Guest lecturers are an excellent way to break up the module and have free-flow Q & A.
Please don't discourage reading books
Comment on Patrick Lambelet's post: I agree entirely! Reading, and books are still important and students shold expect to read them! They might even find they enjoy it.
Synchronous and Asynchronous methods are effective only if the instructor understands the capabilities of the students. At all times, the instructor must be in communication with them in order to make the necessary adjustments to meet the students' needs. In addition, the use of additional materials such as books and/or targeted materials must meet the requirements of the course. A graduate level class needs more material than an undergrad or vocational class. Assigning entire chapters should not be surprising for higher level courses.
I've been conducting online or hybrid courses, in various forms, for some time, so much of this material is not new to me. I'm a bit surprised to see them say outright that assigning entire chapters or books is no longer necessary. I'm not sure I agree, especially when you're dealing with graduate-level learning. I do agree that the material needs to be carefully chosen and targeted, but why would we not assign chapters, assuming they are relevant, as well as other, supplementary materials? I'm curious what other people think.
Having elements of both Synchronous and Asynchronous interactions may improve the student learning experience.
We must create online courses to engage aou students with lectures, forums, internacional professors, videos, sincronyc and asincronyc clasess
Comment on Kevin Duden's post: I agree that it's always important to provide a "Why is it important for me?" sentence or two, so students can connect the content to real-world applications. I often found that the reading material in classes didn't always relate to what we were covering that week. Since I was taking online courses due to my already busy schedule, I didn't appreciate wasting my time when the reading didn't enhance my learning.
Sometimes, the students themselves crave a synchronous experience in an online setting. We have introduced three live lectures per semester (everything else is asynchronous) as one way to offer a synchronous experience for those craving such an experience.
I learned that the learning activities in a course need to be varied and that Socratic questioning is a good option to enforce the topic and assist students with learning the content. There are many activities that can be incorporated into an online course to effectively support student learning.
When it comes to readings, I thought it a very good point that it should be readily obvious to the student why the reading was assigned. In my Master's course, there were times I could not easily make a connection between the reading (or any media) and what was being discussed. It led to worry that I had missed something and frustration that it was possibly assigned as busy work.
I think engaging all different types of learners is beneficial for online classes. It keeps the students interested and looking forward to what the next assignment entails.
Hello everyone,
In this module, I learned the importance of designing online learning experiences that integrate both synchronous and asynchronous strategies, with clear structure, student-centered activities, and meaningful interactions. I will especially focus on reinforcing the use of guest speakers, as they add real-world value to the content and increase student engagement. I will continue applying these strategies to build more dynamic, inclusive, and effective learning environments.
Wishing you all great success in the next modules!
There are benefits to having a traditional instructor engaging in the classroom as student/instructor interaction is fluent. However, since the netplosion of the 1990s the internet has really taken a critical turn shaping our lives from everything we do in everyday life.
So hearing that these engagements now have labels it really started to sink in as to how beneficial it could be for me to exchange with my group of students on a daily basis.
While synchronous interactions involve a zoom meeting with everyone on board for example. Asynchronous is the standard email system where checking emails is critical for advancing in the course of the class syllabus.
Comment on Huda Shahab's post: Nice input and well stated example. I can liken it to my church group zoom meeting with many international attendees there on the chat.
There are many benefits to both synchrony and asynchrony courses. Student engagement is a key element to both course structures. The difference is the real-time application. Also, guest speakers in both course structures have a positive influence. It enforces the relevance of the subject matter and relates it to real life applications. Great way to increase student motivation and engagement.
Online learning is really good but students need more stimuli to keep them engaged in continual learning.
Online learning has advanced significantly, bridging the gap with traditional face-to-face environments. Today, students and instructors can connect, collaborate, and interact seamlessly, regardless of geographical distance or time constraints.
I have learned the difference of asynchronous and synchronous discussion. Synchronous discussion is a lively discussion being conducted during the class i.e the chat box where students ask questions or interact with the instructor. Synchronous discussion is those discussion questions that are posted by instructors for students to answer during the allowed period.
I have learned that the teaching-learning process has become more integral that one I had as student. Technological innovation has allowed students to have time, options, opportunities and novelties, at their own pace and responsability. Likewise, the combination of synchronous and asynchronous provides enormous advantages for training with more resources. Likewise, form me as a teacher, it invites me to be more creative in order to keep the students interest.
