schools provide tutors with the curriculum and textbooks students use and the

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syllabus, the tutor can review, practice & apply concepts taught in the classroom that day or week and check for understanding through application. Tutors can have students “explain back” problem solving methods, address self-identified difficulties and provide additional individual explanations or “spot-assistance” to students as needed. This allows the tutor to align learning with the classroom and accommodate individual needs. •

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E-Mail Communication: We will provide teachers with e-mail addresses for tutors working with their students so they can communicate outside scheduled conferences. Continuity of Tutors: Students who will be accessing the service at the same time(s) each week for the same subject can usually be paired with specific tutors per subject to guide them through their learning plan. Tutors are also able to conference with classroom teachers for additional inputs into the needs of the students.

We also do ongoing training and certification. For example, if we have a contract to deliver services in a particular state or district, we can provide additional in-depth training for our tutors in that curriculum so that they are expert in it. Tutors can earn a secondary certification in that curriculum. Our tutors use the same textbooks as used by the student to ensure that the tutoring is relevant and useful. We also ensure that they are involved in the regular academic activities of the student. They monitor the progress of the student during the academic year, help with everyday homework, book reports or assignments and help students prepare for upcoming exams. TutorVista.com offers flexible in and after school, library, community center, and at-home tutoring for district, school, community, statewide

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programs, and home-schoolers. Our fully customizable learning programs are ideal for home-school students. We provide structured instruction and opportunities to explore subjects with an expert educator. We will work out an individualized learning plan for each student based on his or her current performance and academic goals. A skilled TutorVista.com tutor implements the student’s learning plan one-on-one. TutorVista. com’s extended programs aimed at supplementing home-school instruction with that of a certified tutor and subject matter expert help meet the needs of parents who don’t have certain subjectmatter expertise, and who want to give additional learning opportunities and guided instruction to their children. Our pricing is very different than other services because we offer unlimited tutoring for a flat rate much like NetFlix offers unlimited movie rentals for a flat low fixed price per month. Most students might request two or three hours of tutoring a week because they are fitting in soccer, drama, and other things—but that fact is students can get unlimited tutoring for a low monthly rate. That encompasses the catch up, keep up, and get ahead tutoring models. We also offer unlimited, multisubject tutoring models for district-, school- and state-wide programs. A by-the-tutor-hour program for in-school and after school use and are available at reasonable rates as well.

is Online tutoring safe? TutorVista.com is also concerned about the safety and well-being of our students, and that extends beyond just delivering high-quality tutoring and educational resources. TutorVista.com supports the National Research Council for the Sciences findings that media literacy and online safety lessons are key to ensuring children’s Internet safety, and smart business practices, consumer decisions and parental involvement are crucial elements (Thornburgh & Lin, 2002). TutorVista. com takes a multi-tiered approach to ensure the

On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World

well-being of all students and tutors and create a safer environment for online learning. TutorVista. com’s approach includes: • • • •

• • •

Providing employed tutors—not operating a tutor exchange or referral service Verifying tutor qualifications & background Monitoring student-tutor exchanges Providing tools for parents & students to record all sessions for use as a study tool for future review and to allow parents to see what their children are learning Providing the ability for parents to monitor (live) their student’s sessions from work Encouraging parents’ involvement in their children’s education Recommending that all TutorVista.com and tutor-student interactions occur within a parent-monitored e-mail address.

These safety precautions and careful monitoring make TutorVista.com the ideal service to use in schools and at home for tutoring where student and tutor interactions can’t always be observed. Schools, parents and guardians don’t have to be concerned about what is going on between the tutor and student because if they want to they can log in and watch it live, or play back a recording of any of the student’s tutoring sessions. Parents can hear everything that was said and see everything that was displayed on the screen, written, drawn or typed. Our environment is very safe. If I send my child to a learning center, I don’t really know what goes on. With TutorVista.com, I as a parent can listen and watch all interactions. Or I can come home later and pull up that session and watch it. Every interaction and communication between the tutor and student is saved.

Library-Based tutoring Programs We recently announced the launch of live oneon-one homework help for public libraries in the

United States and Canada, giving students easy access to high-quality, instant academic support and electronic reference materials at their convenience, even at home by logging onto their public library’s Web sites. Since the Boston Public Library first loaned out a book in 1848, public libraries have been integral to communities, augmenting educational programs with books, periodicals, reference and audiovisual materials and recently technologybased tools and services. Since its founding in 2005, TutorVista.com has always had a singular aim—to provide affordable, high quality tutoring to students everywhere—especially to students who didn’t have tutoring available before. TutorVista.com’s Library Advantage Program continues that commitment by extending affordable and accessible tutoring to public library patrons, just as the company did when offering free tutoring to ten of the poorest communities in the United States in 2006. We are aware that one-on-one homework help—provided just when a student needs it—significantly improves student mastery and academic performance. For students who might spend hours struggling with problems they don’t know how to tackle, TutorVista.com.Com provides immediate guidance to boost understanding of their assigned materials. TutorVista.com’s Library Advantage Program gives communities real value for a minimal incremental cost and is designed to accommodate the tight budgets of libraries. The program gives libraries detailed monthly usage reports to help them demonstrate its value to their patrons. TutorVista.com’s Library Advantage Program is unique in that it provides both voice-based live tutoring and text/ chat-based tutoring. Students can use TutorVista. com’s voice-over-IP capabilities to talk naturally with a tutor where permitted in the library or in the students’ homes. In addition to affordable, convenient live tutoring, the Library Advantage Program makes the company’s library of math and science simulations, animations, videos and study aids available to students around the clock. These electronic

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reference materials provide engaging, interactive resources that bring concepts to life and stimulate student learning.

CUrrent ChaLLenges There is a nationwide education crisis in America. Students are underserved in the classroom where the majority of students are either ahead of or behind the current teaching level. Students need personalized, one-on-one attention to improve core skills and the freedom to work at their own pace. At TutorVista.com, we believe that technology and a new global teaching force is a way of leveling the playing field and making education affordable and accessible to students everywhere. Technology is a great enabler and we need to think globally about educational services. When we first came on the scene we got a lot of attention in the media including featured articles in The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, New York Times, and television reports on ABC, NBC, CBS News and a PBS Special. The good news is we provide all the tutoring you want for $99. But the question is, what do you think about Indian tutors? What do you think of foreigners teaching your children? I’ve seen some disturbing things in public schools where special interest groups kill effective and cost-effective projects over things that have nothing to do with the interests of children. For instance, in some states you need to be physically fingerprinted in the state before you can be an approved teacher or tutor, even an online tutor. Well, TutorVista.com tutors aren’t going to come to the U.S. to be fingerprinted. It’s one thing if we sent a digital copy of a qualified finger print—that’s fine. But for a tutor who is eight or nine thousand miles away, it could cost a year’s salary for her to fly to the U.S. She would need a visa to get into the country. But why is local fingerprinting in person necessary for a remote, online tutor?

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The biggest challenge is the question of whether or not it is right to outsource tutoring. You don’t want to think that you are hurting the economy by hiring an Indian tutor, but the fact is, what teachers have been displaced by overseas tutors? Some teachers tutor the students in their classroom at the end of their busy, hectic day. Are they doing it for the money? Or do they do it because some students need help and have nowhere else to turn? Teachers who want to do tutoring for the extra income have seen no shortage of students who want to avail themselves of those services. But at $25-50 per hour or more for local tutoring, traditional tutoring has been out of reach for most families. Doesn’t paying as little as $5-10 an hour for a qualified, well trained India-based tutor makes sense for the mass market? Those paying nothing now and not getting their children the help they need could radically improve their children’s’ prospects in life by making overseas tutors available any time and any place their children need. It’s no wonder that tutoring to date has largely been considered a privilege only of the wealthy. TutorVista.com opens up the option of tutoring for a whole new segment of the population that simply could not have afforded it before. What’s the payoff? If you get your child PSAT or SAT test prep, you may find he or she can score well enough to be offered merit scholarships for college and get into colleges that may have been out of reach before. A student can’t make up for years of bad grades around the time they apply to college—it’s too late then. But parents securing homework help and skill-gap tutoring throughout their children’s school year can give them an edge. By spending a small amount of money on online tutoring or test prep they might save themselves thousands of dollars on tuition through merit scholarships and that is a tremendous boon for any family, especially in the face of the skyrocketing cost of higher education. Technology allows people to do things, and then the questions arise as to whether it is appro-

On-Demand Tutoring to Students Around the World

priate to use it; we then need to sort through these issues on economic, moral, or ethical grounds. I want to see sensible services and solutions made available to the children who need them. It’s time for students to have full access to effective and affordable services that aren’t available in the United States directly. These education services can increase a student’s chances of getting scholarships and into college, and it is hard to see how that could be a bad thing for America’s future.

LessOns LearneD From the tutoring side, the goal is to make a mass-market tutoring product. If you are used to spending $300-400 for tutoring at a learning center, the $99 we charge for unlimited tutoring for a whole month is a great price. But if you are spending nothing on tutoring right now, $99 a month may not be considered a trivial amount. So we will want to offer fixed number of session (not unlimited) packages too. In this way, a family can sign up for just the amount of tutoring they need each month. That translates to a very, very low hourly rate compared to most companies out there today that do tutoring by the minute. Since traditional tutoring is expensive whether it is $25-30 an hour locally or $35-50 per hour with a chain, or higher with someone who comes to your home, it has been seen as something you only use if you have a lot of money or if your child has a huge problem at school. You hear about parents taking out loans to put their children in after-school programs. We are trying to change the perception that tutoring is only something you do if you are rich, or if your child is painfully behind. We can work with students to improve

their grades over the long-term as well as help a student improve his high stakes college entrance test scores through test prep from one test to the next in the short term. We want to see a world where every child has the access to the help they need, when they need it. We want to see a world where every child achieves all they can, where children don’t have to fall behind and where gifted students have the resources that they need to excel and not be held back. That can only come from one-on-one instruction and the only realistic way to make it happen is by leveraging technology and global resources. I want to tell people, that they don’t have to take tutoring at $35-50 per hour or more. They can focus on being preventive and proactive without taking out a loan or compromising family finances. I want to be the fitness center, not the dentist. People won’t usually go to the dentist until there is a serious, painful problem or long term damage has been done, but if it’s affordable and convenient, they will go to the fitness center to get on track and stay in shape. The fitness center is there whenever you want it. It helps you be your best no matter what your level. At TutorVista.com we want every child to succeed and we know that isn’t always possible through one-size-fits-all classroom instruction.

referenCes Press Release. (n.d.). TutorVista.com. TutorVista. com brings live one-on-one homework help and electronic reference materials to public libraries. Retrieved November 4, 2008, from http:// www.TutorVista.com.com/press/presscover/ ALA_Library_Press_Release.php

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Chapter 13

Reaching Beyond Bricks and Mortar:

How Sylvan Online Expands Learners’ Options Saul Rockman Rockman et al., USA Lynn Fontana Sylvan Learning, USA

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY Sylvan Learning has set the standard for personalized, after-school, academic support programs for students in elementary grades through high school. It has been in business for 30 years and was one of the earliest programs to demonstrate that providing direct supplemental instruction services could be successfully scaled nationally. The nearly 1,100 Sylvan centers provide academic assistance to thousands of students each day and have helped more than 2 million students reach their full academic potential. A relatively little-known but growing component of Sylvan Learning’s offerings is Sylvan Online, a oneto-one academic assistance program that is offered to students at home in association with their local Sylvan Learning centers. This Internet-based service provides the same type of individualized academic support as the centers, yet it affords greater flexibility and access. Using proprietary technologies, Sylvan Online makes it possible to reach learners—no matter their geographic area or proximity to a Sylvan Learning center—and helps them receive the kind of academic support necessary to succeed in school. This chapter describes the program and attributes of Sylvan Online and situates the program within the larger context of extended-day academic programs.

BaCkgrOUnD Extended-day or supplemental academic programs have been part of the educational landscape for decades, often existing—and even flourishing—

without any evaluation of their actual or potential impact. Some students attend these programs because they need to address gaps in basic skills, while others may have to develop more effective learning strategies. Still others want to learn and practice the skills necessary to improve test scores, and others

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch013

Copyright © 2010, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

Reaching Beyond Bricks and Mortar

wish to accelerate their course work and master the content more quickly. Meeting the varied needs of students and helping them to succeed academically is the purpose of these after-school supplemental programs. In recent years, research on after-school academic programs has identified the attributes of programs that are likely to be effective in reaching the goals set for students participating in them. Incorporating these attributes, programs achieve success both for the students and in the marketplace. Over the past decade, Sylvan Online (the online program highlighted in this case study) has focused on incorporating these attributes and, as a result, provides academic interventions that make a difference for students. Furthermore, the organization continues to explore what other factors can make this program even more effective and accessible. Building on Sylvan Learning’s 30 years of experience, Sylvan Online is developing the potential to be even more successful for its students and within its marketplace by helping students develop the skills, habits, and attitudes needed for lifelong success. The attributes of effective extended-day academic programs are what drive the approach utilized by Sylvan Learning and Sylvan Online. The case study developed below focuses on how these attributes come into play and how the strategy taken by Sylvan Online builds on them. Among the critical elements are: •

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Experienced staff, especially those who know how to work both with children who have diverse learning styles and children who do not necessarily thrive in traditional learning environments. Equally important, staff should receive comprehensive training and ongoing support. Quality curriculum, aligned to school curriculum, as well as to local, state, and national curriculum and standards. Curriculum should be age/grade-level appropriate and delivered with effective instructional techniques, including

•

•

•

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standardized assessments and varied pedagogical styles that meet the needs of different learners (e.g., personalized instruction, engaging activities, and interactive learning experiences). Programs that provide adequate structure for participants but also offer flexibility and provide sufficient time for learning (in session length and program duration). Strong and positive partnerships with classroom instructors and connections to the learning community, including parents and schools. Quality resources, including technology and facilities that foster sustained levels of involvement in a safe and healthy environment. Well-aligned evaluation and/or research components to provide feedback on the program.

Before beginning to delve into the attributes of effective academic support programs and the Sylvan Online model, a bit of background is needed. Over the years, Sylvan Learning’s instructional system has demonstrated that it helps children improve and accelerate their academic performance while also discovering their love of learning. However, not all of those who needed the academic support that supplemental education offered could easily attend a program at a neighborhood Sylvan Learning center. Because of distance, inconvenience, illness or competing activities, many students could participate only if offered greater flexibility in where and when the instruction took place. Consequently, after reviewing the needs of students and the business opportunity, Sylvan Learning created Sylvan Online (then called eSylvan) in 2001 as a means of delivering synchronous, individualized instruction by a live instructor over the Internet. The online approach taken by eSylvan matched closely with that offered in the physical Sylvan Learning centers: it recognized the unique learn-

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ing needs of its students, it provided a range of activities and a reinforcement structure that engaged students, and it retained its commitment to highly-qualified and well-prepared instructors. It also employed leading edge, synchronous online technology to deliver live, high-quality instruction. Online diagnostic/prescriptive instruction could now be delivered to families who would not otherwise be able to access it. Moreover, the approach to online learning acknowledged the limitation of the technology in place at homes by designing the program to work over a modem rather than requiring high bandwidth access. As one of the earliest efforts to provide individualized instructional support over the Internet, eSylvan had to build a system without precedents. The company created an infrastructure that could be integrated into the existing bricks-and-mortar system for capturing progress and that provided systematic feedback to instructors and to students and their families. The Committee on International and Transregional Accreditation (CITA) certifies eSylvan (aka Sylvan Online) as a national provider of supplemental academic programs. While eSylvan was utilized by a few families in its earliest years, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation in 2002 created additional opportunities that included the tutoring of students in schools that had not been reaching performance goals. The eSylvan platform and infrastructure was adapted to provide an instructional experience for these students. Pursuant to the free tutoring provision of NCLB, Educate Online (formerly Catapult Online) was created in 2004 to offer synchronous, online Supplemental Educational Services (SES) building on the eSylvan platform, content, and approach. Since 2005, Educate Online has delivered an effective and successful tutoring option to more than 50,000 underperforming students in failing schools. The combination of technology, quality instruction, and a team of caring, educational professionals allowed Educate Online to provide a level of engagement that produced results not

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found with many other supplemental educational providers. Over the past three years, this program has been part of a significant, federally-funded research project looking at the impact of SES on academic performance. In a section below, we report on some of the findings from this program, a program identical to that of Sylvan Online, which illustrates its effectiveness in increasing academic performance. Catapult Online changed its name to Educate Online and was established as a stand-alone enterprise in 2007. During this period, eSylvan was re-launched as Sylvan Online™ and focused on building a successful service for its after-school supplemental education program.

