gene ,
I love your post. You make a great points regarding what online can do! Yes you can learn online!
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
must always remember that basically the students & the teacher cannot see the body language, the silent language, that creates so much of the communication, engagement, etc., in our quest to understand each other. the online content is not an electronic book or lecture, but succinct modules orchestrated to stimulate discussion, search for more information, individually & in teams, etc., that lead to learning & even surpassing the 'learning outcomes' identified.
Jacqueline,
I agree with you. I call it chunking. You have to chunk your content in smaller chunks. You have to break it up and it can be done! Great post.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
1. You do not have a dynamic person keeping the lecture interesting if it turns out to be too long with online content. Online content should have more visual aids and be shorter to prevent losing student attention.
2. Online content has to be stated clearly. Face to face content is given in an environment that supports immediate questions to prevent confusion. If there are not good examples and clear language, students can get lost quicker in online content.
Perry ,
That is a great way to engage students with you and with others. We sometimes become fixated with communication between the student and the instructor that we forget about the interactions among the students. Good post.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Perry ,
Great post! You are right, it may be more about design than delivery.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Sabrina,
This is such a great post. I think you are right. Our LMS is really beginning to look more like a social network site now. I guess we know where this is going. . .
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Greetings!
I like to use the Socratic method to help encourage students to pos substantial contributions in discussions online. I do send emails or announcements or friendly reminders as slight tools to be of help at times with general course activity, but largely, I like to use questions to help facilitate discussions so that students are interested.
If students are interested, they can become involved positively in the course.
Sincerely, Perry Spann
Greetings!
Course content created for a face-to-face course may not be appropriate for an online course because, reasonably, an online course is based on the use of technological support, primarily, to communicate curriculum.
The instructor is to be the primary source of data in a face-to-face course, but the same may not apply in an online class since online classes are facilitated by instructors. Modules or tools help facilitate the information in place of intermediate interaction that could be present in a traditional course setting in online classes.
Sincerely, Perry Spann
Generation X & Y and Millenials are offsprings of a digital birth, a fast-paced childhood, and a solitary existence strive to utilize its skills and creativity to control their environments. The solitary nature of life is both increased and decreased with each computer link. The known world has become closer through the technological linkage.
Students are drawn in by the sights and sounds of the AIU Online classroom. The layout is slick, professional and visually stimulating. Do your announcements, chats, and emails fit in? Online students are most likely heavy internet and computer users and their visual tastes have been molded by the activity. Creating announcements that look and sound like webpages is appealing to students.
Eman,
You are right, design is just as important as content. The technology is part of the design. Good post!
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
An online course is different from a face-to-face course. It needs to be well-organized and easy to navigate. The course content needs to be suitable for online delivery whether it is synchronous or asynchronous. Emerging technologies need to be integrated. These technology tools enable an effective facilitation between students and the instructor.
Richard,
What a great post. I agree with you, we define online by f2f paradigm. They are different deliveries. You are right, the evolutionary advances in the online environment will continue. . . to improve both f2f and online teaching and learning.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Normally we tend to think of the differences between synchronous and asynchronous methods of teaching and learning, as dependent upon symptomatic factors defined by a face-to-face learning experience vs. an online learning experience. The obvious differences is that online we lose the sense of subtleties of body language, facial expressions and also verbal cues such as humor.
However, as an experienced online instructor I offer that this paradigm is shifting with the advent of improved telecommunications software (such as Adobe Acrobat Connect, for example) where not only audio is present but also live streaming visual.
While this is still in the evolutionary stages of development, I can easily predict that it will improve to a point where both instructor and student shall be able to clearly see and hear their instructor without misunderstanding, and further, I foresee where instructors will also see and hear their students as well. It's not a far reach of the imagination given the amazing advancements in the personal computer since the introduction of the Apple II personal computer in 1977.
Elizabeth,
So, do you think it is the content or the method of distributing the content?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Hello,
Course content for face to face learning is inappropriate for an online course because online learning is a non tradition form of learning.
Being in an online learning environments removes the boundaries of time and location. A student can no longer raise your hand or pick up on the tones in your teacher's voice; therefore, you must use a learning method that is conducive to the way a student is receiving the information that a instructor is trying to give.
Liz
Kurt,
I actually agree with you. I think we can provide a rich engaging experience with most any content online. It is not about accommodation, it is about assimilation.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I actually disagree with the premise that face-to-face course content cannot be appropriate for an online course. With the delivery methods available today for synchronous communication, I can create a very "classroom" like environment in which I can use a whiteboard, presentations, audio, and video to offer the students a rich enviornment. On the other hand, it is often true that face-to-face designed course content often does not consider online student needs and falls short of the objectives established for the online environment.
Kurt
Diane,
I agree with you! I think you have to find what you can use in the online environment. Don't forget that sometimes the "stuff" you use in the online environment may work in the f2f . . .
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Course content for F2F often includes leads for discussion, that would not work when not actively involved at the same time. Some course content in F2F would adapt well to on-line. I think it is important to consider the content and the learning objectives then make any necessary adjustments. If the course objectives are the same, and the content can be adapted, why reinvent the wheel. I already have more to do in a day than I can usually complete, so I use what is available when I can.
