Education and Information Technologies 9:4, 345–353, 2004. 2004 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Manufactured in The Netherlands.
A Virtual Learning Environment for the French Physics Teachers MICHAIL KALOGIANNAKIS University René Descartes, Paris 5, Education and Apprentissages, Paris, France E-mail:
[email protected]
Abstract This paper presents a study about the new roles that some French physics teachers develop in class when they use ICT. The presence of ICT in class practice seems to affect both the role of the teachers and how they teach. The content analysis of exchanged e-mails in two mailing lists and semi-structured interviews gives a glimpse on the way teachers are considering that their role in class is changing. New models of teaching seem to be constructed by teachers who feel more active and more dynamic when using ICT to teach physics. Thanks to the introduction of the ICT they have become ‘mediators’ for their students. Scientific knowledge is no longer on the teacher’s side but it is now shared between different sources. They present also the use of ICT as a form of life long learning. Furthermore, the teachers consider that the mailing lists facilitate the communication and contribute to the progress of educational practices. Keywords:
ICT, physics teachers, role, mailing lists
1. Introduction Information and Communications Technology (ICT) have begun to be established as an information and communications resource in the working and home environments of most teachers. ICT is not only bringing changes to the world we live in, but also transforms the way we can learn, opening a new gateway to information, providing a new potential for interaction and dialogue. The use of ICT is becoming a part of everyday life in schools. According to Pinto (2002) teachers need to change if they want to try out with new methods and technologies for education. One of the main means of this change is ICT. New possibilities for teaching and learning are introduced and new learning environments emerge offering the flexibility to achieve goals of lifelong learning. In the process of collecting, analyzing and processing information and sharing ideas with others, ICT serve as essential enabling tool. ICT are often associated with changes in for students and this has an inevitable impact on the role that the teacher is asked to play. ICT have been seen as a vehicle for teachers to carry out major changes in how they teach students. But it may also be that the ICT enables teachers to follow a whole new approach to teaching based on a different theory of how students attain understanding or new perspectives on what it is important for students to know. However, new teaching strategies are emerging and teachers themselves need the opportunity to develop new classroom skills, new relations and new models of teaching (Baron and Bruillard, 1996).
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Since the introduction in 2000 of the Personal Guided Projects (TPEs ‘Travaux Personnels Encadrés’ in French) for students, which are a new educational form of learning in the eleventh grade of the French secondary school, the role of physic teachers has changed. In this new learning approach, students work in small groups: they have to choose a topic, to develop an approach, to do a documentary research and then to write a report that will be publicly. Access to the information is crucial to the success of TPEs. In this context, it seems convenient to base the TPEs on ICT as a research tool. Our research covers some French physics teachers in secondary school and considers the impact of ICT on pedagogical practice. The purpose of the research is to provide information on the nature of changes taking place in teaching and the new roles of physics teachers using ICT in class. Using ICT effectively requires a radical transformation of practice in the classroom. Our purpose is to provide information for the potential impact of ICT for the French physics teachers and the new role of physics teachers after the introduction of the TPEs and the use of ICT in the class practice. It is well established that if any form of innovation is proposed in isolation it is doomed to fail. Faced to the introduction of the TPEs, it is very important that French physics teachers should be able to update their knowledge, to guide their students and to develop new roles. The French Ministry of Education created the mailing list called PHYSCHIM (http://listes.educnet.education.fr/wws/info/physchim) in November 1999 and the list TPETICE (http://listes.educnet.education.fr/wws/info/tpe-tice) in March 2000. These two lists are moderated and concern all the French teachers of secondary schools. The public archives of these lists are available by topic or in a chronological way. According to the list’s chart, the purpose of these two lists is to foster the exchanges between teachers in relation with: (i) the ICT use and more particularly the Internet use in class practice and (ii) the innovative educational practices and the didactic reflection. In order to put the new roles of physics teachers into context, we shall offer a case study of this actual ICT based learning environment of the mailing lists PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE. These two lists can be perceived as a valued platform for continuing professional education for teachers and as a communicational tool and a learning environment for physics teachers.