Case DesCriPtiOn extending academic Programs to Online Students enrolling in Sylvan Online are given the Sylvan Skills Assessment®, a pre-test that serves both as a basis for placement and to create an individualized prescription. This assessment identifies a student’s unique skill gaps and areas of academic strengths and weaknesses. This assessment also helps define the prescription (personalized learning plan) for that student, along with information from the parents and, when appropriate, from the student’s classroom teachers. Based on a diagnostic prescription, an individually customized program is built that, when implemented, will result in improved academic performance and personal engagement with learning. Sylvan Online’s instruction is accomplished in a one-to-one setting using a mastery teaching model in which students move through a series of progressively more challenging stages to ensure mastery of a content element or skill. Included in the learning plan are interactive lessons that have variation in methods to engage students with different learning styles. The interactive lessons use a digital writing tablet and hands-free headset to cre-

Reaching Beyond Bricks and Mortar

Figure 1. Student and Teacher View © 2008, Educate Online, Inc. Used with permission

ate an interactive real-time learning environment supported by the computer. Students and teachers communicate using Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and can chat about current learning tasks and academic problems faced in school, as well as specifics of the lessons and learning plan. An engaging interface keeps students focused at all times and is able to deliver all pertinent information to the teacher so he or she may work with each student independently. The student’s screen includes a whiteboard space with drawing tools, a chat area, and a control panel. The teacher’s screen includes a listing of the prescriptions for that student, records of past performance, and a set of lessons from which to choose. Teachers are able to offer stickers and points for accomplishments, and the tokens are then accumulated for prizes and

reinforcements. Technical support to the students’ families is made available throughout the program, beginning with set-up. Technical problems are handled quickly at the system level. The online experience mirrors the instruction that takes place when the teacher and student are sitting in the same room. The supplemental teacher introduces topics with a brief set of questions to assess and confirm current knowledge; a problem set might be demonstrated and completed by the teacher and student together, followed by a set of guided practice examples before the student is asked to complete lessons on his or her own. The student has the opportunity to complete independent practice and problem-solving. Additional learning activities are then offered if the student is struggling. Using the writing tablet,

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the teacher provides comments on the student’s work and visibly scores the student’s answers. The online classroom also includes a token economy reward system through which the student accumulates tokens for working diligently and mastering skills. Students take a progress assessment at 36 hours to document the gains made in academic performance. Grade-level gains are calculated, and information about the student’s improvement is provided to his or her parents. Additionally, monthly progress reports are sent to parents and to school teachers upon parental request. This sharing of information with classroom teachers encourages the collaboration of those supporting the student’s learning needs, and the progress reported can be built upon in regular classroom activities. Sylvan’s approach to mastery learning has proven to be effective and ensures the regular monitoring of a student’s academic progression. A student does not move to a more challenging skill until the basic learning concept is mastered. This creates greater confidence in the student’s own perception of him or herself as a learner and translates into more engagement and participation in school and extracurricular activities. Reports from classroom teachers indicate greater participation and initiative in class on the part of the online students.

a successful approach to mastery Learning What are the factors that contribute to Sylvan Online’s success as a provider of online supplemental education with demonstrable impact on learners? Earlier, we identified a series of attributes that lead to success in after-school academic support services. Below, we elaborate on each attribute and how Sylvan Online engages them in the creation of a successful program. Staff, training, and support: Successful programs utilize experienced staff provided with

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comprehensive training and ongoing support. Sylvan Online stresses its efforts to hire, train, and support high-quality instructors. Characteristics and criteria for good staff: Selecting experienced teachers and supportive staff is essential for successful out-of-school academic programs. Sylvan Online teachers are state-certified and experienced in working with a range of children. The program employs 1,500 licensed, certified U.S. teachers for grades 3-12, most with three or more years of experience. All are required to have at least a bachelor’s degree and many have specialized certification. Many of these teachers are certified to teach English Language Learners (ELL) and consequently provide additional support for those students needing help in reading and language arts. Sylvan teachers are recruited from all parts of the country so that students will have access at a convenient time after school and on weekends. All teachers are vetted with background checks, in partnership with Kroll Background America, and searches of national and international databases to ensure the safety of the enrolled families. Training: Providing staff with quality training and adequate preparation is an essential component. Vandell et al. (2004) suggest that employment of experienced staff and devotion of considerable resources to enhancing staff skills are two criteria that increase program success. Sylvan Online teachers receive a series of training sessions to learn how to use the diagnostic/prescriptive system, interact with students online using the available technologies, and accomplish the assigned lessons. Regular professional development sessions are devoted to teaching philosophy, the academic content, and instructional approaches effective for students who struggle academically, consistent with the research conducted by Dodd & Wise (2002). At the end of each student online meeting, teachers complete a feedback form about the session and its impact, as well as the level of student participation and technical issues. A supervisor (a member of the education team assigned

Reaching Beyond Bricks and Mortar

to monitor students throughout the program) periodically reviews these reports. Monitoring includes evaluation of the following: students’ lesson scores, pace to mastery, average number of lessons completed per session, session length, teacher comments, and behavioral flags. As a result of these periodic reviews every six to eight sessions, lesson plans are adjusted to more closely match actual performance. Staff to participant ratio: Small classes and/ or instructional groups tend to be most productive, according to Schuch (2003). Sylvan Online teachers are initially supervised as they work with a single student in a one-to-one online relationship. Eventually, teachers move to one-to-two and then one-to-three ratios. Teachers engage the first student with direct instruction while the second and third students are involved in guided or independent practice. The teacher is on-call continually to each of the students online at that time. From the students’ point-of-view, the interaction is only one-to-one. This individualization is a parallel to the instruction provided in Sylvan Learning centers and is even more pronounced as a one-to-one instructional program. Curriculum and instructional techniques: Sylvan Online builds on the validated, researchbased approach of mastery learning with curriculum that is clear and focused and that supports what students are asked to do in their classrooms. High-quality academic content and effective techniques for delivering the content to students are important components of successful out-ofschool academic programs. Dodd & Wise (2002) assert that simply extending the school day will not have a significant effect on student achievement; quality instruction is the key component. As schools respond to the pressure of No Child Left Behind, what is often forgotten “is the researchbased knowledge on how students learn best: with a rich curriculum, multiple ways of reinforcing it, and relevance” (Time, Learning, and Afterschool Task Force, 2007, p. 12).

Consistency and alignment with school curriculum: There seems to be general consensus that a consistent approach to curriculum that involves alignment between various modes of formal and informal education is preferable to one that lacks alignment and consistency. Tutoring programs that are closely aligned with the content and use similar but “slightly different” teaching and learning strategies have been found to be more successful than programs that do not build on the schoolday curriculum (Dodd & Wise, 2002). Sylvan’s approach has always been to begin not only with the learning gaps that students have, but also to incorporate strategies that build upon the child’s learning preferences. As a result, the approach in instruction is not a one-size-fits-all, but rather an individualized learning plan that is customized to the learner while continuing to cover the curriculum that is offered by the schools. The curriculum content of Sylvan Online is aligned with both state and national standards and frameworks, which allows the instructors to report student progress using the same benchmarks that the local schools are using. Depending on the specific learning needs of the child, coverage of curriculum content can be aligned with what the school is doing and the content tested by standardized assessments used in each state and district. In addition to providing consistency in terms of what is taught, it is also important that there be frequent communication among school-day teachers and after-school tutors to ensure a seamless integration of during- and after-school learning (Schuch, 2003). Sylvan Online provides feedback to parents and, with the parents’ permission, instructors provide information about the content and progress of Sylvan’s programs to the children’s classroom teachers. Relevant content: Successful after-school programs provide content that is relevant to diverse students. If traditional educational content doesn’t attract students’ attention in a manner that is sufficient to foster learning during the regular school day, putting a new spin on that content in a non-formal academic setting may be

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beneficial. According to the Time, Learning and Afterschool Task Force, “relevance is a major ‘hook’ to engaging students in intensive academic work” (Time, Learning and Afterschool Taskforce, 2007, p. 6). The instructional approach taken by Sylvan Online incorporates both variety in lesson pedagogy and an array of strategies for student engagement, with teachers having a range of tools at their disposal. The combination of the digital tablet and its interactivity, a deep assortment of student instructional activities, and the ability to engage a child in one-to-one discussion yields a highly motivating setting for effective learning. Moreover, students can always communicate areas with which they are struggling in the classroom to the online instructor, who can then link this to the lessons being covered after school. Appropriate content for age and skill level: Content should be age-appropriate, but also provide challenges and enable opportunities to develop new skills or help to hone existing skills (Bodilly, 2005). “Forty-seven percent of youth who drop out of school do so because they find it unchallenging” (Time, Learning and Afterschool Taskforce, 2007, p. 15). With the well-tested mixture of lessons, as well as the initial assessment of learning gaps and learning preferences, Sylvan Online instructors can align the content to meet the unique needs of each learner. Moreover, instructors can test the limits of a child’s ability by providing activities that challenge the learner and encourage him or her to take academic risks within a safe, online environment. Use of multiple methods to reach different types of learners: Not all learners are able to learn well in the same ways. Therefore, it is beneficial to use multiple techniques to teach and reinforce learning. Using various approaches to help students acquire and utilize knowledge is an important component of a learning system designed to meet students’ needs. In a study cited by Dodd & Wise (2002, p. 24), researchers “found that providing content and instructional pace adaptations to accommodate the student’s style of learning during

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the extended learning time in one-on-one or oneon-two tutorial sessions can cause a rise in student achievement scores.” This is what Sylvan Online offers its students: customization of instruction. By design, Sylvan Online’s curriculum materials and pedagogy provide the variety and depth for differentiated instruction based on learning preference and specific student academic needs. Individualized instruction, supplemented by independent learning, results in higher motivation and greater learning. As part of its efforts to ensure that the content and strategies were consistent with current research on both reading and mathematics, Sylvan commissioned two independent research validation reports on the content of its instructional program and on the most effective strategies for supporting the learning of core subject areas. These two validation reports, which have been recently updated (Farr, Levitt, & Fontana, 2009; Farr, Brown, & Fontana, 2009), supported not only the content and pedagogy implemented by Sylvan Online, but also provided support for the technology strategy implemented by the company. The Language Arts validation report (Farr, Levitt, & Fontana, 2009) provided both support for current Sylvan Online strategies and recommendations for greater efforts to support English learners. This report stressed the value of providing qualified ELL instructors and embedded support strategies to meet the needs of a growing population of nonnative speakers and readers. Sylvan has been a leader in adding ELL-certified teachers to its roster of online instructors and guiding students to those qualified teachers as the need arises.

Program structure How an after-school academic program is structured can also have an important impact on its ultimate success. Research suggests that a blend of rigidity and flexibility is preferable to programs that are either completely rigid or completely flexible in their structure.

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Structure and flexibility: Strong tutoring programs provide a schedule and a course of lessons that need to be mastered, but offer a great deal of flexibility and opportunity for students to make choices about how they participate. The flexibility of online learning and the availability of supplemental instructors at various times throughout the afternoon and early evening permit students to work at convenient times on their unique set of curricular units. Furthermore, personalized instruction can take place throughout the year, while traveling, or while home- or hospital-bound. There are fewer distractions than in the classroom and fewer interruptions in the hour-long session. Amount, persistence, and duration: Arguably, more instructional time is better—children have more time to learn and instructors have more time to help them achieve desired academic goals. Nevertheless, there is efficiency to the instructional approach to mastery learning used by Sylvan Online. Academic progress can be seen quickly and results clearly noted by students, parents, and classroom teachers. Many evaluations show a positive relationship between higher, longer, and/or more regular levels of participation and program outcomes (Little & Harris, 2003). High retention and completion rates in Sylvan Online programs lead to greater improvement in skills and knowledge and their consistent application to instructional tasks. Students stay with the program because it is engaging, offering customized approaches to the content and a variety of learning strategies as well as a reinforcement structure that keeps students motivated and working hard. Evidence from the online program indicates growth of about one-and-one-half grade levels for students in math and language arts. This kind of growth is a testament to the Sylvan Online diagnostic and prescriptive approach and the quality and skills of its well-prepared instructors.

Partnerships As noted in the sections above, Sylvan Online sees its individualized education programs as one component of its effort to improve students’ academic performance. Parents have the ability to view and monitor the interactive lessons; reports on students’ progress are delivered to parents at home and are available online using parents’ passwords. Parents are offered detailed views of the students’ progress through the assigned units, movement towards reaching the overall personal goals established at the outset, and feedback about the amount and nature of participation in the learning activities. Parents can print out the lessons as worksheets and work further with their children. Parents can also visit a Sylvan Learning center and receive a more detailed interpretation of an individual child’s needs and progress. In addition to informing parents, Sylvan Online provides, with parental permission, similar detailed information about student progress to the child’s teacher. This effort is designed to encourage the classroom teacher to be a partner, along with the Sylvan instructor and parents, in the effort to help each child develop the skills, habits, and attitudes needed for lifelong success. As the teacher becomes aware of the content covered and the progress achieved, he or she can begin to link classroom activities to the online instruction taking place after school. For those students seeking to improve in a current course, this educatorfocused information often helps the student both meet course expectations and gain the academic confidence necessary to achieve higher grades. Often this partnership leads to changes, not only in academics, but also in engagement in learning, classroom participation, greater self-confidence, and the ability of the child to be an independent learner and to take responsibility for assignments.

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Success in Sylvan Online can be transferred to the classroom with improved learning and performance throughout the school year.

sylvan Online is a Proven resource Supplemental education programs need access to resources that can augment the learning experience and engage the student. While the Sylvan Online curriculum uses a variety of content that is aligned with the schools—and implements the same time-tested pedagogy that can be found in many classrooms—the unique use of personalized, interactive technology further enhances the educational experience for students. By using some of the same instructional approaches that are familiar to students, those enrolled in Sylvan Online have a head start in using the interactive technology without needing to dedicate additional time for familiarization. New techniques are needed to master some of the learning activities, but the tablet and VoIP easily become part of each student’s skill set. Technology: The use of technology in out-ofschool programs, like Sylvan Online, is beneficial for several reasons. First, it is used to facilitate individualized instructional opportunities for students. It is used for “diagnostic teaching, analyzing student reading patterns, and adjusting instruction based on immediate feedback” (Chen, 2007). Second, technology provides an engaging resource that today’s students tend to relate to better than other traditional learning resources. “Students are like the Jetsons, able to access information instantaneously and communicate across time and space, but they are being schooled in a Flintstones’ world,” notes Milton Chen, the executive director of the George Lucas Educational Foundation (Time, Learning and Afterschool Task Force, 2007). While the technology used in the instructional program is not the same as that used in action games and social networking, it is sufficiently novel and engaging to keep youngsters engaged. Third, the strategy for using technology

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in Sylvan Online creates an efficient learning environment that allows students to accomplish more, receive more timely feedback, and succeed at their own rate. The integrated data collection and analysis system, not directly seen by students or instructors, provides for sophisticated analysis and monitoring to keep students on-track and provide the analytic feedback to inform instructors and others concerned with student progress.

research and evaluation for sylvan Online Very few after-school academic programs have had substantive research to assess their impact on student learning; the curriculum and approach of Sylvan Online has been studied in an exacting manner by an independent research organization. Through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Educate Online, the SES version of Sylvan Online, has been studied in a highly rigorous research effort. The Star Schools Program, a program of the Office of Instruction and Improvement, funded Sylvan as one of five programs to be studied in-depth. Over the past two years, both the math and reading core online curriculums have been part of randomized control trials with middle school students across several states. Unlike the Sylvan Online program, students participating in the SES version received a computer as part of the enrollment covered by the Title I program. The instructors and the curriculum content were the same, as was the one-to-one nature of the student-instructor interaction. The findings from these studies demonstrate statistically significant gains in academic performance in both math and reading when compared to a control group (Rockman et al, 2007, 2009). Approximately 350 students each year were randomly selected to be in the initial treatment group or a delayed treatment group and completed the initial assessments that lead to diagnosis and prescriptions for the instructional program. The initial statistical analysis indicated that the groups

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were equivalent at the start. At the end of the first semester, after about 25 hours of supplemental instruction, the treatment group (those receiving the online program during the first semester) had statistically significantly higher scores on the posttest. In reading, for example, the differences were more than one-and-one-half grade equivalents. As part of the study, a sample of English Language Learners (ELL) students was carefully assigned to ELL-certified teachers. Consequently, their improvement was even greater over their control group than students not part of ELL programs. Because of the manner in which the curriculum was designed and delivered, students performing well below grade level improved the greatest. In addition to academic performance, the researchers reported improved interactions in school, greater participation in class, more efforts to become independent learners, higher grades (especially for ELL students), and an acknowledgement by classroom teachers that participation in online learning made a difference in students’ school accomplishments. Students reported that involvement with the online instruction helped them do better in school, that their language arts grades improved, that they read more proficiently, that they were better at figuring out their mistakes in reading, and, ultimately, that they were now better learners. From the parents’ point-of-view, online supplemental instruction was more flexible and convenient. Parents saw their children’s progress in school - and their children’s teachers acknowledged the improvements—and perceived their children as improved, independent learners. Several years ago, Sylvan, through Catapult Learning, commissioned several Research Validation reports, one of which was focused on technology and its role in supporting Sylvan’s services in core areas. The report (Puckett and Rockman, 2006) not only reviewed the research supporting online instruction in reading and mathematics, it suggested how the organization could adopt, adapt, and incorporate the range of emerging technologies that students and educators were beginning to

use. The report envisioned not only the application of push technologies such as podcasting and RSS feeds, but also greater use of immersive technologies such as virtual reality learning environments, simulations, and multiplayer gaming. While these new technologies are still proving themselves in formal and informal learning settings, the report suggests that research has demonstrated their benefits for student engagement and content mastery learning. As part of an online learning system, emerging interactive technologies offer Sylvan Online greater opportunities to motivate and teach students with strategies that engage them.

