Joyce and all,
Your point and examples are well-taken. Yesterday, I saw two examples of
the closeness of persons even if spatially distant. In the first, two
colleagues and I discussed a project we were collaborating on. In the
background of one, a dog was walking around and could have been picked up.
 In the second, I was visiting a neighbor whose son, Vince, was playing a
video game online with someone distant.This eleven year old boy had
earphones and a mouth piece which he used to communicate with another
person as if the person was next to him. However, the point I make is that
the housing of students in the same room does have a value that shouldn't
be discarded. Through the many years of teaching (some of my classes were
blended and others were online), I do see the value of face-to-face classes
for certain teaching and certain types of students.
Thank you,
Gene
Gene Loeb, Ph.D.

On Fri, Jan 11, 2013 at 11:12 AM, <[email protected]> wrote:

> Hi Gene:  I have learned at ESC that the "in class learning dynamic" does
> not need to mean that all the "warm bodies" need to me in a single room.
> This like Blackboard Collaborate (what used to be Elluminate) and even
> conference calls work well too and increase bonding among students and
> between students and teacher almost as much as face to face.  I have used
> Elluminate in my community organizing classes for several years now.  My
> students and I are relaxed with one another, they make friends, voluntarily
> help each other with their focal communities etc. especially if I give them
> the opportunity to "hang out" together before class and if I voluntarily
> stay after class to talk with them individually.  In fact, many of my adult
> students enjoy the Elluminate sessions more than driving to class, finding
> a parking space, running into the building through the rain or snow,
> worrying about childcare etc.   In at least one of my classes our
> Elluminate time became "cuddle time" for one of my students who gathered
> her four year old in her lap for a "class and cuddle"...not something she
> could have done in the typical classroom  :-)  JMcK
>
> [email protected] wrote: -----
> To: [email protected]
> From: gene loeb **
> Sent by: [email protected]
> Date: 01/10/2013 02:06PM
>
> Subject: Re: [WikiEducator] Re: Why classrooms are important?
>
> This is a very valuable discussion. I have been stidying various
> non-traditional ways to learn, and heard the claim that online classes are
> the best. Yet, I see that in-class learning is very valuable. There are
> several reasons, first, the element of meeting people in person and
> interacting in person. teaching in class may be more effective for certain
> learners. And some teachers are very effective, as much as or more
> effective then other environments for learning.
>
> The value of this discussion threat is it does discuss the VALUE OF
> IN-CLASS LEARNING which I haven't seen elsewhere.
> Thanks,
>
> Gene
> Gene Loeb, Ph.D.
>
>
> On Thu, Jan 10, 2013 at 12:08 PM, <[email protected] > wrote:
>
>> I agree that young people and probably not so young people need a teacher,
>> mentor or coach to guide them but that person might be an academic advisor
>> available on the web or perhaps even better an on-site mentor/coach who
>> could work with students to choose OER resources that will best suit their
>> learning needs and build logically toward appropriate learning outcomes.
>> One of my community organizing students (working in Haiti) suggested that
>> such "coaches" might be located in schools or some other kind of
>> "educational resource sites"...they could provide face-to-face guidance
>> for
>> those who could access the site physically and perhaps telephone coaching
>> for those who cannot.   Even the addition of voice contact through cell
>> phone might give inexperienced students the confidence they need as well
>> as
>> guidance through the often confusing world of academic preparation.   I
>> wonder what people think of this idea.   Joyce McKnight, Associate
>> Professor, Empire State College (US)
>>
>>
>>
>> From:   jim kelly < [email protected]>
>> To:     [email protected]
>> Date:   01/10/2013 12:40 PM
>> Subject:        [WikiEducator] Re: Why classrooms are important?
>> Sent by:         [email protected]
>>
>>
>>
>> Agree. There is no doubt that interactions between a young (or beginning)
>> learner and an educator are very important. Failure here guarantees that
>> knowledge will be misused. The value and enthusiasm to learn require the
>> presents of an educator. But a lack of qualified educators in many
>> learning
>> communities, money to obtain an education and a world in which the human
>> knowledge base has gone global is requiring communities to redefine how a
>> learner learns.
>>
>>
>> Examine the observation made in the  Youth Version of the 2012 UNESCO
>> Education for All Global Monitoring Report (
>>
>> http://www.unevoc.unesco.org/e-forum/Be%20skiller%20be%20employed%20be%20change%20generation.pdf
>>  ) by Ali Zayaan a 19 year old from Maldives "Even right now, many young
>> people that can’t afford full schooling are able to access the internet.
>> They can use the internet (whether at home or somewhere public like a
>> library) to learn at their own pace for free, even if they have to work in
>> the daytime or can’t afford or access regular schooling. If they want to
>> get a qualification like a high school diploma, then they just need to
>> afford time and money for one or two days to attend an exam. This lowers
>> the cost barrier of pursuing an education a lot."
>>
>>
>> Traditional educational approaches need to adapt.
>>
>>
>> Jim Kelly
>> ( www.k-12math.info)
>>
>>
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>
>
> --
> With Sincerest Best Wishes ,
> Gene
> Gene Loeb, Ph.D.
>
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With Sincerest Best Wishes ,
Gene
Gene Loeb, Ph.D.

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