Making students take responsibility for their own learning
I cannot tell you how many times I have had students ask me questions like: where is the gradebook, which assignment is due this week. which assignments am I missing. These questions are acceptable in week one, but by week 4 of a 5 week course they are not acceptable to ask, it shows that the student has not explored their virtual environment which is a necessary step for course completion. We must make students take responsibility for their own learning and make them realize this is not grade school, and who said earning a college degree is easy?
I agree with this initial post; however, I do not practice this on my own classroom. I also receive similar questions on a daily basis from students. I tend to provide them the answers quickly. I feel that is something I can easily find and will try to make their lives easier. I am not saying that is the correct approach, but I tend to focus highly on "customer service."
Rene,
You are right. They will ask you to do something because people will do things for them (does that make sense). You want your class to be student center but that does also mean student responsible.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I absolutely agree. Students must be active participants in the learning process. As educators we hinder the growth of our students if we “spoon feed†answers that can be easily researched or have already been covered. I want to empower my student, not enable his/her lack of commitment.
Joi ,
Asking has worked for them in the past so they keep going to that tactic. You are doing them a favor to make them look up their own information and come prepared for class. So now I am adding your phrase to my line. . ."student centered means student responsible means independent learner". I like that.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I really enjoy your posts Tamara because you have unique perspectives! I also agree that students need to start now in practicing their autonomy especially since this will be important in their job experience. Most of my students already have jobs so it baffles me when they feel the need not to look up the information first before asking. Therefore, in Week 1, I make sure all the material is there and also prepare myself for the questions they will ask by sending general emails about certain topics. Then if a student comes to me with a question I usually refer them back to the material/emails and then ask them to return if they have questions after review. I am not trying to be the "mean" teacher, I am just trying to help them become independent learners in which they lean on me for guidance when they don't understand the concepts. Rather than creating dependent learners that come to me for everything without reading.
Shannon,
You have to hold students to the expectations you set. That is so important.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
As a F2F instructor I took this course and will be taking online courses to better understand how my student navigate through this process.
Tamara ,
This is a fantastic post. I am actually going to share this with some of my other instructors that I work with as I think you are spot on. Students ask for help over and over because it WORKS FOR THEM! You wean them off you and onto their own expertise. They will be so much more engaged and proud of what they do. Sometimes you have to put your "virtual hand" in your "virtual pockets".
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Dr. Wilkinson and Tina,
I share this philosophy of not just automatically providing answers or creating a customized "map" of steps when asked. Certainly, there are exceptions--but generally any instructor who gets to know their students knows who genuinely needs virtual "hand on hand" instruction and who is seeking a shortcut.
At the very beginning of my class I like to share a little analogy about how my week 1 goal is to teach my young birds how to fly. Week 2, I am giving them a little nudge out of the nest for a test flight. Then in weeks 3-5 they are expected to fly. The difference between myself and actual nature is that I will remain at the nest/home base as a resource. They can ask me absolutely anything--except how to fly. ;)
And I believe it is absolutely reasonable to expect this level of autonomy because when these students begin work in their field, they must learn the requirements of their position, retain that information, work independently to find answers to questions, and then reach out when they have exhausted all avenues.
In the spirit of sharing, I must confess that early on in my teaching career I was very eager to please students. I was fearful that re-directing a student might result in a negative review. However, with time, I learned that most students know deep inside that they need the push/re-direction and they are actually thankful for it in the end.
Edward,
Research shows the best way to improve as an online instructor is to be an online learner. It give us as instructors insight on the environment of online. It also provides us with techniques that can help the student. What is your best advice as an online student?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Being an Instructor and taking an online class there has been similarities. In a conventional setting I have run into the same questions about what assignments are needed, so I used the techniques my instructor used on me in my online class. For every discussion we were to go into we needed the information center to post our results from the previous assignment that what was completed the day before. We then would get our next assignment. After the 1st week it was never an issue and I got the skill to navigate the center for all my information on a daily basis. I would of been in the same mind set as some the students who only do what they need, if it wasn't for the follow through of my online instructor. This gave me a way to incorporate the same methods in my conventional class.
Tina,
I agree with you. Student centered doesn't remove the expectations; if anything it raises them. I use the phrase student responsible means student accountable. I don't "answer" every question. I want them to have the skill to look to find information to serve their needs.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Hi Donna,
You are absolutely right! In my first years of teaching online, this would frustrate me to no end. However, now being more seasoned, I refer them to the specific announcements that identify their query. I also suggest that they communicate with their student advisor, if they are having trouble accessing any information. In my mind, it forces the student to be accountable for their work and knowledge gathering.
Donna,
Don't you hate that!!! Have you thought about creating a scavenger hunt regarding your LMS for points to make them learn it? I know a few people who that and it works!
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
