Leadership in Implementing Hybrid Usage of NLS in Theatre Arts Courses

Sara Marcus
Student
Touro University International
E-mail: sara@msmarcus.com

Introduction

Online components have become common in most academic departments. Some quote about the benefits of online learning and, specifically, Networked Learning Systems (NLS). Still, theatre departments are not using NLS . Why? Arndt (1999) states that, "An important weapon that has been added rather recently to the arsenal of theatre practitioners in this interdisciplinary campaign is the use of technology as a pedagogical tool, both in the classroom and in the rehearsal hall" (p. 66).

Some theatre practitioners have called technology "an important weapon...in the classroom and the rehearsal hall" (Arndt, 1999, p. 66). Yet, others admit that the profession is, by nature, resistant to change (Rogers, 1995, p1). No comprehensive study exists of theatre faculty attitudes to technology in order to help researchers better understand the field. What this article will suggest is how theatre courses might use NLS in their courses.

Can an academic theatre or drama program be enhanced by the inclusion of technology? In particular, online components? Other fields of study are integrating online components, such as discussion boards, electronic file submissions, and online assessments, why are theatre courses rarely doing so? According to Rogers (1995), "Getting a new idea adopted, even when it has obvious advantages, is often very difficult" (p. 1).

A review of the literature as well as working with a theatre arts instructor at the university level has helped me to gain insight into the implementation of technology in theatre arts courses.

Technology as a Pedagogical Tool

Technology, Web-Based Training (WBT), and NLS can benefit, improve and transform education. According to Martin (2003), "Internet technology has the power to transform education from a passive, one-way approach to a meaningful interactive learning experience that can connect students and teachers all over the world" (p. 22). Mills and Ragan (2000) agree, stating:

Research suggested that computer-delivered instruction had the capacity for improving learning. Effectively organizing and implementing computer technology in classrooms still remained important problems to solve, however, because the entire process by which computers and learners come together in schools was often 'inefficient, poorly planned, and incredibly chaotic' (Maddux, Johnson, & Harlow, 1993, p. 220) (p. 21).

Schrum (1999) also agrees, stating in his introduction that "Many theatre educators have begun to use computer technology in a variety of ways, whether inside the classroom or by expanding the classroom by using the Internet and World Wide Web" (p. 1). However, Mitchell (1999) feels differently, stating:

Computers and the Internet provide individuals with the capability for interpersonal communication on levels heretofore only dreamed. In the arts, however, the system works differently. Too many artists refuse, for a variety of reasons, to acknowledge what the rest of the world already espouses: Computers are one solution to an incredible number of the difficulties of living in the global community of today. (p. 9)

Technology in Theater Arts Courses

Rogers (1995) agrees with Mitchell, stating, "More than just a beneficial innovation is necessary for diffusion and adoption to occur" (p. 8). Besides the benefits offered by distance learning, there are specific benefits to students and faculty in Theatre Arts programs in particular. In most United States theatre and drama programs, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, theatre arts majors and minors coursework often includes a lab component. In addition, students are often active in departmental productions, requiring attendance at rehearsals and shows. Not only do these students need to meet departmental requirements in order to graduate, they also must meet university requirements. Taking courses in other academic departments where participation in what may be considered 'extra-curricular activities' does not constitute excused absences from class work has an adverse affect on the grades earned by these students. Similarly, not all theatre instructors deem departmental production participation an excused absence. While students are required, and often have a desire, to participate in theatrical activities outside the classroom, such as participating in performances or working on the crew of a production, frequently there is no academic support in place to encourage students to do so.

According to Arndt (1999):

Educators at colleges and universities are in danger of eliminating our own positions unless we can adapt to these new ideas of teaching and learning. Although the world around us has changed, most of us teach traditional classes at colleges and universities in much the same way that we were taught ten, fifteen, twenty-five or more years ago. The lecture or lecture-discussion is still the most traditional method of education. Even in theatre, where our emphasis is on performance and active learning, most introductory theatre classes, theatre history, criticism, and literature classes are still taught in the traditional manner. We feel compelled to dispense terms, concepts, historical dates, figures and movements in ways that are often independent of knowing that any real learning is taking place. In an art form that prides itself on communicating effectively on many verbal and non-verbal levels, we still manage somehow to separate what we do in the rehearsal hall and onstage from what we do in the classroom. (p. 68-69)

Theoretical Framework

I have worked with an instructor in a university Theater Arts department to integrate technology, in particular an NLS, into one of his currently taught courses. Rogers (1995) identifies four main elements in the diffusion of innovations -- the innovation, communication channels, time, and social system (p. 10). In the research reported herein, the innovation is identified as the integration of technology--in particular, online components of courses--into existing theatre arts courses. The experiences with this instructor will be described, and insights gained from these interactions will be shared as to how they might apply to a larger situation. I will also identify the styles of leadership used and discuss whether or not these styles seemed to be effective in leading the change.

