Participate 1 – Ideal Digital Learning Communities

Consider what would be needed to create an ideal digital learning community by investigating the information presented in this lesson.

1. What would be needed to bring an ideal learning community to fruition? 
   I’ve been pursuing my MFA from the Savannah College of Art and Design eLearning program. My degree will be in Illustration when I finish in the next year and half. The ideal learning community would have as much participation between all of the students and each other. There would be meetings times online via video conferences, online discussions, and chats. We had access to each others emails and I created a Microsoft 365 Group with everyone’s email in it. We would ask each other questions regarding the course that we might feel too intimidated to ask the professor. We could field questions away from the discussion boards.

   There is, of course, the rule of three when posting. We had to post and reply to three others that had not received feedback on their artwork. Most everyone commented more than three times. This activity in the community helped rely on each other for feedback in addition to the professors. Each student has certain strengths in color, composition, concept, contrast, or craftsmanship we could all learn from. We would share additional resources. The professor would also provide draw overs on the students’ work see what improvements could be made. The professor also provided video/audio critique feedback, so we felt more like we were in a classroom with her.

2. What can one do to make an existing DLC more attractive to and welcoming for students and teachers?
   Spending time having students introduce themselves in a blog post. I think there has been participation amongst the students. That needs to be prompted by the instructor. The more that students engage online they more they feel comfortable about interacting with each other. If there is a way for students that can work in teams. I teach animation and have students work in teams of 2-3 students in a studio. The same idea can apply online. They would need to chat and discuss with each other and work together collaboratively online. Some students may prefer working alone, but I think having group projects can prompt more interaction and real-world applied arts applications. There are tools within Google Edu and Microsoft using Teams to create this type of environment.