CUrrent ChaLLenges Improvements in both technology and instructional content will drive the future of Sylvan Online. A recent rebuilding of the system infrastructure improved the quality of audio and online interactions; the program has been exploring mobile computing platforms to offer access anytime, anywhere. As new technologies for learning emerge with the range of capabilities needed, they will be adopted and adapted to improve the Sylvan Online experience. New instructional approaches may include interactive learning games, perhaps accessible on mobile phones; animation to further engage the student in the learning activities; and more sensitive assessments that provide greater precision in the diagnostic and prescriptive process, in addition to more targeted instructional plans. More complex and powerful instructional workspace tools are also on the drawing board and will provide more creative interactions between instructors and students. Sylvan Online is also planning for greater linkages between the Sylvan Online instructor and both family and school. This will increase the opportunities for the classroom teacher to reinforce what is learned using Sylvan Online while allowing the online instructor to better tie

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into the students’ classroom activities. To increase the impact of Sylvan Online, Sylvan wants to strengthen its provision of information to educators. Special efforts are underway to reach school administrators and principals in order to increase the likelihood that classroom teachers will participate in an integrated effort with the students’ families, enforcing the shared responsibility of academics. As the demand for services expands well beyond the core elements of reading and mathematics (the source of Sylvan’s competitive strength and experience) and as students from a greater range of grade and ability levels seek anytime, anywhere services, Sylvan expects to expand its offerings. In the past and currently, instructional support for many of these subjects can be provided at the Sylvan Learning centers, yet the demand is growing for the full set of options to be available to students outside of the bricks-and-mortar facilities. Online options can supplement the choices that a center can offer and provide the flexibility for students to learn at home as well as in the center. Moreover, Sylvan sees that this flexibility can match the changing nature of schools, provide a continuing high-quality experience for students with a variety of needs, and link more closely with schools for supplementary support needs. In addition to enhancing the range of offerings, Sylvan believes that an integrated approach that combines face-to-face instruction at the centers, computer-based instruction, and online learning can be used to provide a comprehensive student support program offering a full range of instructional content and strategies. Sylvan is creating a hybrid model that offers both the widest range of content options, with the flexibility of engaging in a one-to-one online instructional program, as well as a face-to-face experience at a center. As the technology and the content materials develop to offer even greater support for academic programs, students and their parents will find a dynamic environment with creative, individualized instructional experiences in both online and

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bricks-and-mortar locations. Under this strategy, greater efficiencies and accelerated learning are likely to result in the classroom teacher seeing greater results earlier in the school year. Those students wanting to advance more quickly through required and elective courses may also benefit from the hybrid approach. Technology is one of the drivers of this hybrid model. The emerging opportunities from new technologies, such as cell phones, iPods, more versatile and smaller laptops, and sophisticated Web 2.0 environments, may lead to a richer array of instructional strategies that students can utilize to improve their academic performance and skills.

LessOns LearneD Sylvan Online, along with other online service providers, will benefit from the lower costs of providing distance learning. Nevertheless, the availability of 1,100 bricks-and-mortar learning centers means that online options at the Sylvan Learning centers, along with direct instructional support, will yield more efficient interventions and a more effective set of outcomes. A hybrid approach positions the organization to offer the best of both service options in a consistent and powerful way. Even in difficult economic times, parents tend to put their children first because most see education as the gateway to advancement and success in life. Parents may reduce their vacation or delay purchasing a new car, but they will still commit their resources to the education of their children. Online offers another cost savings because, with the high price of gas, students now have an option to receive instruction from the comfort of their own home. As with many online programs, Sylvan Online struggles with constraints on its program and the ability to reach the widest audience possible. Lack of access to technology and the unavailability of high speed, high bandwidth connections limit the range of participants. While the current tech-

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nology is fully inclusive—it works with dial-up modems as well as high-speed connections— newer instructional strategies and interactive possibilities are not easily added. Not all students have the opportunity to use the most powerful online systems. Parents in areas where access is limited, such as rural communities without a stable broadband connection as well as some of the bricks-and-mortar learning centers that do not currently have high bandwidth access, will need to find compromises that work for their students while awaiting the future development of their community’s infrastructure. In addition to connectivity, upgrading computer capacity is also a cost that must be borne by the students’ families, also constraining the widest access, the quality of audio (a central component of the instruction), and connection quality. Sylvan Online is on the verge of establishing a major position in online supplemental instruction. Its growth path is well defined; over the next few years, much more will be heard from Sylvan Online. The content and pedagogical approaches of the program are fundamentally sound and clearly effective in improving academic performance. Finding the right new components, whether they are more powerful platforms, new engaging instructional materials, access through new technologies, broader course offerings, or more sensitive assessments, will expand the clientele for Sylvan Online’s services.

referenCes Bodilly, S., & Beckett, M. K. (2005). Making out-of-school-time matter: Evidence for an action agenda. Santa Monica, CA: Rand Corporation.

Dodd, C., & Wise, D. (2002). Extended-day programs: Time to learn. Leadership, 32(1), 24–25. Farr, B., Brown, J., & Fontana, L. (2009). Research validation report: Sylvan mathematics programs. Baltimore, MD: Sylvan Learning. Farr, B., Levitt, E., & Fontana, L. (2009). Research validation report: Sylvan language arts programs. Baltimore, MD: Sylvan Learning. Little, P., & Harris, E. (2003). A review of outof-school time program quasi-experimental and experimental evaluation results. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Family Research Project. Retrieved from http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/projects/ afterschool/resources/snapshot1.html Puckett, C., & Rockman, S. (2006). Research validation report: Catapult K-12 online learning. Baltimore, MD: Catapult Learning. Rockman, S., et al. (2007). Star schools: Year 2 evaluation report. San Francisco, CA: Author. Rockman, S., et al. (2009). Star schools: Year 3 evaluation report. San Francisco, CA: Author. Schuch, L. (2003). After-school learning and beyond: Viewpoints. Naperville, IL: North Central Regional Educational Laboratory. Time, Learning and Afterschool Task Force. (2007). A new day for learning: A report from the time, learning, and afterschool task force. Flint, MI: C.S. Mott Foundation. Retrieved from http:// www.edutopia.org/a-new-day-for-learning Vandell, D., Reisner, E., Brown, B., Piercde, K., Dadisman, K., & Pechman, E. (2004). The study of promising after-school programs descriptive report of the promising programs. Washington, DC: Policy Studies Associates, Inc.

Chen, M. (2007). Technology in the after-school landscape, Edotopia. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://www.edutopia.org/technologyafter-school-landscape

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Chapter 14

Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed InterCultural Course Teams Nicholas Bowskill University of Glasgow, Scotland David McConnell Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY This chapter looks at processes for conducting collaborative reflection in action and collaborative reflection on action. The authors examine this in the context of globally distributed inter-cultural course teams. From a review of the literature, they identify the significance of openness, structure and dialogue as factors that support collaborative reflection. The authors consider these factors in our own experience of global online teaching. They explore and focus upon one technique used in our collaborative inter-cultural reflective practice. This technique involves having one tutor maintain and share an online journal with the other tutors in the course team. This process combined reflective writing and discussion in action. The authors suggest that having one tutor author and share a learning journal may provide facilitation and structure that supports reflective dialogue in inter-cultural globally distributed teams. They consider the influence of cultural pedagogy on inter-cultural reflection. The authors’ technique is culturally sensitive in that it respects the right of others to read the journal and to comment only if they wish. Finally, the authors close with a look at instrumentalist versus developmental collaborative reflective practice.

BaCkgrOUnD “As we move beyond the individual towards the social context then..... [w]e need to find ways of rehabilitating some key aspects of reflection that have been eroded through unthinking use while DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch014

moving further to deal with these new issues. This is the challenge from professional practice that confronts us” (Boud, 2006). Our own experiences as online tutors show us that collaborative reflection is helpful to develop and understand our practice(s). However, we also note a trend to working in an increasingly distributed manner. New processes are required to support col-

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Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams

laborative reflection in globally distributed course teams. This chapter looks at the use of a learning journal, maintained by one tutor and shared online with the team, as a focus for collaborative reflection in action. This journal was shared in a group of six tutors working as one online team. The tutor team was distributed across China and across the United Kingdom (UK). The team used a tutor forum in a Moodle Virtual Learning Environment to support each other. To set this in a wider context, we begin with a view of the literature that relates to collaborative reflection. David Boud (2006) has highlighted the need for tutors to reflect on their practice in teams. In the past, teachers typically worked alone. Today there is a greater emphasis on team teaching and working within team structures. This is particularly true in distance and e-learning contexts but finding a process for collaborative reflection is problematic. Finding a process for doing so in globally distributed inter-cultural online course teams is exponentially more difficult. This chapter reviews one experience that resulted in one particular approach to collaborative reflection. We speculate that such a process may have value both locally and globally. Boud (2001) builds on the work of Schon (1983) articulating a reflective practice that includes reflection-in-action and reflection-onaction. Reflection-in-action involves thinking about events as they unfold relating them to existing knowledge and earlier experiences. Reflection-on-action looks back at completed events and draws upon available data in a dialogue with that experience. Collaborative reflection adds to this discussion with others. The authors of this chapter acknowledge that research into collaborative reflection in online course teams is becoming ever more urgent in local practices and innovative processes are required as new global inter-cultural pedagogical practices emerge. Osguthorpe (1999) defines collaborative reflection as “prolonged joint work on the continual

process of improving one’s practice and the commitment to help others improve theirs.” Castle et al (1995) believe that reflection involves a change in the whole person. They suggest that it is “complex and demanding”, and that “it is not likely to occur in any depth unless those involved are willing to reflect on themselves and their practice and to set this reflection in a collaborative context.” Collaborative reflection offers different perspectives from within the group and this also provides checks and balances on private views. Independent reflection, usually through reflective writing, is believed to address only the early stages of the learning cycle typified by Kolb (1984). Collaborative reflection is said to potentially deepen that process and help develop broader thinking in support of learning and development. Enablers of collaborative reflection include attitudinal characteristics such as being open towards sharing and having an intention to learn together. Most agree the additional need for a clear structure to support reflection in groups (Platzer et al, 1997 provide an overview of models, barriers and enablers). In networked practice, the ability to view a record of your own interaction and to view the way other course tutors work online supports reflection amongst the course team. Again this requires a willingness to work openly as a member of a learning community of e-tutors (McConnell, 2006). Conversely, barriers to collaborative sharing include personal issues, actions of other people involved and actions of tutors/facilitators (Johns, 1990 in Platzer et al, 1997). These personal issues include a lack of belief in the value of your own views and a lack of ability to articulate experience. It also includes a lack of confidence and a possible inability to identify relevant experience. The actions of others include situations where others might dominate discussions or disrupt the reflective process. It also includes a possible unwillingness to participate in a collaborative process. The actions of facilitators relates to their

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possible inability to facilitate the process. It also includes their perceptions regarding their role in the process. Having a process for reflecting together can help avoid drawn out, casual or unfocused conversations (Castle et al, 1995). Processes for collaborative reflection typically include the use of written records (diaries, journals etc). These are sampled and shared with others who may or may not be directly involved in the event under review. Beginning with a consideration of learning journals, we can identify at least 4 functions of shared learning journals from the literature: •

•

• •

They can contribute towards the development of identity in a holistic way and go beyond the learning of subject-matter They can provide an outlet for thoughts and feelings to be expressed which may be difficult to express elsewhere in the curriculum They are part of a sense-making process The may contribute towards a sense of community

A learning journal supports the development of a voice and the development of a personal and professional identity. Successful reflective practice entails engaging in a continual rescripting of one’s own practice, not in merely having it rescripted and played back by others. In ‘practical’ terms, keeping a journal (and sharing its content with others) is the key to this. (Usher, Bryant and Johnston, 1997, in Conway (1999). Learning journals create a space for thoughts that may not find an outlet in other forms of pedagogical interaction such as seminars, tutorials and lectures. “E-journaling provides an opportunity for learners to express opinions, ideas, and concerns about the course materials that would not be shared otherwise” (Phipps, 2005). Learning journals, shared with others, help to make sense of experience and go beyond what might otherwise

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be descriptions and feelings. These descriptions and feelings are important to learning, particularly in new or complex settings, but may represent a shallow approach to reflection, “Reflective journal writing encouraged learners to process what they were learning and make sense of it by sharing it with an audience” (Andrusyszyn and Davie, 1997). Sharing online journals is a way of providing social glue and a sense of togetherness. Haberstroh et al (2005) used online journals to maintain contact between different professional trainees bringing them together “spatially and temporally” extending and complementing face to face discussion. The ability to read the journals of others helped create a sense of community and fed back into individual thinking. Having briefly expanded on these four features of shared journals, there are three further things to say at this point. First, the use of learning journals has been mainly researched in student-learning contexts. Less is known about the use of shared journals amongst course tutors in higher education. How transferable are these student practices to course teams in support of reflection-in-action? Second, for reflection to be useful in a professional development context such as teaching, it has to be carried out in a critical way. Reflection without critique can be an ego enhancing activity. Critical reflection carried out in the company of others has powerful positive democratic consequences (Young 1992). Third, when tutors reflect upon online work it still tends to be done in a face to face context. With course teams becoming ever more distributed, how can collaborative reflection be supported within the online space? What role might journals have in a wider process of collaborative reflection for highly distributed tutors? Castle et al (1995) describe collaborative reflection in and on action for a group of university tutors who kept a journal during a course in which they participated together as on-campus learners. Their individual journal entries were shared and read in preparation for a group meeting the day after each class. After the course was ended the

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reflective group met some time later to reflect on the data gathered. They arranged the data into the themes in the course using them as categories for analysis. The outcome was to write an article together to synthesise their learning. More importantly, they viewed collaborative reflection as a process of holistic development and growth. They warned that reflection against criteria is reductive and supports a managerialist view of reflective practice. Swinglehurst (2008) has provided some hint of collaborative reflection in an online context. Participants from different institutions reflected together in an online focus group sharing individual experiences of facilitating reflection online. They used the outcomes of that focus group to inform their own collaborative reflective practice. In what followed, it appears that one tutor kept a learning journal during an online course. This was shared at course review meetings and used as a basis for discussion. Also in an online context, McConnell (2006) describes how course participants reflect together within a course in which an online space, time and a structure are provided for groups to unpack their experience. There was also an online space for tutors to reflect-in-action. In that space tutors raised issues about their practice and supported each other as the course progressed. These tutors were mainly based in the same institution. Course teams are becoming increasingly distributed. With this trend in mind, how can we support collaborative reflection in action by tutors in a globally distributed inter-cultural course context? There are several complicating factors to consider in answering such a question. The first issue relates to time zones. Participation may occur at different times of the day according to your whereabouts. Overnight it can mean that a good deal of activity has already passed before some tutors can catch up. This risks an issue being missed or by-passed or heightened. A second factor is also related to time zones but to do with the accommodation of reflective practices in a distributed tutor group.