Kraemer (2003) stated that at Oakland University the library staff was asked to teach more classes than there were faculty for (p. 87). When creating online course components, the participating senior librarians contributed course content and course design while the technical side was handled by lower level librarians. For the purpose of this study, I have utilized a similar methodology. The Theatre Arts faculty will provide course content and design while I, the researcher, or change agent, will manage the technical aspects, including any handcoding, file uploading, and actual construction of the course.

Sender

I, the researcher, am the sender, or change facilitator (CF). I am the provider of the innovation, or the introducer of the innovation into the situation. In this instance, I propose the implementation of the hybrid use of a NLS in theatre arts courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels of a specific university, which I will refer to as University Q throughout. I am beginning the implementation with one adjunct instructor's courses. Throughout, this instructor will be referred to as Dr. Smith. Dr. Smith, based on his willingness to work with me on this innovation, is to be considered the most accepting of the intended adopters. Based on the experiences this semester, I will continue in upcoming semesters with more courses with Dr. Smith and with more instructors. Ideally, it is assumed that this experience with Dr. Smith will prepare him to become a change agent. According to Lick (2000), "professional study groups provide a mechanism to integrate individual and institutional development through personal and group relationships, creating conditions where members can gain understanding and learn together" (p. 43). Having worked first with the most accepting of intended adopters (IA), I hope Dr. Smith will utilize his enthusiasm and success with the innovation as a leader of professional groups to share this enthusiasm and successful experience. According to SEDL -- Facilitative, "Leaders establish the vision in the system's members and simultaneously nurture the organization to foster additional 'pull' leadership." By utilizing a single IA, I hope to establish the vision in his eyes first, and then to use these positive experiences to help encourage additional integration of technology and distance learning into Theatre Arts courses at the university, both with this instructor and others as well.

Communication

The medium of communication used is a combination of e-mail and telephone conversations. I initiated communication with Dr. Smith via e-mail. After the decision had been made by Dr. Smith to work with me in implementing a NLS, a weekly telephone meeting was scheduled as well as continuing to utilize e-mail and e-mail attachments.

According to Brown and Moshavi (2002), "Research has shown that there are several aspects of the social exchange that employees have come to expect in internal service networks. These include rapport, trustworthiness, fairness and approachability (Herriot, Manning & Kidd, 1997; Llewelly, 2001)" (pp. 89-90). By utilizing a faculty member with whom I could establish a relationship of trust, I was more quickly accepted by Dr. Smith. While not holding a PhD, I was involved in academic theatre with the department in which Dr. Smith was currently employed and have a similar number of graduate college credits, thus, in a way, having a homophilous relationship.

A communication channel, according to Rogers, "is the means by which messages get from one individual to another" (p. 8). In this research, the communication channels between me and Dr. Smith were e-mail and telephone, as well as posting of examples to either Dr. Smith's course site or a test course site held by myself at another institution to demonstrate examples. As speed of informing Dr. Smith was not of great importance, mass media channels were not utilized. When speed was needed, a telephone conversation outside of the regularly scheduled conversation was utilized. I did not recognize a need for use of mass media, such as newspapers, radio, or television. I agree with Roger's (1995) opinion, that "interpersonal channels are more effective in persuading an individual to accept a new idea, especially if the interpersonal channel links two or more individuals who are similar in socioeconomic status, education, or other important ways" (p. 18). According to Rogers (1995):

More effective communication occurs when two or more individuals are homophilous. When they share common meanings, a mutual subcultural language, and are alike in personal and social characteristics, the communication of new ideas is likely to have greater effects in terms of knowledge gain, attitude formation and change, and overt behavior change. When homophily is present, communication is therefore likely to be rewarding to both participants in the process (p. 19).

Despite the homophily, or similarities, between I and Dr. Smith, in terms of the theatrical subculture, differences still exist, such as in technical competence and knowledge of the features of the NLS. According to Rogers (1995):

This difference frequently leads to ineffective communication as the participants do not talk the same language. In fact, when two individuals are identical regarding their technical grasps of an innovation, no diffusion can occur as there is no new information to exchange. The very nature of diffusion demands that at least some degree of heterophily be present between the two participants (p. 19).

In most instances, Dr. Smith and I share a more heterophilous relationship: "The two individuals are heterophilous on all of these variables because knowledge and experience with an innovation are highly related to social status, education, and the like" (Rogers, 1995 p. 19). However, this project is close to Roger's ideal, as I have studied theatre arts at the academic level and have also worked as a university instructor, albeit in different fields. According to Rogers (1995), the ideal relationship between a CF and the potential IA "would be homophilous on all other variables (education and social status, for example), even though they are heterophilious regarding the innovation" (p. 19).