2. Background and Framework on the Context of the Study In the information society, ability to collect, develop, exchange, store and manage information from various and dispersed data along with the ability to generate additional information of value are essential. E-mail enables professional communities to interact freely and increases efficient communication between teachers and students. Cyberspace is a new environment created by computer and communication technology. Over the last few decades, various computer-mediated communication structures and tools have been created that allow virtual communities to work together online, not only communicating about specific activities, but also building a kind of knowledge base. The mailing lists can be used as collaborative work tools for interaction and dialogue (Rojo and Ragsdale, 1997). A few secondary French physics teachers have experience of the Internet or of using it for teaching (Kalogiannakis and Caillot, 2001). The traditional organisation of the sec-
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ondary schools sometimes creates practical difficulties in using new technologies in class. The limited impact of ICT has as much to do with teachers’ attitudes and skills as with access to equipment. Since 1994 the French Internet development policy in the field of education has deliberately aimed at encouraging all the members of the school institutions to communicate with new tools such as mailing lists, academic or personal web sites. These networks can be characterised as pedagogical networks (Drot-Delange, 2001) playing a vital role in the diffusion of innovations and new practices in class. The need and shared purpose of an education community is learning. Online communities can offer a lot of opportunities to students and teachers which are comparable with face to face meetings. Teachers have a variety of purpose for using these two mailing lists. They use the lists as a way of getting information and keeping updated in their field of interest. Another use of the lists as a way to participate in or listen to the exchange of ideas and still others use the lists to network with others with similar interests. Rogoff (1994) argues that mailing lists may serve as zones of development for communities of teachers and learners and as places where all participants may learn. In our study we propose the mailing lists PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE as virtual communities in the sense of Rheingold (1993), with a potential for learning and development. Virtual learning communities are learning communities based not on actual geography, but on shared purpose. Through technology, learners can be drawn together from almost anywhere, and they can construct their own formal or informal groups. While virtual communities are often built around central themes, ideas or purposes, the organizing principles are not externally imposed. Purposes, intentions and the protocol for interaction are construction by participants. Today’s use of virtual learning environment is not restricted to well-structured information spaces. The archives of these two lists are also a rich source of the exchanges between French teachers and they are good examples of how PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE contributors, each from their perspective, may contribute as well as benefit from others’ contributions. According to Wellman (1997), those who communicate on-line maintain a variety of links, exchanging information, emotional aid creating multiplex relationships. In our study we consider the lists PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE list as a computer social network connecting physics teachers facing the introduction of TPEs and ICT into their physics classes practice. Can these relationships be strong enough if they are only sustained on-line? Wellman (1997) notes that Computer Mediated Communication is rich enough and can develop strong ties between the participants of the on-line interactions. Mailing lists provide a new way of sharing and discussing these new experiences. Users of mailing lists often feel that they are part of a social gathering or in some cases a community (Jones and Rafaeli, 1999). Although we cannot predict how virtual learning environments will influence learning effectiveness, an important point to consider is that, for teachers, a virtual space is an open space, a space where they can try new approaches. Teaching has always been an individual work: teachers do not collaborate a lot, they rarely attend to each others lectures, do not much exchange teaching material. The challenge is to turn teaching into a collective performance like in the mailing lists. Virtual communities may contribute to break the barriers around the schools. According to Levy (2002), a virtual community is simply a group of people that are in relation through the cyberspace, from a simple temporary mail-
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ing list to virtual communities whose members maintain intellectual relationships. Being mostly connected via the Internet or by an interactive telecommunication network does not necessarily mean that present-day meetings are no longer valid.
