In a successful learning environment, you must attempt to engage the student with numerous forms of media. Audio, Video, Print and interactive components. The more forms of media that you can include in your course, the better. Attempt to make your content understandable and accessible to all learners.
Reply to Patricia Weaver's post:Don't be intimidated by the platform Patricia. You are an expert in your area of study. You are just expanding your expertise to engage the student using technology.
Reply to Gina Barton's post: That is true. Support is imperative to have a successful learning environment. You need support from the faculty as well as it to make sure that the content is delivered seamlessly.
Structure and simplicity are vital for student success when using an online learning platform. If students become frustrated they may become disengaged.
Online course have a lot of similarities as classroom teaching. They both required structure to deliver the content. Proper structure is a key element to content delivery and understanding. There must be a detailed plan that will ensure targeted delivery of the content and a evaluation system that will help determine if students are gaining a complete understanding of the content and subject matter.
CMS: Course Management System is online educational/learning/teaching platform. The course structure includes modules and lessons. To be effective, teacher has to know more than their course content. They must know the goals of e-learning, course delivery strategies and techniques, and how to deliver instruction/content online. As a teacher I must understand that my students will get (easily) frustrated. Which is something I encounter often in my Google Classroom and Canvas. The is the need for both learning and technical support as these often alleviate many student frustrations. Another issue I often encounter is there will be a few who simply refuse (as they do synchronous) to do the assignments.
On-line teaching environment is very different from what I had envisioned. The structure of classes seams very similar but delivery methods and communication with students is very different. The on-line learning environment must be very well structured and easy to navigate if students are to learn from it.
Online learning takes time to prepare a quality resource. So many things to make sure are in place to provide and enhance student learning. I am taking this course because our school was "thrown" into remote learning due to the Covid-19 crisis. Having to create a fluid online class within 3 days without training is very intimidating. Hoping to gain insight from these modules.
As of now, I have learned that you must be very familiar with the online teaching techniques to fully be able to address any issues that students may have. I also learned that not all teachers will teach the same online. I feel if you are familiar with technology it will be easier for those instructors to be engaged with their students.
As an online instuctor, I have learned that I have mutliple ways of communicating with students. The most popular course structure is modules and lessons. Most courses will have at least one module.
I learned about the CMS framework and the basic layout and questions to ask for setting up how I need to present the content and material. I agree that a student will lean more in a comfortable environment with the knowledge that they will receive the support needed to succeed. I look forward to learn all I can to use online education.
I enjoyed learning all of the support that is available. This is areas that students struggle with sometimes and when you can provide more help with learning and technology it definitely helps student and instructors be more engaged in the course.
This platform propeled me to feel at ease to move beyond my comfort zone (teaching is a skill, and all skills require practice). A plethera of techniques and insight to use during these e-learning sessions such as (actively communicating, knowledgeable of materials presented, being computer literate reduces student anxieties).
The importance of understanding how the online format is setup. The responsibilities that the instructor has to ensure participation.
Reply to Carolyn Farrell's post:
Carolyn, I totally agree with you. Having the students take a crash course of the CMS before the start of a MOD may help with frustrations during their first week.
What I gained from the first part of this course is to make sure I know the course outline so I can better equip my students with any frustrations or problems they may have. Making sure that I am available to my students and that I engage with their online learning.
To ensure success with e-learning and eleviate frustration to the students, I as an instructor, need to become very familiar with the technology that we are going to be using to teach the students. There will always be variables when it comes to computer access, but knowing where to find the IT support and do it in a timely manner are extremely important. I am going to do my best to stay up to date on what I need to do, online, to give my students the best chance of learning all the material that they need to know.
I liked the question on: do all instructors use the same style to reach a common goal?
We all have different teaching styles, but there are items that should be consistent. For instance, a clear presentation, so that students are not getting frustrated. The trick is to be consistent. The students have enough challenges to face using online learning systems. It is not a new concept, but something we need to be reminded of.
It amazes me how many different ways a student can understand the question or activity. It is important to be clear.
Making sure you use multiple mediums to connect the student with the content. IE: video, readings, audio files, writing prompts, etc. will help ensure to engage all students and their learning styles.