What kind of strategy might be used to record and coordinate reflection upon the issues as they arise? In a group of globally distributed tutors this is a non-trivial task. With each tutor supporting a different group in the course it is easy for the activities and tasks in those groups to overwhelm tutors or to take up so much time that there is little room or energy for reflection. We would also highlight a third and possibly more important factor. How might collaborative reflection be effected by working in intercultural distributed course teams? Tutors in such teams may have a different pedagogical heritage and may therefore interpret and respond to the course differently. Meanings of events need to be negotiated and understood in the tutor group as they reflect together. Individual reflection may be broadly similar in different cultures but that collaborative reflection may be understood quite differently from one culture to another (Buckley, 1999). Western heritage is described by Buckley (1999) as an argument-based culture in contrast with American Indian culture (for example) where argument and lack of respect for elders are unacceptable. We also know that the cultures of Asia have a history of being teacher-led seeking harmony rather than disagreement in groups. Of course, the idea of cultural difference is not set at national or regional boundaries. Cultural difference exists at a local level. The very idea of team teaching and collaborative reflection can be problematic amongst tutors in the same institution. Knights et al (2006) have noted that it may even be against the general culture of some tutors to collaborate at all. The way tutors from different cultures reflect together is therefore an issue for negotiation each time. How might this be organised? What would be the issues and benefits? To explore these questions, we reflect on our experience of collaborative reflection in action. This experience is set in a globally distributed inter-cultural course team context. Our online course was delivered between tutors in three United Kingdom universities and in four univer-

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sities in China. We worked as one tutor team in a course that was entirely online. Participants in the course were university tutors undertaking professional development experience of inter-cultural pedagogy and collaboration. The course and the groups within had broadly equal numbers based in UK and China. The first author of this chapter was one of the United Kingdom tutors and the other author provided management of the course team and made a significant contribution to the design of the course.

Case DesCriPtiOn The online course was part of the e-China Intercultural Pedagogy Research Project based at Lancaster University in the United Kingdom. The project involved collaboration with two other universities in the United Kingdom and four universities across China. There were three parallel work programmes: 1.

2.

3.

The collaborative production of an inter-cultural, professional development e-learning and teaching course, to be run online and offered to higher education staff in the United Kingdom and China. The course took place from October-December 2006 and involved the examination of inter-cultural (Sino-UK) conceptions of e-learning and e-tutoring. Sino-UK collaboration on investigating new tools for supporting formative assessment and knowledge extraction in online group learning settings. The development of a framework/model for planning and running inter-cultural professional development in e-learning, using innovative research methodologies.

The project developed an Inter-cultural professional development eLearning and eTeaching course that was run online and offered to higher education staff in the UK and China in late 2006.

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One of the main purposes of the Inter-cultural professional development course was to support participants in the development of their conceptions of e-learning. The UK and Chinese partners collaborated on the design and delivery of the online course. The course was designed as a professional development event (at Masters level) that took place asynchronously over 11 weeks with 50 hours of study. Participants gained an understanding of Inter-cultural issues in e-learning by working together in an online learning community. Key pedagogic features of the online course were: • • • • • •

Fully virtual course using asynchronous and synchronous communication Inter-cultural learning design Online learning community Inter-cultural e-tutoring team Inter-cultural learning support Online tasks, activities & resources The course activities included:

• • • •

tutors and participants together as a community participants as a parallel community tutors as a parallel community use of e-portfolios for accreditation The course outcomes for the tutors included:

• • • • •

an understanding of tutors’ experiences learning about inter-cultural collaborative design learning about distributed inter-cultural team teaching an understanding of participants’ experiences learning about inter-cultural e-learning, professional development, collaborative online learning, group work, e-portfolios

Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams

CUrrent ChaLLenges •

•

•

How can collaborative reflection in action be developed in our inter-cultural course team? What are the processes that might support collaborative reflection in complex online settings such as ours? How does this relate to earlier reflection on action that looked at inter-cultural competence (Bowskill et al, 2007)?

research methods and analysis As part of the course, the first author chose to keep a journal of the shared experience and share it with the other course tutors. This was maintained in the shared tutor space. Over the time of the course other tutors commented upon the journal entries often resulting in an online discussion of issues and interpretations. This study reflects on the process and the data arising to identify and discuss reflective activities contained within this collaboration. For each area of reflection we attempt to raise questions around it for further research. A grounded approach was taken to the study of the data (Strauss and Corbin, 1990; Charmaz, 2000). This involved a close reading of the journal archive to reveal emerging categories. Those categories then became the means by which the data was sorted. These were aspects of the experience that were collaboratively reflected upon by the tutors in practice. The categories that emerged are: • • • •

Reflection on the Learning Journal as a Tool for Collaborative Reflection Reflections on Tutoring as an Inter-cultural Course Team Reflections on tutoring with Inter-cultural Participants Reflections on Personal-Previous e-Tutoring Practice

Reflection on the Learning Journal as a Tool for Collaborative Reflection Authoring the journal provided a means to make sense of the unique and complex tutoring experience by creating a narrative that was shared with others. The course experience became transformed and internalized through writing. It offered some sense of ownership and control for the author in what was a new area of practice. The sharing of the journal produced a closer relationship with the other tutors. …initially the rhythm would probably come from the course, the other participants and the structure. It’s all externally controlled. Later you will find your own rhythm that is created by you and your own context. That is internally controlled. I think one of the main techniques that helps you develop that control is the diary. Writing gives you authority over time. ... [Thursday, 21 December 2006, 12:41 PM] ...I am benefiting a lot from your diary in the way you set out in some detail your thinking as you deal with what is happening in your learning set. It is almost like a Mind Map ... So your ‘thinking out loud’ stuff really helps! [UK Tutor B - Tuesday, 14 November 2006, 01:56 PM] To tell you something....I read your diaries whenever I access and it really helps me think. Thank you for this! [China Tutor A - Thursday, 16 November 2006, 01:50 PM] Castle et al (1998) noted the tendency to move away from a focus to do with external events as their reflective discussion developed. Their dialogue began to reference issues raised amongst the group as the reflective process developed into a search for meaning. In many ways this was true in our context. This was a kind of group synthesis and a sense-making process. There are many questions still to be explored here. To what extent are any new meanings shared across the team? Is reading the journal enough or does it require the discussion as well in order to develop these meanings? It is also likely that the discussions may not have taken place were it not for

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the journal. Looking at the sharing of the journal, what other functions does the shared journal have across the team? Is it a home for thinking? Is it a check for the team? Does the journal become a burden or a pressure on others to conform or follow it in some way? What are the rhythms and how significant would less frequent entries be on the team? Is there an ideal length or frequency of input for different inter-cultural groups? Certainly the shared journal seems to add value but what is the nature of that value to each member and to the team as a whole?

reflections on tutoring as an inter-cultural Course team Through the journal the course team became aware of themselves working in a unique configuration. The tutors were scattered across each country as well as between countries. Coordination amongst themselves and with the participants was always a challenge. As a team we were experiencing a global dimension to tutoring together and through the shared reflection we started to identify what this might mean for both practice and reflection. Yes, I agree with you. So we are in a very special professional development ourselves in this inter-cultural e-tutoring team. Another interesting thing is that I like this across-time-zones way of working, because we can expect things to happen while we’re sleeping. [China Tutor A -Thursday, 2 November 2006, 10:21 AM] Thank you for sharing your diary. It is interesting that almost every.... hour one or more participants are online, so no one will feel lonely. When you are asleep, we continue the discussion. [China Tutor C - Friday, 3 November 2006, 10:08 AM] This sense of working as one team fits in with the ideas about shared journals suggested by Haberstroh et al (2005) that noted the way sharing journals can create a sense of belonging. Through the journal it is clear that a sense of working as an inter-cultural course team is shared amongst

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the tutors. An inter-cultural course team is a concept that came to mean something distinct. This meaning emerged, in part, through collaborative reflection facilitated by the shared journal. With regards to working as an inter-cultural course team, what is the significance of being on duty around the clock and around the world? What are the implications for the individuals involved in recognizing such a view? Does it put more pressure on the tutors to feel that the team is always in action or in a state of readiness? Alternatively, is this sense of togetherness generated by the combination of the shared journal and discussion, provide a platform that supports the team being constantly available? Does each member share the same level of feeling and do they interpret that feeling in the same way? How does it affect their inter-cultural and local practice(s)? Reflections on tutoring with Inter-cultural Participants In this extract from the journal, the author recalls a standard repertoire for handling Skype phone calls. This was developed in previous local e-tutoring settings. The author is reflecting on how those once familiar practices need to be re-thought in new and complex settings. [one of the participants] mentioned that she’d joined a Skype session at the start in the induction week but that part way through it all fell silent and then it was closed. It seemed as though she had something to say but wanted to be invited to speak and when an invite didn’t come she just let it pass. Again this may be another aspect of inter-cultural work and the need to facilitate group phone conferences by going around the group asking them to give their views as a means of letting them speak. [Thursday, 7 December 2006, 03:20 PM] As Buckley (1999) suggests we should not assume that others share our own understandings and practices. The extract below shows the use of the journal for problem solving through reflection in action. This produced a metaphor for ‘building bridges.’

Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams

..you do need to shift your mindset to that of your... participants and to work in their culture once you have some sense of it. I think when there are more cultures involved then the task is to build bridges between them that allow for a critical view but framed within a harmonious context. How that is best achieved is my task and [our] task…. [Monday, 23 October 2006, 09:16 AM] In consequence another tutor is prompted to consider metaphors for e-tutoring raised in the journal and they are used to compare their own metaphors and to do so within the context of this unique collaborative experience. Very interesting metaphors! I like them! Actually I don’t think I am a ‘sage on the stage’ in face-to-face classrooms. Never! I’m also waiting, fishing, shepherding ... There’re many things I do aside from explaining language points. You’re right in this point. To summarize the role of tutors or teachers in such a way is somewhat arbitrary. [China Tutor A - Monday, 18 December 2006, 11:39 AM] What does ‘bridge building’ mean? Is this a new metaphor for this kind of context? How can we build bridges between online inter-cultural participants? Does ‘bridge-building’ add anything to ideas of facilitation? Is it distinct from ‘sage on the stage’ or ‘guide on the side’ so widely used in the literature? What are the most suitable metaphors? Do we need new metaphors for such complex practices? Are we highlighting an inadequacy of some much-used metaphors or engaged in a process of re-conceptualising and broadening those metaphors? Is it this kind of experience that really tests the utility of such metaphors? Developing this to think about inter-cultural pedagogy, might shared journals be a useful tool for learners as well as for tutors? Is there anything about this application that makes it better suited to one group/culture than another? Reflections on Previous e-Tutoring Practice The journal extract below shows a comparison of current practice in local distributed online

teams with work in globally-distributed teams. The author reflects on different ways the tutors managed and supported themselves. This creates a reflective resource to assess the impact of being far apart as a comparison. However my previous experience was on a course provided by a single institution. The tutoring team worked quite differently. In that earlier model there were 4 tutors and we each had a small group or learning set. We were in different buildings but we knew that we could meet together or separately any time....What is interesting here is that we are very much further away from each other and the opportunity to discuss and react to things is very different. We are communicating across time zones and we only meet up once every few months. In fact we will only meet once during the course. [Wednesday, 1 November 2006, 11:07 AM] Throughout the course, the tutors involved were engaged in conversations with their own practice, their previous experience and their own understandings of this unique and dynamic situation. What value has previous experience that is significantly different than the current context? How transferable is previous experience? What is it within previous experience that may be transferable? Does previous experience in one culture transfer to another culture? Is it practical ideas and techniques that transfer or is it different ways of thinking that might have greater utility?

LessOns LearneD 1.

2.

Openness, structure and dialogue are indicated as prerequisites to the process of collaborative reflection in local as well as Inter-cultural global contexts. Greater flexibility is required for collaborative reflection in globally distributed inter-cultural course teams. Combining recording and reviewing in action is helpful to collaborative reflection in unique and

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Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

complex online pedagogical settings. It also facilitates reflection on action. The use of a shared journal as a basis for dialogue provides a process for collaborative reflection. In globally distributed intercultural course teams recording and review happen inter-changeably. Through our experience of collaborative reflection, focused around the shared online journal, we generated holistic professional development, an outlet for expression difficult to obtain elsewhere, a sense-making process individually and collectively, and group cohesion. This is in line with findings in the literature such as those from Castle et al (1995). We can say this process is therefore able to deliver the same benefits in a globally distributed inter-cultural course team. Local and Global teaching practices are brought into the collaborative reflection and both practices may be changed as a result of the reflective experience. This mixture of practices being shared creates the sense of a global practice as an inter-cultural hybrid. The process may also provide a vehicle for collaborative reflection amongst co-located course teams. We see no reason why this online process should not be supportive of collaborative reflection for face to face teaching. It may even be a process that could be extended to student involvement. Collaborative reflection amongst globally distributed inter-cultural course teams indicates a new area of research.

journal with the other tutors. Developing the journal within the online space gave a structure and place for collaborative reflection. By inviting comments from the other tutors we created an opportunity for dialogue and a greater sense of togetherness. In addition to meeting the needs for an open disposition, structure and dialogue we identified additional needs. Our globally distributed and inter-cultural teaching context meant that we needed to establish a process that could be flexible, that would model ways of reflecting together and that would be culturally-sensitive. We have firstly recognized the way the shared journal combined writing and discussion. This is in contrast to the more common practice of conducting those activities in separate phases. The journal became a structure around which dialogue about practice in action could unfold. It was a flexible structure because the team could expand and dwell on a particular point or just move on. This process is culturally-sensitive in that it allows everyone to respond to it individually. There was no requirement to read the journal entries or to comment upon them but it allowed the tutors to pick up points of dissonance and resonance and react according to their situation. The process we adopted yielded 4 different areas upon which we reflected together: • • •

Our experience of collaborative reflection agrees with findings from the literature that the key requirements for this process are openness amongst the practitioners, a structure to the interaction and dialogue. Our task was to identify a process for accommodating such needs in unique and complex online settings. In our case one tutor was willing to maintain and share the developing learning

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•

Reflections on Tutoring as an Inter-cultural Course Team Reflections on tutoring with Inter-cultural Participants Reflections on Previous e-Tutoring Practice Reflection on the Learning Journal as a Tool for Learning

Clearly, we have moved beyond the early stages of the reflective cycle and beyond simple descriptions of our experience. These four aspects are evidence of an emerging framework for development of our inter-cultural reflective

Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams

practice. The outcomes of this reflection show individual local practices being considered and discussed alongside the emerging global practice. These two practices fed into each and informed the development of both of those practices. An inter-cultural practice is a hybrid practice in the global space derived from reflective conversations around those shared practices. This hybrid global practice creates new teaching techniques emerging as a combination of the team’s local and global experience and knowledge. The use of the shared online journal combined with discussion was an effective process for supporting collaborative reflective practice in unique and complex settings. It is a process that may also have applications in co-located course teams where spaces and opportunities for collaborative reflection are often difficult to find or use. It may also have further application with students working this way in groups with or without tutors. Our experience suggests a wide variety of possibilities that remain unexplored. There are clearly a number of areas for further work within the same team and for future teams. What does our experience tell us and others about collaborative reflection in general? The literature on collaborative reflection reviewed at the start of this chapter refers to phases of written reflection and dialogue as a process to support learning about shared and individual practice. In our case, we saw these two processes happening together, rather than in sequence, as we reflected in action. As the entries were being made into the journal reflecting on one tutor’s experience so the other tutors were reading and also reflecting. The tutors annotated the journal with their own observations and experience of the course and brought their own pedagogical knowledge and experiences into the process. This seems to be an effective strategy for professional development in inter-cultural global teams. At the same time it raises many questions for further research. Using a written text as the means of recording experience may not fit with all cultures and all participants.