3. Research Methodology Our methodology has consisted in: (i) retrieving electronic messages from the TPE-TICE and PHYSCHIM lists archives of the French Ministry of Education and (ii) interviewing 26 secondary school physics teachers. The discussion in the PHYSCHIM list has been studied for a period of 26 months. There are archives reaching back to November 1999 when the list was made. In terms of number of messages from the make of the list 3023 messages were posted by the 650 subscribers of the list. Only 227 physics teachers’ messages speaking about ICT and TPEs were selected and analysed by a content analysis. The discussion in the TPE-TICE list has been studied for a period of 22 months. There are archives reaching back to mars 2000 when the list was made. In terms of number of messages from the make of the list 2260 messages were posted by the 1360 subscribers of the list. Only 120 physics teachers’ messages speaking about ICT and TPEs were selected and analysed by a content analysis. All these messages can provide important elements about the roles of teachers. In these two mailing lists that we have studied, most of the time the end of the messages is demarcated by a sign-off presenting name and professional affiliation of the sender. There is considerable variation in the actual methods of complying, from simply signing a message on a first-name basis, to elaborate automated signature files containing contact information like visiting address, paper mail address, telephone and fax. In contrast to the header information, which contains mandatory parts, provided or forced by the ICT, it is entirely possible to send messages without a signature part. For our research we did not select this category of messages. Messages use the first-person plural, expressions of agreement (and polite disagreement) and attempted employment of humour. Teachers need to familiarise themselves with new possibilities and to adopt new approaches and applications. Some physics teachers left these two lists when too many messages were exchanged and if they found too much irrelevant information. An important factor related to teachers dropping out a mailing list is the threat of information overload, the time investment and the relevance of the content. The problem of relevance in academic mailing lists is difficult to solve because what one person considers irrelevant may be relevant for another. Also, the presence of a large proportion of silent participants is a regular feature of successful mailing lists and PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE lists are no exception. The teachers of the sample worked with ICT in their teaching and/or for their personal work. Some of them have pioneered the use of ICT in classes for at least fifteen years. It must be underlined that the sample came from French secondary schools located not only France but also in India, Martinique, Italy, etc. French physic teachers exchange and share ideas and material with their colleagues through these two lists that then are used as collaborative work tools for interaction and dialogue and as a way of sharing and discussing
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their new experiences. All the French physics teachers using these two lists share the same interest: the introduction of the TPEs in their class practice. By using these two lists they can find that other teachers have similar questions. For our research, we consider that the content of messages posted by physics teachers in the PHYSCHIM list and the twelve interviews give important information about their new roles and their new class practices. Our methodology is based on the following hypotheses: (i) the TPEs introduction and the ICT use in class have changed the role of physics teachers and (ii) a discussion list like the PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE have also contributed to the integration of TPEs, into the French educational system.
4. Results French physics teachers exchange and share ideas and material with their colleagues through the lists PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE. Many individual pioneering teachers as those we have interviewed for this study have examined the use of ICT for teaching, learning and communication. For these teachers open access to the world of the Internet is undoubtedly one of the major assets of the information society. But this new possibility has many implications for teaching and learning, such as: (i) the increasingly dynamic nature of the content of learning, (ii) openness as to participation in learning, (iii) the need for learners to learn how to learn independently and (iv) the need for teachers to become facilitators and managers of learning. First, the messages of these two lists were reviewed to identify and categorise major dimensions that occurred throughout the data. Two dimensions were identified: (i) communicating on TPEs topics through discussions on their links with physics lectures and (ii) stimulating the interlocutors’ responsiveness. The texts were reviewed again to identify the types of communication content. Most of the messages in the lists TPE-TICE and PHYSCHIM contain statements of facts. More than a quarter of the messages contains a question or request providing information, probably in response to the messages that were predominantly requests for information. And more than a third of the messages contain personalising content, in the form of a verbal self-disclosure, an admission or introduction. Most of the messages use first-person plural pronouns. Messages were more likely to contain agreement than disagreement. In these two lists a fairly general mailing list phenomenon occurs: within