Abstract:

The ‘virtual classroom’, was coined by Hiltz (1986) as a classroom in an electronic space. Teaching professionals are challenged by innovative learning technologies which at the same time create opportunities for new ways in teaching and learning. Some people assume that ‘face-to-face’ verbal and non-verbal skills can be transfered to online pedagogy.

Following Armellini and Jones (2008), Rogers (2011) investigated the role of teachers particularly in ‘asynchronous’ networks (as opposed to real time) where e-learners have the freedom to work in their own time, place and pace.. HEI lecturers, were research participants whose professional updating was seen by UK institutions as part of their continuing professional development (CPD) in the new modes of learning (NCIHE, 1997).
After nearly ten years' experience in computer-mediated education at Monash University and elsewhere, it was recognised that effective e-moderation (Berge, 1997; Palloff and Pratt, 2007; Armellini & Aiyegbayo, 2010) underpins high quality experiences and delivery of online learning.. The e-tutor's role is thus seen as crucial to create and sustain positive environments and interactions for learning (Berge, 1997; Thorpe, 2009). to check 'drop out’ rates due to poor engagement.

Some argue that teachers are unnecessary when e-learners can learn online, collaboratively in peer-group self-led teams (Salmon and Lawless, 2006). Conrad (2004, 2007) challenged this. Few studies (Kahai, Sosik, and Avolio, 1997; 2004) embrace ‘leadership qualities’ as significant to develop sound practice for e-learning, Wenger (1998) argues that an e-tutor should develop collaborative communities of practice (CoP), especially in virtual classrooms (Wozniak, 2007).

Several e-learning models exist (Salmon, 2000; Laurillard, 2002; Garrison and Anderson, 2003; Moule, 2007), Rogers (2004) explored ‘leadership qualities’ relating to e-moderating. A self-administered Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (Bass and Avolio, 1997) for e-moderators was based on the Transformational-Transactional Leadership Paradigm.

Four important factors ermerged: i.e.
(i) an ‘idealised’ leadership role; e-moderator is admired, respected and trusted; online learners aspire to emulate their online tutor behaviour
(ii) intellectual stimulation where e-learners are challenged to think creatively being provoked by e-moderators to re-think ‘old’ assumptions
(iii) inspirational motivation where e-moderator energises e-learners with ambitious goals, instilling the vision that these are achievable,
(iv) individual considerations where e-moderators support individual needs by giving e-learners increased self-confidence by encouraging self-actualisation.

A second exploratory study (Rogers 2011) adapted Kelly’s (1955) ‘Personal Construct’ theory methodology identifying further e-moderator attributes.The elicitation process used triads of selected elements from a set of six online teaching competences (i.e, weaving, archiving, summarising, scaffolding, knowledge construction and socialising) and linked the outcomes with perceived e-moderator leadership attributes (task-giving and motivation) and their perceived e-learner attributes (collaborative capability and knowledge construction ability). It was found that varying degrees of leadership attributes were perceived to match varying degrees of e-learner attributes, corroborating Roger’s (2011) Pedagogical Variation Model for online teaching and learning.

Keywords:

E-moderating, e-learning, online teaching, online learning, virtual classroom, personal construct theory, transactional leadership, transformational leadership.