Constructivist Approaches to Developing Diverse Communities of Learners Online: Examples from the MET program

Jim Gaskell
Faculty of Education, University of British Columbia

Jeff Miller
Office of Learning Technologies, University of British Columbia

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     Last modified: August 23, 2006
     Presentation date: 11/01/2006 11:45 AM in ST Windsor A
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Abstract
Increasingly, ICTs are being used in development work to help bring far-flung learners together online, to deliver material to remote locations, and to provide a means of rapid interaction within a community of learners, instructors and other experts. The development of high quality, engaging, contextually responsive online learning materials, however, remains a challenge. The Master of Educational Technology program (MET), a joint graduate program of the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Tec de Monterrey University (Tec) in Mexico, can provide appropriate experiences and a credential to help build that capacity. In its structure and design, the MET program models a contextually responsive, constructivist approach to learning using high quality course materials and innovative learning technologies. Students in the MET are challenged to analyze local contexts and problems within an active and cross-cultural leaning community. This paper will outline some of the strategies used within several of the MET courses to engage students in constructivist activities through the effective use of a mixture of asynchronous and synchronous technologies.