a given period of time a few subscribers post a very large number of messages, a somewhat larger cluster post a moderate number of messages each and a lot of contributors post only a single message (Rojo and Ragsdale, 1997). Physics teachers often invoke personal experience and ask if they have expressed themselves in ways that make sense to others. These discursive features reinforce the character of the lists PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE as a learning environment. Once connected to the Internet, individual physics teachers can prepare and publish their own teaching material. For the teachers of our research ICT use is very important mainly for the communication between their colleagues and their students. Some of the physics teachers use these two lists as a way of getting information and keeping updated in their field of interests, others
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to find out about new things to be done in class. It is very important to keep in touch with other teachers who have the same interests and the same questions (Drot-Delange, 2001). These lists users can also develop purposes as a group and collaborate on common goals. Some other physics teachers use lists to make announcements and other only to learn about this new medium. The physics teachers question the traditional role of the teacher as the only source of knowledge, which seems to decline gradually. These teachers are aware of the fact that new teachers’ roles are developing. Among these different roles, a new one is emerging, that of ‘mentor’. After the introduction of TPEs, they feel like ‘guides’, ‘facilitators’, ‘advisors’, ‘coaches’ and ‘mentors’ for their students. They also mentioned the diversity of the teaching skills and the new tasks they have to face. The teachers of our research consider that scientific knowledge is no longer on their side but it is shared between different sources. Among the positive aspects of the ICT and the TPEs some teachers underlined the new and better relations between students and teachers, the development of the students’ autonomy. These two lists are considered to be a viable (inter)national distance education service and a pedagogical network playing a vital role in the diffusion of innovations and new practices in class. French physics teachers often develop the habit of helping each other. They teach one another and exchange addresses of useful web sites or some exercises for their students. As ICT becomes embedded in education, one of the most dramatic changes for teachers is loss of control. ICT and TPEs in the French educational system require a modification of the role of the teacher, who in addition to classroom teaching will have other skills and responsibilities. After the introduction of the TPEs they feel like ‘facilitators’ and ‘managers’ for their students. The teachers who have taken part in our research study consider that they could serve as models for their colleagues interested in adopting the ICT in teaching physics. Most teachers who report how they use ICT in their teaching implicitly depict themselves as pioneers. Other dimensions should also be mentioned: teachers consider ICT systems as tools for enriching their own knowledge and for carrying out the research required by their every day teaching. In most cases, they are indeed pioneers in their school or district. French physics teachers see themselves as students’ ‘guides’ and ‘coaches’. After the TPEs introduction, they had the impression that they were becoming their students’ ‘facilitators’ and ‘supporters’. One of their primary roles is to help the students to determine a research topic for the TPEs. Thanks to the introduction of the TPEs we think that the physics teachers have become a ‘mediator’ and a ‘mentor’ for their students.
5. Conclusions Important questions have been raised about the new roles assumed by physics teachers when they introduce ICT in their classes. These teachers are relatively different from the typical physics teacher. They have developed a new image of their job, a new relation to knowledge and a new way of teaching with less teachers’ interventions and more responsibility on the students’ part. Teachers have become regular electronic mail users, although that the same degree of taking-for-granted access has not yet been provided to
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many students. The relationship between ICT use and professional leadership suggests that if leaders among teachers can be encouraged to share their enthusiasm and knowledge of ICT with other teachers, this will also have an effect of diffusing use more broadly within the profession. It is important to realise that these ‘innovative’ teachers remain true physics teachers and they have not swapped their teaching mission for an uncertain role of trainer in ICT. In all sectors of education, the role of the teacher is changing. Teachers question the traditional role of the teacher who used to be the only source of knowledge. Therefore, new class practices of teaching emerge with the introduction of these tools. With ICT, scientific knowledge is no longer on the teacher’s side, but it is now shared between different sources such as the Internet. The physics teacher often appears to be ‘less present’ in class. Some teachers present the use of ICT as a form of life long learning, which seems to be in accordance with the ‘knowledge society’. On the other hand the traditional educational role seems to decline gradually. The PHYSCHIM and TPE-TICE lists allow French physics teachers to ‘meet’ other colleagues, to keep and build contact with others. Teaching style has to be transformed, which is a difficult thing