Writing in English for example may disadvantage tutors from China who may need time to translate it or construct a reply in English. Graphics and diagrams may be more appropriate or effective in inter-cultural collaborative reflection. Would shared diagrams be as expressive of the journal author’s experience? Would the use of diagrams promote more or deeper discussions in intercultural online course team contexts? Why did only one tutor pursue the idea of keeping a journal and sharing it? There was no requirement or obligation to keep a journal or to share it. It was down to a preference and interest of that tutor to learn from a unique situation. A disposition towards sharing the journal was engendered from a previous experience of working with a particular online course team. That earlier experience had engendered a spirit of openness and trust that persisted into this new setting. Would it be different if sharing the journal was a requirement akin to reflection-on-demand (Boud, 2006)? How much of previous experience of course teams influences later attitudes towards openness? How do previous experiences of teaching techniques compare with previous experience of attitudes? Why did the other tutors not keep or share a journal? Certainly there was no requirement that anyone should keep a journal. Others may have had alternative approaches to reflective practice and alternative places for reflection. It would probably be impractical to try and track six different learning journals in action whilst working in such a complex environment. What we do know is that other tutors did keep a learning journal but preferred not to make it public to the other tutors. Comments were however posted about those other entries made in those other private journals. Is the process of keeping a journal perhaps something that fits more easily into Western culture, and less likely to be practised by tutors in other cultures? Does a shared journal offer Chinese colleagues opportunities to be more open about their practice and to feel empowered in talking about their practice, or about practice

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Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams

generally? This may apply equally to UK tutors too but could the concept of sharing practice be one that the journal helped Chinese colleagues to participate in a dialogue more easily than with UK colleagues? If so, then is this an indication of inter-cultural professional openness? It may also be a cultural issue but other UK tutors did not keep or share a journal either. It did emerge that others were motivated to keep a journal themselves having read the shared online journal. In this respect, the shared journal functioned as a model for others. Is there a cultural heritage of reflective practice? Might it be that collaborative reflection was not culturally compatible for tutors from a non-Western pedagogical background? We do not know but certainly there is a cultural difference in pedagogical issues that may extend to and include reflective practices. This highlights the need for approaches to reflective practice to be negotiated each time with each different team. Again more research is required. How does the combination of the journal as a living document, along with the author as one of the reflecting tutors, function in the reflective context? Could it be that the sharing of the learning journal by one tutor constituted a facilitative function for the inter-cultural tutor team to reflect together? In this way the journal provided a structure and the author was the facilitator of a dialogue around that document. With time zones and different patterns of participation amongst a highly distributed group finding a structure for shared reflection is difficult. The author is a host for the dialogue explaining, elaborating and questioning the entries. This way the author combines the structural requirements and the facilitative requirements for the reflecting practitioners. This combination allows time and space for individual reflection whilst allowing flexibility in the way the group reflects together. This dynamic process supports sense-making and cohesion amongst the tutor team as they record, discuss and digest their shared experience? What difference does the number of tutors have on the process? At what number does it become

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impractical or ineffective? Might a team of 12 inter-cultural tutors reap as much benefit from a shared journal? What about increasing the number of shared journals from different tutors? We suggest that having one tutor share a journal is helpful to other tutors in providing a means and a focus for collaborative reflection in action within complex and inter-cultural online courses. There are technologies such as RSS that might support the easier sharing of multiple journals amongst the course team but we do not know what the effect of this might be on the sense of the tutor group as a learning community. Again further research is needed on these issues. This experience has shown that collaborative reflection is possible and productive in extremely complex online tutoring configurations. We endorse the view by Castle et al (1995) that collaborative reflection is a form of professional development but we would add that inter-cultural, temporal and geographical issues along with a mix of technologies need to be factored into collaborative reflection in global pedagogy. We endorse the view of Buckley (1999) that collaborative reflection is influenced by culture (national, regional or individual) and that processes for reflection and understandings of terms and practices need to be negotiated and agreed each time. Through this reflection on action we have identified elements of a research agenda related to collaborative reflective practice in inter-cultural global course teams. Further research is required to explore the issues and practices raised here. Other inter-cultural contexts, perhaps with other national cultures represented, warrant further investigation. Research may also be useful to explore the value of such an approach amongst a course team on the same campus. The use of an online shared journal combined with online discussion can provide the flexibility for collaborative reflection in action and on action. Ultimately, the task is not to learn how to deliver to people from other cultures but rather, how to deliver learning and teaching with people from other cultures.

Collaborative Reflection in Globally Distributed Inter-Cultural Course Teams

As a parting comment, we reflect on Castle et al (1995) and their concern that reflection on action risks becoming a tool solely for management when conducted according to external competencies. This chapter follows-up on some earlier work collaboratively reflecting on the same course experience (Bowskill et al, 2007). In that earlier work, we applied an adaptation of Belisle’s (2007) framework of Inter-cultural competence for e-tutors to our experience. That work concluded that the skills and competencies suggested by the framework were present in the team but that they were not evenly distributed. Nor did each member of the team have all the competencies suggested by the framework. As one would expect, each tutor brought different strengths and resources to the team. In that early work, we also assessed the utility and value of the framework itself. We concluded that it was indeed a useful tool to help support further reflection and dialogue. We build on it here, with a review of a process of collaborative reflection that contrasts with that competency-driven view. We are more aware that our thinking about practice is informed by our collective local and global practices shared and discussed online. Our reflection process is one very much grounded in our own experience that in turn very much informs our personal and professional growth.

referenCes Andrusyszyn, M. A., & Davie, L. (1997). Facilitating reflection through interactive journals writing in an online graduate course: A qualitative study. Journal of Distance Education, XII(1/2), 103–126. Belisle, C. (2007). eLearning and inter-cultural dimensions of learning theories and teaching models. Paper submitted to the FeConE (Framework for eContent Evaluation) Project, May 2007. Retrieved July 17, 2007, from http://www.elearningeuropa.info/files/media/media13022.pdf

Boud, D. (2001). Using journal writing to enhance reflective practice. In L. M. English & M. A. Gillen (Eds.), Promoting journal writing in adult education. New directions in adult and continuing education no. 90 (pp. 9-18). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Boud, D. (2006, July 3). Relocating reflection in the context of practice: Rehabilitation or rejection? Keynote Presentation, Professional lifelong learning: beyond reflective practice, One Day Conference, University of Leeds, UK. Bowskill, N., McConnell, D., & Banks, S. (December, 2007, December 11-13). Inter-cultural e-tutoring teams: The dynamics of new collaborations and new needs. Society for Research in Higher Education, Annual Conference, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK. Buckley, J. (1999, February 24-27). Multicultural reflection, Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, 51st, Washington, DC. Byram, M., Gribkova, B., & Starkey, H. (2002). Developing the inter-cultural dimension in language teaching. A practical introduction for teachers. Council of Europe, Strasbourg. Retrieved July 17, 2007, from http://lrc.cornell.edu/director/ Inter-cultural.pdf Campbell, E. (2002). Career management. Nursing Spectrum Magazine. Retrieved January 2, 2008, from http://community.nursingspectrum.com/ MagazineArticles/article.cfm?AID=7981 Castle, J. B. (1995). Collaborative reflection as professional development. Review of Higher Education, 18(3), 243–263. Charmaz, K. (2000). Grounded theory: Objectivist and constructivist methods. In N. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), The handbook of qualitative research (pp. 509-535). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Pubs. Inc.

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Conway, J. (1999). Multiple identities of an adult educator: A learning journal story. In B. Merrill (Ed.), Proceedings of The Final Frontier. SCUTREA 29th Annual Conference, Standing Conference on University Teaching and Research in the Education of Adults, 1999. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 438 447) Haberstroh, S., Parr, G., Gee, R., & Trepal, H. (2006). Interactive e-journaling in group work: Perspectives from counselor trainees. Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 31(4), 327–337. doi:10.1080/01933920600918840 Kerka, S. (2002). Journal writing as an adult learning tool. Practice application, brief no. 22. Retrieved January 2, 2008, from http://www.cete. org/acve/docs/pab00031.pdf King, F. B., & LaRocco, D. J. (2006). E-journaling: A strategy to support student reflection and understanding. Current Issues in Education [On-line], 9(4). Retrieved January 2, 2008, from http://cie. asu.edu/volume9/number4/ Knights, S., Sampson, J., & Meyer, L. (2006, July 3). “It’s all right for you two, you obviously like each other”: Recognizing the pitfalls and challenges in pursuing collaborative professional learning through team teaching. Paper presented at the Professional lifelong learning: beyond reflective practice, One Day Conference, University of Leeds, UK.

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Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning experience as a source of learning and development. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. McConnell, D. (2006). E-learning groups and communities: Imagining learning in the age of the Internet. OU Press. Phipps, J. (2005). E-journaling: Achieving interactive education online. Educause Quarterly, 2005(1), 62-65. Retrieved January 2, 2008, from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/EQM0519. pdf Platzer, H., Blake, D., & Snelling, J. (1997). A review of research into the use of groups and discussion to promote reflective practice in nursing. Research in Post-Compulsory Education, 2(2), 193–204. doi:10.1080/13596749700200010 Schon, D. (1983). The reflective practitioner. New York: Basic Books. Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. London: Sage. Swinglehurst, D., & Russell, J. (2008). Peer observation of teaching in the online environment: An action research approach. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 24(5), 383–393. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2729.2007.00274.x Young, R. (1992). Critical theory and classroom talk. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters Ltd.

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Chapter 15

Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University Ramesh C. Sharma Indira Gandhi National Open University, India Sanjaya Mishra Indira Gandhi National Open University, India

eXeCUtiVe sUmmarY The education system in India has witnessed various transformations: from ancient system of Gurukul (where the teacher and the taught used to attain educational objectives living in proximity) to online or virtual education where the teacher or students interact through Internet technologies only. There have been a lot of improvements in telecommunications and educational facilities. The country as a whole has noticed developments in many areas of social, economical, scientific and infrastructure sectors. Therefore educational systems need to be integrated with such sectors so that the investment in building human capital results in overall national growth. The open and distance learning (ODL) system is one such tool which can help in addressing local, regional and national needs. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) with more than two million learners in 2009 and a country-wide reach with over 60 regional centres and over 2000 learner support centres catering to remote and tribal areas has been a leader towards the democratization of education with social responsibility. IGNOU offers a large number of vocational and employment-oriented courses in the area of health, agriculture, retail, tourism, hospitality, and so on. The university has the challenges of managing the convergence (of formal and ODL stream) and to serve large number of students spread across the breadth and length of the country. Three vital areas of education (i.e., inclusion, expansion and excellence) need to be addressed as priorities. Thus to address these, new mechanisms of e-tutoring have been introduced by IGNOU. This chapter discusses the applications of e-tutoring and its implications in the context of Indian National Open University. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-876-5.ch015

Copyright © 2010, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University

BaCkgrOUnD During 1947 when India attained her independence the majority of the population lived in villages and most of them were illiterate. There were 20 universities and 590 colleges (Thorat, 2007). These all were traditional educational institutions. As the demand for education increased, diversified educational opportunities in the form of formal, non-formal and informal were devised. Mukhopadhyay (2000) identified that the Indian open and distance education has passed through six generations starting from classical correspondence print material mode as the first generation with assignments as the supporting medium. This correspondence print material mode was further strengthened by personal contact programmes in the second generation. The electronic media (radio, television, audio and video cassettes) came into scene in the third generation. Currently by trends in the developments in field of information and communication technologies, we are passing through the sixth generation where web-based education delivery is the main factor. The early foundations for distance education (in those days as correspondence education) were laid under the 3rd Five Year Plan (1961-67) of the Planning Commission to the Government of India (GOI). With a purpose to meet the increasing demands for higher education (but not through the traditional educational system), the 3rd Five Year Plan proposed, ‘…in addition to the provision in the plan for expansion for facilities for higher education, proposal for evening colleges, correspondence courses and award for external degrees are at present under consideration’ (GOI, 1961:589). As a follow up, then a committee was set up by the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) to look into the establishing of correspondence education. CABE is the highest education policy making body in India. The committee reported that:

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A correspondence course should be a step designed to expand and equalize educational opportunity, as it aimed at providing additional opportunities for several thousand students who wished to continue their education and the persons who had been denied these facilities and were in full-time employment or were for other reasons prevented from availing themselves of the facilities at college (GOI, 1963: 3-4).

Organizational Context These developments led to the offering of bachelor degree programme in the area of arts, commerce and social sciences only in the form of correspondence courses at Delhi University on a pilot project basis in 1962 enrolling 1172 students (Delhi University, 2007). For this a School of Correspondence and Continuing education was established at University of Delhi. Then in the late sixties departments of correspondence courses were established in Punjab University (1968), Meerut University (1969) and Mysore University (1969). This trend gained momentum in the seventies with many universities adopting correspondence education programmes. But soon the correspondence education programmes started inviting criticism also, giving the impression that they are no more different from traditional programmes, lessons being just sent by post only. To induce greater flexibility to the system, major milestone was observed by the establishment of first Open University of the country in 1982 at Hyderabad as Andhra Pradesh Open University, which now stands renamed as Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar Open University (BRAOU). It was established as a single mode autonomous State Open university. The kind of success BRAOU received in terms of student enrollment and certification, persuaded the Government of India to establish a National Open University with national jurisdiction through an Act of Parliament (No. 50 of 1985), named as Indira Gandhi National

Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University

Open University. The eighties was the period of growth of open universities with the institution of state open universities by the State Governments of Rajasthan, Bihar, and Maharashtra. During 90s open universities were set up by the State Governments of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh. Yearwise establishment of open universities in India are shown in Table 1 as below:

indira gandhi national Open University (ignOU) The Indira Gandhi National Open University was established by an Act of Parliament in 1985. About two million students in India and 32 other countries get quality higher education through 21 Schools of Studies and an elaborate network of 60 Regional centres, 2000 study centres, and 49 overseas centres. IGNOU has been recognized as Centre of Excellence by the Commonwealth of Learning, Vancouver, Canada.

Vision and Mission Indira Gandhi National Open University, the National Resource Centre for Open and Distance Learning with international recognition and presence, shall provide seamless access to sustainable and learner-centric quality education, skill upgradation and training to all, by using innovative technologies and methodologies and ensuring convergence of existing systems for massive human resource required for promoting integrated national development and global understanding. To advance frontiers of knowledge and promote its dissemination through sustainable open and distance learning systems seamlessly accessible to all, including hitherto unreached, from among whom the leaders and innovators of tomorrow will emerge, the University shall: •

strengthen the development of National Resource Centre as a proactive role model

Table 1. Open Universities in India Year of Establishment

Name of Open University

1982

Dr B R Ambedkar Open University, Hyderabad

1985

Indira Gandhi National Open University, Delhi

1987

Vardhman Mahaveer Open University, Kota, Rajasthan

1987

Nalanda Open University, Patna, Bihar

1989

Yashwantrao Chavan Maharastra Open University, Nasik, Maharastra

1991

Madhya Pradesh Bhoj Open University, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

1994

Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Open University, Ahmedabad, Gujarat

1996

Karnataka State Open University, Mysore, Karnataka

1997

Netaji Subhash Open University, Kolkata, West Bengal

1998

Uttar Pradesh RajRishi Tandon Open University, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh

2002

Tamil Nadu Open University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu

2005

Pandit Sundarlal Sharma Open University, Raipur,

2006

The Global Open University, Nagaland

2007

K K Handique Open University, Guwahati, Assam

2007

Uttranchal Open University, Dehradun, UttraKhand

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Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

for high quality and learner-centric open and distance learning system. share professional capabilities and resources to improve standards of distance education in the country. assess and accredit institutions of open and distance learning periodically to promote centres of excellence in the country. develop networks using emerging technologies and methods with global reach for effective programme delivery. provide an intelligent flexible system of education to meet the challenges of access and equity and work towards development of knowledge society. forge convergence of all systems and work for seamless education across national boundaries to develop global collaboration and partnership. take education to the hitherto unreached and promote community participation for local development through life-coping skills. provide specific need-based education and training opportunities for continuous professional development and skill upgradation to in-service professionals. strive towards continuous development of methods and strategies for R&D for knowledge generation in frontier areas, including open and distance learning. promote integration of open and formal systems to facilitate learner mobility through credit transfer and credit exemption arrangements with partner institutions.

