Have you ever played sports or collaborated with others in a teamwork environment? Now try to think back on that experience. Can you remember the factors that contributed to your success? As a kid, I always liked playing sports. I liked the idea of team play, a sense of belonging and being able to apply the skills that I learned from practice into real game situations. The collaboration of learning between the coach and the players is something I will never forget. Thinking back to the time when I first joined a baseball team, the stages of learning the new skills, the teaching methods of my coach, and how it helped me to become a better player now reminds me of a similar adult learning situation.
Reflecting back on my baseball playing, I feel that learning baseball directly correlates to my online learning experience. To me the characteristic roles of an online instructor/facilitator are the same as those of my baseball coach. From the beginning to the end of the season, there are a number of distinct transitions in characteristic roles that my coach carried out that are similar to those of an online facilitator. According to Hootstein (2002), “an e-learning facilitator “wears four pairs of shoes”-acting as instructor, social director, program manager, and technical assistant.” By implementing these characteristic roles, they are able to directly impact the learning and behavioral outcome of their students or players.
Putting on Their Enforcer Shoes One At A Time
At the beginning of the course or season, facilitators and coaches put on their first pair of shoes called the “enforcer” and assume the role of a program manager. He/she acts as a director by leading their followers to learn and perform tasks that are necessary for them to succeed. They are someone who we admire and look up to; someone that cares about our learning. They do so by first stating what is expected, providing learners with guidelines on proper netiquette, etiquette, and code of conduct. This role helps the learners build the foundation of knowledge and construct the basis of learning objectives while understanding what is to be accomplished by the end of the course or season. As Beaulieu et al (2001) points out,
An online Â… instructor is responsible for ensuring that effective teaching is taking place within the online environment. This encompasses providing “expert” knowledge to the learners, encouraging learner discussion of concepts and linking the concepts to their practical application in the workplace through discussion and assignments.
I still can recall the time when I first met my coach. He outlined our goals for the season and it was clear to me that his responsibilities would be teaching his players how to be the best players they could be. He did it by giving us specific yet encouraging instructions but at the same time allowing us to make mistakes during the learning process. Knowing that our coach understands and has the presence of allowing us to grow with room for error, gave us the opportunity to learn and become a better player.
Supporter Shoes That Fits
As the course or season progresses, students or players like myself begin to understand what our functions or responsibilities are. When we get to this point we rely heavily on the facilitator/coach to demonstrate to us how to proficiently handle our tasks or situations that may arise during an assignment or a game. In these instances the coach or facilitator puts on their second pair of shoes called the “supporter” and takes on the role as a technical assistant. They “help the learners to become comfortable with systems and software and prepare learners to resolve any technical difficulties that may occur”(Hootstein 2002). They are sensitive to the students or player’s needs and do what he or she can to alleviate and solve any problems that may arise. The idea is to allow the learners to learn rather than concentrate on things that will hinder their progress but at the same time providing them with access and motivation to do well. For example, the coach’s role is to make sure the baseball field is reserved for his team to play, transportation arrangements are made, games are scheduled and so on. In doing so, players can concentrate on playing the game rather than worrying about when, where, or how to get to the game.
Building Social Capital with Their Collaborator Shoes
As we continue towards the middle of the course or season, players or students alike begin to bond and come together as a team by working side by side for a common goal. At this stage, facilitators or coaches put on their third pair of shoes called the “collaborator” and take on the role as a social director where they cultivate collaborative learning through social interaction. They encourage us to not only work together but also to learn and help each other through information exchange. They do so by asking us to address and elaborate our different perspectives and then engage in a social discussion as a group, resulting in social capital. Social capital helps the learners cultivate more ideas, gain more knowledge, and become a better learner or player. This collaboration can takes place in any setting – it can happen in an online environment or on a baseball field.
Using Guider Shoes to Acknowledge Potential
As we head towards the end of the course or season, we became more self aware of what our presence or contribution means as a learner or player to the group or the team. We recognize our potential, the knowledge we possess, and we are able to perform in ways that require little or no instructional guidance from an instructor compared to the beginning of the season. In this final stage, the facilitator or coach puts on their last pair of shoes called the “guider” and becomes someone that “provides information to help learners complete assignments, suggest ideas or strategies for learning, and help learners connect content with prior knowledge”(Berge 2001). This role is far different than what we initially discussed. They assume the role of an instructor. By giving informative and constructive feedback, they act as a resource provider rather than a leader. Rather than telling the learners or players what they need to do, the instructors give suggestions or ideas of their own that will direct the learners to become critical thinkers. Often times I see facilitators ask questions indirectly and by doing so, steer the learner in the right direction, perhaps where to look for relevant materials or ways to approach the situation at hand. Other times facilitators will ask the group what they think they should do and more often than not the group will come up with a consensus of how to carry out their ideas. In baseball, my coach often asked his players “What do you think we should do in this situation?” We would reply for example, “Let’s go for a steal!” This type of consensus allows his players to make a conscious decision and stand behind it whether or not we win or lose.
Putting on the Shoes by Embracing the Characteristic Roles
These four pairs of shoes of enforcer, supporter, collaborator, and guider are worn by a facilitator or a coach on & off during the course of learning and transform the learner from a follower to a leader. Through being part of team and group experiences I have learned a great deal about how important these four characteristic roles of shoes are to our learning process. Hootstein (2002) points out that ‘the effectiveness and success of e-learning programs are dependent on facilitators’ roles in delivering and managing instruction”. I believe this is a concept that we all should embrace and grow to appreciate. No matter if you have played on a team or not, it is something to keep in mind the next time you take on the role as a facilitator or a coach. Just think about the ability to teach and lead someone from a follower to a leader. It is an amazing feeling!
References
Beaulieu, D., Borland, J., McCausland, S., & Wensveen, R. (2001). Corporate E-Learning: Instructor/Facilitator Issues. Retrieved 4/17/2006 from http://www.ucalgary.ca/~srmccaus/71fl1.htm
Burge, Z. (2001). The Role of the Online Instructor/Facilitator Retrieved 3/1/2006 from http://www.emoderators.com/moderators/teach_online.html
Hootstein, E. (2002). Wearing Four Pairs of Shoes: The Roles of E-Learning Facilitators. Retrieved 2/17/2006 from http://www.learningcircuits.org/2002/oct2002/elearn.html