when education culture is in transition from an old-fashioned centrally controlled system. The interviewed teachers express great satisfaction when they teach with ICT because it creates a greater class autonomy. However, in spite of their general enthusiasm, the teachers also reported that they had encountered technical problems in the use of ICT in class and particularly with the Internet. Nevertheless, the teachers who have worked with ICT have developed a different professional image: they always use the personal pronoun ‘I’ and consider that they belong to a distinct and very special category of teachers. They do have a very strong feeling of being pioneers in their jobs and of being models for the near future. For the teachers of our research using computers as tools is analogous to using pencils as tools in writing. But users often need help to learn how to use computer as a tool. Tools are used in performing operations in the process of achieving goals of users. The sense of progress in learning, the level of appropriate presentation, the possibilities of varied activities are among the positive elements underlined by the interviewed teachers. The role of the teacher changes because ICT can cause certain teaching resources to become obsolete. New electronic forms of distributed communication can be employed. One of the new roles of the teacher is to separate information from misinformation. Identification, classification and authentication of electronic information sources will be critical some of the new tasks for teachers in the near future. Furthermore, ICT are also characterised by teachers as effective educational tools for explaining physics concepts. The teachers said that they also work with ICT to simulate experiments, which in the past could not be carried out. It is also important to find how to manage the transition from a rather traditional pedagogy to a teaching based on a project pedagogy where the students could conduct a research on the Internet by themselves. ICT can put modelling tools in the hands of students that let them carry out activities that are much more like real science than are traditional activities in introductory courses. Students can learn that nature of science as a model of reality and see that they can actually do science for themselves.
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They face technical and institutional adversities, they take risks, namely some distance with the curriculum, they escape from the established routines. These teachers spend many more hours on their teaching preparation than they are expected to. This is the positive side of the coin, but there is also a negative side: teachers spending a lot of energy to find resources devoting all their energy to technology instead of educational goals. The real problem raised by teachers is how to integrate and generalise the use of ICT in class practice. We are still watching very closely these two lists. The PHYSCHIM list and during the year 2002 the list has almost reached 1320 exchanged e-mails and 1450 e-mails in the year 2003. During the year 2002 the list TPE-TICE has reached 3150 e-mails and 3230 e-mails exchanged in the year 2003. These number show that teachers are still greatly interested in this list. Many participants of this list think that lists are going to be an important avenue in the future for sharing information and practices. Sometimes it is the on-line interaction itself that makes teachers contribute messages. 6. Discussion As the new information and knowledge-based society comes schools face challenges to bring up students with intellectual creativity and critical thinking ability that can adapt themselves to the new society and even lead the society. Computer mediated communication has emerged as an attractive channel for education. We consider the two lists studied in this research as a computer social network connecting teachers facing the introduction of these two innovations (TPEs and ICT) in their classrooms. In these two lists there is always a core of participants who have stayed long enough on the list. At the same time there is room for innovation through the addition of new resources and interests when new users join the list. We consider these two lists to be successful mailing lists in so far as there are some teachers who have sent messages at the opening of the list (November 1999) and remain still active participants (April 2004). They have the potential to become an important medium for continuing professional education and group collaboration. Changes to learning make new demands on physics teachers and they are likely to result in: (i) the change in the relationship between teachers and learners; focus on learning, on increased autonomy of learners, and on group and collaborative learning, (ii) an enlarged role of teachers, as facilitators and managers of learning as well as purveyors of knowledge and (iii) a changing locus of control, from teacher to learner. References Baron, G.-L. and Bruillard, E. (1996) L’informatique et ses usagers dans l’éducation. PUF, Paris. Drot-Delange, B. (2001) Mutualisation et listes de diffusion: une pratique émergente? Dossiers de l’ingénierie éducative. Communautés en ligne, 36, 16–19. Jones, Q. and Rafaeli, S. (1999) User population and user contributions to virtual publics: A systems model. In Proceedings of the ACM International Conference on Supporting Group Work (Group99), pp. 239–248. Kalogiannakis, M. and Caillot, M. (2001) New roles and new social representations of French physical science teachers using multimedia. In Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Science Education Research
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