Organizational Structure The President of India is the Visitor of the University. The Board of Management governs the University. Academic Council, Research Council, Finance Committee, Planning Board and Distance Education Council are important bodies. There are 21 Schools of study which develop academic

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programmes. In addition there are service Divisions like Regional Services, Material Production and Distribution, Student Registration, Student Evaluation, Computer Division etc which act as a support link for students and University.

Preparation of Courses Learning material is specially prepared by teams of experts drawn from different universities, specialized institutions in the area all over the country as well as in-house faculty. This material is scrutinised by the content experts, supervised by the instructors/unit designers and edited by the language experts at IGNOU before they are finally sent for printing. Similarly, audio and video cassettes are produced in consultation with the course writers, in-house faculty and producers. The material is previewed and reviewed by the faculty as well as outside media experts and edited / modified, wherever necessary, before they are finally despatched to the study centres and telecast on Gyan Darshan.

Providing Instruction at a Distance IGNOU’s method of instruction differs radically from that of other conventional universities. Indira Gandhi National Open University has adopted a multimedia approach to instruction, the different components being: self-instructional materials, counselling sessions, both face-to-face and via teleconferencing mode. For courses in Science, Computers, Nursing as well as Engineering and Technology, arrangements have been made to enable students undertake practical classes at select study centres.

information and Communication technologies (iCt) in education One of the most distinctive features of Open and Distance Learning (ODL) in Asia is huge student population in ODL institutions. Even some

Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University

Figure 1.

of the ODL institutions in this region are mega universities (universities with over 100,000 active students), like China Central Radio and Television University (China), Korean National Open University (Korea), Sukhothai Thamathirat Open University (Thailand), and University of Terbuka (Indonesia) which have more than 5.6 million active students as of 2005. In addition to these wellknown mega universities, many distance-teaching universities in the region have been established to provide tertiary-level education to those seeking continuing education opportunities. The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) is also a mega university with more than two million students on roll. Another distinctive characteristic of ODL in the region is the determined efforts of governments

all the way through by establishment of dedicated single-mode ODL institutions; these were found to be effective alternative mode of delivery. Many countries in the region had established at least one Open University at the national level in between 1970s and 1980s to cater to the social demand for education. These ODL institutions also accommodated the continuing educational needs of adults, increasing trained workforce, and/ or to train teachers to improve quality of schooling. In India, at present, we have one National Open University and 14 State Open Universities. The fast growth in the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in education has led to great change in ODL practices like learning through audio, video, teleconference, e-mail, online discussions, and the web. The

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International Telecommunication Union’s ITU Asia-Pacific Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Report 2008 indicates unprecedented growth in fixed telephone lines, mobile subscribers and Internet users in Asia. After the emergence of World Wide Web (WWW) in 1991, many of the ODL institutions have adopted web based technologies in their instructions and student support or delivery of services. These technologies and their applications are being used in various forms and different terminologies are used interchangeably. Let us have a look at some of these: Web-based Instruction:Khan (1997) described web-based instruction as a “hypermedia based instructional programme which utilizes the attributes and resources of the World Wide Web to create a meaningful learning environment where learning is fostered and supported”. Virtual Learning: “The educational process of learning over the Internet without having face-toface contact is known as virtual learning” (French, Hale, Johnson and Farr, 1999). Online Learning: It is synonymous to webbased learning where learning is fostered via the WWW only, in an Intranet or Internet. It has been recognized as the new generation in the evolutionary growth of open, flexible and distance learning (Mishra, 2001). E-Learning: “E-learning can be defined as the use of digital technologies and media to deliver, support and enhance teaching, learning, assessment and evaluation” (Armitage and O’Leary, 2003). From these definitions, we can, thus, conclude e-learning as learning activities that involve computers, networks and multimedia technologies. E-Learning is mostly associated with the use of ICT to support, deliver and/or facilitate learning opportunities. E-learning has been found to be very effective in teaching learning settings. Some of the advantages of using e-learning are as follows (Goldberg, Salari & Swoboda, 1996; Hitlz, 1997; Starr, 1997; McCormack & Jones, 1998; Weller, 2000; Bates,

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2001; Evans & Haase, 2001; Collins, 2002; Koory, 2003; Grooms, 2003; Shea, Pickett & Pelz, 2003; Smith & Rupp, 2004; Rovai & Jordan, 2004; Oakley, 2004; Vaughan & MacVicar, 2004; and Homan & Macpherson, 2005): • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Enriched learning experiences of students Flexibility of time, place and pace in learning Improved teaching methods and standards Assistance in the development of a more IT-literate society On-line repository of materials that are easily accessed and updated Supports a wide range of pedagogical models Improved access and wide participation Ability to serve a large number of students at a potentially reduced cost E-learning is flexible in term of self-paced learning Facilitate better management practices Improvement in understanding through interaction Opportunities to reach global markets Cost saving in tuition fees, and training

information technology and internet readiness in india Information and communication technology has always been a top priority of the Government of India towards social and economic development. With the development of satellite technology during the 1970s, the education sector got a boost and saw a tremendous growth in terms of enrollment and institutions offering general and specialized educational programmes to the masses. The increase in telephone density, availability of Internet, broadband connections, and cheaper computers and peripherals, has made most of the schools, colleges and universities joining the Internet bandwagon. The Information Technology Bill drafted by Ministry of Information

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Figure 2. Internet Users in India Internet Users In India

70 60 46

millions

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50

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30 20 10

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0 2000

2001

2003

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Technology was passed by the Parliament and the Information Technology Act, 2000, received the assent of the President on June 9, 2000. The Indian Railways is one of the world’s largest rail network and world’s largest employer with over 1.4 million employees (Chandra, 2007). It has been in operation for the past 156 years. In the year 2000 a Corporation, called RailTel Corporation of India Limited (RailTel), which is a Government of India undertaking under the Ministry of Railways, was set up to create nation-wide Broadband Telecom and Multimedia Network in all parts of the country (RailTel, 2003). Keeping in view of the largest network of Indian Railways all over the country, the RailTel was assigned to establish Cyber Cafes at 82 stations on Indian Railways, out of which 24 have been commissioned by the end of Novermebr 2007. There has also been an impressive progress in the number of internet users, as we had only 1000 Internet users in 1992 and till 1995, the strength went upto 250,000, in 1999 it was 2.8

million and in 2000 there were 5.0 million Internet users (GOI,2003). This growth has been fuelled by low rates of broadband connections, cheaper PCs, etc. (Jayachandran, 2006). Further, government’s policy to boost Internet based applications like e-governance, e-commerce, e-banking and e-learning also backed up the scenario. Online activities like electronic bill payment, online job search, online stock trading, online shopping for airline and railway tickets, electronic gadgets and home appliances, and online banking, etc are constantly on the rise. Figure 2 shows the increasing trend of Internet users in India. By the end of 2005, there were 105,000 Internet cafes in India, observing an annual growth of 45% in cybercafe market (average over past five years) (TRAI, 2005). The number of cyber café increased to 2,50,000 by 2008 although only 4% of them or 10,000 are organized (Lakshman, 2008). The total telephone density has shown a marked growth in India, as reported by TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 2005) with a den-

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Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University

Figure 3. Telephone Subscribers in India

sity of 0.6% in 1991, growing to 4.28% in 2002 and 9.11% in 2005. The total number of phones in India is 130.8 million as on January 31, 2006 (PTI, 2006) raising the tele-density from 8.8% in January 2005 to 11.7% at the end of January 2006. Mobile phones have also contributed to this growth, which are about 83 million, over 63 per cent of the total phones. As per the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Government of India (GOI, 2009), the total number of landline and wireless telephone subscribers, as on 31st December 2008 are 37.89 million and 346.89 million respectively. The subscriber base for wireline was 39.25 millions and 37.90 millions as on 31 December 2007 and 31 December 2008 respectively, whereas for the same periods, the subscriber base for wireless was 233.63 and 346.89 respectively. The tele-density reached 34.50% mark in January 2009. The mobile tele-density in India (number of mobile phones per 100 inhabitants) in 1991 was nil, in 2002 it was 0.65, in 2004 it reached 3.16 and by the mid of 2005 it rose to 4.83. Figure. 3 shows the increasing growth of landline and mobile

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user community in India. The tremendous growth in number of users of Internet, mobile phone, landline phone and broadband connections, is a good sign for the development of online education and its possibilities to provide better and effective services to the learner community.

e-Learning Developments It was in 1998, the constitution of the National Task Force on Information Technology and Software Development by the Prime Minister of India, that the e-learning was adopted with much enthusiasm by the educational institutions. The Task Force put in place effective guidelines for capacity building of institutions, human resource development in IT related areas, and use of ICTs in education. A few of the major recommendations in the policy (GOI, 1999) are: 43. ix.

Government in association with IT HRD companies will aim to achieve 100% IT literacy at senior secondary

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x.

level (10 + 2) in 5 years and at secondary level in 10 years. All institutes offering engineering education, including Polytechnics and ITIs, will ensure that within 3 years all engineering students in the country will acquire IT knowledge to be able to serve in IT enabled Services sector besides serving in IT industry directly.

45. iv.

Institutes of national importance such as IITs and IIITs will be encouraged to establish Virtual Institutes, particularly in the area of advanced Post Graduate and Continuing Education programs in IT, to support IT education and Research at other institutions in the country.

Based on the provisions made in terms of financial, hardware and software support, different institutions adopted e-learning for delivering of instruction and other services. Some of the important educational institutions, which initiated online education in India, are given in table –2.

Case DesCriPtiOn Online education in indira gandhi national Open University IGNOU was very prompt in 1999 to serve its largely spread learners all over the country by exploiting the potential of Internet and web technologies. Initially two programmes on information technology—the Bachelor of Information Technology (BIT) and Advanced Diploma in Information Technology (ADIT)—were launched by IGNOU in collaboration with Edexcel, UK and the Government of India, Ministry of Information Technology, respectively (Sharma, 2001). Another milestone was observed in 2001, when the School of Social Sciences started the Post

Table-2. Some Educational Institutions Providing Online Education in India 1 Netvarsity (http://www.netvarsity.com) 2 Indira Gandhi National Open University (http://www.ignou.ac.in) 3 Yashwantrao Chavan Maharastra Open University (http:// www.ycmou.com) 4 Tamil Virtual University (http://www.tamilvu.org) 5 Punjab Technical University (http://www.ptuonline.com) 6 Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (http://vu.bitspilani.ac.in) 7 Institute of Management Technology (http://www.imtonline.org) 8 Symbiosis Centre for Distance Learning (http://www.scdl.net) 9 MedVarsity (http://www.medvarsity.com) 10 Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai (http://www.dep. iitb.ac.in) 11 Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (http://www.iitd.ac.in/ courses)

Graduate Certificate in Participatory Management of Displacement, Resettlement and Rehabilitation with the support of the World Bank as a fully online programme. The uniqueness of this programme lied in the peer evaluation mechanism through “Participation in Discussion Forum” (PDF). Other notable programme features include web course units with interactive exercises, online computer marked assignments, online diary submissions, e-counselling (Chat) and e-library (Mishra & Jain, 2002). More developments in direction of online education in IGNOU are: striving towards launching online certificate programmes on Food Safety in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India (Thomas, Kapur and Kumar, 2004); completion of a web-enhanced training package by the faculty of Library and Information Science for the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Government of India on the Windows version of the UNESCO’s popular database management package—CDS/ ISIS (Kanjilal, Ghosh and Kumar, 2004). The development of a scalable Learning Management System, which can be implemented in a large

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Figure 4.

scale for the University, is an outstanding feature of this project. Another online programme in the line of fire is the Training Programme for the mid-career diplomat of the Government of India being prepared for the Foreign Service Institute (Bhusan, 2004).

ignOU Online With a view to serve to the learning needs of the learners in an effective manner, IGNOU Online (http://www.ignouonline.ac.in/) has been set up. The learners can have access to resources online. There is provision for eGyanKosh (digial repository of academic programme based learning content available in text and video format); Virtual Class (facilities for online programmes of the university); Education Broadcast (webcast facility for Gyandarshan [educational television channel], Gyanvani [educational radio channel] and EduSat [Educational Satellite of India]); and Sakshat (one stop educational portal fo the Ministry of Human Resources Development, Govt of India). The Virtual Classroom platform provides space

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for online programmes of the university. Recently launched online programmes by IGNOU have been enlisted as below: VIRTUAL EDUCATION IN LAW (VEL) http:// www.ignouonline.ac.in/vel/ PG Certificate in Cyber Law (PGCCL) PG Diploma in Legal Process Outsourcing (PGDLPO) VIRTUAL EDUCATION IN LIBRARY & INFORMATION SCIENCE (LIVE) http:// www.ignouonline.ac.in/live/ Master Degree in Library and Information Science (MLIS) VIRTUAL EDUCATION IN HEALTH SCIENCES (VEHS) http://www.ignouonline.ac.in/acupuncture/ PG Diploma in Acupuncture (PGDACP) VIRTUAL EDUCATION IN AGRICULTURE (SOA) http://www.ignouonline.ac.in/soa/ PG Diploma in Food Safety and Quality Management (PGDFSQM) PG Certificate in Agriculture Policy(PGCAP)

Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University

Figure 5.

VIRTUAL EDUCATION IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES (SOFL) http://www.ignouonline.ac.in/cpsl/ Certificate Programme in Spanish Langugae(CPSL) VIRTUAL EDUCATION IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (SAVE) http://www.ignouonline.ac.in/save/ Appreciation Programme on Sustainability Science(APSS)

•

salient features of the Online Programmes of ignOU

•

It is a complete virtual learning environment suite covering all the activities from registration to certification. The following features shall be available to the registered students. • •

Walk in admission: Round the year admission will be available. Integrated multimedia courseware: Access to personalized learning space (My Page), including self instructional material, related audio/ video, slides, self check exercises, etc. have been provided over the platform.

•

•

•

Online counselling and mentoring: academic input would be through web cast based counselling integrated with text based chatting facility. 24×7 learner support: Provided through asynchronous and synchronous modes of interaction. Group based online Seminar: Blogs, chat rooms and discussion forums and web conferencing are the facility for group based seminars. Online Project platform: Learners would be able to submit synopsis, upload project and its evaluation though special templates. Viva voce will be conducted through web based video conferencing tool. Online Term End Examination: Online examinations will be conducted in specified centres for in proctored environment.

student support services network of ignOU Thorpe (2001) defined learner support as “all those elements capable of responding to a known learner or group of learners, before, during and after the learning process.” Sewart (1993) defines learner

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support as the means through which individuals are enabled to make use of the institutionalized provision. To cater to the educational needs of a variety of our learners across the country, IGNOU has established a strong and diversified Student Support Services Network. It is comprised of 60 Regional Centres under whom 2000 Study Centres provide student support to the learners at grassroots level. These study centers, on the basis of the specific purpose they serve, have been grouped as Regular Study Centres, Programme Specific Study Centres, Recognised Study Centres and Special Study Centres for disadvantages groups of society. Further, there are also Study Centres for limited programmes based on North-Bihar model. Special Study Centres provide learning facilities to SC-ST/minority/women/jail inmates/ physically disabled/blind/remote and rural areas. A strong team of Regional Directors, Deputy-Directors, Assistant Regional Directors, Coordinators, Assistant Coordinators and Academic Counsellors manages this entire network. At present, there are more than 36000 Academic Counsellors (parttime) associated with IGNOU. Since the learners in IGNOU belong to diversified groups with varying demographics, the support services are also diversified to serve them effectively. A special scheme of Single Window operation has been put in place for the delivery of IGNOU programmes to defence personnel and para-military forces. There is a Student Support Centre (SSC) at IGNOU Hqrs. for providing information, facilities for submission of examination forms and sale of prospectus, attending to the general queries, mitigating problems, grievances and providing redressal who visit personally.

