Conversations and TranscriptsA major emphasis of this essay will be in drawing the words of students--who are in transaction with themselves, their peers, and their instructors--into the stream of the more abstract discussions of theory and practice.
One of my purposes here is to support the general with the particular, the theoretical with the actual. Although this essay does not represent true experimental methodology and does not pretend to offer "proven" and widely generalizable discoveries, I do offer what I hope will be useful insights and corroborative experience to support Internet-based teachers and their efforts to make their on-line courses effective. These colleagues have a right to expect me to show that my bases for assertions are grounded in something tangible and relevant.
Frequent linking to on-line conference transcripts will enable students to speak for themselves, in their immediate discourse contexts. In order that the reader understand this context, I will explain in the main narrative (to be found hierarchically under the page "Applying Transactional Theory") what students and assistants are talking about and what I believe exemplifies important learning transactions. But this is still an inexact science, and I encourage readers to read "around" the target remarks to try to discover the sense of the real itme discourse and the student's intention within it.
The transcripts are color-coded to help readers quickly identify the dialogue that reflects the various transactions. At the top of each transcript the topic, date, and participants are listed, and under the "Transaction Key" readers can find the color-coded transactions that are identified in that particular discussion.
Usually, a link from the narrative will put readers directly at the point of the transactional exchange; if clarification about the type of transaction is still needed, readers should scroll to the top of the page. To return to the point of discussion, I suggest clicking back to the previous page and forward once again to the marked point.
ALL the transactions identified in the transcripts are given below, with links to the various sections of the narrative where a particular type is discussed.
Transactions Identified in On-Line Synchronous Conferences
- BLUE colored passages relate to writer interacting with own experience and text
- One-Way
- RED passages relate to conveying specific procedures
- GREEN passages relate to concept articulation
- TAUPE passages relate to "weaving" discussion threads
- Two-Way
- PINK passages relate to eliciting student responses and answering questions
- BLACK passages relate to re-expressing principles through dialogue, clarification, and example
- ORANGE passages relate to supporting multiple attempts to build meaning
- Multi-Party
- DARK BLUE relates to "negotiating" around the emergence of a text
- VIOLET relates to community building, including affirmation, challenge, invitation
- TEAL relates to playful excursions