It was unfortunate that I was not able to do much group work during this course as I had hoped. I more or less did all the assignments individually. I don't blame anyone as everyone has their own circumstances - and that is quite OK.
Different Students Have Different Intentions for Taking the Course
For some students, auditing the course may be all that they desire. That is, their intention may not be to complete all the assignments or watch all the video lectures or participate in all the discussions. They may only desire to get a taste of the course - and again that is OK.
Others may be taking the course just to finish the minimum requirements and perhaps have chosen not to do Group work altogether. Some students may have intended to get the full experience and do all the work in full - and perhaps a little extra. As educators, we must consider student motivation and intention when designing course activitivies and requirements.
The Hype Curve
For some of my group members, I am speculating that their motivation died down after the first week. This phenomenon - namely, losing interest and excitement about something - is quite typical when interacting with anything new. You see it in marriage, where the beginning is fiery but loses its passion as time goes on. You also see it in technology. It is similar to the commonly referred "Hype Curve" that describes how people react to the introduction of new technology. You usually notice a wave of enthusiasm and eagerness to use the technology and everybody is raving about it and how it is the best thing ever (e.g. iPads are going to change the way we look at computing!), and then after a while there is a period of disillusionment (e.g. iPads are awful, the worst idea ever!) followed by true realization of its potential (e.g. iPads are perfect for anyone who wants to do light computing on the couch or laying down!).
| Taken from "The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses" by Jesse Schell, pg. 409, 1st Edition, 2008 |
Similarly, when a new course is offered (whether be online or offline), student enthusiasm is quite high and everyone speaks about how the course will be exciting and great; however, after a while, that enthusiasm vanishes and we see a period of lull in participation and commitment to the course. Lastly, participation picks up at some point and consistent efforts are seen by some students - not all - until the course ends. There are only a few students who can keep their motivation high enough from beginning to end and persevere.
I have also seen similar trends in Ramadan when it comes to people attending prayers in the Masjid. At the beginning of the month, the Masjid is full and there is much excitement and resolve to worship Allah and make the most out of the month. Then we see a period of relative emptiness for about 2-3 weeks. It is the people who you see in the Masjid during this time who are the same people who will be consistent in their worship for the entire month. Surprisingly, the Masjid is full again (and actually overflows) during the last 10 days, and attendance peaks on the 27th night of Ramadan. In essence, Ramadan is a marathon of spiritual development - not a sprint. The same can be said of courses that teach and nurture skills and attitudes of any type.
Freedom!
Irregardless of the reason for my group members not participating fully in the course, I was able to cope by doing the assignments myself. It was not a bad experience at all. I found that I had the freedom to do what I pleased and dive as deep as I wanted and expand the scope of the assignment as widely as I wished since I was not limited by any group consensus.
I believe that distance learning courses should not force students to work in groups. There should be an option for anyone to complete the course individually if he or she wishes. As we know, student learn in different ways and have multiple intelligences. Some students may actually thrive on being able to move ahead as quickly as possible not being limited by the lack of motivation and enthusiasm of others. For such students, perhaps all modules should be provided at once. The question of delivering lessons gradually or all at once in an online course is an important one for this very reason.
Interest Curves - Lessons from the Field of Game Design and Entertainment
In order to address the issue of lack of participation and that of dwindling student motivation, course designers must design courses with appropriate "Interest Curves" which keep the learner engaged until the very end. The concept of an "Interest Curve" is taken from the field of game design and entertainment, and it is essentially a plot of how a participants engagement changes with time throughout the experience. The hype curve seen above is not a great interest curve for educational experiences. What we are looking for is something more like this:
| Taken from "The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses" by Jesse Schell, pg. 248, 1st Edition, 2008 |
Or this:
| Taken from "The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses" by Jesse Schell, pg. 248, 1st Edition, 2008 |
As you can see, these "Interest Curves" describe learners whose engagement increases with time. Typically, in game design, this is achieved by carefully designing levels that create challenges that followed by periods of ease but the challenges increase with time. This way, the player is always in a state of "flow" because things are never too hard or too simple - there is always an appropriate balance to keep the player from being overwhelmed with difficulty or extremely bored. Hence, the interest is always there. Similarly, a good book keeps the reader's interest through its plot structure and character development. The same can be said of television production, plays, musicals, theatricals, and movies.
When designing courses, a designer must think of following reflective questions:
- What activities have been added to sustain student engagement throughout the course?
- Is my course too difficult? Too easy? Too overwhelming or burdensome?
- Is the course too long? Is it too short?
- What social activities have I incorporated to build a strong community of learning?
- What makes my course exciting?
- What elements of my course must I change to keep students interested?
Assessment, Assessment, Assessment
Lastly, when assessing group work, there must be a way to honor the contributions of each individual student of the group. I anticipate that there will likely be conflict if some students do not feel that their group members are caryying their fair share of the work. Clauses in the syllabus that outline expectations for group work and how assessment will be conducted is important so that everyone is on the same page.
Personally, I have always favored students coming together to discuss ideas and then have each student submit their own work; I think it is a better alternative than having everyone do something as part of a collective whole. Unless you have a team whose members all share strong motivation and passion towards a project, the outcome will be mediocre at best. In cases where students are not sharing that passion, working individually should be an option - otherwise all students will lose interest. I think the ultimate goal in any course should be pushing students toward excellence and if a student believe that his or her team is holding them back, going solo may be better in the end.
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