CUrrent ChaLLenges The IGNOU has made considerable strides in deploying information and communication technologies to support and enhance learning. This includes both the growth in the use of on-line

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resources provided through the virtual learning environment as well as the widespread use of e-mail, and Internet. As stated above, effective, timely and prompt delivery of services is the key to success of any distance education institute; adopting e-learning strategy for student support would be pertinent as: •

•

E-Learning plays a significant role, often in the form of blended learning, to widen access to learning opportunities and enhance the quality and flexibility of learning; and Within the next few years, the IGNOU will have to get ready to effectively respond to the changing demographics (more and more learners are on the move) with access to mobile phone and Internet.

Consequently, the online Student Support Services would pertain to integrating student support services into Internet based e-learning solutions resulting in online distance education. To put in place an online student support services, there would be the requirement of high quality systems for development, distribution and presentation of the information needed by the learners. This information can be in the form of two-way and many-way communication, pertaining to either an individual or a group based student activities and all kinds of personal, academic and administrative student support services. We suggest an e-learning based model for student support services in Table-3.

LessOns LearneD What would the world be like if e-learning worked in India? Student need not travel to long distances to study, and students like Mohan, in remote Koraput district of Orissa may experience quality education anytime and anywhere. Mohan, a resident of Koraput logs in to the IGNOU Learning Zone from the local Cyber Café or the IGNOU Learning

Applications of E-Tutoring at Indira Gandhi National Open University

Table 3. Student Support Services E-Learning Model Zone

Technology based Activities

Information Zone

• Establishing a Help-desk corner on the website • Mobile services; Short Message Services (SMS)

Pre-admission Guidance Zone

• Online career guidance • Course Choice Virtual Agents

Registration Zone

• Online admission • Online re-registration • Student access to personal information such as address updating • Follow-up for Inactive Students • SMS Alert

Learning Activities Integration Zone

• Record and tracking of Dispatch of physical materials • Online Learning though Learning Management Systems • Just in Time Learning • Learning Support • Learner’s Blog • Virtual Personal Tutor • Bulletin Boards • Discussion Forums • Email • Online Tutorials • Face to face Tutorials • Online • Resources/Library • SMS Alert

Assessment Zone

• Online quiz and assessment • Automated response systems • Online • Submission of assignments and projects • Tracking of learning progress • SMS Alert

Further Career Guidance Zone

• Online Resources/Library • ‘Where to go now’ corner • Web space on University’s server for students personal page for recruitments (Learner’s Portfolio) • Advisors/student Counsellors

Alumni Zone

• Database system maintenance • Photo Gallery • Online Feedback

Kiosk, select a list of courses from the bouquet of courses available, fill the admission form online, pays the course fees through credit card or

online banking; and behold he becomes a student of IGNOU without much running around. Now, he has access to high quality learning materials on the web with interactive features, multimedia and simulations to support his learning process. He has access to online virtual coaches and real mentors to provide additional support through mobile phone, email, chat and web-based discussion forums. Mohan can submit his assignments online and also can view his learning progress through the special tracking features of the online learning management system. He receives from time to time automatic feedback from the system on the areas that he should have covered and how he has performed. Also included are tips and further links to resources (both online and in person) in the e-mail to provide remedial training. Mohan picks up the mobile and contact Dr. Savita (contact given in the mail) to clarify his doubts on “Thermodynamics”. Dr. Savita is on the move, and not reachable. But, later in the evening, she gets in touch with Mohan and clarifies all his doubts. Mohan then logs on to the IGNOU Learning Zone and joins the discussion group to which he is a member, reads 6 posting by his peer group and posts his own comments to the activities assigned by the tutor. As soon as Mohan posts his comments, all other students in his group receive SMS alert on their mobile to log into the Learning Zone and read the comments. Some students having email access on the mobile connect to their account and read the comment. All University and programme related information including student performance records are available online through SMS and/or call centre support 24×7, making learning personalized. No more complaints about non-receipt of study materials, non-reflection of assignment grades, and problems in declaration of results.

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About the Contributors

Gary A. Berg, Ph.D. is founding Dean of Extended Education at California State University Channel Islands and author of numerous articles on current issues in higher education, educational technology, and media studies, as well as five books including Why Distance Learning? and Lessons from the Edge: For-Profit and Nontraditional Higher Education in America (Praeger and the American Council on Education). Berg has also co-edited two encyclopedias of distance learning. In addition to a doctoral degree in Higher Education from Claremont Graduate University, he has an MFA in Film and Television from UCLA. Previous to CSUCI, Berg headed continuing education divisions at Chapman University and the California School of Professional Psychology, as well as professional training programs at the Directors Guild of America. *** Veronica I. Arreola is the Assistant Director of the Center for Research on Women and Gender at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has directed the Women in Science and Engineering program since late-2004. Arreola earned both a bachelor’s in Biological Sciences with a minor in Women’s Studies and a master’s in Public Administration with a concentration in Gender & Women’s Studies from UIC. During four years as a research intern in the Field Museum of Natural History Arreola published and presented her work on fish biomechanics. She has worked on education equity issues for over a decade. Nicholas Bowskill is an active researcher and lecturer in the area of online learning since 1992. He has worked on a host of e-learning projects including those concerned with computer supported collaborative group work and the networked librarian. Most recently Nicholas was a researcher and online tutor in the e-China project, based at Lancaster University, undertaking fieldwork in China and exploring interculturality in online pedagogy. Previously he has worked at a variety of UK universities. He was a tutor in the online MSc in eLearning at the University of Sheffield for several years. Nicholas has also published book chapters and articles on different aspects of online learning. He is currently undertaking a doctoral study in the area of ‘collaborative reflection’ as part of a project at University of Glasgow concerned with technology and discussion. Lynn Fontana has been in educational research and development for more than 25 years. As Chief Academic Officer for Sylvan she leads the team that creates and monitors Sylvan’s academic programs and training. Prior to Sylvan, she was the Chief Academic Officer for Education Station, the leading

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About the Contributors

provider of supplemental and remedial instruction, and for Nobel Learning Communities, the manager of a nationwide network of private schools. She was also on the research faculty at George Mason University for eight years where she developed media and technology projects, including the project that created the patented Multimedia and Thinking Skills Software. Judi Harris is a professor and the Pavey Family Chair in Educational Technology in the School of Education at the College of William & Mary in Virginia, where she coordinates the Curriculum and Educational Technology doctoral program. Dr. Harris’ research and service focus upon K-12 curriculumbased technology integration and teacher professional development. During the past 28 years of her work in educational computing, she has authored Way of the Ferret: Finding and Using Educational Resources on the Internet (1994 & 1995, ISTE); one of the first books about K-12 educational use of the Internet, Virtual Architecture: Designing and Directing Curriculum-Based Telecomputing (1998, ISTE); Design Tools for the Internet-Supported Classroom (1998, ASCD), and more than 200 other research and pedagogical publications on curriculum-based applications of educational technologies. Prior to moving to William & Mary in 2002, Dr. Harris served on the faculty of the University of Texas at Austin for ten years, where she founded and directed WINGS Online (“Welcoming Interns and Novices with Guidance and Support Online”), a suite of online mentoring services that support new teachers in multiple ways. That work became the foundation of William & Mary’s ENDAPT (“Electronic Networking to Develop Accomplished Professional Teachers;” http://endapt.wm.edu/), a second-generation suite of online services for new teachers. Her nonprofit Electronic Emissary (http://emissary.wm.edu/) telementoring service and research effort, begun in 1992, is the longest-running K-12 effort of its kind, and has served students and teachers worldwide. Mark J. W. Lee is an adjunct senior lecturer with the School of Education, Charles Sturt University (CSU), Wagga Wagga, Australia, and an honorary research fellow with the School of Information Technology and Mathematical Sciences, University of Ballarat, Australia. He was previously a full-time lecturer in Information Technology (IT) in the School of Information Studies, Charles Sturt University. Prior to joining CSU, Mr. Lee was Head of the IT Faculty within the vocational education division of Study Group, Australia’s largest private education provider, and national IT and e-commerce coordinator for the La Trobe University and Oxford Brookes University programs delivered by the Australian Campus Network in Sydney, Brisbane, and Perth. He is presently chair of the New South Wales Chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Education Society, and serves on the editorial boards of a number of international journals in the area of educational technology and e-learning. Elie Losleben is a communications consultant who specializes in working with non-profits. She received her BA in Comparative Literature from the American University in Cairo and her MPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. After writing for public and private sector clients in Egypt and Tanzania, she moved to New York City to work in HIV and AIDS communication for UNICEF. She is the author of several non-fiction children’s and travel books, including Bedouin of the Middle East and Swahili Style. David McConnell is Professor of Learning Innovation in Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland, and Visiting Professor in South China Normal University. Professor McConnell’s academic interests include adult and continuing education, the potential of the Internet for learning and teaching, open

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About the Contributors

and distance learning, professional development and interculturality. He has written extensively on teaching, learning and assessment in higher education and has published over 80 papers in refereed journals and co-authored several books. His most recent book is E-Learning Groups and Communities, Maidenhead, OU/SRHE Press. Catherine McLoughlin, Ph.D., is an associate professor with the School of Education at the Australian Catholic University, Canberra. She also serves as the coordinator of the Australian Capital Territory hub of the National Center of Science, Information Technology, and Mathematics Education for Rural and Regional Australia (SiMERR). With over 20 years experience in higher education in Europe, South East Asia, the Middle East, and Australia, Dr. McLoughlin has experience and expertise in a variety of educational settings, with diverse students and across a wide range of cultural contexts. Her publications attest to extensive research and development in e-learning and innovative pedagogy in higher education. She is editor of the Australasian Journal of Educational Technology and an editorial board member of several leading journals, including the British Journal of Educational Technology. Sanjaya Mishra holds a Ph.D. in Library and Information Science in the area of library networks. He has been a teacher of communication technology to distance educators. He has been involved in successful implementation of many multimedia and Internet based courses. With professional training in distance education, television production and multimedia, he is actively involved in collaboration at international level. At present, he is Reader in Distance Education at the Staff Training and Research Institute of Distance Education, Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi. He also served (2001-2003) the Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia at New Delhi as a Programme Officer, where he conducted a number of workshops on ‘Multimedia’ and ‘e-learning’ in the Asian region. He has served as consultant to UNESCO, UN-ESCAP, World Bank and the Commonwealth of Learning. He was Book Review Editor of Indian Journal of Open Learning from 1997-2000 and also edited few special issues of the same journal. He is author/editor of 10 books and has contributed more than 75 research papers in reputed professional journals. He is one of the founder editors of the Asian Journal of Distance Education. He co-edited the IGI-Global publication Interactive Multimedia in Education and Training in 2005 and Cases on Global E-Learning Practices: Successes and Pitfalls in 2007. He received the University Silver Medal for Best Research Paper for his work entitled ‘Roles and Competencies of Academic Counsellors in Distance Education’ published in Open Learning in 2005. James Monaghan is a tenured Associate Professor of Instructional Technology and Director of the Office of Distributed Learning at California State University, San Bernardino. As director of the Office of Distributed Learning, he spearheaded the rapid expansion of distributed learning courses and the development of eight online and online hybrid degree programs. As an associate professor, he coordinated the Instructional Technology Master’s program and taught in-service teachers how to effectively integrate technology into their classrooms. He has managed, co-managed, or secured over $7 Million in grants and contracts, including a Title V Hispanic serving institution grant, Congressional appropriations, a large Department of Education grant and contracts from a regional school district and from the California State University Chancellor’s office. In each case, the result has been to improve educational opportunities through expansion of the use of educational technology and distance learning. Dr. Monaghan’s research is on the application of distributed learning technologies and processes and on computer simulations to facilitate cognition and learning.

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Caroline Kim Oh joined the iMentor team in 2000 as its first Director of Programs, and was named Executive Director in 2002. In her current role as iMentor’s President, Caroline focuses on Board and leadership group development and strategic, special projects. Prior to iMentor, Caroline was with the Small Business Congress of New York City, a federation of over 60 small business associations advocating the rights of small enterprises. Caroline also managed student-computing facilities for New York University and was a consultant to the Documentary Heritage Program for the NYS Department of Education and Korean American Small Business Center. Caroline currently serves on the Board of Directors for Row New York (an after-school rowing, academic, and self-esteem building program), Nonprofit Coordinating Committee (NPCC) and Youth Improving Nonprofits for Children (Youth I.N.C.). Caroline is a frequent speaker on the issues of youth mentoring, nonprofit management and leadership development. Caroline received her M.P.A. from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University and her B.A. from Cornell University. David Porush is President and CEO of MentorNet, a non-profit that matches women and minority proteges in engineering and sciences with mentors in industry. Porush came to MentorNet after cofounding and serving as Chairman of SpongeFish, a social network for global knowledge exchange that was named one of Dow Jones Web 2.0 “Best Companies” of 2008. From 2003-2007, David was Executive Director of Learning Environments responsible for new academic media and technology for the 64 campuses and 425,000 students of the State University of New York. He grew the SUNY Learning Network to a $98MM revenue engine for SUNY in addition to launching an array of innovative new online degrees, Web 2.0 technologies, programs, projects, conferences, and $3.5mm in computer access initiatives for students and faculty and growing the Center for Professional Development. Porush was Professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he created and launched the program in electronic media and served as co-director of the artificial intelligence research lab. He is the author of three books, including the widely translated The Soft Machine, and more than fifty book chapters and journal articles, dozens of reviews, plays, magazine articles, and a collection of short stories. His work has been featured on The Discovery Channel, Voice of America, in Omni magazine and The New York Times, on National Public Radio, and widely on the Internet. Porush was named Distinguished University Teaching Fellow and the Provost Scholars Professor at RPI. He was Fulbright Professor to Israel in 1993-94, living there with his family and serving on the faculty of the Technion. He has received grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, Sloan Foundation, the Henry R. Luce Foundation, Apple, S.D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation, and others for research and new programs. He also consulted on communications strategies for GE’s Center for Research and Development, Bell Labs, IBM, Perkin-Elmer, the Higher Education Services Corporation and other companies. He was one of the co-founders of the Society for Literature and Science and has served as a judge of the Philip K. Dick Award. He received his undergraduate degree from MIT. Christa Ehmann Powers is the Vice President of Education at Smarthinking, Inc. Since its founding in 1999, Christa has lead Smarthinking’s Education Department, initially developing the unique educational protocols and mechanisms for online tutoring. Thereafter, she expanded systems to meet and manage growth, including the growth of the external instructional workforce, development and supervision of quality control mechanisms, and budgetary and operational functions. Christa manages the business of the Education Department and the delivery of its academic services as she directs the development of the E-structor® Certified training and academic support programs as well as tutor selec-

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tion and professional development activities. She also organizes the strategic and operational planning for Smarthinking’s online education programs, to include course development and instructional design for StraighterLine. She has written, presented, and published on face-to-face and online instruction, learning support, and training and professional development of instructors and tutors. Christa received her Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Studies from Oxford University, England in 2003 Masters of Science in 1995, also from Oxford University. Saul Rockman is president of Rockman et al, an independent evaluation, research, and consulting firm focusing on studies of education, technology, and media. The San Francisco-based company works with preschool, K-12, postsecondary and adult educational institutions in formal education, as well as with broadly educational projects having a wide community or consumer audience. Saul Rockman established Rockman et al in 1990 after leaving the education marketing group of Apple Computer where he was manager of education research. Prior to joining Apple, Rockman was director of technology programs at WestEd in San Francisco, California. Karima Russell is currently a graduate assistant for the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She acts as a moderator for the online outreach program called GEM-SET. Ms. Russell is currently a doctoral student in the mechanical engineering department at UIC and also holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. Her graduate research focuses on using computational methods to simulate turbulence in jet engine combustors. She currently holds a fellowship through the NASA Graduate Student Researchers Program (GSRP) and has worked with the combustion branch at the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio. Kate Schrauth, Executive Director and former Chair of the icouldbe.org Board of Directors, has the primary responsibility of successfully managing and growing icouldbe.org to serve thousands of students throughout the United States and internationally. With over 22 years of nonprofit leadership experience, Ms. Schrauth has played a variety of roles including Founder and Director of Artists for Humanity & City Teens Design Company, and has held a variety of roles at organizations including Jumpstart, New School University and Harvard University. Ramesh C Sharma holds a PhD in Education in the area of Educational Technology. He has been a teacher trainer and has taught Educational Technology, Educational Research and Statistics, Educational Measurement and Evaluation, Special Education, Psychodynamics of Mental Health Courses. He specializes in Web 2.0 technologies and on-line learning. He is the co-Editor of ‘Asian Journal of Distance Education’ ISSN 1347-9008, (www.ASIANJDE.org). He has co-authored a book on Distance Education Research, co-edited a book entitled “Interactive Multimedia in Education and Training” and “Cases on Global E-Learning Practices: Successes and Pitfalls” (Co-Editor Dr Sanjaya Mishra, both from Idea Group, USA). He is also an Advisory Board Member and author for the “Encyclopedia of Distance Learning” (four-volume set) released by Idea Group Publishing. He has also co-edited “Ethical Practices and Implications in Distance Learning” (2008) published from IGI-Global, USA. Sarah Shirk, MPH, is Director of Pre-College Outreach for the UIC Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program. Her passion is to research and advocate for gender equity in all realms with a focus on STEM careers. She accomplishes this goal with outreach activities targeted to junior high and

