Nancy,
I agree that every learning environment must be understood by the students if they are to be successful: this includes course navigation and flow; learning objectives; available resources; teacher support; assignment expectations etc. This must be understood whether online or on ground. Sometimes, however, actual online tools may be unfamiliar as well to students and more time is needed to learn those.
Dr. Ruth Reynard
Nancy,
I believe that MOOCs are the first step in what is next - open and continuous connectivity and access to education :)
Dr. Ruth Reynard
Lindsey,
I totally agree - now with multitudes of information sources, critical awareness and analysis is more important that ever.
Dr. Ruth Reynard
I find that students need time to get used to the online environment. I have students in my online courses that haven't taken a course in over twenty years. They are anxious and concerned about the virtual classroom. I often receive many pre-session emails from them asking for help. I find that it's important to make sure all information is made available on navigating the course. In our online university we offer an introductory course to help these non-traditional oftentimes older students get acquainted with the learning management system.
The first time for everything is always a challenge!
The original "nomads" roamed or wandered an area in search of sustenance (food, shelter, water) for survival. In today's world, the new generation of nomads within the education context are those students who are not rooted in one particular locale or physical location (the classroom, an arena, an office) to learn. Today's students pick up information from wireless and mobile connections in a global learning environment. In this way, many inputs and outputs are available. The process of learning is different for each student and changes depending on their virtual "social space." Students can learn from another student halfway around the world by simply logging in to a Facebook page, a Wiki-room, a chat, or any number of virtual social media networking spaces.
Everything is always changing and education in the new technology-driven environment is no exception. I wonder what the future holds for students of the nomadic learning culture!
Yes, agreed. But the instructor still has the responsibility to give the students the foundations necessary to recognize good information from biased or false information of which there is an abundance on the internet. Critical thinking and foundational knowledge.
I am in full agreement that in students expectations for more virtual interactive multimedia rich classrooms. The students contributions greatly enhance the learning spaces 'customization' which expands not only their knowledge but that of other learners as well. The instructors role as a facilitator is to keep the content on track in order for the student to grasp the concepts being taught. Donna
Carlos,
Good points! So, the instructional design of your class should be flexible enough for directed work, independent work, group work, research, etc. etc. The more ways in which information is presented and processed, the more every student will be able to engage.
Dr. Ruth Reynard
It seems it would be a challenge to get everyone in class back on point if all were allowed to begin independent research across the board. In planning for integration of this concept I presume there would have to be a specific time frame. My added concern is the different capapbilities of students within a class of 25. Slower vs advanced in an accelerated course.
Martin,
Does that hinder or enhance their learning experience in your opinion?
Dr. Ruth Reynard
It all comes back to mobility. When nomads roamed the dessert, it's because they could! Students nowadays go into shock if you have them turn off (not silence) their phones or smart devices during instruction. Social media, the internet and learning have all morphed into nomadic behavior because we can truly be in more than one place at one time.
Amy,
I do agree with you and I think too many professors depend on Turnitin instead of getting to know the work of their own students.
Dr. Ruth Reynard
Drs. Naomi and Reynard,
Hm, yes, you have brought up an important point! Perhaps it would be a good idea for online learning environments to include information like this in their orientations so that students can better anticipate (and adapt) to this new learning style.
Also, I find that many online courses place too much focus on the similarity reports from Turnitin, for example setting minimum similarity scores for a paper to be accepted. In one course, a professor asked students to submit their reference list in a separate document in order to lower the possibility for this score to surpass an arbitrary minimum. The rigidity of this system, especially when parts of certain assignments necessitate quotations, bothers me for some reason. I wish our classes could function without assuming the possibility of plagiarism on the students' parts. However, I suppose given modern technology's abundant means to access information requires a basic level of suspicion and some system of authenticity verification.
Thanks,
Amy Phillips
Today's students are oftened referred to as "nomadic" learners because of their accessibility to technology, just about anytime and anyplace. Students want to have access to course materials when they have the time to access it. This may be 3 am or 10pm depending on the student's personal schedule.
However, depending on the age of the student may also impact the nomadic level. We have non-traditional students who have returned to school in pursuit of a new career and are not as engaged with the nomadic culture. However some of these non-traditional students are able to undestand the importance of the assignments that require them to search the web to broaden their knowledge base of the subject that is being covered.
They are called nomadic learners because they are not tied to any place for learning, communication, or information discovery.
I find that the traditional textbook format bores these "nomads" and try to let them do a good bit of discovery on their own. However, the challenge is to teach them how to evaluate the validity of sources... one student presented a painting of Van Gogh she found on the internet, which was actually a kind of poor master study by a student somewhere but was tagged as Van Gogh.
I'm actually trying to get away from using the textbook for art history, or for merely using it as ONE source for my "nomads."
Jorell,
Very true...so what changes should be made in instructional design to accomodate these expectations?
Dr. Ruth Reynard
Instructional delivery has definitely changed. We now have to design our classrooms around students on the go, who are access the class from various devices.
Nomads expect their learning to be just as flexible and easily accessible on the go as they are.
Jorell,
Very true...so what does this say about their expectations in learning? What does it also say about changes in design and delivery of instruction?
Dr. Ruth Reynard
Today's generation of learners are referred to as nomads because they are on the go and connected in several forms. Nomads are those who wander around from place to place. They generally have no rooted home. Today's learners are often the same in a virtual sense. They are not bound to traditional brick and mortar classrooms and can get connected anywhere.
Diana,
I wonder what else in terms of their mindset and expectations?
Dr. Ruth Reynard
