This model, how it was researched and developed,
is explained in much more detail in chapter 2 of the book.
Here’s a summary: Individual access and the ability
of participants to use CMC are essential prerequisites for
conference participation (stage one, at the base of the flights
of steps). Stage two involves individual participants establishing
their online identities and then finding others with whom
to interact. At stage three, participants give information
relevant to the course to each other. Up to and including
stage three, a form of co-operation occurs, i.e. support for
each person’s goals. At stage four, course-related group
discussions occur and the interaction becomes more collaborative.
The communication depends on the establishment of common understandings.
At stage five, participants look for more benefits from the
system to help them achieve personal goals, explore how to
integrate CMC into other forms of learning and reflect on
the learning processes.
Each stage requires participants to master certain technical
skills (shown in the bottom left of each step). Each stage
calls for different e-moderating skills (shown on the right
top of each step). The “interactivity bar” running
along the right of the flight of steps suggests the intensity
of interactivity that you can expect between the participants
at each stage. At first, at stage one, they interact only
with one or two others. After stage two, the numbers of others
with whom they interact, and the frequency, gradually increases,
although stage five often results in a return to more individual
pursuits.
Click here for an interactive
version of the Five Step Model. |