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About the Contributors

senior high students in underserved communities. She currently serves on the STEM Equity Pipeline Illinois State Leadership team and the Champions Board for the Midwest Girls Collaborative Project. In addition, she is project director of the GEM-SET Mentoring for Success program funded by the United States Department of Education and WISE Tutors Ambassadors for Success funded by the Motorola Foundation and the UIC High School Development Office. Theresa Stroisch is the Managing Director of iMentor Interactive, iMentor’s online mentoring solution that is enabling organizations around the world to bring mentoring to those who need it the most. Theresa has extensive experience with how new online innovations can change the way non-profits work, enhancing their impact, increasing efficiency, engaging volunteers and broadening their reach. Prior to joining iMentor Theresa spent over 5 years at NPower NY, a nonprofit technology assistance provider. While there she launched their managed network solution, IT Basic. Strategic planning for nonprofits with a focus on gaining measurable efficiencies has been a focus for Theresa over the past 10 years. She has spoken at local, regional, and national conferences where senior leaders learn how to implement appropriate technology over time. Detailed topics she has focused on include planning for business continuity and disaster recovery to in-sourcing versus outsourcing to specific technologies such as wireless for organizations. Theresa’s keen interest in technology and nonprofits began at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation where she spent three years working on the National Library Project in rural communities around the country. John Stuppy is an education technology pioneer. He created the first live online tutoring system that incorporated computers with the emerging internet to connect students and tutors worldwide using voice over IP (internet phone) and virtual whiteboard technology. Dr. Stuppy is the President of TutorVista. com, a world leader in affordable, convenient and effective internet-based global education. Previously he held senior management positions at Sylvan Learning Systems, ETS, and The Princeton Review. Dr. Stuppy earned a Master’s in Curriculum Studies and Teacher Education at Stanford University, an MBA at Kent College, and a Ph.D. in Education Policy Analysis at UCLA. Vassilis Syrris has studied Mathematics at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (B.A.), Business Management at the Hellenic Management Association (Postgraduate studies) and Artificial Intelligence: Knowledge-based Systems at the University of Edinburgh, U.K. (M.Sc.). He is currently completing his Ph.D. in the Automation and Robotics Lab, Faculty of Electrical and Computers Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. He is also working as assistant tutor in the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, as laboratorial instructor in the Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki and as a high-school teacher with a private college in Thessaloniki. He has participated in and run European Community Programs related to education, informatics and professional occupation. His research interests are: machine learning, robotics, automation, evolutionary algorithms, fuzzy logic, e-learning, intelligent tutoring systems, symbolic representation, data manipulation and statistical analysis. Fenia Tsobanopoulou has studied English Language and Literature at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (B.A.), Women Studies at the University of Bologna, Italy (intensive postgraduate studies), Social Anthropology at the University of Edinburgh, U.K. (postgraduate studies) and Philosophy at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (M.A). Currently she is a doctoral candidate

217

About the Contributors

in philosophy at the School of Philosophy and Pedagogy, Faculty of Philosophy, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. She is also employed as a high-school teacher with a private college in Thessaloniki. She has participated in and run European Community Programs related to inter-cultural affairs, art, education and professional occupation. Her research interests involve: systematic philosophy, philosophy of language, linguistics, politics and economics, gender issues, human rights, inter-cultural dialogue, literature and art. Norma Turner has almost 40 years of formal classroom and education experience; she has been in adult education for the over 25 years, primarily teaching for proprietary for-profit universities, both in the classroom and online. She received an M.A. in Humanities from Arizona State University in 1976 and an M.A. in Management from UOPX in 1988. She completed a three-year program in Gestalt therapy in 1994, and in 2003 earned a Ph.D. in Human Science from Saybrook Graduate School and Research Institute in San Francisco. Currently, Dr. Turner teaches primarily at three universities and works as a professional editor. Linda Venis, Ph.D., is Director, UCLA Extension Department of the Arts, the country’s largest selfsupporting continuing education art department, offering 1,400 post-baccalaureate courses to 22,000 enrollments annually in architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, design communication arts, studio arts, entertainment studies, performing arts, creative writing, and screenwriting. Dr. Venis holds a joint appointment as Program Director, the Writers’ Program, which holds 530 onsite and online courses annually in fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry, playwriting, writing for the youth market, publishing, feature film writing, and television writing. She created the prototypes for and initiated online learning at UCLA Extension; created Cyberhouse, a virtual Open House; and has won awards for her body of work in the field of continuing education as well as for innovative online programming and services, among others. A former adjunct faculty member at UCLA, USC, and Temple University, Dr. Venis is the recipient of UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award. Carly Wobig is a Ph.D. candidate of Public Administration, College of Urban Planning and Public Administration (CUPPA), University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). She is a graduate assistant for Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) and Women in Nanotechnology (WIN) at UIC. Ms. Wobig contributes to the Science, Technology, and Environment Lab and the Internet Participation and Civic Engagement Project at CUPPA. From 2001-2006, she was a policy analyst at the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars in Washington, DC. Her research interests include emerging science and technology, innovation policy, and workforce development.

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219

Index

A academic support programs 160, 161 adult education 127, 135 adult learners 127, 128, 135 adult learning model 128 Advanced Diploma in Information Technology (ADIT) 193 anthropocentric method 64 asynchronous dimension 93 asynchronous online tutoring 137, 138 asynchronous tutorials 137 asynchronous web-based communication 88 Australian Capital Territory (ACT) 84

B

community building 94 community of classroom 53, 55 community of practice (CoP) 87 complex intellectual works 67 computer-mediated communication (CMC) 89 content knowledge 143, 144 contextualized learning 86 coursework 129, 131 cross-cultural opportunities 30 curriculum-based e-mentoring projects 3 curriculum-based learning 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 curriculum-based telementoring 3, 5 curriculum-oriented telementoring projects 1 Cyber-associations 140 cyber-water cooler 141

Bachelor of Information Technology (BIT) 193 basic learning concept 164 biosciences 19 Blackboard 89, 90, 91, 94, 100, 105, 107, 113 Blackboard-based CMS 91 Blackboard-based doctoral online community of practice 118 Blackboard learning management system 118, 119 broadcast communications 14

D

C

E

California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) 117 call center for education 137 career decisions 32 classroom-based learning activities 3 collaborative reflection 172, 173, 174, 175, 177, 178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183

e-banking 191 e-commerce 191 economic system 64, 72 e-governance 191 electronic communications 120 electronic communities of practice 118, 120

decision-making abilities 56 Department of Labor’s (DOL) 25 digial repository 194 digital connectivity 93 digital devices 68 digital libraries 68, 71 digital literacies 93 Distance mentoring environments 79 doctoral culture 117, 118, 119, 125 dynamic virtual learning environment 53, 57

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Index

electronic community 118, 119, 120, 122 Electronic Emissary 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10 electronic mail 1, 2, 4 electronic networking 27 ELL programs 169 email 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20 e-mail communication 43 e-mentoring 12, 13, 16, 18, 19, 20, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 e-mentoring capabilities 116 e-mentoring contexts 93 e-mentoring relationship 94 Emissary project 8 Emissary-related research 1 English Language Learners (ELL) 164, 169 English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) 144 e-portfolios 125 e-portfolio solution 125 ethnic minority 53 evidence-based curriculum 53, 56

F face-to-face 23, 25, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34, 86, 88, 89, 90, 93, 152, 153, 154 face-to-face approach 65 face-to-face career mentoring 28 face-to-face classes 88 face-to-face communication 73 face-to-face communications 30 face-to-face course 69 face to face environments 148 face-to-face exchange 5 face-to-face experience 170 face-to-face mentoring 53, 56 face-to-face mentoring program 56 face-to-face mentors 56 face-to-face programming 23 face-to-face relationships 54 face-to-face services 52 face-to-face teaching 5 face-to-face training session 89 face-to-face tutoring 32 feedback loop 134 fee-for-service model 48 Fiction Fundamentals 101

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field-based research 127 File Transfer Protocol (FTP) 78 for-profit educational institution 128, 134 front-end communication tools 44 fully-online internship 105

G GEM-SET 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 37, 40 GEM-SET management 33 GEM-SET on-line mentoring 27 GEM-SET Program 31 GEM-SET virtual community 29 Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Technology (GEM-SET) 23, 25 Girls’ E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Technology (GEM-SET) program 23, 25 global audience 104 global collaboration 188 globalized culture 20 global literary 99 global practice 180, 181 global reach 20, 188 Government of India (GOI) 186

H hands-on science 27 high-tech communication tools 25

I icouldbe.org 53, 55, 56, 57, 58, 60, 61, 62, 63 icouldbe.org platform 57, 60, 61 ICT competencies 94 ICTs tools 67 iMentor 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51 , 52 iMentor Interactive (iMi.) 44 iMentor network 50 Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) 185, 187, 189 information and communication technologies (ICT) 65, 189 in situ 94 instant message communications 141

Index

Institutional Review Board (IRB) 29 Interconnection model 78 inter-cultural course 172, 175, 177, 178, 179, 180 inter-cultural course context 175 Inter-cultural e-tutoring 176, 183 Inter-cultural learning design 176 inter-cultural teaching context 180 inter-cultural tutors 182 inter-departmental collaboration/communications 48 international communities 84, 94 Internet based applications 191 IT provider 50

K KEEP toolkit 125

L large-scale 101 learning environments 86, 89, 91, 163, 168 learning management 151 Learning Network 140 lecture materials 108 Local Area Network 76 logical extension 137

M make tutoring more convenient. The author invented and patented a ground-breaking 150 mentoring model 43, 44, 51 mentoring programs 53, 54, 55, 56, 62 mentor-mentee relationship 56 MentorNet 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 mentor-only space 60 mentor-protégé relationship 20 methodology 99, 109 mobile telephony 73 mortar learning centers 151 multicasting technology 77 multi-institution distance education 137 multimodal learning 153

N near-peer mentors 25, 26 NetMeeting 77 networking tools 88, 95 non-confrontational manner 92 non-profit community groups 26 non-traditional careers 23, 27, 32, 33 non-verbal communication 70

O on-demand tutoring 151 one-on-one attention 158 one-on-one relationship 20 one-to-one instructional program 165 one-to-one nature 168 one-to-one online instructional program 170 one-to-one online relationship 165 one-to-one relationship 60 one-to-one tutoring/conferencing 146 online communication 93 online communities of practice 117, 118, 120 online community of practice 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 125 online courses 98, 99, 101, 104, 105, 112 online delivery system 101 online distance mentoring 64, 69 online education 152 online environment 100, 107, 109, 112, 114, 153, 154 online instructor training 146 Online learning community 176 online learning environment 89 online mentoring 27, 30, 31, 32 online professional development 146 online social network 29 online student 154 online teaching 109, 111 online tutoring 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 158 online tutoring environment 144 online tutoring platform 141 online tutoring services 137 on-screen whiteboard 150 on-the-ground program 54 open and distance learning (ODL) 185, 188 open and distance learning (ODL) system 185

221

Index

open learning environment 81 organizational culture 29, 30 organizational learning 93 organizational psychology 128

P paradigm-changing 12, 20 pedagogical 98, 99, 105, 110 pedagogy 166, 168 peer-based approach 87 peer networks 93 peer-to-peer e-mentoring 93 peer-to-peer learning 93 Peer-to-peer sharing 119 personal computer 68, 75 personalization 19, 20 personalized feedback 99 personal training 64 philanthropy 48 philosophy 127, 128, 131, 135 physical communities 118 physical interactions 119 pre-college mentoring 23 pre-service teachers 85, 86, 88, 91, 95, 97 problem-solving communications 5 processor power 68 professional learning 87, 89, 90, 93 project-based online conversations 1 Project evaluation 8 Protégé 14, 15 psychological support 64

R RailTel Corporation of India Limited (RailTel) 191 real-time 137, 138, 141, 142, 144, 146 real-time communication 68 real-time tutorial sessions 146 recently-launched programs 105 resource center 1 restricted network 88

S school-based curriculum 3 school-based intervention 60

222

school-community partnerships 4 School of Advanced Studies (SAS) 128 science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) 24 secure mentoring network 44, 46 single-mode ODL institutions 189 skill-gap tutoring 150, 158 Social cohesion 67 social constructivism 118 social contexts 87 social demand 189 social framework 89 social glue 174 socialization 86, 93 socially-based theory 87 social networks 118 social realities 99 social software tools 91, 93, 94 social structure 118, 119 socio-communicative competencies 93 sociological 138 sociology 118 software-based solution 76 spirit development 64, 66 spreadsheet-based schedule systems 145 staff monitors 24 STEM disciplines 24, 28 student-instructor interaction 168 student learning 137, 138, 141, 142, 146, 147 students face-to-face 1 Student Support Centre (SSC) 196 Supplemental Educational Services (SES) 162 Sylvan Learning 160, 161, 165, 167, 170, 171 Sylvan Learning Centers 150 Sylvan Online 160, 161, 162, 164, 165, 166, 167, 168, 169, 170, 171 synchronous 136, 137, 138, 141, 142, 143, 147

T T.120 protocols 76 teacher monitoring system 151 technical resources 44 technical tools 154

Index

technology-mediated peer mentoring 94 technology-related engineering 99 telecommunications 73, 74 Telecommunication tools 2 text-based components 89 text chat 150, 152 text-only format 113 theme-based courses 104 theoretical framework 64 TutorVista.com 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159 TutorVista.com tutors 155, 158

U UCLA Extension 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 113, 115, 116 UCLA Extension Writers’ Program 98, 100, 116 UCLA-transferrable credit 100 university-based continuing education programs 99 University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) 23, 24 University of Phoenix (UOPX) 127 university-related creative writing 100 UOPX model 129, 130 UOPX presence 135

V video-conference 65, 69, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 81 video-conference approach 69, 75 video-conference software clients 77 videoconference systems 64 videoconferencing 1 virtual classroom 101, 103, 105 Virtual Classroom platform 194 virtual community of practice 118, 119 virtual learning environment 53, 57, 62, 63 voice-based aspects 92 voice-based CMC 91 voice-based live tutoring 157 voice-based online communication 93 voice-based peer-to-peer interaction 89 voice-over internet protocol (VoIP) 150 VPN 18

W Web 2.0 17, 19, 94, 96 Web 2.0 technologies 58 Web 2.0 tools 19, 62 Web-based discussion 2 Web-based Integrated Science Environment (WISE) 118 web-based interface 146 web-based mentoring network 46 Web-based programs 52 Web-based service 1 web-based tools 44, 89 Web-based tutor tools 146 web browser 77 Web forum 1 web-innovations 44 Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) 117 whiteboard system 141 Wide Area Network 76 WISE community 27 WISE organizational culture 30 WISE project 118 Women in Nanotechnology (WIN) 27, 31 Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) 23, 24 Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program 23 women mentors 23 workshops 100, 106, 108 world-class scheduled 151 world languages 118 world-wide web service 65 Writers’ Program 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 109, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116

Y youth mentoring model 43 youth mentoring organization 43

223