By working as a CF in the situation being studied, I am best able to determine the areas of leadership best suited to this type of innovation. As part of the ethnographic study, I not only worked as a CF, but also as a teaching assistant, so as to experience the change firsthand from the view of Dr. Smith as well as a change facilitator. Dr. Smith and I communicated regarding the pedagogical practices he currently used in online components of his class and how other online components might be used in a way that is in agreement with his pedagogical practices and beliefs. I shared with Dr. Smith examples from the literature I read when they appeared to be compatible with his pedagogical beliefs.

Receiver of Change

The receiver of the leadership, or change, is an adjunct instructor at two universities in the field of theatre arts. I am currently interested in Dr. Smith's work at University Q, a public state university, as this is where the change is currently being implemented. The course in question is an introductory play analysis course, in which Dr. Smith has been utilizing Blackboard for five years to provide students with online quizzes and online discussions on assigned print readings in place of one of the two weekly class meetings. In conjunction with his usage of Blackboard, Dr. Smith was utilizing a course website created in MSFrontPage to disseminate information such as the course syllabus and links to further sites of interest to his students.

The current use of Blackboard has been the same for the past five years--weekly quizzes and online discussions to be held online after completing readings in the assigned textbook (in print). Through e-mail and telephone conversations with Dr. Smith it was proposed to implement additional features of the NLS Blackboard into the distance learning components of his already hybrid course, including the use of alternative assessment methods, such as group discussions, in addition to the traditional midterm, final, and online quizzes. In a telephone interview, Dr. Smith indicated a strong interest in exposing his students to as many features of the Blackboard course shell as possible. He currently utilizes all question types of the quiz feature so as to expose his students to the multitude of question types possible in an online course that utilizes the Blackboard NLS. He finds, for various reasons like spelling, that fill in the blank questions create the most problems.

Dr. Smith indicated a strong interest in exposing his students to additional features of Blackboard, including synchronous chats, white board, groups, and the digital drop box. To this end, a discussion of the various features of the NLS has led to the proposal of a variety of changes to the current online components of the course, through e-mail and telephone communication based on suggestions by both Dr. Smith and myself. Ideas are suggested by one of us, and considered by the other in terms of technological feasibility and suitability to the instructional styles of the course and its instructor.

Resistance to Change

Resistance to change has been in ways that are at odds to Dr. Smith's current methods of marking papers, and in a desire to not mark more assignments in a class of 50 students than necessary. Dr. Smith had been utilizing the online quizzes, in part, to provide himself with an assessment of student understanding of materials read outside of class and information presented in class. He was unsure as to changing the types of assignments, and only some assignment types were acceptable to him for consideration. In addition, Dr. Smith is concerned about the technology usage level of his students, limiting his acceptance of the utilization of other features of the NLS. Also, Dr. Smith utilizes his four hour commuting time to mark those papers he receives from students, so he is not open to the usage of digital document delivery as featured in Blackboard's Digital Drop Box. He prefers to mark papers in the print format and does not want to print them out on his own printer.

According to Schrum, Skeele and Grant (2002/2003):

Unfortunately, the rapid expansion of technology in our lives has failed to affect college teaching. Many college faculty members do not employ technology in their curricula, and if they use technology, it is not used in any organized way (Wetzel, 1993). Typically, professors use software tools, like word processors, but rarely use technology for teaching or require students to use it for assessment purposes. Many reasons are cited for faculty members not using technology for instruction, including lack of training and support, lack of awareness of the instructional potential of technology (Parker, 1996), lack of time to integrate technology into the curriculum (Cardenas, 1998), and 'plain old fear' (Marvin et al., 1999; Rickard, 1999) (p. 258).

I am aware of the issues raised by Schrum, Skeele, and Grant (2002/2003) and made efforts to communicate the technology in terms that were as familiar to Dr. Smith as possible, being aware of both watching for misunderstandings and of not talking down to Dr. Smith at the same time.

Leadership Style

I utilized the transformational and systemic leadership styles to implement the change with Dr. Smith. By including Dr. Smith in the changes, I hoped to encourage the utilization of those features of least resistance to Dr. Smith. As time passes, and Dr. Smith hopefully has positive experiences, I propose to introduce, or re-introduce, those areas of the NLS that were not utilized at first.

I focused on the individual, as opposed to the innovation and organization. By utilizing the normative-re-educative/cultural/ fix the school approach, I will:

see the individual as actively in search of satisfying needs and interests. The individual will not passively accept what comes, but take action to advance his/her goals. Further, the changes will not be just rational responses to new information but will occur at the more personal level of values and habits. Additionally, the individual will be guided by social and institutional norms.

