I have learned a little bit of the history of early online learning, and how it has evolve till today.
I am anxious to begin to apply the steps and characteristics to a successful online class when building my very own online class :)
I have been teaching online for more than 15 years, sooo I didn't actually learn anything new, but I do agree with all I've read this far. I have designed, built, and taught many online classes in multiple disciplines so I've already learned by experience and have put these principles into practice.
An online class requires much more pre-planning than an in-person class. Organization and active engagement are key. While an experienced teacher might be able to "wing it" on a given lesson, this can not be done online.
I think an important concept that was noted is that online student engagement increases along with interaction with other students.
I have enjoyed watching online learning develop over time. I believe the online world allows all students access to information in ways that are interactive and valuable. I also think the flexibility to engage with courses within one's own timeframe is a brilliant luxury that is of tremendous benefit to this generation and the world at large. No longer are students reliant on a specific instructor and his or her personal delivery of material. I believe the structure of online classes can get a bit repetitive, but is no worse than most face-to-face environments. I appreciate that the information itself is seen as the driver of learning and progress. That being said, there is no substitute for applying information to the world and synthesizing higher levels of understanding. The submission of video artifacts and portfolios clearly serves as a supplement to the traditional knowledge only courses and will elevate online learning to the next level. Field experiences, journaling, collaborating with peers within real world contexts is a logical extension to the factual foundation provided in many online courses.
Designing an online course requires the connectivity between the content and instructor to the student When there is buy - in from the student this increases the engagement. This could lead to contributions to the course which is important to teh growth of the student.
Ironically, I really enjoyed some of the other online course that I have taken because there is an audio option and I was more engaged when I could listen and read. It is intersting to me that a class about online learning doesn't have that option (or maybe it does and I just can't find it....)
Having structure in an online course is paramount to the success of the course. Through proper structure, a class is able to flow and optimize the learning potentials of the students.
My opinion of a clean, and organized course has pedogological value. Finding a way to make it dynamic is an important struggle.
Online learning is another tool to teach. I have found with the Lecture of the course that focuses on the major components of the Chapter prior to coming to class along with a pre-quiz on the content that was given. Allows the instructor to evaluate each student's strengths and weaknesses, it also informs the instructor in how they are grasping the information. It initiates class participation when doing the live streaming with the students and allows the instructor to focus on the weaknesses of the student individually while teaching a class as a whole. At the end end of the online lecture that the instructor gave a post quiz of the chapter allows gauging if the students are grasping the information.
I see some areas in my own planning that I can immediately remedy! Also, now in 2021 after a year of pandemic distance learning becoming a craze, I'd love to see how those statistics have changed!
Quality of the Education On line depends on the content and the way to interact with the media. The Platform is the key to engage the learner.
Structural Integrity is important when designing online courses
I agree that structural design is important for guiding students through a progression of concepts and to deliver concepts in small "digestible" partss befor moving to the next (connected) concept.
An online course can impede a student's ability to learn content if they are not able to easily locate or access information or content.
I also agree that students learn best when they can connect what they already know with what is being "newly" learned. Interacting with colleagues is not only a way to verify understanding but to also share out and gather new information that can augument what was learned. A win-win for all
Learning modules and subtopics within those modules helps structure and organize the instructor's lesson plan and overall class presentation so that the material flows smoothly.
Navigation simplicity and providing organized modules are very important.
This module outlined the 4 characteristics of quality online courses, including, structural integrity, navigational simplicity, active learner-centered learning, and intellectual interaction. It emphasized the need for online courses to be easy to navigate, engaging, learner-centered, and to provide opportunities for interaction, both with the instructor and other students, to promote effectivel learning.
I have learned that distance learning has evolved over time. That in order for a course to have strong learning outcomes it must be organized, engaging and focus on both the content and the student learner. Feeback and assessments for knowledge help to assess retention of information.
Really excited to put to practice what I've learned especially with have the students interacting with the material, website and other students for a better learning experience.
The basic integral structure of on line courses is basically a coherent relationship between modules, lessons and topics. Simplicity navigation means a friendly aproach to the basic content and skills of the course in wich to achieve education.