(SEDL -- Facilitative)

By utilizing this fix-the-parts approach, according to SEDL -- Facilitative:

The 'more personal assistance and continuing support from a skilled and knowledgeable local agent the more likely that the innovation will be used [for a] long duration' (p. 7). They [Sashskin & Egermeier, 1992] add that 'personal support and expert assistance from a friendly outsider increases the effectiveness of knowledge dissemination.' (p. 8)

By combining these two approaches, I will implement site-based management by educating Dr. Smith first of the benefits of the innovation through utilizing normative-ore-educative/cultural/fix the school approach and the fix-the-parts approach. By focusing on the individual, providing individualized attention, and providing intellectual stimulation to this first innovator, I am utilizing the transformational leadership style (Brown and Moshavi, 2002 p. 81). This is a positive thing. The use of a transformational leadership style, as according to Bass, "transformational leadership is important for organizations undergoing rapid and destabilizing change" (Brown and Moshavi 2002 p. 83, quoting Bass). In this way, the most enthusiastic and willing IA will be the first to utilize the innovation, with successful experiences. These successful experiences will then enable me to utilize this first adopter as a site-based manager for the next level of department-based change.

According to Vincent and Johnson, "Although the forms and methods of site-based management may vary, the primary goal is typically to shift authority away from the district administrative hierarchy and into the hands of school groups (such as teachers and parents) that are more closely connected to the school and, theoretically, better equipped to meet the specialized needs of students." In this vein, I am shifting the authority from myself to Dr. Smith in the first round of innovation adoption. This first adopter will be the local change agent, located in the same department, who will encourage the other departmental members to adopt distance learning components into their classes and to work with me, the original CF. In addition to being local for the acceptance by the community, the local change agents will also be most familiar with the students and the needs of the students in the department. This site based management method would best be categorized, according to Liethwood and Menzies (1998), as professionally controlled. The teachers, or instructors, are made the primary decision makers, and they use their experience to guide decisions (Vincent and Johnson).

Based on the methods of enacting a particular approach at a school described by Lick (2000), it has been determined that I wish to utilize a combination of co-mentoring groups and teamwork, synergy, and multiple level co-mentoring. "By working toward integration ... the participants gain power in a series of steps, the purposes of the leader and the staff become fused, the leader exercises pull, and the staff members are motivated to try out their ideas" (SEDL -- Facilitative).

It is also hoped that in these synergistic relationships, where people work together in a cooperative manner, people will generate a total result that is greater than the outcome of their separate efforts: "Members of a synergistic co-mentoring group inspire and energize each other, and the openness and diversity of perspectives create new ideas, knowledge, and problem-solving potential" (Lick 2000 p. 46). I am confident that the synergistic relationships will work, as the group has "common goals, interdependence, empowerment, and participative involvement" (Lick, 2000 p. 47).

This is the most applicable point of Lick's article to my leadership style:

When the leadership of the school decides to approve the study group process, it establishes a sponsorship base, a serious 'buy-in,' with those leaders also becoming a potential co-mentoring support group for the process. This, in turn, gives leadership's overt commitment to the faculty's total involvement in such efforts. Then, when the faculty accepts the study group process (hopefully with at least a 70-80% approval), it commits every teacher to the process -- to faculty-led, fundamental change in the school, and to being an active member of a study group. This in essence creates a strong, whole-faculty change sponsorship.

As a consequence, the faculty becomes a 'synergistic co-mentoring team of the whole,' agreeing to share overarching common goals for their school, function interdependently, empower each other, and actively participate in the change activities that emerge from the effort. This generates a driving force toward progressive change (Lick, 2000 p. 47).

By utilizing a preliminary group of enthusiastic adopters, the researcher has created a mentoring team to share the goals and enthusiasm of the innovation with the other, less enthusiastic members of the community. According to Rogers (1995):

Most people depend mainly upon a subjective evaluation of an innovation that is conveyed to them from other individuals like themselves who have previously adopted the innovation. This dependence on the experience of near peers suggests that the heart of the diffusion process consists of the modeling and imitation by potential adopters of their network partners who have adopted previously (p. 18).

A faculty member employed in a Theatre Arts department might view myself as an outsider. However, Professor Smith is considered a full member of the community. I hope that his ideas will be more welcomed by the faculty members of the Theatre Arts department than those I express. Once Professor Smith has adopted this innovation--the use of an NLS in his Theatre Arts class--I feel that he will become a CF himself, encouraging his peers to use the NLS in their courses as well. By including Professor Smith in the decision on which applications of the NLS to include, focusing on his students, and his personal preferences rather than the anonymous 'technology' or theoretical student, I feel he has become more welcoming to the innovation. Based on our first successful interactions, I predict that more and more NLS usage will be attempted and accepted by Professor Smith.

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